I am having one of those days today. I feel kinda hopeless in this fight to lose some weight. I just want to get into my 13/14 jeans by Christmas, (I only have 1 size to drop to do that)

Somedays I feel good about everything and somedays I just feel *blah*. I workout every day. So that at least helps me feel better that I am actually doing something. I am eating well also. I am dying to make my homemade nacho chips! (way fattening, I'm sure. At least the salsa is good for me!) I am being strong and have not done it though!

I guess I am just feeling like nothing is going to happen. It feels like I am doing this work for nothing. I know it will happen...slowly. I just feel defeated some days.

Thanks for listening. I needed to get that off my chest.

Everyone has days like that, so know that you aren't alone. You are doing great with working out like you do! Just muddle through the bad days and there will be better days coming!!!

BTW, love your Avatar! I'm assuming that is you. What a strong, powerful, confident pose!!

remtana, look at you! You are a strong woman! Things are not hopeless, even though you feel that way sometimes. Just don't give up! Stay with your plan, whatever it is! Keep going. Even when you're feeling down, you can put one foot in front of the other. That's all you need to do

Stay with it! You can do it! This feeling of blahhhness will pass, and you'll be glad if you stuck it out.

Cheers!
Jay

I think we all have times like that, remtana. I've had months, especially at the beginning, where I've lost 7-10 pounds and months where I lost 1 pound. Stuff in life happens that gets in the way sometimes..whether it's work, personal, illness or pain, TOM, social events, etc. It's hard to stay on course all the time. For me, sometimes I go over my desired calorie range but, on the positive side, I don't go crazy and binge. I tell myself the idea is to be on track most of the time. Yes, it goes a little slower sometimes but the alternative is either I stay where I'm at or I gain it back. I don't like either option. And I don't ever want to have to lose this amount of weight again. I'm not getting any younger so I need to take care of it now before it becomes more of a problem later.

Sometimes when I'm feeling blah, I'll put on the music and do my exercising or crazy dancing. Aside from it being exercise, it just lifts up my mood, makes me feel good. It's hard to feel down when you're rockin' and rollin'.

Definitely keep trucking along even if it seems hopeless! The closer you are, the harder it gets! I can concur on the "don't have to be perfect every day but staying on track most of the time is what does it!"

Keep in there and do your best everyday, even if you give in to something, don't go overboard. Forgive and keep going!

I totally understand what you mean. I'm proud of you for not giving up, because sometimes that's the really easy option. Somedays, I just want to eat whatever I want and not count calories or look at nutritional information.. but I just ask myself if it's worth it, if it's worth more then feeling good about myself. If I still really want it, then I allow myself to have it.. I don't restrict anything, I just make modifications. Like if I really want a cheeseburger, I'll have one.. but with a diet drink and no fries.. and I'll have a homemade yummy one, not a tiny McDonald's one... at least that way it's REAL food and I can control what's on it. If I want ice cream, I have it.. but I have a serving. Just tonight, I was looking at the 'Lighten Up' versions of B & J's at the store, and I wanted the Phish Food version, but it was like 230 calories for 1/2 cup. I opted for the Half Baked one that was only 180 calories. It's all about negotiations with yourself! It's not hopeless, and you're not hopeless. You need to make changes you can live with for the rest of your life, kwim? Who wants to have guilt for the rest of their life because they want to indulge here and there? So my best advice would be not to deprive yourself.. allow yourself proper portions of the foods that you love and opt for a lower cal/fat version if available.. then maybe it won't feel like 'work' to you. So if you want nacho's, figure out what you can have that's comparable... don't just turn it down, learn how to make foods in a healthier way, learn how to make better choices. Maybe there are baked nacho chips and a low-fat nacho cheese sauce, or a yummy recipe online made from real cheese.. then you can have a correct portion and not feel guilty at all. There are a lot of salsa's that are low fat/low sodium/low cal, and you can add peppers and whatever else you like. You just don't know until you look! If I was living off of Lean Cuisines and Slim Fast, I'd be pretty miserable and probably wouldn't have lasted past week one.

Thanks everyone! I love this site! The support is wonderful.

Yep that's me! I've been shooting for about 14 years and hunting about 10.

Excellent post, Mama! ICAM! I'm not finding the process of losing weight a miserable experience, even during plateaus. Sure, there's some frustration sometimes when I hope to see results a little sooner but, hey, sometimes they happen sooner, sometimes later. I think it's because I do exactly what you say in your post. I do not restrict anything...there are some foods that I've stopped eating either because I lost the desire or because I found a better option. I'd never have lasted a week if I gave up salty snacks so, hey, instead of a can of Pringles, I'll have a 100 calorie pack of Cheez Nips or something. Swiss cheese wedges at 35 cals are a tasty option to swiss cheese slices at 110 cals, so that works for me, too. They have so many options out there now and so many businesses are on this whole 100-calorie kick or lower-calorie options, that it's not that hard to modify things. Plus, I've discovered things I wasn't eating before that I really like that are better choices for me.
Today at work someone gave us a box of cookies from the bakery. They were a few feet away from me all day. I asked myself should I take one just because it's there....do I really want it? And the answer was, no I actually am not that crazy over those particular kinds of cookies and I'm not starving so walk on by. I was negotiating with myself, just as you said.
Likewise with my exercise, I don't force myself to do it, I do it because I want to, and I've found that I enjoy it. I have fun with it. All of this has become part of my routine now, so it's not work, it's my life. It's funny, in a way because, while I go into this with the overall intent of losing weight, I actually have a good enough time with it that it sometimes almost seems the weight loss is a side bonus.

I just had one of "those" days a couple days ago. Sometimes the process of losing weight is gruelingly slow, but hang in there. This is a long-term commitment, but it is SO worth it! Keep being strong and trucking on!

Trekkie, I feel the same. Some foods, I HAVE had to cut out entirely.. not because I don't trust myself to eat a proper portion, but because I am not willing to waste, for example, 200+ calories on a tiny 1/2 cup of pasta. I use my calories wisely! I am Italian and used to live on pasta/breads, so that's a tough one.. but it's worth it to me, and when I do splurge, it tastes so much better! It's fun to make 'spending' my calories a challenge.

I'm Italian, too, Mama, so I understand about the pasta and bread, esp. the pasta...don't really eat that much Italian bread. My mother has also been trying to lose weight; she's in her 70s so it's been slower and harder for her but she has lost 13 pounds so far. Fortunately, aside from certain aches and pains and high cholesterol (which is under control with Lipitor), she's basically healthy and younger looking than her age....she often takes care of friends' small children. But I did ask her what she thought contributed to her weight loss and two of the things she mentioned were not eating Italian bread every day anymore, and not as many sweets. It's frustrating her a little that she's been kinda stuck lately so she's considering other modifications.
But we both started eating a little differently this year....Lean Cuisines entered the picture more often,for instance. Pasta, meatballs, meatloaf, etc., will never be out of the picture completely but the frequency has gone down and it's made a difference. As much as she likes to cook, she also enjoys not having to sometimes, being able to just zap an LC and have some veggies or a salad. One of her favorite things under the category of sweets is frozen yogurt or low-fat or no sugar ice cream. That's actually the next thing she's trying to modify...looking more towards ices or pops, something with a little more portion control.

Remtana...if the craving for the nachos becomes too much, do you think you can find a suitable, pleasing alternative or modification? Like Mama said, a different recipe?

There's always options.

I only eat these with salsa (no chesse or meat) But, I don't eat chips otherwise (they are banned from the house) I only eat healthy snacks. So I guess I could allow myself some homemade chips once a month or something.

X

I had some chips last night with just salsa. I hardly ever eat them with meat. I drank a ton of water too, to help feel fuller.

I have been feeling better the past couple of days. I just keeping working out and eating good. Thanks everyone!

I am soooo having one of those days today. I didn't eat the best or healthiest this weekend, but still...it was hard getting on the scale today and seeing it up 2 1.2 pounds!!!! I know it's because i didn't drink enough water and am probably retaining due to salt and all over the weekend. I mean, hello, I was doing tequilla shots and the first thing we do is lick salt off of our hands!!!! lol. But yeah, we all have those days but we just have to keep trucking in the right direction!!! Hang in there. I know i am not giving up!!!