i've tried several times to lose weight but i just can't stay motivated and usually stop in about 3 days. how do you do it? i really want to do this but it isn't enough.

so how do you do it? what keeps you going? what makes you motivated to get started again after a day off?

Check my signature - it's my motto!

Motivation, for me, doesn't really work. Because, well, it goes away. I get bored. I get tired. I don't want to DO this weight loss/maintenance thing anymore. Though I do have a sustainable plan (also important...if there's too much restriction and your plan doesn't work with your life, it'll be harder to stick to), sometimes, no matter how reasonable the plan, I just don't want to do it.

If I relied on my motivation, I'd quit regularly. But I don't rely on it. Instead, I made a commitment to myself...that I'd stick to this. A commitment, a pledge, a 100% promise to myself to make the best choices I can, day after day. While I'm not perfect EVERY day, I do make good choices more often than not, because I've made that commitment.

Now, we all know that commitments CAN be broken, if you don't mean them deeply. But if you really, deep down, DECIDE that you're committing to weight loss, that decision will keep you committed, which will keep you on plan.

The good news, for me, is that when you make that commitment, you'll start getting results...and those results will give you some (temporary, but surely helpful!) motivation, and help make your commitment even stronger. And that is what will get you through day after day.

For me, the first few weeks were the HARDEST. The only thing that keeps me motivated is progress. Seeing changes in my body, fitting into clothes I never thought possible, getting compliments around every corner. Every time I start feeling blah someone else notices my weight. For those first few weeks, you just have to get through it! It does get better.

I'm in my 6th week and it's becoming routine for me.. record calories, exercise, drink water...repeat.

Once I accepted this was a lifestyle change I stopped feeling so overwhelmed because I can take it day by day. I dont deprive myself of what I am craving.. I just delay the satisfaction. I tell myself if I'm still craving xxx tomorrow morning, I can have it for breakfast LOL and just deduct from my calorie intake... I log the food before I eat it to make sure I won't regret it later.

I tell myself it's not I can't have x.. it's I don't want x... it's my choice and empowers me to not feel so helpless.

This board also is very inspiring and motivating. Every time I feel hopeless I read other people's blogs, posts, mini-goals, progress pictures..
some of these inspirational stories took years to get there so I hope I can find the strength to be patient also =D

Other things I've Done
- I made a desktop bg of all the bad pictures of me that I untagg from facebook

- I saved a folder on my desktop with MORE bad pictures to remind myself WHY I'm doing this

- I save cute clothes online that I want to wear in the future and I fantasize of buying whatever I want and feeling 100% confident

- Joined challenges to tease my competitive nature especially seeing other people lose makes me want to also lose

- Watch the Biggest Loser, Dietribe, Ruby... anything on TV related to weightloss lol

-Blog every day

-Take pictures of myself every week in a swimsuit and label them in a special folder

- Find a diet buddy (mine is my sister who I report to ~she's 110 lbs lol) and my boyfriend (who is losing with me)

Good luck with your journey !!

What kept me going this time was the realization that the pain of being fat and sick was worse than the imagined pain of cutting out all the junk food. I finally had to get to the point where I was willing to make a change and give that stuff up. The beginning was the hardest, but there came a point where I had to tell myself that I just cannot eat like I did when I was an active teenager. That I just needed to get over myself and realize that I didn't have to stuff myself on chips and cookies simply because my inner two-year-old was screaming and throwing a fit over it.

That approach won't work for everyone but that's what finally did it for me. And I stick with it because I know that stopping means going back to being way overweight, to being unhappy and feeling unattractive and heavy and matronly and sad. So yeah, sometimes it's still hard but honestly, it gets easier as you form the healthy habits.

My thoughts and feelings are very similar to Mandalinns. I don't/can't/won't rely on motivation. I've commited to do this NO MATTER WHAT and that's that. It's no longer an option for me NOT to do this.

People ask me all the time how I lost so much weight, when they can't seem to lose 10 lbs and I tell them, again much like Mandalinn said - that I DECIDED to. I decided I was going to do this once and for all and permanently. No ifs ands or buts. I realized I didn't have to be fat if I didn't want to be. That I did have the control/power to do this. So I DECIDED to do it. Committed to doing it. And was therefore WILLING to do whatever was required, whatever was necessary to get the job done.

Losing weight IS of course a doable thing for anyone and everyone. Yourself included. You *just* must decide to do so. Make that decision, make that commitment and then there's no way that this can't happen.

I rely on planning and habits now. By Sunday night, I know what I'm going to eat for every meal/snack until Friday. Obviously, this much planning might not work for everyone, but I need it. I have found it is IMPOSSIBLE to eat healthy by accident. We all know that an apple is a better snack than a package of Doritos, but which one is easier to find at work at 3:00 in the afternoon? If I want an apple, I better have brought it from home that morning.

The other thing that keeps me going is food that I like. I am exactly the same person as ever - I still love food, and look forward to every meal, even snacks. So, I had to pick a plan made up foods I love eating.

Sure, sometimes, I may wish I could eat whatever I want without gaining any weight, but usually, it is NO PROBLEM to keep up with my healthy ways. The food tastes good, I feel wonderful, I have a closet full of adorable clothes, why would I stop?

It's so true - Motivation is such a short-lived, occassional thing. Who was it that told me the story about Mo T Vation? I remember this - he's like a fair-weathered friend; sometimes there when you need him, sometimes not. You can't always rely on him, and if you did, you would surely be let down.

So yeah, these chicks challenged me back in April to think about what I REALLY WANT. Do I really want to lose weight? Or do I kind of want to and then whine and moan when it doesn't happen and oh by the way pass me another glass of wine and slice of pizza while you are at it? It sounds so simplistic, but it really is just a DECISION to do it and then a COMMITMENT.

That's all. Think about the other things in your life that you wanted and went for. Did you go to college and graduate? How did you do that? You had a commitment to finish didnt you? What about your friends and family? Do you make commitments to them that are important, that you don't break? Have you been in a romantic relationship that you committed to? How about the relationship with yourself?

Like Windchime, there just comes a point where being fat and miserable is not worth it anymore. Do I miss Pizza Fridays and going on on the piss with my friends, throwing all caution to the wind, drinking too many alcoholic bevvies and going for a Gyros at 3am on a Saturday? Well... not really I like how my life is now and how it's becoming and how I can actually fit my social activities into my plan and my lifestyle. Once you start doing it, and you've made the COMMITMENT, it's fairly easy to follow through. And man does it feel GOOD!

Oh, this is going to sound so shallow, but it's true. Other than the usual health/fitness reasons, I just feel as if I wasted my 20s and 30s on being fat and miserable. In the time I have left as relatively young, I want to look as good as I possibly can. I am OK with aging, for the most part, but I really do want to have fun with this last period of what passes for youth. I don't want to have wasted it all.

I too feel like I wasted my teens and 20s (I'm 27) on being fat. I used stress as an excuse for not eating healthy. You and I have very similar start stats. I was 172 at my WEDDING. How depressing is that? I was in total denial looking at the pictures and blamed the photographer. My husband and I just went to the beach a couple of days ago. He took pics of me and when I looked at them, I could tell that it wasn't the wedding photographer's fault or the camera's fault. It was mine for not watching what I ate. I guess that's motivation enough. On a day to day basis? I weigh everyday which keeps me accountable. I don't want to see a gain because I gave in to some tortilla chips or cake. So, I exercise and eat right (portion control, lots of veggies fruits). I believe in eating in moderation because that's what works for me. So I don't feel deprived if I'm at a restaurant and everyone's eating an entree while I have to limit myself to the salads. This makes it easier to stick to my healthy diet because I know I can splurge when I want.

Also, start slow. If you're trying to do everything at once (eat salads twice a day, exercise for at least 2 hours) you're going to get burnt out really quickly. I have tried crash dieting and ridiculous amounts of exercise and nothing really worked because while it would show a drop (tiny), I couldn't sustain it in the long-term. That's what's important. Try doing one thing at a time. Plan a wholesome dinner with lots of veggies and whole-grains. For dessert, plan on eating a fruit (a banana or berries - they're sweet). Do that for a couple of weeks and then plan on having a wholesome lunch. Move up to breffix and once your diet is in place for a few weeks, then work on incorporating a little exercise into the week. It's not important that it takes you a few months to get into the swing of things because this is for life. I took 2 months to get myself into a routine. Anyone can do this, but you need to be determined.

You can do it!!

Far be it for me to lecture about motivation, because I have issues with that myself. I tend to burn out and get off track easily, then live in denial for awhile, then get back on track, repeat.

That said, I am going to use this forum as my motivation and my way to cope. What I mean is that, when I feel like eating and my calorie intake for the day has been met, I am going to jump on this forum and read and post, instead of reaching for that handful of Cheezits that are calling my name.

The other thing that is difficult for me, or has been difficult in the past, is the food diary. I used to think of that as too much damn trouble. But I found a site, Livestrong.com, that really makes it simple because its food database is so extensive that you really don't have to do a lot of work to input your food. And I have become obsessive about it, as you must, because if you miss putting some of your food in, you will overeat and not even know it - "but my diary says that I ate only 1,300 per day," when really you missed about 500 calories of "just a bite" kind of foods throughout your day.

The other thing that is motivating me, exercise-wise, is that I am doing Jillian's program, "Making the Cut." That motivates me, because her circuit routines are always changing, so it gives me fresh things to do every week.

Downloading new music and putting it on the ipod is another thing. I look forward to hearing the new music, so I look forward to going to the gym so I can play it.

Also, I picture how I would look if I gained, say, 50 lbs. I have a picture in my head that is probably accurate, and it horrifies me enough that it keeps me on track. I know how depressed I was when I was almost 170, so being quite a bit heavier than that would really get me down.

All this said, I hope that I, too, can stay motivated to keep up with the changes I have made. Weightloss is work, its 24-7, and you almost have to be obsessive to make it. Obsessive about tracking your calories, obsessive about not missing your workouts, obsessive about getting your steps in for the day, tracking your water, etc. Not a lot of people have the stamina for it, which is why so few succeed. But I am determined to beat the odds.

Stepping on the scale and seeing a loss or at least not a gain is tremendous motivation for me , even better is the frightening thought that if I get lazy, complacent, bored or all of the aboveI will find myself wearing XLarge clothing again. Don't want to do that again !

My answer is much like Mandalinn's, Robin's and Glory's. I FORCED myself to do it. I FORCED myself. I gave myself no other choice....either do it, or do it. I have never felt better in my life.

I was just telling a friend on Facebook who can't seem to get the ball rolling about my latest shopping adventure. I told her if she can't get it going for her health, do it for the shopping! It is so fun!

Everyone has posted great advice. I agree with it all. Getting started again after a "day off" from being on plan can be very hard. What I do is, if I have had an off day on Saturday, then on that same day I'm at the grocery store buying my healthy food for my meals on Sunday and the rest of the week. I make sure that everything is in place to start an "on plan" day the next day. Just like one poster said, it's HARD to find healthy choices on a whim/by accident. You have to PLAN for them. So put those healthy plans in place so that you take any guess work out of it. It's easier to stay on track when you plan.

There are several things that keep me going:

1. Reactions from family/friends/co-workers. When they say "Wow, I can tell so much!" that makes me so happy.

2. This site. I may not know these people in person, but knowing that I have to report back here keeps me on track. Not to mention the moral support from all the wonderful people here who are all on the same path.

3. The scale. I weigh in every day. Some frown on this, not me. I think it's good to know if I splurged and ate too much over the weekend, that the numbers will go up. It's like they scream at me - "look what you did!!!!"

4. Clothes. I picked out some smaller jeans I had that didn't stretch and tried them on every week. I'm wearing them as I type, and they are loose. And man it feels good!!!
I also purged my closet of all the clothes that are too big for me now, so I know I'm at the point of no return. If I gain again, I'll have nothing to wear.

These are what does it for me. I also log my food into Fitday. Seeing in black and white what you ate makes you think twice about it.