How do you stick with an exercise program when you have so many other things going on in your life. I was doing so well and then it all came to a screeching halt and I cannot seem to find the motivation to get back into it. I had lost 28 pounds and was well on my way and then I totally stopped everything.

Does anyone have any tips or anything to get back into it once you have stopped? I need to lose weight and I am miserable at my current weight, my cholesterol is high but all I can seem to do is eat junk to try and counteract my feelings of guilt for not going to the gym.

I know you have to find the motivation within and I have to want to lose weight and get in shape but it is hard when you have been inactive for so long.

HELP!!!!

For me it is more about being determined to succeed. Being determined to get healthy. Being determined to have a better body. Being determined to stay on plan.

Good luck with your goals. You can do this

one thing that helps me is going back through this forum and looking at other people's progress pictures and pictures that they post when they reach their goals. not only does everyone look amazing (which is highly motivating for me because i want to look amazing too..lol)...but they all look so happy, and I'd LOVE to experience that feeling.

it's definitely good motivation for me anyways. =D

DF - You are so right! I love the Success Stories section

What I'm reading in your post is alot of self-anger and frustration about not being able to diet and exercise and to get the weight off. And perhaps a bit of "all or nothing" thinking. And this kind of thinking is self-defeating -- you know, if I don't get out and exercise what's the POINT so I'll just eat THIS and cause I ATE THIS I'm bloated and can't get to the gym today to work it off so I'm going to start tomorrow...and tomorrow never comes...

SO, what I might suggest is that for JUST right now, Is BREATHE. Stop and think. Who do you want to be, say at this time next year? And to do that, you'll HAVE to jump into this with both feet.

And the FIRST thing to do is FORGIVE yourself. Life happens. Self-loathing is not productive. The past is history and doesn't exist. And neither does the future. So you gotta deal with the reality of NOW. And NOW you weigh 210 lbs -- not great but not so bad. Not as bad as you think. And in the grand scheme of things, you haven't done anything WRONG!!! You haven't killed anyone. You aren't going to jail. You just have a bit more padding right now. That's all. So be kind to yourself!

Next, just focus on the diet. Just for now. Put the exercise on the back burner and get your diet under control because what you look like is due primarily to diet. Exercise is important, but that WILL come, promise. Research a plan that is structured and that you can live with in the long term.

Then, just DO it! Just for 30 days. See how it goes. Commit 100% to the 30 days. I'll bet at that point, you'll be lighter and happier and will want to continue. I'll even bet that you'll wonder why you didn't do this sooner!!! Then you can work in the exercise...

Chin up! You are exactly where pretty much ALL of us have been at some point in time. What counts is your guts and determination to choose your path and to commit to it...



Kira

I don't believe in motivation.

Sure, I believe it exists, and when I have it, things are golden. But I don't believe it can carry me through. I think that waiting around until I was motivated is part of what made it take so long for me to start losing in the first place.

What I do believe in is commitment. If I make a decision to be on plan, every day, every minute, and I commit firmly to that decision, there's no need to be motivated. It isn't a question. I just do it, and if I slip up (and we ALL slip up - no one is perfect, and no one follows a plan perfectly), the very next time I am faced with a food or exercise choice, I remember my commitment and I follow through.

You have to let go of what has been in the past, and your past behaviors, and move into a new commitment, starting right now, to stick to your plan. And then keep yourself to it, even if you slip, even if you waver, even if you hit a day where you don't want to.

Motivation comes and goes. Commitment is a LOT more predictable. And the great thing is, after a little bit of it, you'll usually start seeing RESULTS, which validate and help you keep your commitment, and give you a little bit of the motivation that makes it easier.

You can do this!

Well there sounds like your motivation right there. What more motivation then ending that misery, getting your health in check and saving your life does one need?????

Perhaps you need to look beyond motivation.

A commitment is much more lasting. That commitment is what will get you to the gym, "when you have no time", it's what will keep you from eating the junk. That commitment will stop you from making excuses and looking for solutions.

Yes, making a change IS hard. But for me, it boiled down to the fact that NOT making a change was even HARDER. I couldn't remain the way that I was. I was fat, unhealthy, scared, worried, unproductive, unenergetic, lethargic, depressed, unhappy and just down right MISERABLE. I was settling for a poor quality of life when a great one was available to me. Soooo as hard as it seemed, I was ready and WILLING to make the changes necessary to ensure a healthier, more productive and HAPPIER life.

Planning was ESSENTIAL to me. ESSENTIAL beyond belief. I planned everything out ahead of time and stuck to that plan like glue. The first 10 days or so WERE difficult. Didn't matter. I knew that it couldn't be harder then REMAINING how I was. So I stuck to it. Like glue. No matter what. I made the decision once and for all to get rid of the fat and be the best me that I could be. So after those initial 10 days or so, having eliminated all of my "trigger" foods, the ones that I loved and overate the most - my cravings for them greatly diminished. GREATLY. It was a miracle of sorts for me.

I added in wonderful, healthy, nutritious and delicious foods and that was that. I also counted/still count my calories as that is the only way IMO, to set portion limits and keep ones food consumption firmly in check.

You CAN lose weigh. You absolutely CAN. You don't have to be overweight if you don't want to be. It's a doable thing and everyone and any one is capable of it. You included! So get going, get excited, make an iron clad commitment to "do this", make a plan - and execute the heck out of it. You'll see that once you get started and get into it - it's not all that hard. And whatever *hard* it is, is a way more rewarding and gratifying *hard* then the hard of being overweight.

The choice is yours. Life is very scarce. Please choose wisely.

Your gym time has to be like a doctor appointment. You go there because it's on your schedule. You don't think about whether you feel like going or not, because plenty of days you won't feel like it. That's not the point. You have the appointment scheduled, you go.

After awhile you'll wonder how you ever thought you didn't have time for the gym. It will become a part of your weekly routine. When you need to move the regular time, you will--you won't just drop it.

In other words, you have to give your exercise a priority. You can't leave it up to chance or to being all rah-rah about it. Same goes with planning your eating. All of us here on 3FC left our eating a little too much up to chance and opportunity, with the results you see.

Unconscious no more!

Jay

The only way I can consistently exercise is to do it first thing in the morning. I am up by 4:45am and at the gym by 5:00am. Just make it part of your daily routine--like sleeping, showering, eating, etc. I find that I have a lot less excuses not to go first thing in the morning and now my body is trained such that when the alarm goes off, I am changing and going out the door (in the beginning I used to go to bed dressed in my workout clothes).

Now THAT'S cute. And dedicated. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do!

I admire your inventiveness.

To be honest , I dont think it's a case of waking up with motivation and then having it for as long as possible. From the last time I lost 40lbs, and from putting on another 60 afterwards, losing motivation came from a feeling of guilt. Sure there will be times when we slip up but it's about slipping up and getting back on the wagon the next day and forgiving ourselves.

The times that I have the most motivation are when I start showing myself what I'm really capable of and commit to a lifestyle that I feel is beneficial for me. I mean there are days that I want to eat like all my other friends and days where I can't be bothered to walk up my road let alone go for a long walk - but I know that I will feel a sense of relief afterwards and that's the thing that means the most to me.

And if you've totally lost every inch of motivation , reading the success stories on here and the pics , might just give you that spark to see that what you want is really attainable and that you don't have to live a life of gluttony and guilt because you can't see the light at the end of the tunnel right now.

Stay determined and commited - motivation might just follow!

I hope to see you at your goal sometime - good luck!!