How do you motivate yourself to log on to my fitness pal

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Replies

  • lovelyrose11
    lovelyrose11 Posts: 609 Member
    I'm a stay at home mom and I am taking this time to focus on my health..and the little one of course! I take 2 hours walks in the morning. I put the baby in the stroller and we hit the pavement. He loves being outside and I love getting out of the house and getting a great burn in. On his nap I will do a workout tape. This keeps me from eating all day. Also, he keeps me very active! In addition, I have got a great group of friends on here and sometimes I log in just to support them and then I find motivation for myself.
  • juicemoogan
    juicemoogan Posts: 994 Member
    I thought it would be really hard to stay on track and keep my eating in check.. but because i really want to do this, it hasn't been hard at all.. and i haven't had any horrible cheat days because of any wacky cravings or irresistible urges.. If i want an extra snack, thanks to MFP i know i have to earn it to keep my diary balanced. and I've done a pretty good job i think.. i log on at work and at home, any time i eat or exercise.. and even sometimes when i dont.. try to connect with some friends on here and that can help you stay motivated..

    But you do have to really want it for this to work.. its not just another magic pill.. it requires effort and dedication.

    Good luck!
  • MrsKosal
    MrsKosal Posts: 415 Member
    I just make it a normal part of my routine. First thing I do when I get to work after clocking in, is getting on here. I've just made it a habit like anything else.
  • reddi2roll
    reddi2roll Posts: 356 Member
    Track your food before you eat it, then you wont be so surprised that it's so high cal & you wont feel so down & UN-motivated.

    This. Track it B4
  • iron_jj
    iron_jj Posts: 446 Member
    Plan your meals, log your intake before you eat, it helps me stay on track.
    But most of all, make it a habit!
  • psiren28
    psiren28 Posts: 530 Member
    Next time you get the urge to eat something that's not a meal or part of your plan, log on here first, read some posts, look a some success stories. You'll probably go off the idea of another snack.
    I can relate to boredom eating, I'm terrible if I'm off all day but the key is filling the time with something else. As soon as the urge hits, find something else to do. If you log on here instead you've killed 2 birds with one stone, you've avoided boredom eating AND you've logged on
    Good luck x
  • Femtec74
    Femtec74 Posts: 347 Member
    Track your food before you eat it, then you wont be so surprised that it's so high cal & you wont feel so down & UN-motivated.

    This! At least for a while until you start getting the hang of what you're eating. Try putting a big note on the fridge or the pantry "Have I logged this in yet?" If you find something that is too many calories - throw it away or have a loved one hide it from you - that's what I do. Get it out of your sight until you have the willpower to refuse it. You'll get there and you'll feel great about it.
  • fittiephd
    fittiephd Posts: 608 Member
    I LOVE logging onto MFP :) I look forward to seeing what people have to say and how everyone's days are going. I also enjoy planning my days meals because it makes it so I don't have to think about them later. I check back at the end of the day to see that I followed the plan.

    I work from home as well so since I spend the whole day on the computer coding, I keep MFP open (along with my email and calendar and facebook). So it's easy to log on and check in throughout the day.

    Good luck!!
  • wisebadger53
    wisebadger53 Posts: 382 Member
    The smartphone app definitely makes it easier for me. Also my food diary is saved in my Favorites on my home and work computers, so it's just a click away. It has been a real eye opener for me, and I have been able to make dramatic changes in my diet and exercise by using it faithfully.

    That being said, it is a personal decision to do it. If you want it for yourself you will do it - otherwise you will find every excuse not to.

    I hope you find it wihtin yourself to do this. Good luck!
  • hiker282
    hiker282 Posts: 983 Member
    What? People log their food here? I thought it was a social media site to seek out others who are also looking for a good time. Wow, I must have missed something when I signed in because of all the people wearing so little and posting (almost) naked pictures of themselves.

    In all seriousness, be active on MFP and interact with others and logging is a piece of cake. You'll find yourself drawn here so often to see what's going on in awesome people's lives and to share your own journey with them. Make friends, be involved on the forums and life is awesome! Logging your food and exercise is second to the support network you can build here.
  • Femtec74
    Femtec74 Posts: 347 Member
    Also - you did a great job of writing your goals in your profile. Try posting them up so you can read them frequently for that extra encouragement.
  • ohsweetcalamity
    ohsweetcalamity Posts: 78 Member
    Also- think of your calories as a bank account. If you spend a bunch on breakfast, you'll be too poor for dinner. Of course, this mentality works better if you're used to being broke and always thinking about your bank account. Like me. Lol.
  • LadyBuell
    LadyBuell Posts: 164
    I use the app on my phone except when I am at work. I don't like to fire up the old PC when I get home because I have spent all day on one at work. So for me the app is great. Plus it is WITH me and I don't have to go wherever the pc is. This makes it easy to log food from a restaurant, or to build the recipes in my kitchen as I am making them. I like to log before I eat like a lot of other people have said. That way I can tell where I am going to be calorie wise and if I am going over I can opt to not eat something I thought about eating and stay under my count.
  • jackpotclown
    jackpotclown Posts: 3,275 Member
    Sometimes I have a morning pep talk, basically coach myself over the finer points...you gotta warm up and stretch before you go full force.....type, click, add, it's rough but somehow you just gotta make it happen

    actually as you get into this more and develop friendships, common ground, better habits, etc, you won't give it a second thought, someday you'll actually say how do I get myself to stop logging in here so much \m/
  • Faye_Anderson
    Faye_Anderson Posts: 1,495 Member
    I'm really nosy so I log on to see what everyone else is doing. I plan my food diary up to 72 hours in advance so there are no nasty surprises. I started slow and made changes by getting ideas from my friends diaries.
    Lot's of people have already said you have to WANT to do it, I've been here for 114 days and lost some of my MFP friends who weren't motivated and that's a shame, but I have an excellent support network here and I help anyone who wants my help :smile:
  • Skinny100
    Skinny100 Posts: 77
    Wow, such great tips!

    I have made a goal to log on and record my food diary every single day for 30 days. I will try to keep everyone posted on how I did at the end of 30 days.

    Thank you soooo much! :):):)

    I'm going to plan my dinner and log it right now so I can be more aware of what I'm eating! Yay! I feel healthier already :)
  • yoovie
    yoovie Posts: 17,121 Member
    I hold my finger steadily over the app button and then jabjabjab it til it freezes my phone :smile::

    no actually- it helps keep me going if I can build up a long streak ofdoing something consistently- cause I kno, for me, thats the only way to make progress is to DO EVERY DAY.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
    Do you want to make a change in your life? Yes?!....then log on everyday and log every meal!!! Use the success stories on the forums and blogs to keep you motivated and inspired. Acquire a upbeat group of MFP friends to keep you motivated and inspired. It totally sucks that you lost your job but use your time at home to your advantage.....you will be able to fit a work out in everyday! Starting right now you can be burning off those 900 calories from breakfast. How bad to you want it!
  • BrettPGH
    BrettPGH Posts: 4,716 Member
    Now if some of you could tell me how to motivate myself to log OFF my fitness pal I might get some damn work done around here...
  • LadyBuell
    LadyBuell Posts: 164
    Now if some of you could tell me how to motivate myself to log OFF my fitness pal I might get some damn work done around here...
    :bigsmile:
    My problem EXACTLY.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,023 Member
    Hi All,

    I'm failing horribly at my goals. How do you motivate yourself to keep a food diary on myfitnesspal? I don't have a job right now and I feel like all I do is sit home and eat. I just logged my breakfast and snack for today and it's a whopping 900 calories. I had no idea I was eating this much.
    Do you have any tips on what I can do to motivate myself to log on and keep my food diary every day?? Help!!
    Motivation comes from within. Unless you want it first, nothing anyone else will say or do will motivate you enough. At this point, it's not that important to you or you'd really do it.



    A.C.E. Certified Personal Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • Stacyanne324
    Stacyanne324 Posts: 780 Member
    At first it was a struggle but now it's almost an addiction. I tried to take the weekend off from logging and couldn't do it. I'll still take a day off if I'm staying with family or something and really don't want to be tied to my phone but on normal days I love logging. And I've found it's made staying in my calories so much easier to plan ahead. Good luck!
  • opal24
    opal24 Posts: 205 Member
    Now if some of you could tell me how to motivate myself to log OFF my fitness pal I might get some damn work done around here...
    :bigsmile:
    My problem EXACTLY.

    And mine! :laugh:
  • enigmatic319
    enigmatic319 Posts: 7
    I realised that I like spending time on the computer, more than I did exercising, So, now I found this site, there's no more excuses - it's really that simple. You have to want to.
  • brittanylock09
    brittanylock09 Posts: 194 Member
    Now if some of you could tell me how to motivate myself to log OFF my fitness pal I might get some damn work done around here...
    :bigsmile:
    My problem EXACTLY.

    And mine! :laugh:

    mine too!!!
  • FORIANN
    FORIANN Posts: 273 Member
    OCD.
  • aheartbeatsos
    aheartbeatsos Posts: 87
    It's not really a matter of motivation anymore, it's now just a part of my daily routine :)
    I have the MFP app on my phone so it makes tracking calories and exercise on the go easy.
    I also find that keeping connected to the forums really helps - reading success stories as well as seeing what other people are struggling with and/or achieving.
    Although some prefer the weekly weigh in, I'm the kind of person who weighs in once a day.
    This keeps me focused on losing weight as well as encourages me to eat properly :) If the number goes up I review the past days journal to see if I over ate or didn't meet my exercise goals. I don't punish myself, but I do acknowledge that I may have been hungrier than usual or was too tired to work out as hard as normal.
    Although I always keep in mind that it may just be water weight!
  • LegendDairy
    LegendDairy Posts: 3
    I just read all of the responses because I have a hard time getting motivated also. This eating healthy thing kinda sucks. (smiles). I think I may need some more MFP friends. Study's do show that loosing weight and learning to eat healthy is always done better with friends!!! Feel Free to add me!
  • Femtec74
    Femtec74 Posts: 347 Member
    Now if some of you could tell me how to motivate myself to log OFF my fitness pal I might get some damn work done around here...

    HAHA! I know, right?
  • Newf77
    Newf77 Posts: 802 Member
    You make it part of your routine, you stated you were currently vocationally displaced. You plan your day to include everyday between ## and ## you will do some physical activity. Between ## and ## you will catch your MFP log up to date. I use the Smartphone app and log as I go so that I am not playing catch-up at the end of the day, not everyone has the capability.
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