I need some encouragement!

When I started using this site I was very serious about it. I logged everyday and by feeling accountable to it, I was able to maintain healthy eating and excercise. It took only one day to throw me "off the wagon". I ate out at Smitty's Restaurant and from that day it's been all down hill. I keep telling myself "Tomorrow" will be a better day but that better day hasn't come. Today was the first time I've logged in in weeks and I really need some encouragement to boost me back up again. If you have some encouragin words, advice or tips, please send them my way. I need to get back on track. Thanks :)

Replies

  • H!

    I am new on this...I just got engaged and I am trying to lose some weight...I know its hard..I am in the same boat. I am not overweight by any means but I have real fat areas that I hate...I guess i would say that we are all in this together..It's hard being a girl lol...What are you looking to work on? I have so many ideas a tips that i can share...I have tried a lot of things. Last year I lost 16 lbs before a cruise and I had gained it all back over this past winter..I am excited to try this and i think that logging everything will really help me!
  • hillbillyannie
    hillbillyannie Posts: 139 Member
    My biggest problem is the monthly church dinners and eating out after church on Sundays. I have to be cautious about staying away from potatoes and pasta but most of my calories come from fried chicken so I limit myself to only one piece and no other starches only lots of veggies. At the church dinners I only get a spoonful of items I know are high in calories, salt and oil. Then I eat very light that night to not go over my intake limits. Above everything else I'm honest in listing my calories. If it goes in my mouth it goes on the list and I try to measure or weigh stuff. Good luck.
  • pinkminy
    pinkminy Posts: 286
    Hi , the good thing is you know where you want to be,
    so you had a hiccup well drink a glass of water count to 10 and go again,
    its better to re try several times than to give up.
    You are already a good way there simply by putting this post on here ,
    Log in every day even its not been a good day......we all have bad days every so often.
    Everyone on here have goals and dreams , You focus on yours and I'm sure you will get there,
    I will be happy to be a support friend if you want.
  • limesublime
    limesublime Posts: 118 Member
    I'm experiencing a mini-version of what you're going through (fell off the wagon this weekend, I've been tracking in the AM then getting lazy by the PM and overeating). Don't know if it will work for you, but this is what I'm doing to combat my negative mood/lack of motivation:

    I'm trying to be patient with myself - ANY effort is better than none. The task of living healthy seems less overwhelming when taken in little bits - give yourself credit for logging in and for reaching out for support. Then take it one step farther and just track without worrying about calories, then ease into tracking AND hitting your calorie goals.

    I went probably 400 calories over my goal yesterday, but if I wasn't trying to watch what I eat I would have likely gone over much more (like 1,500 calories more!). There is still room for improvement, but avoiding those 1,100 calories is awesome! I want to meet my goal quickly, but I have a feeling that patiently chipping away at it is more effective.

    In any case, I feel ya! Hang in there!
  • alt1268
    alt1268 Posts: 159 Member
    It is hard when you fall off the wagon to sometimes get back on. I fell off this weekend. But got right back on yesterday. Started exercising and eating right again. You have taken the first step and admitted that you fell off the wagon. Obviously you are ready to move on. So pick up the pieces and get back on the horse. We are here to support you in both success and failures we all have bad days. :happy:
  • Phorjays
    Phorjays Posts: 1 Member
    I know how hard it is. I have always said "tomorrow". Last fall, shortly after my 50th birthday, my doctor told me that if I didn't make some serious changes in my life, when I saw him this spring he would put me on diabetes medicine. It scared me at first, then I relaxed and just said "tomorrow". At Christmas I was having difficulty getting up and down on the floor to play with my grandson. I realized tomorrow was here. On January 4th I started using myfitnesspal and runkeeper. Runkeeper is a tracking app that monitors walking, running, etc. It gives you time and distance traveled, pace, calories burned, etc. It has really helped me. I lost a lot of weight in the first month. It seemed the second month was almost entirely a plateau, yet I kept on. I have been very honest with what I eat and my exercise. I know that no one would know if I snuck a cookie or walked 1 mile instead of 4, except me. I have gone out to eat, but I make smarter choices. I try Applebees 550 menu, and IHOP has a simple and fit menu. I eat grilled instead of fried. There have even been a couple of times where I just say what the hell, it is just one meal. EVERY time I have done this, as long as I get back on the wagon starting with the next meal, the scale has NOT MOVED UP!! Losing weight is hard, and gets harder as we get older. But the benefits far outweigh (lol, no pun intended) the "sacrifices". Good luck, and let me know if this helps at all.

    BTW, I got on the scale before I logged on, and to date I am down 49.2 lbs.
  • Flixie00
    Flixie00 Posts: 1,195 Member
    This is what I used to do, start a diet, stick at it for 2-3 months, and then fall off the wagon. I have been on MFP since last summer and I am doing pretty darn well, but I have had days where I have not logged and eaten loads, whether planned or accidental. Any time an unplanned day happens now, I remind myself that it is just one day and I just go back to logging.

    All I can suggest is what seems to keep me on the straight and narrow as follows:
    * Get a group of MFP friends, most people on MFP are very supportive and I know that if I fall off the wagon they will push me to carry on
    * Join a gym, go to classes and if you can afford it, pay for a personal trainer. The pattern of exercising and being expected to turn up at a set time to work out helps. I get twitchy now if I go 2 days without working out.
    * Set little goals whether exercise, fitting into old clothes etc. Its a great spur when you achieve a goal.
    * Treat yourself often, build chocolate, ice cream or whatever floats your boat into your diary

    Only you can do this for yourself, it you stop you will go backwards, whereas now you have just stalled.

    I wish you luck in your journey and you are welcome to add me as a friend.
  • joanrosey
    joanrosey Posts: 2 Member
    Get your food planned for the entire day and Enter it in the day b/f or the day of. Then you know What to eat and when to eat it. You can do it. :) Amp up your protein! Eat 5 times a day Breakfast /snack/lunch/snack/Dinner.

    Go You!:happy:
  • Thanks Everyone - you have all done just what I needed...encouraged me to keep going. My goal is to lose 45 lbs. I am currently seeing a dietitian and just purchased a Wii and Wii fit board to keep myself active on the days when I can`t get outside to walk or run. If any of you are interested, add me as a friend. The more support we have, the better! Thanks again to all of you and best of luck in your weight-loss adventure :)
  • christyd4
    christyd4 Posts: 191
    You did the first thing right by logging back in and asking for help. Sometimes that is the hardest part. I think majority of us here can totally relate to falling off the wagon!! You can do this!
  • gayletgreat
    gayletgreat Posts: 8 Member
    Hi Stephanie,
    I won't be able to write much at the moment but I identified with you in that we get to a bump in our life's journey and it seems to throw us WAY off course! What I want to say is that it happens...falling off the wagon happens to many of us. We are human. Forgive yourself. Reach out and talk to a friend about what is troubling you. Be gentle with yourself and believe( or 'act as if you do' ) that these experiences help us learn how to take care of ourselves. I was doing REALLY well up til last September and then a romance went sour and then I thought my mom was going to die. Stuff was happening and I needed food to help me cope. I've been holding on and working at taking care of myself( sometimes rather poorly) and I finally had a good feeling day yesterday.
    I want to keep that going. So I'm reaching out and talking to people on this site hoping for more good feel days.
  • Hi Stephanie,

    We all fall down once in a while, we all get up and keep going. I do not know why, when we diet, we feel like we cannot get back on track.

    I think we only need to give ourselves permission to be falable and to keep our vision forward and continue on!

    Personally I look forward to: Better health, Feeling well, Participating in activities, Finding love, Confidence, and Smiling. I will always keep these few things in mind and I will get back on track every time I stray.

    I know you can too, you have all of your life!

    Mike
  • Hey Steph =)

    I had the same thing happen last week! I ate at Boston Pizza and that was so good I couldn't help but want more junky food. I craved icecream and chips and more fatty restaurant food.. I gained 2 pounds back, which I found out yesterday. I got really discouraged, so now I'm more determined then ever! We're allowed to have a treat once in a while don't forget. Remember, I'm always here to help! <3

    Kelsey!
  • BigAlfrn
    BigAlfrn Posts: 173 Member
    just keep moving. dont worry about what you didnt do instead focus on what you are going to do and then execute.
  • CBMom01
    CBMom01 Posts: 1
    It happens to everyone. You just have to tell yourself that making choices that feel good today are no less right or good just because you had a tough week. What you did yesterday does not lessen the benefit of what you are doing today. For lots of us it makes sense to take a very "one day at a time" approach.
  • Roxie2b
    Roxie2b Posts: 6 Member
    I think the main thought to keep in mind is the weight did not come in a day and nor will it be diminished in one day. We will have days that are up and down but we have to take our struggles in stride. If you put encouraging notes in the places that serve as your weaker points it will help over a period of time. If you read them. Also, when you go out, you shouldn't have to deprive yourself just be aware. Try to make healthier choices and if you know that day that the calories are off the chart then go really light at dinner and incorporate more exercise that day. You won't stick with a plan that is not realistic. Everyone wants to enjoy life but the best part of life is doing something good for your body. You are special and every bite that you put into your mouth should be special and not just empty calories that does not serve a purpose for your body. I know you can do it. Hope to see you back on track. Remember one bite at a time.
  • You guys are great! Thanks so much for the encouragement!
  • lkcuts
    lkcuts Posts: 224
    You know there are days I say "Its not fair I can't eat like other people that can and not gain weight" I just had to accept that was not how I was made. Lets face it... we are eataholics.We love all food. I think over weight people make the best chefs. They can "taste" it before its made. Just the smell of food makes us hungry . we wake up thinking about it and go to bed thinking about it. Its our solaice,our companion and friend that makes us feel better when we are down. I am thinking part of it is our lifestyle. I have seen thin, active people do skydiving, skiing,bungie jumping,climbing hills and rocks and NO WAY am I good at any of that stuff nor have any desire to do it.
    Society over the years have polked fun, rejected and down graded over weight people as lazy, uncommitted, with no goal in life but to be fat and lazy.
    I say to them, put down that milkshake you can drink every day and try doing what we have to do to be thin like society says we should and walk in our steps we go through and will HAVE to go through until we die.. we have proven over and over we can be committed, by going through the grueling things we do to ourselves to lose it.
    I have come to the conclusion we fall, but get back up because thats the kind of person we are..strong.
    We don't fail, we just learn from it and get better.
    The biggest thing we need to focus on is our health. The weight will catch up with us in the long run I know it has me. Yeah I will never be a bikini size, but focus on what weight do I FEEL better at or comfortable with,health wise and body wise. My best weight where I felt good was still concidered over weight by some peoples eyes. (Again society's view as to what is fat or not fat) I am big boned and never will be that petite little 5'4 person but I can be where I feel good about myself.
    Some people will still think we're not good enough and thats useally because they have an issue with themselves and try to convince others they don't by focusing on belittleing someone else.
    Focus on what you do well and love and do it. Let your personality shine and realize you are not doing this for anyone else but YOU. Don't punish yourself cause you went off..lift your mood and emotions that got you started to do something about your weight in the first place. what ever that goal was,,,re focus do it again.. thats what we do best is fight the good cause, Show those people we are not lazy or uncommitted we CAN reach goals. We feel SO much better about ourselves and love the praise we get for doing it!!! WE CAN DO IT!!!!