[Navi]

All right ladies. I've had it in my mind that I need to lose weight but I haven't been able to translate that into motivation. I'm a lazy person by nature and it seems that a lot of the time sitting in front of my computer takes precedence over exercising or planning healthy meals.

So I'm asking for ideas from you. What do you do when you don't feel like getting off the couch? How do you deal with cravings for pizza and chocolate cake? What keeps you on plan and moving instead of going back to the way you used to live?

Hopefully I'll find some motivation for myself... I'd really like the scale to drop below 190!

[SeekInnerThinChick]

All right ladies. I've had it in my mind that I need to lose weight but I haven't been able to translate that into motivation.

Well, don't do what I did-- my hair fell out and all by bloodwork went haywire. I was so massively stressed out I thought I was almost on the edge of a breakdown.... The first thing I did was an aqua-aerobics class, and I started to feel better. Going to the class became a sanctuary against business stress for me, as I could not answer the cell phone in the water. So gradually, I got more and more into it, until it became a pleasurable habit.

I'm a lazy person by nature and it seems that a lot of the time sitting in front of my computer takes precedence over exercising or planning healthy meals.

Don't say "I'm lazy," "I'm weak," "I'm bad," I'm this, I'm that. Don't characterize yourself in negative terms, the self-talk is destructive and self-defeating. You need to be your own best coach. Find positive things to say about yourself and keep repeating them even if you don't believe yourself at first. After a while, you will brainwash yourself into a more positive frame of mind. And a positive mind can change the world.

I never, ever plan meals. I'm not even on a "diet." I just read a couple of books on nutrition, and I buy groceries with the principles in mind. If it's not good for me, it DOES NOT go into the shopping cart.

As for exercise, it's evolving more and more every day. At this point, I think I need to start running seriously again. So I went from 220, pretty unfit, to where I am now. It's a gradual process-- the more you move, the more you lose, which makes it easier to move more. Newton's laws of motion.

What do you do when you don't feel like getting off the couch?

I usually go out anyway, unless I'm sick, and I make a deal with myself: "look, just do it for 20 minutes, and if you still don't feel like it, you can go home." That works. Or I think of MEL, the lady who uses a wheelchair and sings, she posts in the blog section. If she can exercise, what's my excuse? Or the poor guy who played Superman, who's paralyzed. He works out and does P.T. every day. I've seen quite a few people at the pool missing a limb or two, but they swim laps--fast! So I don't feel like I've got an excuse-- if I wimp out somehow it feels like I'm letting down the whole team...

How do you deal with cravings for pizza and chocolate cake? What keeps you on plan and moving instead of going back to the way you used to live?

I don't keep foods I can't resist in the house. Period. My husband eats what I eat. Period. If I want a treat we go out to dinner for it. I keep a food journal, and weigh, measure, and write down everything I eat. Every single day without fail. That has been a tremendous help. And I don't think of this as a "diet" as if I were going off it sometime. I just can't eat pizza, nachos, beer, burgers, fries, etc. every day. That's just the way it is. I can have that stuff every once in a while, maybe once every two weeks, a treat. But I just can't eat like I used to ever again. Period.

You have to accept that-- you have to be ready to deal with the "foreverness" of it. If you try to have it both ways, and still eat stuff you know you shouldn't, you are condemning yourself to a lifetime of yo-yo dieting, emotional self-torture, or possibly, eating disorders. So, given the alternatives, I choose to restrain myself, because being healthy feels good, and it causes me the least amount of emotional turmoil. Also having my hair back. I'm afraid if I eat like that again, I'll be bald again. I'm terrified of baldness....

Hopefully I'll find some motivation for myself... I'd really like the scale to drop below 190!

You really need to want this BADLY to make it work, I think. I can't tell you how to find that spark, but that's what has to be found, IMO. But you can get the ball rolling, just take it bit by bit, and success tends to make you want more success. Just don't give up. Eventually you can start to crave weight loss and a healthy body. Really.

I got a lot of these ideas from the book "Thin for Life" by Anne Fletcher. She basically talked with people who had lost weight and kept it off for a long time. The book is essentially a compilation of their techniques-- the tips that really worked for them. I've read that book 5 or 6 times now, part of my self-brainwashing. I recommend it. Good luck!

[mauvaisroux]

Navi-

For motivation I look back at a picture of myself taken last year and say to myself..."Wow, I look so much better now, I don't want to undo the good work I have done". I also have a dress in my closet that I intend to fit into by the summer and I take out it once in a while to remind myself to stay on track. I sometimes think to myself " do I want to be unhappy and in lousy shape with a lot of health problems 2 years, 5 years, or 10 years from now? NO!!!!!

As for exercise think about something you like to do or used to enjoy when you were younger and try getting back into it. You are more likely to exercise it you actually enjoy what you are doing. You could always start walking around your neighborhood. I do that and check out other people's houses and gardens and steal decorating ideas while I am at it!

As for meals....if you stock up on healthy ingredients and ban the junk food from your kitchen you won't have a choice but to eat healthy...I suggest getting rid of any take out or delivery fliers so you won't be tempted to say "Screw it - I don't feel like cooking" and reach for the phone.

Stick to simple meals and take your chicken, beef or whatever out of the freezer the night before so you can avoid the "what's for dinner" dilemma. A quick meal of chicken breasts spritzed with a little olive oil and sprinkled with dried herbs and baked in the oven with a side salad or steamed veggies or grilled steak, baked potato and veggies doesn't take too much time or effort.

You can also make a deal with yourself that if you stick to your plan you can have pizza on, say, Friday night -but in moderation. Have one or two pieces of pizza and a side salad so that you don't overdo it. I find that as soon as I put food off limits that's when I crave it the most and I would go crazy if I didn't have a treat once in a while

I try to keep junk food out of the house and have OP snacks readily available. If I do get a craving I have a silly little trick that actually does stop me. I would have to actually go to the store to buy the junk so when I open my wallet to see if I have any money for chips or whatever there is a little note in the window part of it (where you usually keep pictures)...that note says "Don't have that!" I see it and then I think, oh yeah, I shouldn't be doing this...then I put my wallet away and forget about buying the junk food and try to find something better to eat

Good luck

[Trixi]

I cook all my meals for the week so I know what I am going to be eating. For exercise I have my workout clothes and shoes near by and the second I get the feeling I am in them. It only happens about three times a week but that more than I was dong.

The thing that motivates me the most is actually sitting at the computer and reading everything that everyone on this site is going through and listening to their ideas and support has definately been my biggest motivator. I have been on this journey many times in the past three years and this time I have seen the biggest results and have been at it the longest. I now have the knowledge about myself that if I do "cheat" than I will be able to get back on track and not give up. 27 pounds down and 30 to go seems alot easier now to say than the 57 I started with. Keep up the great work.


Dale

[Ilene]

What motivates me:

-- this site, like Trixi, in the last two years I have seen more results than the yo-yo dieting I used to do...

-- reading magazines on fitness, health, ...

-- seeing other peoples results ...

-- keeping the junk food OUT of SIGHT, OUT of MIND!!

-- cooking for the week...

-- getting compliments ...

-- going back and looking at my measurements and weight charts and realizing how far I've come...

-- going to the store not to necessarily buy clothes but just to try on the smaller sizes and being happy with just the thought of a smaller size...

-- taking pics and comparing them and actually seeing a difference...

-- feeling great after a workout those endorphins and the tight muscles feeling

Whew, that felt good....

[POOKIE88]

Thanks Ladies, LOTS of good ideas on this thread. --Pookie

[blugirrl1]

had to poke my head in here today past few days have been a wasteland. feeling ick. tired and not motivated. some good pointers in here. thanks

[Goddess Jessica]

Hi girls,

All of these ideas are great. I'll just add a few that I haven't seen yet.

Here's a couple of things that I do:

Exercise:
-Set goals. Not lofty, pie-in-the-sky, touchy-feeling goals. Real solid goals. Like, I wanna run a mile in under 12 minutes. I want to touch my toes by October. Etc.
-With your goals set, write up a plan of attack. How are achieve those goals? What are you going to do every week to reach them?
-Don't give yourself an excuse. Things like: "I don't have time. I have too much housework. I've been working all day. I'm pooped." You scheduled your plan, now stick to it. Once I get my butt moving, I'm so glad I did.

Food
-The number one thing I've learned is that my inner voice is normally right but confused!
If she says, "I'm starving!!! I want that pint of ice cream!"
I ask myself, "When was the last time I ate? How many calories have I consumed today? Am I suppose to eat soon?"
90% of the time, my inner voice is right-- I am hungry. I do need to eat. However, I have to overide the instinct to reach for something terrible just because I've reached that terrible, give-up-and-eat phase. Once I put something healthy into my system, I'm much more rational.
-The other 10% of the time, my inner voice needs a spanking! That's why I try to keep at least a few healthy OP "spoilers." Sometimes I try to do something that requires cooking (like SF Jello Pudding Cook & Serve) because it makes me feel like this is a real dessert and it smells yummy when I'm making it, so I can savor the experience as much as possible.

[mauvaisroux]

Great ideas everyone

I really like that having to cook jello one Jessica