Hey guys...

Its been a while since I've been around. I put on a little weight since last time and I can't seem to get motivated again to start over. I don't know what to do.

Hi, Fluff! What a happy surprise to see you again!

Just put one foot in front of the other and take it one day at a time. That's the best way to get started. It gets easier from there, I promise!

back, SF! Motivation can be hard to find. Perhaps you can write a list of the reasons why you want to do this? You might also want to look at The Beck Diet Solution by Judith Beck. Some people have found it really helpful in terms of cementing why they want to do this and how to get their mind wrapped around the psychological aspects of weight loss.

There are also lots of posts here and in the main forums about different ways to get motivated: do a search and I'm sure you'll find some good ideas.

Anyone have any ideas on motivation they can post?

One of the ideas I got from Beck is to write a list of all the reasons you want to lose weight. Then post the list everywhere - on your fridge, on your computer, in your wallet, at your desk. Before going off plan take just a few minutes to read that list. Sounds simple but it really helps.

Also, just do it for today. Let tomorrow and next week take care of themselves. Bet you can do almost anything just for one day.

It also helps to weigh and measure yourself and make some sort of a chart/graph that you can record changes to. I like to have my cholesterol or glucose checked frequently to monitor healthful changes. There are usually lots of low cost lab draws listed by local hospitals in our community to check these. Then you can really see the benefit of eating better. If you belong to a Y or gym they can do measurements or body fat testing. Seeing your body change with concrete evidence always helps me. Hope this helps!

I really like the idea of lsiting the reasons why you want to lose the weight, I usually take a photo of myself in my underwear- not posing, not sucking anything in, just how it REALLY looks- then keep it somewhere (that noone else can see!) .... I generally find it so horrifying that it kicks me into gear! Scare tactics!

I'm with meelsie. When I first started in July 2004, I had a picture of me in a bathing suit (one from the front, one from the side) and hung one up on the fridge and one in the pantry where all the junk food was kept.

Also, stuck one on the exercise bike too to cover how long I'd been riding it.

Do you have a pair of your old pants? Put them on. Even though you've slipped a little bit, you're still significantly further than you were.

this is the second time I've made it from 260 to 221. the first time, two years ago, I had a rollover car crash, and went into diet freefall. I've resolved not to let something like that shake me out of my life change this time. I had bought a new wardrobe of "skinny clothes" two years ago, and I'm just now getting back into them. Please don't let yourself make the mistake I made.

Think about what goes on over Thanksgiving and Christmas -- would you rather power through that season on a diet, or would you rather go on a diet with everyone else in January but have to take off an additional 20 besides?

When I get discouraged I go look at the posts for the before and after photos.

I put a "before" photo on the fridge.

Trust me, it holds me accountable more than anything else.

I also had my DH take a front and side (horror!) view of me in a sports bra and panties. That is my motivation.

I plan on photoshopping my head onto a super sexy skinny model in a bikini and putting the two photos side by side and posting on my fridge, LOL! If that doesn't stop me from reaching for the bad stuff, nothing will!

I love this idea! Thanks for sharing. I have just started SBD and really like it but I know that motivation can be an issue for me, too!