So we all have times when our motivation has something to be desired. What do you do to give your motivation a boost when it is waning?

I have a couple:
-I go through one of the boxes of clothes that are going to fit soon.
-I take a look at pictures of me at higher & lower weights to remind myself where I am & where I am going.
-I go for a walk through clothing stores I would love to shop in (I've been heavy so long that there are a lot of stores I have not been able to shop in since they opened & the clothes are beautiful!)

Sometimes I cut pictures out of catalogs of really pretty clothes in "normal" sizes that I wish I could wear and save them to look at when I'm feeling tired of all the work of losing weight. As I'm typing this I realize how creepy this next part is going to sound, but I cut the heads off the models in the pictures. It's easier to imagine me in the clothes. Please don't think I'm weird! Or if you do, I hope you like me anyway!

The other thing I did when I lost a ton of weight 5-6 years ago was keep a small journal with me to write down the nice things people said as I lost weight. As you lose really large amounts, people you know and don't know will say the nicest things to you, but after a while you forget. I would write next to the comment how much I had lost at the time. Looking back over it, it was really motivating to think about what others had thought I accomplished (even when sometimes I couldn't see it). It helped to see how far I had come too. I'm sure this sounds totally narcissistic, but I swear it's really motivating on the dark days. I would never let anyone see me write them down, it was just for me.

Yours truly,
The model beheader

Hahaha!! That's so great, CLCSC... I cut model's heads off too, when I'm cutting out clothes. I just love cutting stuff out of magazines, most of the fun of buying them. Collages and stuff like that. I don't think you're strange or narcissistic, you sound down to earth and do what works. Good for you

I like the idea about writing the compliments that you receive. I don't know what it is. I mean I'm doing this for me, for years didn't care what anybody else has to say, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE getting the compliments.

Instead of trying on tight clothes I try on my big loose gigantic ones - it really shows you how far you've come, at a time when you're possibly feeling a little down on yourself. And it absolutely motivates me to keep plugging away. I wanna see just how loose they can get. I've gotten rid of most of my old clothes but held on to a few items just for this purpose and soI can have that beforre and after pic, where you're standing in one leg of your old pants, you never know it might come in handy when I go on the Oprah show.

I like to browse through magazines and dream about the types of clothing that I will be able to wear.

I keep a journal with all of my reasons that I want to lose the weight and all of my goals and plans for when I do lose the weight. I also have recored in it my weekly weigh-ins. It helops me a lot when I'm feeling down and frustrated oh and when I'm having a craving


Nothing motivates me more then seeing downward movement on that scale. Itmakes it much easier to keep going. So yeah I am absolutely DREADING the inevitable plataeu. And I guess that's when I'll need to take into action more then ever all of these ideas that we're writing down.

It's a great question and I'm curious to hear what other people have to say. I love hearing other peoples tips because I find them so helpful.

Good thread! I'm copying down all these ideas in my journal to look back at when I get down on myself!

My latest motivational strategy was buying new jeans that fit but were a bit more snug than I wanted them to be. I'm wearing them to remind myself to lay off the goodies, exercise more, and behave myself so that they will soon feel more comfortable. One of our members said that I have a "pants-o-meter!" LOVE THAT TERM!!!

I don't cut off heads, but I DO cut out pictures of celebrities and models from magazines and draw arrows to the arms or legs or abs or neck or any body parts that I'd like MY BODY to resemble. I paste these in my journal, too.

Cheryl

These are great tips!! I think I'll start writing them down!

One thing I always do is look at my face and (double) chin profile in the mirror from all different angles. The first place I'll start to notice weight loss or gain is in my face, so I kind of monitor things that way. I will just sit there and kind of pull my cheeks and chin back so I can see myself thinner, and also scrunch my chin to my chest to make my face look fatter. It always motivates me to set goals, because I will see a difference in my face before my body.

Nalynn, That's funny, because I'm the same way. It's always in my face that my weight loss shows first, so people start telling me, "I can really see it in your face that you're losing weight." So, of course, the first thing that comes to mind is that character from BeetleJuice that has a little tiny head and a big body. I always think that's what I'm going to end up looking like!

As far as things I remind myself when I am feeling REALLY down, I remind myself that even if I do not lose another pound I am going to get off my butt, go for a brisk walk, eat healthy food more often than not because that will keep me healthy! Being healthy supercedes even my vanity, or lack of caring how I look when I feel down.

GREAT idea about the cutting off models' heads and putting your head on there lol. I'd like to do some hardcore photoshopping and try that out one day