I can't do this again

You had the strength to start in the first place which is the hardest thing to do IMO.

I lost 10 pounds last year after August and gained 11 after Christmas, New Years, Valentine's Day. I wanted to give up but then I remembered all the reasons I started. I took it really slow in March and gradually eliminated my problem foods when, by late April, I could go without them because I found healthier alternatives. Going at my own pace and keeping my own goals in mind led to a 9 pounds loss in that time frame and I'm just getting started.

You can do this! It will be really hard and you may have to mess up a few more times to know what is best for you. It's frustrating but it's when we make mistakes that we really learn how to move forward. I don't think I would have pushed my fitness level so hard if I didn't make those big mistakes. It will work out as long as you don't give up.

Today is day one!

Don't let the scale dictate your success or failure. I only weigh myself once every three weeks. It sounds really dumb but when I weigh myself more often, I let get discouraged by what the scale says. Then go on a four or five day bender and eat anything I can find, feel guilty then eat more because well I have ruined my progress might as well have more whatever it is that I am craving at that time. The most important thing to realize that this is a way of life sometimes you are going to want to have the cake, ice-cream or chinese food, other days you will want to stay in check because it is better for you. I feel better when I eat healthier, i have more energy.

I have been trying to weigh my success in things that I can do, such as being able to hike 2 hours and it is a rigorous hike, recover quicker after I do some cardio or be satisfied with less. I also make drinking the water a challenge everyday as well to try to drink even an ounce more. Measurements are key as well.... sometimes the scale is not a fair representation of what I have done and will continue to achieve. These are that things that I measure not just the numbers on the scale.


You can do this, I have faith in you. So you screwed up yesterday or the day before.... start today and look forward to tomorrow. I like logging the exercise calories - that is my drug of choice now it is not how many pounds or ounces I am down. Now that I have taken that stress off myself I am making gains.

And if you have a day that you are over there is always tomorrow - as long as that is the day that you keep in check. I know in my heart that you can do this, it is not an easy battle for any of us. Take strength from others on here like me who struggle every day to try to eat well and exercise. I still hate running, but I have found something that I love to do(hiking), I crave it and constantly challenge myself to do more. It will come off don't get caught in the numbers on the scale, that is discouraging.

Hang in there, I now know that if I cheat I can but I have to make up the calories somewhere! You can do this!!!!!

No such word is cant...;-) I know you can/ "we can":flowerforyou:

Fail at what? This is life not a contest or game. If you had not lost you would be even heavier just smile at what an awesome job you have done and keep moving forward.

I have failed more times than I care to count. But I'm doing it now, and you can do it too.

For me, the key was to only do what I can handle from now until the end of my life. That means no exercising 5, 6, 7 days a week. I settled for every-other-day, and even that I am not strict with. I also started at only doing 10 minutes of exercise per session, because I was so fat that I couldn't even handle more than that. But I ramped it up to my target now of around an hour per session, and I did so rather quickly - it's amazing how the body improves so fast when you're trying to. And finally, I didn't even track or pay attention to my food at first. I kept eating exactly how I had been. But exercise gave me time to peer inside my mind, and I realized that all the work I was doing would be undone if I didn't at least try to eat better. So I came to it naturally, and from there, I gradually started making better choices, moved away from much sodium-laden, high-calorie processed foods and more towards cooking my own meals and using a lot of fresh ingredients. Then I started tracking here, after already losing around 40lbs, and it's only accelerated my progress. I also don't really dig the idea of spike days or cheat days or whatever you want to call them. If I want to eat chips or chocolate or something, I fit it into my calories (which I have calculated out myself, as MFP is far too aggressive for my liking. Yes, I will lose slower, but I won't be as hungry and I won't fail due to deprivation).

My point is, it's not an instant and permanent change. It's a decision that you have to make every day. I don't know what else to say; just don't give up, and don't look at any slips as failures. As long as you keep inching forward no matter how many times you are shoved back, you'll eventually reach your goal.

^^^^ Very Awesome!!

The only true defeat is givng up! don't beat yourself out of something good with feeling bad. start new and learn from the things that brought you here. you can do it.

This thread is MFP at its best.

Leah, thank you for bringing out the best in all of us.

I know exactly how you feel! I have tried and failed so many times and I swore this would be the last time! So I decided to look at it as a life style change, not a diet! And I find it easier to tell myself "You SHOULDN'T have that" instead of "You CAN'T have that". And I make sure to not deprive myself of anything that I want, I just have those things in moderation because I personally can't live the rest of my life never having chocolate or ice cream or pizza or fast food! That's not realistic for me, but I also know that I can't live my life being 60 pounds overweight and horribly unhealthy! So I made a promise to myself when I started this, I'm not going to get down on myself and I'm not going to regret anything, every day is a new day and I'm doing this so that I can love myself again, so as long as I accomplish that each day, then it's been a good day! Feel free to friend me, I am super supportive and will be your biggest fan! lol :happy:

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