[munchievictim]

I started losing weight at the beginning of April. I went low carb for awhile and had great results, but a month long break from college, which I spent back home and on vacation, derailed me from low carb in favor of convenience.
I've learned that if I keep trying, I'll eventually see results, but right now I just feel like I'm spinning my tires, bouncing around the 240 lb mark.
I am doing a lot of things wrong.
1. I can't seem to get my calories consistently low. I keep yoyo-ing.
2. I haven't been working out enough, and I sprained my ankle so the yoga I'm really starting to love has been limited and difficult.
3. I am not eating low carb, and thus feel like crap and have no energy.

I feel like I'm caught in a vicious cycle right now, and I feel kind of depressed and frustrated. I know I need to get these things under control, and I know how to do that in basic scientific terms.
I just feel stalled out mentally. I have little spurts of optimism and motivation that dissolve with the wind. I desperately want to get back on track, I start each day in a good mindset and just kind of fizzle out.
I know people have been here before me so how did you restart your engine? How do you get motivated when you're in a rut? How do you kick start weight loss after a lull?
Thanks for sharing your experiences- a big help to me is to know that Im not alone, that other people have been here and maybe are here now. It's why I love this website. And that's another big mistake I know I'm making; I don't get on here as much because I feel -ashamed, I guess.
That's definitely going to change.

[LockItUp]

Good to see you!!!

It's so hard! I can definitely relate. What I have to do when that happens to me is just force myself to stick to the plan for a couple days, which is usually followed by a drop on the scale, which usually leads to renewed motivation. One thing that I have done differently this time is not to rely on motivation but to rely on my commitment. Doesn't make it any easier, but I've wasted YEARS waiting for motivation.

You can do this! This is just a bump in the road.

[cancersuckseggs]

thats funny cuz i feel like crap when i live on protein and veggies.

[Galatea]

So sorry you are feeling rough and having a tough time getting back on track.

I used to yo-yo all the time....I would get all excited about a new food or exercise plan and stick with it for about 2 weeks and then slide back. It was tough because I had the support of my husband and family but I never seemed to be able to keep up good work.

I am honestly not sure what the change was that allowed to to lose weight...maybe because I picked one weight loss method, stuck with that AND gave myself ways to "cheat" when the going go tough. I can talk to you more about that if you are interested but honestly what works for me may not work for everyone. I used to hate keeping a food diary but now I keep one religiously!! It helps me so much AND I plan out my day (food wise) in the morning while I am drinking my coffee, that way I can just stick to the plan and make it easier on myself.

I wish you strength, great physical, emotional and mental health! Keep going, you will succeed!

[twinieten]

I went through something similar at the beginning of the year. It was like I just burned out, got tired of the dieting and the thinking about it every day. Food, exercise, eat this, not that..... ugh!

For 2 months I just sort of floundered around like you are, knowing what i need to do and what I should do and unable to just do it.

I think the best thing you can do is plan on doing it every second of every day. If you screw up breakfast, decide you'll do better at lunch. If you make a poor choice at lunch, you can still correct it with the next meal. If you mess up your snack, plan on doing better at dinner, and so on. Plan on exercising right after work. If you don't, then plan on getting up early to do it.

You see what I'm saying? Don't just plan on tomorrow, because it will always be tomorrow. Plan on getting back on track now. Even if you mess up, it's always now.

Eventually it's going to work. You'll snap back in to place. You'll start making progress again.

I tend to slip and slide and yo-yo, find something to be excited about, it works for awhile, I get bored with it, and so on.... I have now decided that if that's the trick I need to stay focused, then I'll do it. When it's new, I'm really good at staying with the program. Maybe I just need to find that new thing each time I fall down. There's so much out there and each teaches something. It doesn't have to be a fad diet, but it can be South Beach, Atkins, Eat This Not That, IF, plain calorie counting, Weight Watchers..... I learn what's helpful, what's not, what works, what doesn't and hopefully in the end, I develop a good eating plan for me.

The last few weeks, I've been doing the same as Galatea. I plan out my calories in the morning while I'm having my coffee. It helps when I can look at that dessert or whatever is taunting me and think that I've already planned my calories for the day and this thing just doesn't fit. It helps a lot!