Ever since i was 224lbs i decided to start and loose weight...so far i lost 34lbs however....
1) i keep setting myself up for goals that i know i cant reach (like 40lbs in a month if that possible)
2) i feel like im envying everyone i see to be to be skinny (like my cousin)
3) if i eat something i kno that bad for me right now i give up and say "im going to start over tomooorow" and start scarfing the whole thing down.

I know it wrong i know it but still i do it...

i know i have been there; and I am still half there. I am trying to be more realistic with myself, but I know how you feel on every point. The only thing that motivates me is that I like to work out, not that I do it a lot. But that is the cool fun part of this for me. It took me 6 weeks to lose 3 lbs, but I did it dammmit.
I am not going to eat salads everyday as I should, but I am trying to make smaller changes, like less sugar in my coffee, or no dessert, and trying to stop eating when I am full, but it is hard, it is no cake walk for me either. So know that we are here for you!

Hey Pretty!

Good to see the kind of things that you do-- those games the mind plays.

Here is something another 3FC member said about eating something bad and then giving up for the day:

"If you were driving and you got a flat tire, would you pull over and slash the other three?"

So think about that when you are about to keep on eating just 'cause you had something bad.

You're right, you can't lose 40 pounds in a month... But, you have lost 34 pounds so far!!! Congratulations! You are making good progress!


Hang in there!

Jay

What great wisdom, Jay, about our "all or nothing" trap......thinking if we blow it with one cookie, one little off- plan imperfection, then we use it as an excuse to blow off the whole darned day! What great wisdom. If we had one flat, we would NOT slash the other 3 tires!

I ran into a co-worker today--someone I like alot--I hadn't seen her in a while......she had obviously lost alot of weight--turns out she has lost 50#s since July 1. Now that is ALOT of wt. and a very short time. She has done amazingly well, just "cutting back". Her health has improved immensely. I am so happy for her. (second only to her husband, and her doctor! Can you imagine being a dr. and preaching "lose wt. ..lose wt..and then have a patient actually DO IT??)

I guess we all just have to "get there" ..to find that point where we HAVE to make a choice and JUST DO IT. Let's all just embrace the wisdom..no one cookie, no one bad choice can derail us and undo the fact we have lost 34#s, or 50#s, or 162#s .......yanno? That's why our tickers say "keep going".

Let's all just forgive ourselves and move on! 34#s is GREAT!

My favorite analogy I read here went along the lines of if you were going up a flight of stairs and tripped would you give up and fling yourself headfirst down the stairs?

hahaha the flat tires and the stairs, hillarious stuff! Thanks very motivating!

Pretty,

Congratulations on the lbs lost so far! You've identified the habits that are keeping you back - that's a step in the right direction. Habits are hard to break, but it is possible.
We've all been there, and will be again. You have to find what works for you, and stick to it. Best of luck!

This is not origional with me but I like it ,

Being fat is hard, dieting is hard maintaining is hard, Choose your hard !

So many wonderful quotes!!!

Be realistic, consistent, and forgive yourself for slipping up. But you do have to want to lose weight more than you want to make the same choices that made you heavy.

I hear you on the all or nothing. I've dealt with that too. What's helped me:

1) Break it down into mini goals. For example, I want to get to 150. Instead of focusing on the 40+ pounds I want to lose, I'm focusing on getting under 190. Then, I'll focus on 180. Reinforce the minigoals with rewards along the way. Buy some new music or get a manicure.

2) When you find yourself getting into all or nothing thinking. For example, I have a bad tendency to do this with exercise. If I oversleep & don't have time for the full 1.5 hour workout (weights & cardio) I planned, I used to just skip it & sleep in. Instead, I'll go for 30 minutes of cardio (or however much I have time for). It helps keep the routine for exercise (which is my toughest challenge of the whole weight loss equation). For food, if you do give into temptation, try to watch the portions. For example, I like chips & chocolate. I used to have big bags of chips or candybars in my home. Now, I don't keep them around and when I do indulge, I buy the single serving instead. And then there's no temptation to keep eating once I've had a taste like there would be if the food is still there. And half the time, the craving is killed by the thought of having to go out & get it (I'm using my sloth in my favor ).

3) Even though you don't want to buy a whole new wardrobe yet, buy some flattering outfits with a good fit and nice colors. I find that doing that along with things like a flattering haircut, getting my nails done, etc. leads to compliments which help boost my self confidence which make me feel less envious of others.

When I get frustrated with the pace of progress, I remind myself I didn't gain this weight overnight, I'm not going to lose it overnight.

As for setting goals you know you can't reach...

A study in the [I]International Journal of Obesity[I] found that women who set unrealistic goals lost more weight that those who didn't. So if you are generally a driven person this could actually help you. As long as you don't get too down on yourself for not meeting the goals.

i actually thought about the quote today when i ate a brownie (oops), but i thought about the slash the other three tires and i actually went to the gym for an hour plus 20 more minutes to burn the brownie of course..and it really help...thanks

Jay

I read an article about Wynnona (sp?) Judd and she says that perfection is the highest form of abuse. There is a lot of wisdom in that statement. Good for you for not letting one brownie derail your day completely.

...for me micro-mini-goals are what's getting me through this. I like to feel like I'm winning while I'm losing. I want to feel like I'm crossing a finish line as many times and as often as I can. Someone on here started the "Magic Numbers". These are the numbers along the way that you want to reach. I set up a whole pack of 'em. I just hit two yesterday and another one today! I put a whole page of them on my blog. If you want to see them click the link to my blog on the far left.

I just hit 35 pounds lost today and I'm feeling great!!