Im so so angry with myself. Ive put on a good 5 pounds, i was 150, now im 155.
Ive totally lost my motivation for exercise, I was doing so well winter time then i got ill then i just havent been able to get back on track.
I find exercising so hard, so now i have to rewind and lost what i had already.
Feeling totally de motivated and awful about it, and would really appreciate any motivation or support.

I hear 'ya, Deb. In the same boat. I have been chalking it up to a plateau, but the fact is, I've been eating more calories than I should. So, I tried to look on the positive side.

You've done really great so far. My old pattern would have been to just accept that this wasn't going to work and gain it all back and more. Instead, pick out something that you really want as a reward -- doesn't have to be big, just something you want. One time I picked out taking a nap on the next rainy afternoon! The deal was that I needed to get through an entire week of being back on plan. Once a couple of days had passed, the "good" habits came back. And the weight came off pretty easily.

When I've really been in a funk and just want to eat, I literally have sometimes set up a spreadsheet that has the waking hours listed on it and I check off each one where I stayed on plan. Heck, one time I went out and bought a box of gold stars to put on the calendar for each day.

You can do this. Just put yourself at the top of your priority list. Everything else can wait (OK, I realize that work and kids etc. probably have to get your attention), but make this week about you. You deserve it.

Its ok. We all fall off the wagon sometimes, or even multiple times. The good part is that we all have the ability to dust ourselves off, and hop right back on. Last year I lost about 20 and was SO CLOSE to being under 200 lbs for the first time in 10 years. And I dropped the ball, hard. Now I'm back losing weight I already lost. But, you know what? It's ok. I'm awesome. You're awesome. We're all awesome for recognizing we fell off and still having the desire to get back on.

In regards to exercising. I hate it also. What I've been doing is changing up my routines. I youtube alot. I've been doing zumba, kickboxing (love this!), Kendell Hogan---he's nice to look at (*faints*), anything and everything to keep my interest. And on days that no video interest me, I grab my daughter and head to the trail and just walk. If I'm too lazy to get my behind outside, I will stand while watching TV and march the entire time. Also, if you live near a really big mall, you can do a walk from end to end.

NO worries hun. No worries at all. *big hug*

In the same boat except I gained 20+ lbs over the past year. Dont feel so bad!

I've done this before...and then went a step further. I created a spreadsheet that went day by day into the future and calculated up my average losses per day according to my past results to see where I *could* be. I then copy and pasted it and calculated it to where I would be if I continued to have slips. The difference was astonishing...and the speed in which I could lose the weight was faster than I had originally thought. I did that three months ago...and I am only 3 pounds off from my calculations. It's funny how a slip either puts you in overdrive or throws you in the hole.

As best summed up by an unknown source:
“You don’t drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.”

You see, you're not alone--we've all been here! I'm trying to bounce back from a 5 lbs gain myself. Moving back home with my parents after college and then living abroad for a year and a half plus being stressed out "figuring life out" meant my exercise and diet went out the window. My parents' 9 PM Dairy Queen runs haven't helped either. :-/

Like the other ladies have said, the good news is that you're only up 5 lbs! Yes, it's annoying, but you have the power to catch this early. What works for me is having a good "cleanse day" which basic means lots of fruits and veggies, a good exercise session, and getting back to counting calories. It also helps me to stay off the scale for a few days, so I don't get obsessive. Remember, it's amazing how even just one good day can make you feel committed and rejuvenated.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

I also got sick and backtracked a bit. I started again, but can't weigh myself until Aunt Flo leaves. I hope I have lost something! We can do this

Hi
Thanks so much for all your support and encouragement.
Ive really started trying to control calorie intake again. I dunno why but im finding it impossible to just buckle down and start exercise again! I keep thinking im going to start and it never happens.
Its so hard to get rid of those thoughts " if i would have kept it up id have reached my goal by now" but they just keep haunting me.
In desperate need of motivation, and just to get my head back in the game!

This was what my doctor told me and what ultimately was my motivation:

On average, people gain 10-15 pounds a year if they don't exercise or change their eating habits. However, the average person can lose one to two pounds a week if they make that slight adjustment...that means they can easily lose 52 to 104 pounds a year...far exceeding what they could gain and easily losing faster than they originally gained. In addition, it takes an average of SIX WEEKS to form a habit...doing the same thing over and over again....but only takes 72 hours of "slacking" for a habit to be broke. So...basically, once you take those six weeks to do something, and force yourself to do it, you don't want to slack because that is six weeks of heck over three days of laziness.

You got this, you can do this. You know you can. Afterall, you only have to relose the 5. Not all that much considering you already lost 25. Have faith and keep going. Result are bound to happen!

All I can say is, get back on the wagon. No matter how many times you fall off, it's important to get back on... This is what I tell myself, anyway.