Staying motivated (re: weight loss)

[hamster]

Thanks to my love of beer and food, hatred of exercising and general aging and the apparent halting of my metabolism, I'm getting a bit chunky. Even the government says I'm overweight now, so that's humbling (I know, BMI is a flawed system but that doesn't mean the idea doesn't sting). None of my clothes fit and I'm find I'm generally not nearly as able-bodied as I was when I was younger and thinner. I had a panic attack while we on the trail to go backpacking, so, again, that's pretty awesome.

I know I need to make a change for both my physical well-being and my self-esteem. The problem is, I suck at follow through. I really like food! I mean, sure, salads are tasty, but guys. Breakfast burritos! Pizza! Nom nom nom. That's hurdle number one.

Hurdle number is two is exercising. I hate it. I find that when I struggle through a workout, I basically give up because I'm so frustrated. That and I really struggle to actually get motivated and go. I've thought about joining a gym to try classes, as that might be more interesting and fun for me, but I'm not good about follow through and fear I'd end up paying the money and never actually going. If DietBet has taught me anything, it's that money is not a good enough motivator to me. I could do DVDs at home, but I generally feel like a total boob doing it, even if nobody is watching. 

Rationally, I understand that it's all about making good choices the majority of the time, every step is productive, one pound at a time, working out is only 30 minutes of my life, blah blah blah. BUT IT'S SO HARD.

How do I get myself to stay focused? 

[bostonmichelle]

Focus on one thing at a time. Like cutting out breakfast burritos or making your own. Make it a goal to make it thru the month, then add one more thing.

You sound like me I used to crash and burn hardcore at the whole healthy eating/exercise thing. I used to have to do everything 100% right 100% of the time then Sunday would happen and I'd derail and never get back on.

I learned that if stuff isn't in the house its so much easier not to eat it.

Also if you fall off the bandwagon, remember there is another day/meal/week just around the corner and do it right then. Don't let yourself say well I ate ice cream for breakfast so the diet is gone today and I'll eat pizza for lunch, and Chinese and beer for dinner and skip the gym. Nope say okay breakfast I could've done better and just restart, its hard to do in the beginning and I still struggle with it but you can do it.

[hamster]

Sept 10, 2015 10:03:05 GMT -5 bostonmichelle said:

Also if you fall off the bandwagon, remember there is another day/meal/week just around the corner and do it right then. Don't let yourself say well I ate ice cream for breakfast so the diet is gone today and I'll eat pizza for lunch, and Chinese and beer for dinner and skip the gym. Nope say okay breakfast I could've done better and just restart, its hard to do in the beginning and I still struggle with it but you can do it.

I'm NOTORIOUS for this. 

[CrazyLucky]

I am just about two months into trying to be more healthy. Two months ago, I definitely could have written your post, especially the first line. I love beer and food.
So, just to try it, I downloaded my fitness pal and started keeping an accurate diary of what I was eating. At first, it was just to see how I was doing. Then I input a goal of losing one pound per week. It sets your daily calorie goal based on your goal. Then you can sort of "buy" more calories by exercising. If you keep a pedometer on you, you can adds how much you walked during the day, just normal walking around. Then if you do any exercise, you add that.
I thought I would give up on it within a week or so, but I've been going strong with the app for about 7 weeks. I've lost six pounds, which I know is not a lot, but hey, it's progress. I don't especially like going to the gym, but I do that or run regularly now and that helps. One thing that would really help me is joining an adult sports league, like basketball. I live in the boonies so that form of exercise is not available.
If you do start down the path of weight loss / healthier living, do not compare yourselves to others. If I look at the fitness board and see all the ladies running marathons and completing triathlons, me being able to run 3 miles doesn't seem like an accomplishment. But if I look at myself two months ago, when I thought I would pass out after running a half mile, I know I'm doing good things.

Good luck. It makes me miss my 20s when I ate and drank any damn thing I wanted and still looked good and felt healthy.

[tacosforlife]

Just a note: breakfast burritos don't have to be verboten. I eat them daily. 2 eggs, chicken sausage, cheese, and salsa in a large flour tortilla. Mine are 700 calories, but they keep me full until lunch, which is lighter. (I also weigh a lot more than you and am very active, so my calorie needs are high.) I've lost 7 pounds in 6 weeks eating these daily.

Do you like to go for walks? I do go to the gym to lift, use the elliptical, and swim, but on days when I'm tired, forget my swimsuit, not feeling it, or whatever other excuse I have, I tell myself that I have to hit my Fitbit steps. I eat lunch while I work and then use my lunch break to go for a walk. I will walk to the grocery store if I don't need heavy items. A walk around my "block" is 1/3 a mile, so sometimes I put on some music and just do a few laps around that if I need more steps. A lot of my exercise over the last 6 weeks has been walking.

[hamster]

tacosforlife I admit when we make breakfast burritos at home, they are fairly healthy. But there's a restaurant next to work that makes these GIANT, delicious burritos full of potatoes and bacon. Last time I had one, I did at least skip lunch because I was still full. I have no idea how many calories they are, but these are gut bombs.

I do like walking, though. Being in the boonies I"m somewhat limited to where I can walk in my little neighborhood, but I could take a trail up to a pond. I think it's 6 miles round trip? All flat and paved. Part of the reason why I wanted a dog is so I could go for walks with him, but I ended up with a fucking head case, so that ship has generally sailed.

[tacosforlife]

Sept 10, 2015 10:18:50 GMT -5 hamster said:

tacosforlife I admit when we make breakfast burritos at home, they are fairly healthy. But there's a restaurant next to work that makes these GIANT, delicious burritos full of potatoes and bacon. Last time I had one, I did at least skip lunch because I was still full. I have no idea how many calories they are, but these are gut bombs.

I do like walking, though. Being in the boonies I"m somewhat limited to where I can walk in my little neighborhood, but I could take a trail up to a pond. I think it's 6 miles round trip? All flat and paved. Part of the reason why I wanted a dog is so I could go for walks with him, but I ended up with a fucking head case, so that ship has generally sailed.

I feel you on the delicious giant burritos! Just offering another option!

Start small - start by going for a walk for 30 minutes per day for a week. Then up it to 45 minutes the following week. Then cut your beer consumption the following week. Just add/subtract one thing per week to your routine.

[Deleted]

It's super hard. I'm trying to lose weight right now too and things like beer and eating out are a huge struggle. I am doing Weightwatchers and I really like the concept because you can save up for splurges and still get to eat/drink a lot of fun things because of it. Like I'm eating really carefully this week because I know I have a few things going on this weekend that will include drinks and/or eating out. It's nice to be able to balance it that way.

I also have tried (to a point) to find lighter ways of making things I love to eat. So a breakfast burrito could be made with egg whites, 2% cheese, turkey sausage, and a bunch of veggies and be fairly healthy. I like to make my own pizzas so I can limit the amount of high calorie toppings. I sort of hate cooking, which is one of my biggest challenges - I know what I need to do to make healthy food, but it's easier just to pick up a pizza. I just try to remind myself not to be lazy about that and if we do pick up a pizza, oh well, next time I'll try to choose better. It's a long haul vs. a quick fix - so there is always another chance to do better.

For working out - do you have any inexpensive gyms near you? I currently go to Planet Fitness and it's $10 a month, which made joining a really easy decision. I don't really love working out either, but I do love to read so I have been bringing my Kindle and reading while using the elliptical. Then when I do weights, I switch to listening to an audio book. It really makes the time go by and I'm finding myself looking forward to working out because it means I get to read my book! Have you tried something like that - watching TV or a movie on an iPad or something to distract you from the fact that you're exercising?

[Deleted]

The thing that works for DH and I is logging our food. We use My Fitness Pal. It then motivates me to exercise because it gives a pretty low calorie allowance but generally overestimates how much you burn exercising, and then you're allowed to eat those calories. So if I want a beer, I need to go for a walk.

It takes a bit of effort to get set up, but then you can do a lot of copying if you eat the same foods a lot. It encourages portion control once you see how calorific things are. And it's pushed me to find meals I like that aren't too bad for me.

All I'm doing for exercise right now is bike commute to work, and walks at lunch. I will probably add kettlebells when the snow hits and biking is out.

[Melissa W.]

All are good ideas. I would also say find a buddy- online or at home. I am finding it easier now that my husband is also on board.

[kathybela]

I have the same problem regarding exercise - to get myself started I've downloaded 30 day challenge apps to my phone. I'm about to start a 30 day arm and a 30 day butt challenge, they only take about 10-15 minutes at the beginning so I'm hoping it will motivate me to keep going. I tried the 30 squat & 30 day plank challenge last month but they were HARD for this out-of-shape fatty so I'll put them off until I'm in better shape.

[Deleted]

I'm right there with you lady. My motto is "dresses are all that fit me right now." Lol.

I'm struggling with working out + eating healthy. Like you, I *love* beer and food.

I'm learning it's never going to be 100% but if it do it more often than not, I still see results. And I've noticed when I see results then I want to keep going.

I've been using the Nike running app + the Nike Training app and love them. There's so many exercises, it has a gamification aspect, and you can do a 4 week program.

I agree with pp... Just focus on one thing at a time. This week my focus was eating a healthy and filling breakfast... Which I forgot this morning... But 2 of out 3 days is better than none.

[Deleted]

Sept 10, 2015 10:36:38 GMT -5 Melissa W. said:

All are good ideas. I would also say find a buddy- online or at home. I am finding it easier now that my husband is also on board.

This is good advice too. Would your H exercise with you? I've found it immensely helpful to go to the gym with my BF. We don't actually DO anything together once we're there, but having someone else counting on me to drag my butt out of bed and actually go to the gym has helped a lot. We both know the other person WANTS to exercise so it's a lot harder to back out. We've been really consistent with going 3x a week for the last couple of months, which is probably more consistency than I've ever had in my life with exercise.

Downside - he is a male with an athletic body type, so he's gained a lot of muscle already and I don't think I look any different! But I know I'm healthier so that's something.

[hamster]

Sept 10, 2015 10:55:24 GMT -5 @buckybells said:

Sept 10, 2015 10:36:38 GMT -5 Melissa W. said:

All are good ideas. I would also say find a buddy- online or at home. I am finding it easier now that my husband is also on board.

This is good advice too. Would your H exercise with you? I've found it immensely helpful to go to the gym with my BF. We don't actually DO anything together once we're there, but having someone else counting on me to drag my butt out of bed and actually go to the gym has helped a lot. We both know the other person WANTS to exercise so it's a lot harder to back out. We've been really consistent with going 3x a week for the last couple of months, which is probably more consistency than I've ever had in my life with exercise.

Downside - he is a male with an athletic body type, so he's gained a lot of muscle already and I don't think I look any different! But I know I'm healthier so that's something.

He would, but he goes to work hours before me and it's still dark and we don't have street lights. Plus he's just naturally in good shape so I'm still running/walking/wheezing by myself. I actually find it's easier to go alone because then I don't feel like anybody is judging me but myself. Not that he's actually doing that, but it's tough being married to somebody who has everything come easy to them. 

But I just did my Piyo, and had a scrambled egg and a slice of PB toast for breakfast. I have a ceasar salad for lunch (being excited about my lunch is key for me) and we have a nice dinner of salmon and asparagus planned. There's no beer or wine in the house today. If I can stick to a healthy evening set, I'm feeling good for the day. 

[hamster]

Sept 10, 2015 10:53:43 GMT -5 @blissoff said:

I'm right there with you lady. My motto is "dresses are all that fit me right now." Lol.

Even some of my dresses aren't fitting right now! At a bare minimum I need to lose enough weight that my work pants can comfortably button, it's getting cold and I can't get away with jeans every day!

[simpsongal]

Similar boat checking in. I keep waiting to get my BFP to lose weight (first tri morning sickness + no alcohol = 15 lb weight loss).

For now I keep drinking all.the.beer b/c each could be my last. Ugh.

[Deleted]

Sept 10, 2015 11:14:58 GMT -5 hamster said:

Sept 10, 2015 10:53:43 GMT -5 @blissoff said:

I'm right there with you lady. My motto is "dresses are all that fit me right now." Lol.

Even some of my dresses aren't fitting right now! At a bare minimum I need to lose enough weight that my work pants can comfortably button, it's getting cold and I can't get away with jeans every day!

To be fair I've been borrowing my roommates dresses because most of mine are way too tight. ;/

Stay consistent and you'll be able to snap your jeans in no time. and then reward yourself with a new pair or something.

[crashgizmo]

I am with you, hamster. I have the hardest time staying motivated. One thing that sort of works for me is to break down the weeks a little- even a week to change something is too much sometimes. So, I'll say that Tuesday and Wednesday are the days I'll cut out carbs/alcohol and exercise for 45 minutes. Then the following week I'll try to do 3 days, etc.

[hamster]

There's also this factor...

Attachments:

[steph96]

Sept 10, 2015 11:49:50 GMT -5 hamster said:

There's also this factor...

Does your dog also insist on laying on the mat?! I call mine "the puppy mat" because both of my dogs fight me to use it. If I leave it out, they both nap on it.

[steph96]

I'm also in a similar boat. I have to keep reminding myself that one bad decision doesn't have to derail the weight loss train. I think the biggest thing is trying to find something that you don't mind doing. The FitnessBlender videos are great. There's a big variety and they are easy to follow.

[hamster]

Sept 10, 2015 12:11:32 GMT -5 steph96 said:

Sept 10, 2015 11:49:50 GMT -5 hamster said:

There's also this factor...

Does your dog also insist on laying on the mat?! I call mine "the puppy mat" because both of my dogs fight me to use it. If I leave it out, they both nap on it.

Not always, but he usually likes to shove some wet, slobbery toy in my face while I'm on it. 

[foodiemom]

I could have written your post. Except I drink wine.

I've spent the last two months trying a few things, finally realizing that this 15lbs of flab isn't going anywhere and that I am really flabby....no tone whatsoever. I might even be ok with my weight if it were more muscle and my mid-section were toned. I committed to walking 30 miles in 30 days, which I did two months in a row. I also did a few weeks of the BeachBody eating plan to get me back to healthy eating.

But, it's like I would lose 2lbs and gain them right back after one party. And I would be trying to be good at the party!!

So, it's almost 3 months later and I weigh the exact same. Walking didn't do a darn thing so now I'm trying to figure out my next steps. I'm feeling frustrated. I don't feel as if I eat that poorly!

I will say that MyFitnessPal helps. There are times when I track that I am shocked at a meal. For instance, sometimes I will have two pieces of toast with natural peanut butter for breakfast. That ends up being like 600 calories!! The ap tells me that to lose weight I need to keep calories at 1800, so that's a big amount just for breakfast. Knowing that, I can try to alter my eating for lunch and dinner. It doesn't always work, like when I get invited somewhere for dinner that night, but it's at least an awareness.

[shamrockshake]

breaking out my fit bit has helped me tremendously, now I am kind of addicting to making sure I hit my 10k steps a day. It's helped me lose weight and just tighten up some- my legs look great. I tried to make myself do things I hate- running- but I just HATE it and would give up/ skip etc. So I found the things I like- walking, pilates and weight lifting and I just started one at a time. I started back to pilates in January, then in May I brushed the dust off my fit bit thanks to some ladies on ML motivating me, and then once I had the walking on track I started in with my weightlifting videos. Doing it little by little has helped me really stay on track

[formerlyak]

I'm struggling trying to get back into shape after baby #2. I am 8 years older than when baby #1 was born and 40 and busy and it's hard. And I like ice cream and wine. And I hate all exercise except ballet class, but there don't seem to be any good ballet classes offered for adults at times that work for me these days.

I joined ClassPass. I know I won't just go to the gym, so I figured that if I joined ClassPass, I'd have a big choice of classes to go to all over my city and I'd have to go and someone would tell me what to do. I joined at the end of May, and average 2 classes a week (usually reformer pilates). I actually really like reformer pilates! I never would have imagined I'd find an exercise I liked. But since I can try all kinds on ClassPass, I could find stuff I liked doing. Maybe that's an option in the exercise department for you? They have spinning, kickboxing, mat and reformer pilates, stand up paddle and kayak rentals, barre, yoga.

I'm still fighting with the food part

[Deleted]

I've gained and lost and gained. A lot of weight.

Most helpful to me personally--totally giving up alcohol.

[hamster]

It's helpful to see everybody else has the same struggles. That definitely makes me feel better.

Would people be interested in some kind of MM motivational group? I could post on Monday's and we could talk about meal plans, how things are going, etc. It could just be a conversational thread for the week.

[dr.girlfriend]

I am in the worst position to talk, because I'm not great, but I have changed my eating habits pretty significantly since getting a blood sugar scare (although my A1C is just as bad after and I'm likely starting Metformin, but whatevs), and lost about 10 pounds from that alone. I keep walnuts and craisins in my office to snack on to keep me from making that 4 p.m. run for peanut M&Ms, switched to fructose in my coffee instead of sugar (tastes the same but has a much lower glycemic index) and also eat a yogurt in the morning instead of skipping breakfast, and only have one drink on a weekend. I also make a lot of grilled (in a grill pan on the stove) vegetables once or twice a week and try to have some with every dinner, along with a lean protein like salmon, chicken sausage, or rotisserie chicken. For awhile I was getting really good about walking the dog, but I slacked on that. I'm hoping the Fitbit will force me to either walk the dog or get on the treadmill during t.v. time (cough cough, the treadmill I bought months ago and has been only holding laundry since then).

[Deleted]

I'd say the biggest things for me are having an exercise buddy and meal planning.

I can't mentally force myself to workout. If it were up to me I'd sit on my ass all day. But, having someone who is counting on me means I workout. Whether it's taking group classes or meeting a friend to lift weights or going on walks with DH. I HAVE to have someone. Because it's embarrassing to admit I cancelled a workout so I could binge watch TV, so I put on my clothes and drag myself out of the house.

I also make healthier versions of our favorite foods and always have something on hand. I shop and meal plan. I can't stop and buy food when I have a homemade food that will go to waste. My favorite thing right now is to roast some chipotle sweet potatoes on Sunday night. Then on weekday mornings I quickly sauté some egg whites and veggies (precut on Sunday), toss it on some reheated sweet potatoes, and top with avocado and hot sauce. Nom.

[hamster]

This class pass sounds perfect! But it's not area. Whomp, whomp.