I can't keep motivated!

The first week is the hardest because you have to change your old habits, but as long as you stick with it, you learn different foods and you find you can survive and be happy too, I promise you it gets easier as long as you stay with it. Don;t get discouraged because then you will just stay the way you are and if you are here then you obviously aren't happy, but you have to find your willpower. Don't convince yourself that you are happy if you really aren't. and no one can change you but you so promise yourself you wont give up and you will see good changes that just snowball into great changes!

The first couple of weeks will be the hardest for you. Slowly but surely the cravings will start to go away, make changes to your diet slowly (mine took about 2 months to weed out all the garbage) - if you cold turkey everything you will rebound.

Also, carbs are not bad for you, nor is fat. You need to have a balance of your macronutrients - protein, carbs, and fats. Your body is cruel in that if you carb cut too much, it will hold onto them for dear life the next chance it gets.

My macro split is 35% protein, 40% , 25% fats. What this means is that 40% of my daily calories come from fat.

1g protein = 4 calories
1g carbs = 4 calories
1g fat = 9 calories

Use your weight, age, your activity level and figure out your bmr (you can do it here on this site).

Also, I would suggest 6 meals a day. the usual breakfast, lunch, dinner, with a 'snack' in between. In general you should be eating something every 2-3 hours. Take your calories, divide by the number of meals you eat per day to figure out how much protein, carbs, and fats you should aim for in a particular meal.

Drink tons of water, cut down and eventually out salt as much as possible. Pay attention to Sodium content in pre-packed and especially canned foods, is ridiculously high.

Keep in mind that 1lb of fat is equal to 3500 calories. That is why they say you should aim for a caloric deficit of 500 calories below your maintenance level to lose 1 lb each week. Healthy weight loss is 1-2 lbs.

All that said once you start seeing some results - it will motivate you more and more and you'll be a champ.

Remember, losing weight is more about getting a good clean diet than it is exercise. Yes you want the exercise but you can workout like mad and it won't matter if you don't have your diet in check.

Also avod 'white/simple' carbs. Veggies, whole grains, brown rice is the way to go. Clean proteins (salmon, talapia, chicken breast (no skin), and good fats (unsaturated) - omega 3's, flax, fish oil.

You will love the new you.... take it from a guy who was really fat and now has his goal only months away.

The first couple of weeks will be the hardest for you. Slowly but surely the cravings will start to go away, make changes to your diet slowly (mine took about 2 months to weed out all the garbage) - if you cold turkey everything you will rebound.

Also, carbs are not bad for you, nor is fat. You need to have a balance of your macronutrients - protein, carbs, and fats. Your body is cruel in that if you carb cut too much, it will hold onto them for dear life the next chance it gets.

My macro split is 35% protein, 40% , 25% fats. What this means is that 40% of my daily calories come from fat.

1g protein = 4 calories
1g carbs = 4 calories
1g fat = 9 calories

Use your weight, age, your activity level and figure out your bmr (you can do it here on this site).

Also, I would suggest 6 meals a day. the usual breakfast, lunch, dinner, with a 'snack' in between. In general you should be eating something every 2-3 hours. Take your calories, divide by the number of meals you eat per day to figure out how much protein, carbs, and fats you should aim for in a particular meal.

Drink tons of water, cut down and eventually out salt as much as possible. Pay attention to Sodium content in pre-packed and especially canned foods, is ridiculously high.

Keep in mind that 1lb of fat is equal to 3500 calories. That is why they say you should aim for a caloric deficit of 500 calories below your maintenance level to lose 1 lb each week. Healthy weight loss is 1-2 lbs.

All that said once you start seeing some results - it will motivate you more and more and you'll be a champ.

Remember, losing weight is more about getting a good clean diet than it is exercise. Yes you want the exercise but you can workout like mad and it won't matter if you don't have your diet in check.

Also avod 'white/simple' carbs. Veggies, whole grains, brown rice is the way to go. Clean proteins (salmon, talapia, chicken breast (no skin), and good fats (unsaturated) - omega 3's, flax, fish oil.

You will love the new you.... take it from a guy who was really fat and now has his goal only months away.

Awesome post! Lots of good tips.

Op, you might start with little changes because doing too many changes at once can be overwhelming. Maybe just start out by committing to exercise 3x/week for 30 minutes. That's it. Once that becomes your routine, you can add more or you can then cut down your calories a bit but don't go for huge changes in the types of food you eat. Once you get used to eating a bit less, then you might try changing to healthier choices. You can even take this in baby steps by maybe deciding to eat more vegetables. Once you get used to that, you can work on other macros. Don't start out trying to chug all your water, maybe just go for one glass at each meal at first.

This isn't a race. There's nothing wrong with taking it one step at a time. And once you've done just one thing, and personally, I would start with the exercising, and start to see good results form that, I guarantee you that you'll be anxious to do more because you'll start realizing how much better you feel.

Oh, don't cut your calories too low and allow yourself some splurges. It's about a lifestyle change, not deprivation. And don't even weigh for awhile. Focus on getting more fit and improving your eating. Those are the things you can control. You can't control the scale. But the scale will eventually cooperate once you get the other pieces in place.

Best wishes!

Motivation has to come from within. You REALLY have to want this or else you'll find every excuse not to do it. Write down on paper a pros and cons list. Write everything down on both sides that apply or that you think of. If you cons side is more dominant, then this may be part of the reason you can't stay motivated.

This! The only time I was successful at anything, the motivation came from within. Outside motivation is fleeting. I can't motivate you. No-one can. If you want it bad enough, you'll do it. If you don't stick with it, it would seem you didn't want it bad enough.

The first few days for me where the hardest ever, I got a few bad headaches and when I felt hungry (which you do in the first few days) I went for a bit of a lie down.

You've got to take one day at a time, and realise this isn't a diet, this is just changing your lifestyle for a better, healthier you! If you want to lose weight and maintain the loss you're going to have to keep up the new healthy lifestyle - not a diet for life!

Try and push through a day at a time, and the next day will become easier, then soon you'll start seeing results and that will serve as motivation.

Nothing makes me happier than seeing the numbers on the scale go down - and every time I want to binge I think about that!

AGREE with ninerbuff!!!! I have always said that your biggest motivator is yourself!! You have to want it and if you want it bad enough you will make it happen. I know this sounds too simple to be true but it is.