Nothing. Not in the way, we usually mean it. All my dieting life (which has been since kindergarten, so 40 years), I looked forward to all the great and wonderful things I thought I'd be able to do at my goal weight, but by doing so I set myself up for failure, because I somehow thought all these magically wonderful things would be handed to me at my goal weight, and I saw all these wonderful things as only due me if and when I lost all the weight. I didn't really see (or didn't count) the benefits that happened along the way, I only saw the end as being worth anything (there were no prizes for halfway there or even 99.9% there in my book), and when weight loss slowed and I felt that I might not be able to reach my goal, it felt like all my hard work had been for nothing. And since I didn't value the benefits I'd made along the way, I never felt any reason to fight to keep them. If I saw my goal weight as unacheiveable, there was no reason to fight to maintain what I had accomplished, instead since none of it counted, I felt there was no point. If I was going to be fat anyway (and fat meant anything short of my goal, even a few lbs short) I might as well get to eat whatever I wanted, so I was always either losing or gaining, never maintaining.
So, this time I havent set any "when I get to goal" prizes for myself. I am looking forward to many things, but they're not goal weight related. I'm going to do them as soon as I am able to (whether that's 5 lbs from now or 150).
When I started, I was looking forward to getting off the cpap machine for sleep apnea (which I was able to do after losing only about 35 lbs).
I looked forward to taking a normal shower (I had to use a shower chair and couldn't even wash my hair with shampoo and conditioner. I had to use a combination because I didn't have the strength for an extra rinse, repeat).
I looked forward to not needing a motorized cart for shopping in large stores.
I got both of those back about two years ago.
I'm looking forward to getting off as many medications as possible (I'm already off 5 medications that I was on, and I'm on less pain medication).
I'm looking forward to walking dogs at the humane society (I'm planning on starting soon). I'll start with once a week, and will look forward to walking longer and more often.
I'm looking forward to many things, but I have them scheduled for "as soon as possible" not "when I get to goal."
Looking foward to acheivements "along the way" really has helped me stay motivated. I never have those "I'll never make it to goal, so what's the use" moments. When I start to think that way, I remind myself of all the accomplishments I've made and don't want to give up. Sometimes I feel like I can't lose another pound, but I always feel confident that I can keep off what I've already lost. In the past that wasn't true, I always felt that only the finish line counted for anything.




