[POOKIE88]

*

[amandalewis80]

I'm actually having the same problem as well... I would love to hear other people's views on this.

[jiffypop]

oh my. this is a BIG issue!!! and i'm not quite sure what to say right now - and i have to get dressed and get mom up and moving. from where i sit, right this second, today, my biggest goal is to STAY WHERE I AM. while i'd LOVE to lose more weight - i don't really feel that i have enough focus these days to LOSE.

now, having said all that - after a couple of business trips and the generaly busy-ness of the season, i'm losing again.

i have no answers. none at all.

[Saoirsee]

Since i'm not a WLS buddy, i feel sorta bad posting here, so i won't expound on how i feel about this subject here. But if you could help me find the thread you mentioned it being discussed in elsewhere on the board, i'd appreciate it! I'd love to talk to others feeling this way, but i don't want to step on toes, as i've not had any surgeries (yet).

[Chickadee]

Pooks my dear,

I've been thinking about this post for days. I've used the word complacent instead of apathy, but we're talking about the same thing. Yep, I've lost enough that I feel so much better and am healthier, but I still have a ways to go and the motivation is much harder to come by now. When I see a current photo of myself I'm put off by how big I am, but when I see a photo of where I was, I'm amazed at how far I've come. I need to just "git 'er done"!

No answers here, just complete understanding of what you're saying.

Your friend,
Chickadee

[Saoirsee]

Okay, if you're sure it's okay that i post here.

At 24 years of age and 292 pounds (i may have hit the 300 mark, i'm not sure. But when i weighed a few weeks into active weight loss this is what showed up on the scale) i was just absolutely disgusted with myself. My MIL had decided to do Atkins, and asked if i would do it with her. I did a modified Atkins really, because i didn't go as far as she did, and i never bought the Atkins yogurts and chocolate bars and etc. that she did.

Anyway, i managed to lose about 50 pounds, and it wasn't that hard! And then i got pregnant! This was actually amazing news, as i was pretty sure something was wrong with me (well,.. something was,.. my weight!!!) after 3 years of my husband and i trying.

While pregnant i managed to lose another 5-7 pounds, and when i gave birth to my son, i lost 30 more pounds instantly! Yay!! LOL

Over the next 6-8 months after i gave birth i lost another 10-15 pounds.

Then my situation changed a bit, i lost all control of the foods available to me (don't buy the groceries, nor specifically pay for them, and could make a few requests but not complete diet changes) and stressful life occurrances, and i ended up gaining back 45-50 pounds.

Over the past 2 months i've successfully lowered my weight by 8 pounds. This is completely unacceptable considering my previous successes. I still have little to no control on the foods available to me, but i still make much healthier choices. I've been working out consistantly, and i'm very very frustrated.

I know the reason, among all the other stressors in my life, that i began to gain again was because i had also hit a plateau, and was not losing any weight, and i gave up.

Even now, i look at pictures of myself from 3 years ago and think how awful i looked, and i know i look a teeny bit better now. But, just catching glimpses of myself in windows and etc still makes me sick, because i'm still SO HUGE.

But since i can now find clothes without TOO much hassle, and even some of the stuff in regular department stores fit me now, i find that yeah, i'm a bit complacent about it all. Apathetic. Why should i have to work this hard for the rest of my life just to be what society thinks is acceptable?!

But then i realize it's for my own health, and to set a good example for my son, and to be able to spend as much time here on earth with my son, and get the most out of that time. To do all of these things i need to be healthier (my doctor says i'm quite healthy now, but i could be better.). I know i could still stand to lose about 100 pounds, and be quite healthy.

I really do want to lose it. Honest. But it's just so hard right now and i get so discouraged so easily. It wasn't so hard before!!

[rockinrobin]

Saoirsee, hi and welcome to 3FC. We have this thread going on (thanks to Pookie, that is) at the 100 lb club over at the Support Groups forum. We have lots of great threads there and lots of great people. Why not come join us over there. We'd love to have you.

[Leenie]

Saoirsee 1 lb a week = 52 lbs in one year, thats pretty darn good in my book. If you had lapband surgery you would be considered on target. So IMHO KEEP ROCKIN GIRL !!!!! Look at where you'll be in 2 years w/that rate.... 104 lbs

Pookie... wish I had the answers to your question I guess we all just have to dig a little deeper and keep on keepin on. As far as the skin surgery... When I reach that point, I don't know if I could do it either, so I truly understand how you feel.

Love you girls

[LaGina]

Hi I am new but not new to the feelings you are talking about. I am 13 months post op and yes my weight loss is almost over and I am within 12 pounds of goal. I understand what you are talking about being apathetic. WE have been sooo focused on our weight for so long that we are tird of it we just WANT to be normal. We dont want to watch everything we eat like a hawk we dont want to be a slave to the scale.

To be honest if I didnt lose another pound I wouldnt be heart broken BUT I would feel like I didnt finish the biggest fight of my life. I will feel like I stopped short and I dont want to do that to myself.

At the point I am in the journey it is hard to lose each pound.. and I get tired of the struggle BUT I will make it and I WILL buy a cute littel house in onderland.

[Lauderdalechick]

I am having that same issue, I havent lost as much as you all have but I am becoming content. This a big problem for me because I know Im not where I need to be and have a ways to go to be honest. I was eating a bagel with cream cheese as I read you're replies and thought I would never have been doing that 6 months ago! I went from a size 22 to 16 and getting content although I know I still need to lose more I dont have that determination I use to have. Pookie you did help me out though help me realize my baby is my extra incentive to lose this weight and keep it off!
Thank You and Lagina congragulations! Your weight loss is amazing! Keep It up and let us know when you reach that goal!

[N i t a]

I'm also new here but this struck a cord with me. I'm in the SAME place. It's like I got so used to being smaller that I sometimes forget how miserable I was. I can fit into regular clothes now so I don't have as much of a motivation factor there. Like a PP said, I don't have swimsuits or lingerie in my future because of the excess skin issue so I don't have THAT motivation, either. My boys were my main motivators in my decision to have GBPS and now I have more of a motivation because I have a new baby girl. I do NOT want them to grow up with the weight issues I did. I'm trying hard to find my way back on track, though.

[kyethra]

I found that for me, in the past at least, even if it wasn't something revealing like a swimsuite, a piece of clothing that I wanted to fit into could be a good motivator. I would go look at a collection of clothes I had that no longer fit- some cool guinne sax dresses I wanted to wear again. Some funky denim skirts. Warm flanel suits that were actually tailored nicely. A bib overall I was fond off. A sweater that made my boobs look good. A collection of things like that made me excited to want to get thinner so I could fit into those things again. so I could have the option of wearing them. Or the option of cutting my hair shorter (because hair can only be cut so short with a fat face) or doing anything I wanted to with it and knowing it would look ok instead of worrying I would end up looking like a bowling ball. Other little things. But adding the little things all together... that made the anticipation sort of exciting.

[just a girl]

I am trying to get back on track and get myself moving and shaking again. I need to lose so much weight and I am really disappointed with myself for allowing myself to gain 32 lbs. I am having trouble getting motivated to do this however.

[indigo child]

Pookie, first of all I want to extend my sympathy to you on the loss of your mother. I just went through something similar, losing my father to cancer in June after an 18-month battle with that hideous disease. It is very hard to pick up and go when you experience something so traumatizing. And it is so hard to lose a parent, especially one you were very close to. It's very easy to lose motivation after such an event.

One thing I've noticed about some of the other posters here, and I'm not sure if it's true for you because I'm not aware of your location, but winter months are some of the toughest months to get motivated on *anything.* It seems to be a time of hibernation, not just for our furry friends and garden buddies. At this time, maintenence and planning your program might just be your goal for now. I'm not sure about anyone else, but for me, these days it's just one day at a time, until spring.

The other thing that seems to help me when my appetite doesn't want to cooperate is moving. And I don't necessarily mean heavy-duty exercise, but just plain easy-does-it moving. Stretching. Yoga. It feels so good, releases endorphins (nature's anti-depressants), and lengthens muscles, which changes body shape and can actually allow you to drop another dress-size. It also prepares your muscles for more of a cardio-workout whenever you are ready.

Have you ever heard of "Miracle Balls?" I used them and still use them, but they were especially beneficial when I was losing weight and my muscles were getting achy-breaky from all the re-arranging. They are a way to exercise without exercising. They *do* help to relieve chronic pain, reshape your body and best of all, they reduce stress. Do a search on "The Miracle Ball Method" or "Elaine Petrone" and you should be able to read up on it. They are relatively cheap (I believe I paid $18 for 2 balls and accompanying book.) It's an option.

I don't know if any of this will help, but I do wish you the best of luck in your quest to "get motivated!"

[just a girl]

You are so right about putting your nose to the grind stone. I am heading in that direction now....