Hi Crzymom5 -
You are definitely in the right spot for support. So many of us share aspects of your story - eating for comfort, eating late at night, having trouble getting motivated to exercise.
In terms of how to "get motivated and stay motivated" - honestly, I don't know that any of us is totally motivated to make the right choices all the time. What some of us HAVE done is made a DECISION - nothing to do with being motivated. We decided that we were going to make good choices, and we followed through with that decision. So maybe you can start with a decision to do some amount of exercise every day for the next 3 weeks? It might be a quick workout video for 20 minutes, it might be a walk with the kids. But after the three weeks have passed, most likely it will be a habit, and you won't have to make the decision as actively anymore. Then you make another decision - cutting out the candy bars, getting more water, or eating more fruits and vegetables.
A series of DECISIONS to do something different was, ultimately, what worked for me. "Will power" and "motivation" aren't concepts that I put a lot of faith in, but I have tremendous faith in my ability to decide something and then follow through.
Most of all, keep posting. When those decisions are harder to make, this is a great place to get an extra kick in the rear!
Introducing myself.....
to 3FC - First off I wouldn't loose the weight because of the way someone else looks , loose the weight for yourself first and those 5 kids you have and to me there is the motivation you are looking for hence the remark you made of your dad. Good luck and hang around you'll find alot of advice & support
for making the first step in the right direction.
