Do any of you have really bad days when you just think 'whats the point?' What helps when you do?

haha, oh, only about every other day of my life! I lost 40 pounds and didn't even budge a dress size--that DEFINITELY made me think, "what's the point?" I've never ever been thin, so I don't know what I might look like or how to picture myself, and I often think, "well, I've never been thin before, so what makes me think I can be thin now?!"

In both cases, I persist (sometimes after a tragic binge, of course) because I know it's possible. I have seen sooooo many success stories on here that I know I can do it, too! I WANT to experience thinness and normalcy and decreased medical risk. I think I would feel like MORE of a failure if I never even tried to lose the weight than if I kept trying and only lost a little--at least I would have put forth the effort to better myself, and in the end, that is worth it

Well said Jillybean!

I feel that way almost every day when I look at my fitday and don't see the protein up higher than the fats and carbs. But I just tell myself that learning how to eat healthier is a daily process of learning. ONe day I will figure out how to eat the right way, but if i give up, I will never learn and never be able to teach my kids the right way to eat. I just know this is something I have got to keep going at because I have been thin before but this time I want to do it without the black out spells, and the headaches and the tiredness that comes with starvation. I know I can succeed as long as I continue to keep striveing for my best.

And I have read a lot of success stories here. And if they can do it, then I know I can too. (plus I have a secret dream to dress up in a harem girl outfit for halloween and show off for a guy who broke up with me)

I was pondering this on the treadmill earlier today. Bear with me.

I was running a hill programme. After a warm up the incline changes every minute. So it might go 0% 2% 0% 3% 0% 4% 0% 5% 0% 2% 0% 3% 0% 4% 0% 5% 0% 2% and so on (you get the picture).

On one of the 5% spells (it wasn't actually 5% but I'm simplifying the numbers!) I wanted to give up. It was too hard. But I knew that if I carried on in less than a minute I'd get to a spell of 0% 2% 0% which would feel easy in comparison. Not easy, because I'd still be running, but it would be easier, and it would be bearable.

But if I stopped it wouldn't just involve skipping the hard minute, I wouldn't get restarted again at all. I'd stop, I'd get off the treadmill and I'd never do the easier spells that I knew I'd have no trouble with. So I carried on.

So, what am I trying to say? Simply that we have hard days and we have slightly less hard days. Some days it takes more effort to travel at the same speed. Unfortunately they're not nicely measured out in 1 minute intervals in a logical order like the treadmill, but they do come round at their own speed. But if you give up on a hard day you might not be back in the saddle by the time those days that are easier to cope with come round. If you just try to get through today you can then deal with tomorrow when you know what sort of a day it's going to be.

(It's not a perfect comparison, after all you can't run indefinitely without stopping for a rest, but it helped me to put those bad days - I had one yesterday - back into perspective, and today was a lot easier in comparison, with virtually angelic eating)

Get through the tough days, and the easier ones will feel so much easier than they used to!

Oh yeah! Having a whole week of bad days this week.

When my eating is in the toilet, which it is alot as I figure out what works for me and why I am sabotaging/binging, then I focus on other things.

Like I have exercised every day for the past seven days. So even if I'm fat, I'm still getting in shape, and at least proud of myself for that. Plus, I can actually see muscles growing, whereas I can't see a friggin' pound lost on the scale.

And then I keep going.

Not deep, not hugely helpful, but there it is. The immortal "And this too shall pass."

I loved that comparison...it's so true! The bad days will always be there....My friend Julie lost 75 pounds or so and her saying is this...."yeah, sometimes I think, god this sucks, I hate this, it's not fair...but what is the alternative?"

Definitely - what is the alternative? If only I had been able to really ask and answer that question at 180lbs, at 230lbs, at 300lbs . . . etc. It took me until 350lbs to answer it. It may seem impossible, but if you give up and think what's the point, someday you could be asking that question at a much higher weight then you are now.