As the title says I am starting to get really frustrated with myself I came back from an overseas holiday Tuesday night and every morning since I keep vowing to myself that today is the day I am going to cut all the crappy food from my diet and actually go to the gym after work. Every day neither has happened.

I know I only have myself to blame for this but I am getting so down about it, I have the motivation but just keep slipping back into old habbits

Did anyone else have difficulty first starting?

Two summers in a row I've had a horrible time getting back on plan after an overseas trip. I blamed jet lag, but then I realized I had trouble the summer before when the farthest I traveled was about a five hour drive, so it may just be something about summer.

What works for me is putting structures in place to help me do what I claim I want to do -- and it takes a surprisingly large number of structures.

To quit eating crappy food, I make a meal plan of all the healthy things I'm going to eat tomorrow and make sure that I have all of the ingredients in place that I need.

If I were going to a gym after work, I would need to pack my clothes, shoes, and headphones the night before and put them in a bag by the door -- or even out in the front seat of the car so that I couldn't miss them.

I post in three different places on 3 Fat Chicks every day to keep myself on track.

Getting started is often the hardest part of a diet. It gets easier

If the gym isn't happening, can you find an alternative type of exercise? Maybe taking a long walk after dinner, or doing some sort of indoor exercise?

Personally, I like to exercise first thing in the morning because it helps set the tone for the rest of the day, and I find it easier to avoid bad foods. I think I don't want to undo the good I did that morning. Plus I feel better after I exercise, so I don't crave bad foods. I adjusted my schedule so I could get up early and get on the treadmill every morning. Maybe something like that might help with you?

Good luck!

Suzanne made great suggestions. I agree, starting is difficult. Once you gain some momentum and see even the smallest results, it's easier to stick with it.

I work out in the morning for the same reasons Suzanne does. In addition to walking outside, perhaps a dance class like Zumba, salsa might be fun enough to get you started? I got bored with the gym and found a dance studio that teaches lots of fun classes. About 3/4 of the participants are overweight and no one judges or cares, we just keep moving.

Also, meetup is in Australia. There are walking groups, weight loss groups... perhaps you simply need partners in crime to get you motivated. I love their beginner's hiking groups where you enjoy the scenery rather than trying to achieve some ultra fast pace.

I work out at home because I would never find the time to go to the gym. Or I would find an excuse after the first time. It is much easier to do 30 min a day first thing after you get up or in the evening. Once you get into the daily routine and see some results (your body will actually change quickly), you will be a lot more motivated to attack your eating habits.

I do DVDs (Jillian Michaels) 5-6x a week. I have been at it for almost two years now and while I do not see a lot of direct results on the scale, I think I owe 2-3 clothes sizes to exercise. On my body the difference in clothes sizes is equivalent to approximately 15-17 lbs of weight. That is due to gain in muscle mass (muscle is denser than fat) while loosing fat. The way your body starts to feel and look better after only a minimal amount of time is really priceless.

I agree with the others, getting started is hard.

A question though: Do you really like the gym or is that something you think you just need to do? I hate gyms, and would sooner have my teeth drilled without novocaine than go especially the sweaty coed gyms. Lap swimming? Fine. Brisk walking? Fine. Hiking mountain trails? Fine. Bicycling? Fine. Yoga? Fine.

Just not the gym but I've never been much of a "joiner" type. Maybe this is part of the problem if you are like me?

you will get there when you get there. stopping for a while isn't permanent.

I am right there with you, Vintagecat!

Mzshaunna, definitely ask yourself that question, and be honest with yourself For myself, I had no problem using my parents elliptical during the hottest part of summer, but now that fall is starting to come through, and the days are cooler and clear with less humidity, I find myself wanting to go outside and walk, and dread the idea of the elliptical. Remember, any exercise is better than no exercise!

As far as getting started...I haven't had too many days where I was off-plan (tomorrow will be a big one for me, though), and I know a single day is way different than a vacation, but I find replacing a bad habit with a good one is usually the "oomph" I need to get myself motivated. For example, one thing I like to do when I'm on plan is I like to start my day with a yogurt. When I'm off-plan, I will generally have a cup of coffee and that's it (saving those calories for bigger and better things!), so I know when I start my day with a yogurt, it's going to be a healthier day (I hope that makes sense lol!).

Once I have that mastered, I look at my next bad habit, which tends to be bored/occupied snacking. I'm an online gamer, and I like to have munchies when I get together with my team online to slay internet dragons. Instead of popping a bag of super buttery, salty popcorn and adding more fake butter to it, I weigh out an ounce (or two, depending on how many calories I've eaten already that day) of Blue Diamond's Butter Toffee Almonds, and snack on it slowly with a cup of coffee. Or I'll cube up some cold cooked chicken breast and use a toothpick so I'm only picking up one bite at a time.

You WILL be able to do this!!! Just take it slowly and take small steps, and I'm sure in no time you will be right back on track!!

You're trying to build Rome in a day. This all or nothing attitude is what's really keeping you back. You might as well have said "I keep vowing to myself that today is the day that I become a completely different person." You're setting yourself up for failure. Instead, just take it one decision at a time. Make more concrete plans, not vague exclamations of perfection. Habits are build with time and effort, not on motivation and fantasy alone.

Have you tried to write in gym-time in your calendar? For me working out is in the schedule like a meeting or a dentist appointment. You're relying too much on "wanting" to go to the gym rather than just committing to going.

This logic is what helps me most. Sure it'd be nice to wake up every morning saying to myself "I want to go work out right now" but the reality is that it's not always so easy. Sometimes I just want to stay in bed, or go have pancakes instead, or just sit in front of the tv and chips, these are the things I really WANT to do. So I can't rely on what I want, I rely on the committment I've made and stick to it.

Personally I think it is a mistake to try to take on too much at the start. We often talk about diet and exercise to lose weight but I think it is: diet, motivation, and exercise. Deplete the motivation... and the rest of it is at risk.

I would suggest that for the first two weeks you just work on getting your eating under control and once that was done... start slowly building up your gym time. In the meantime you actually can burn off a substantial amount of calories just like doing work around the house. Vacuuming burns off 70 cals per 1/2 hour. Who knew?

That first step is the hardest! Don't be too hard on yourself. For me, forcing myself to just jump right into it is the only way I'll get started. I have to really push myself to exercise and not eat junk for the first few days, then it becomes easier. If that approach doesn't work for you, take baby steps. Go for a walk without worrying about speed or calories burned, say no to seconds at a meal, work some extra veggies into your day. Making a few healthier choices is an easy gateway to transitioning into a healthier lifestyle overall.

If going to the gym is hard, don't go to the gym! I exercise at home because otherwise I would never get it done. There are a lot of really effective workout DVDs out there.

If you really need a kick in the pants, there are websites that let you bet on yourself losing weight. I'm doing one of those challenges this month, and having just $25 on the line is HUGE motivation to stay on track.

Wow thank you all so much for the advice and support!

As for the gym and just going for walks instead etc unfortunately it's not that easy. I work away 4 weeks straight at a time then one week off at a mining village so the only option for me really is to go to the gym as there are no walking tracks. I do agree though that I should get my eating under control first. Would be so much easier if everytihng came straight away but I know this is somethign that is going to take time.

Thank you all for the support

I'm right there with you in the same boat. It's funny how in your mind you know what is right for you and what will work, you think about it all the time yet never act on it. I myself am paying for a gym membership that gets ZERO use out of it.

When I was losing weight before and didn't have a gym membership, I exercised using the wii fit. It was low intensity yet it still seemed to work. Now we have the Xbox Kinect and sometimes I do that or a dance game and work up a sweat that way.

That all sounds great...too bad I haven't tried that lately either.

But today is a new day!!

Thank you all so much for the support -after a few months off I finally went to the gym yesterday So proud of myself and although I went to bed sore it was a good pain. Thank you everyone for the encouragement, this forum is definately a good motivator to keep myself on track

I say sign up for a fitness class that you have to pay for. Zumba, body sculpt, whatever. That way, you'll have a set time that you have to show up, and you will be motivated because of the money factor as well.