How do you stay motivated with slow weight loss?
 

Hi all,

I'm new here and I started weight watchers three weeks ago. I've lost 6 pounds so far....the first week I lost 4 and the last two weeks I've lost one pound a week.

I'm have a hard time being satisfied with losing just one pound a week...part of me wants to purposely eat less than my daily points plus target but i know they tell everyone not to do that.

anyone have any suggestions for me to learn to cope with the slow weight loss?

Well as I have heard time and time again: you gained it one pound at a time, you will lose it one pound at a time. All the 'one pound' weeks will add up over time :)

I am in the same situation as you.

I am working on the attitude that it is a victory if I stay on plan. I am looking for a change that works for life.

I think the only reason I acheived the weight loss I have "this time" is because I had to stop looking at losing "x lbs per week" as normal and desireable. I had to unlearn the "normal" frustration.

I think frustration is normal, but I think it's also deadly. It's normal to quit when the frustration becomes unbearable. If you stop the frustration, it never again becomes unbearable. Ending the frustration is the easiest way not to quit.

My doctor smacked the sense into me when I was griping (whining) that it wasn't fair that I couldn't seem to lose at least 1 - 2 lbs a week like "normal" people. My doc lectured me that "normal" people do not lose 1 to 2 lbs a week. Normal people give up and end up losing nothing. There is nothing normal about losing 1-2 lbs a week, because most people don't do it, and if they do do it, they don't do it consistently. Even losing 1/4 pound per week (which I was losing at the time) put me ahead of almost everyone else, just because I was doing it consistently.

He compared weight loss to a marathon in which we see 200 people in front of us, but none of the 10,000 people behind us.

Weight loss of course isn't a race with other people. It doesn't really matter if anyone is behind or ahead of us, we can eventually get to where we're going, no matter how slowly we travel. But when you do think that "everyone has it easier," or "everyone does it better," it's only that much easier to give up.

If you're unsatisfied with 1 lb a week, that's your choice. It may not feel like a choice, but it is. And 1 lb per week is an awesome loss, but you have to be able to see it as such.

It's not acceptable in our culture to view 1 lb as an awesome loss. We know that because so mamy people complain about "only losing" 1 - 2 - and even 3 lbs. We're not satisfied with 1, because we were taught not to be satisfied with 1.

Maintaining weight loss is a lot more impressive than losing it, and we as a culture don't do that either. We say "if I can't get to goal, I might as well give up. If I don't lose x, I might as well give up."

Every pound is a miracle. I don't ever think of giving up any more, because I do see the miracle in every ounce, and I don't want to give up any of it. Because giving up on weight loss, isn't just giving up on weight loss, it's inevitably accepting weight gain, and I don't intend ever again to look at slow weight loss as being "as bad" as weight gain. After all, that's why we give up, because slow weight loss seems just as much failure as gaining, but it isn't and the only way to feel that, is to know that and remind yourself until you believe it.

If you looked at one pound as being as impressive as it really is, you wouldn't scoff at one pound ever again. One pound is a miracle that most people don't accomplish. Are you really going to poop on a miracle, just because it isn't a bigger miracle?

Whenever my results aren't what I would like, I try and remember that regardless if I stay on plan or not, 6 months from now is going to come. If I stay on plan, I will have a loss (even if it is small), but if I go off I will likely gain. I'd much rather have the loss.

kaplods and skinnycow pretty much summed it up for me.

Do I want to lose more? Heck yeah! Would Ilike to lose it faster? You betcha! but even if I never lose another ounce i'm going to keep eating like I'm eating now because I'm so much healthier now and happier because of it than I was 95 pounds ago. So, in a way, losing weight is just a wonderful side effect.

I'm at the point now that I focus far less on weight loss than on health and fitness gains. I didn't start off that way and in fact fretted at not losing the "normal" 2 pounds or so a week I was hoping to lose.

Over time and after reading a lot of posts here, though, I began to see that there's no such thing as a "normal" loss. Some people do in fact drop two pounds a week as regularly as UPS delivers packages. Other people don't see an ounce drop for two weeks, then see a four-pound drop every third week or so and wind up averaging 6 or 8 pounds a month.

It IS hard some weeks not to fall into the trap of "hey, if I restrict more, I'll lose more!" But there isn't that kind of linear relationship betweeen the amount of restriction and the amount of weight loss. If I lose 1 pound a week by cutting 500 calories off my usual intake, will I lose 2 pounds a week if I cut 1000 away? I've proven to myself time and time again that I won't, so why not cut by an amount I find more pleasant?

The more you can focus on non-weight-related aspects of your plan, the less you'll be bugged by "slow" weight loss (and I think a pound a week is a perfectly fine average as it's what I've been doing ;) ). Start paying closer attention to all the other things that are improving for you--your energy, maybe, or your stamina. How are your clothes fitting? How is your overall mood? Is your skin looking clearer or healthier on an improved diet?

I may "only" be losing a pound a week--and that's an average, some weeks I've not lost anything and felt really disgruntled about that--but I'm noticing the benefits of eating as I have on a daily basis. I feel good, I look good, and I eat good food; I could keep this up forever, so why should I wring my hands over taking 8 months instead of 4 months (or however long it takes me) to get where I intend to be for the rest of my life?

I admit I've made it easy for me to be motivated. I used to suffer through punishing diets that tested my resolve constantly. This time, I've decided not to suffer; it's amazing how enjoying my meals has made it easy for me to keep eating them. :)

I have to say that I think regularly losing 1 pound a week is great. It doesn't seem slow at all to me. For a long time I was averaging just under 1/2 pound a week. Yes I wanted to find a way to lose more and, in my case, I cut down on how many of my weekly points I eat.

So try things to jumpstart weight loss. I wouldn't purposefully eat less than my daily points. If you occasionally don't always eat all of them and are satisfied and meeting your GHG then that is fine. But I wouldn't set out to eat less.

There are things you can do. Choose foods of the same points but that are lower calories. Watch how much zero point foods you eat. Add activity but don't eat all the activity points. If you are eating most of your weekly points try to cut down on them somewhat. Be sure you are weighing and measuring food and recording everything closely.

If you do all that and are still losing 1 pound a week then that is normal for you. For me, 1 pound a week is good and not slow.

Also, let's say you get frustrated at losing 1 pound a week and give up. A year from now if you hadn't given up you could be 52 pounds lighter. If you give up, how much will you weigh in a year?

MY weekly weight loss is measured in ounces. I'd be on cloud nine if I could lose a pound a week.

Are you exercising regularly? If not, try adding that in and consider not using your Activity Points.

Are you using your daily points and your 49 weeklies? It's good to try and get your daily points, but if you can spare some weekly points, that could help.

Otherwise, hang in there! You'll be approaching Onederland around Christmas time. Won't that be a great way to wrap up 2011?? Also, this article posted by JennyT might help you understand the process and feel better about the changes that your body is making.

http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/weig...-new-plan.html

Wow....I wish I could hug you girls through the computer screen. Kaplods...BRAVO! Way to put it, girl! I am not losing quickly at all, but I am making life-changing improvements and the way I feel about myself has never been better. I absolutely REFUSE to let the scale influence me. As long as I'm eating healthier (which I am) and bringing excersize back into my life in big ways (which I also am) then I know my efforts are worth it. I don't care if it takes me ten years to reach goal weight. All that matters is that I persevere and never give up. I believe in myself. I'm worth it.

I keep reading this forum, that is how I stay motivated ;)

Ditto! :)

Kaplods, I seriously :val1: your posts. All of them.

Unrealistic expectations strike again. What you are losing is normal and healthy.