Where to start? Need motivation!
 

Hi everyone,
I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for me. I need to lose quite a bit of weight- I'm currently around 315lbs and 5'4". I know I need to do it, I need to change my way of eating, my life in general. It just sounds so darn overwhelming that I keep putting it off. I'm always telling myself I'll start next week, next month, I'm sure I can drop some weight once I really start trying so for today I'll just eat like always and I can always start eating better tomorrow.

I have so many reasons to lose weight- I'm a mom to two young boys, and I would love to be able to keep up with them. I have heart disease, stroke, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol in my family. I know my own cholesterol is high. I'm starting to become uncomfortable in my own body- my fat is just too much for my short body and even sitting in certain positions is difficult. I want to be comfortable, I want to look better, I want my kids and husband to be proud of me, I want to be healthy and see my kids grow up and live their lives. It just seems that I don't want these things enough to actually do something about it. I do take an antidepressant daily and I wonder if I still have some depression issues that might be making me feel this way- but above all I think it's just me being lazy and not taking personal responsibility for my actions.

So I've decided I HAVE to do something. I just keep gaining and I don't have any other choice. I don't know where to start, though. I have done Weight Watchers in the past, and it did work for a while, but then something stressful came up and I would "put it off" for a few weeks and never get back on the wagon. I really don't have the extra money for anything like Weight Watchers at this point, either. Should I just start with counting calories? Is there an app or something that might be helpful? There are so many types of diets, I'm just not sure where to start. I need something that will be easy enough for me to continue, and that I'm not likely to just dump after two weeks. Any suggestions of where to start? Any suggestions on how to get the motivation to actually do this!?
Thanks for reading all of this!! Sorry it's so long! :)

I don't know how old your boys are, but do the like to do outdoor/energetic activities? Maybe there's something you could do together- having fun with your kids and seeing how much fun they're having could be motivation to keep doing it? I don't have kids, but sometimes when I walk by a play area, I really admire the parents who are pushing their kids on swings, or running their children from the bottom of the slide to the ladder, then back to catch them. I always think they must be burning so many calories just doing things like that, compared to the parents who sit and watch from the benches. And it looks like they're having more fun too!

Can you get your kids involved with healthy eating too? Turn it into a game/family activity?

Personally, I count calories because to me it's easier than counting points (food packets have kjs/cals on them, but not ww points, so I find it easier to check info when shopping) and I use the MyNetDiary app (started with the free version, then moved on to the paid one), but there are tonnes and tonnes of apps out there and a lot are free so you could try them out until you find one that fits you?

For me the hardest thing is stopping myself from putting it off/letting myself slide. I know some people keep pictures of themselves around for inspiration, but I like to keep pictures that relate to where I want to be. One of my big goals is losing enough to be able to go horse riding, so I have a picture of a horse on my fridge (which I can see from my usual seat in the lounge), and also my gym membership form. It means I can glance over and say to myself 'oh yeah, that's why I'm doing this, and when I get to that point, this won't have seemed so hard'. Maybe you could try something like that- is there an activity you'd like to do with your kids, but you feel is beyond your fitness level now? I have a friend who wants to take her kids to a water park, but is embarrassed to wear a swimsuit, so she has a picture of a waterslide as her desktop background, to remind her why she's working so hard.

Welcome PlutoPants!:wel3fc:
Posting was a great first step. Please join us in the 300+ chat thread. It is great for support.
Picking a diet is like picking a mate. You may have to shop around a little until you find the right one. Many people try one and when it doesn't work they quit. Try one, if it isn't right for you try another. Keep going until you find the right one. Sometimes a diet may work for a while and then you have to change things up.
Or try baby steps. Stop drinking soda or cut out sweets or have smaller portions. This is a learning process. Be kind to yourself.
Good luck!

the simple answer is just start! change one or two things and once those seem normal change something else and go from there.
you could start by logging your food (I like myfitnesspal) and after a week or so look at what you can easily cut out....downsize one or two portions, eliminate high calorie drinks, add in a vegetable, stuff like that. read up on nutrition and learn what crap food does to your body - you won't want to eat it anymore!
you don't have to go hardcore on exercise, just try to move a little more, park at the far side of the parking lot when you go shopping, stand while on the phone, stand up during commercials when you're watching television, that kind of thing. moving will get easier and you'll want to move more
I didn't reach the weight loss goal I set for myself last year, but I got halfway there, and I hit some other goals - started running, fit into smaller clothes, for example.
Don't wait another day to start, you can't get that time back.