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Old 04-07-2010, 02:09 AM   #1  
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Default Where do you begin?

I joined this forum in January, but have not been here lately. I originally started out at 180 lbs on January 1. By January 10, I was down 9 lbs to 171. Unfortunately now back to 176. I dug around through some old boxes today and found a copy of Denise Austin's "Shrink Your Female Fat Zones" book. I copied the plans (which I had not previously done) and started the plan again today. I am motivated for the first few days, but then the motivation wears off. I love to walk, but I always overeat. How do you stay motivated? I don't want to see my kids go through this. But if I don't maintain a healthy weight, how do I convince my children that it is important? I know this may seem a little jumbled, but I am hoping that getting it out will help.
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Old 04-07-2010, 02:21 AM   #2  
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Hey there - glad you're back and posting!

You know, I really don't believe that motivation is enough to carry you through. Sometimes, your motivation level drops! It happens to EVERYONE. And if you drop off plan every time it happens, you're sunk.

So I depend on commitment. I have made an ironclad commitment to myself that I will make the very best decisions that I am capable of making, that I will continue to improve my fitness levels, that I will eat healthy foods that will fuel me toward my goals. And when my motivation drops (for example, today, I had a hardcore painful procedure on an injured shoulder, and I am in pain and in general in a foul mood).

I wasn't able to do my weight lifting today, because I am basically down one arm, but I DID pin that shoulder in a sling and hop on my incline trainer for a full cardio workout. And I did do some lunges and squats to at least work my legs a bit. I was craving a comfort-food treat, so I saved some calories up for some nonfat frozen yogurt for dessert...more sugar than I normally eat at night, but within my calorie allowance. But I made the very best decisions I was able to today given the circumstances. And if I do that every day, recover from my stumbles by getting right back on plan, and keep going even when I really don't want to, I continue to make progress.
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Old 04-07-2010, 09:21 AM   #3  
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Morning! You mentioned your children in your post. How about working on your health and fitness as a family? Take the kids with you when you walk or go play with them at the park. Get them involved with trying new healthy recipes and foods. Don't tell them that you're on a diet, but use this as an opportunity to teach them how to care for their bodies with proper nutrition and exercise. I'm guessing that they'll keep you so motivated by begging to go ride bikes and play outside that you won't have time to think about overeating.
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Old 04-07-2010, 09:34 AM   #4  
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I've started and re-started this weight loss journey several times. The consistent thing has been that while I was doing it for ME, I never had to do it alone. I still don't. I've had the support of friends who did Weight Watchers with me (and then the support of the group in Weight Watchers), and I'm currently trying to make good, conscious decisions about healthier eating and healthy habits in my life, with the support of my boyfriend.

I'm starting small. Three weeks ago I removed pop and chips from my diet. They'd become staples in our cupboard and fridge. I don't buy them anymore. The bf doesn't buy them anymore. We just don't keep them in the house. If someone comes over and brings it (as his parents did this weekend), we throw the rest away once those people have left the house.

Small changes seem to work best for me. First the chips and pop, and now I'm trying to cut way back on processed foods and excess salt. I'm also adding in way more fruits and vegetables than we previously ate, and we're all seeing the benefits of that. Our evening snacks involve veggies and dip, as opposed to soda and potato chips. Breakfasts are whole grain toast with pb, or yogurt with berries and a few nuts.

Living with a two year old and a dog has also been really motivating. I want both of them to get enough exercise, so I try to run around with both of them as much as possible, and in regards to eating, I definitely want the two year old to grow up loving fruits and veggies and lean proteins, so I am mindful of all that when cooking for him.

Don't overwhelm yourself. But do make a decision to change for the better. You will love the results - not just in how you look, either.

Good luck!
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Old 04-07-2010, 09:37 AM   #5  
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Gosh, do you ever think, "If only?". If you would have stayed on plan past that first week or so of January, you probably would be almost to goal. I don't care what a person calls it, motivation, commitment, or what ever, there comes a point in your life that you just get SO sick and tired of being fat and miserable that you'll stick to it. Perseverance is the key. Every day you blow it is another day of being fat, every time you cheat is another day of being fat, every excuse is another day of being fat, every feasting holiday, special occasion or planned cheat, is another day of being fat. One day you will just have to decide that there are no more excuses. Until that day comes, nothing any of us can say will make you do it. You have to decide to do it for yourself...and stick to it forever.

I might sound kind of harsh, and I apologise for not sugar coating my post some, but the fact is, if you keep doing what you have always done, you'll keep getting what you've always got. You begin by putting one foot in front of the other and "git er done".
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Old 04-07-2010, 10:26 AM   #6  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rockinrobin View Post
I don't always feel like doing lots of things - the laundry, cleaning the toilets, paying the bills, getting up for work - but to not do those things - they don't fit into the lifestyle I am looking to uphold. So to NOT do them would be ludicrous.

Your food/exercise regimen must be thought of in the same way.
This is a great comment!
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Old 04-07-2010, 11:25 AM   #7  
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One thing that helps me: come up with a plan you can stick to all the time. I can't tell you how many times I have heard/read (here and elsewhere) "X works great for me, but I don't stick with it". A plan you can't stay on doesn't work!

People think they "should" be able to eat 1200 calories a day and exercise an hour every morning and they can, normally, although it takes all their effort and willpower, but then life happens and poof, they can't deal with life and stay on plan. Better to come up with a plan that you can stick to even on the days where the baby throws up into the clean laundry hamper, the car breaks, and your boss chews you out and demands you work late b/c of something that wasn't your fault.

Your initial plan needs to be something you 1) lose SOME weight on, even if it's 1/2 pound a week and 2) is easy to stick to on normal days so that it's possible to stick to it on hard days.

Then, once you get used to that, you can make your plan tougher by little tiny increments: as you get used to it, it will be easy even on difficult, stressful, complicated days. That's when you make it a little more strict--exercise a little more, eat a little less--but still keep it at a level that's easy on "normal" days. In six months, you can be sticking to that 1200 calorie/hour of exercise routine, but at that point, it'll be something you can do no matter what.
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Old 04-07-2010, 12:44 PM   #8  
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I believe in small changes that add up over the long term to much better health (and the weight loss that goes along with that better health).

If you were to ask me for my specific advice on what is the very FIRST thing that a busy mom should work on to improve her health, I would say: Sleep. Work on improving your sleep duration and quality until you are regularly getting 7 to 8 hours of solid, restful sleep each and every night. Doing that alone will decrease cravings for junk foods, control hunger, give you more energy, clear up your mind, give you more emotional power and stability, deal with insulin resistance issues, and simply help you feel better overall. And, you might even lose weight just by dealing with sleep problems.

I believe that sleep is an incredibly neglected area of health in our modern society. So that's where I, personally, would advise anyone interested in their health, fitness, and weight control to start.
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Old 04-07-2010, 12:56 PM   #9  
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Red face Starting again today

I am sure you can all relate.....trying again....I reallly want to change, make life long habits, take walks and by physical again and feel comfortable in my clothes. I decided to join this community to get read about those of you who are successful and those who are having a hard time of it so I can get some good tips and to help motivate me to stick to this potentially life changing adventure.

Last edited by Cisco64; 04-07-2010 at 12:57 PM.
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Old 04-07-2010, 02:51 PM   #10  
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I'm all gung-ho right now cause I'm starting but I know that rah-rah feeling will fade as the novelty wears off. But . . . keeping on track and seeing the efforts pay off with the scale going down and the clothes getting bigger, that keeps me going. Paying attention to what I'm putting in my mouth is a biggie. If I hadn't stopped paying attention I'd have been at goal quite awhile ago! Sometimes getting pissy at the damn fat helps. I get an 'Ooo, I'll show you, you stupid fat' attitude that helps when the scale doesn't move as fast as I'd like.
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Old 04-07-2010, 08:37 PM   #11  
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I'm glad I decided to open this thread. You ladies have made some really good points that I think I needed to hear.
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