How do you deal with frustration about losing weight SOOO slowly?

I've gained about 3 pounds over my Christmas Vacation, and now I'm back on the wagon! I'm burning about 2500 (2000 + 500 from exercise) a day and eating around 1500-1600 a day, and I'm already frustrated that I'm not seeing pounds melt away more quickly! I know it's COMPLETELY unreasonable to be annoyed that after only 3 days dieting/exercising again I haven't lost any weight yet... but I am annoyed regardless! Has anyone else experienced this kind of irrational frustration, and how do YOU deal with it?

Thanks!

it makes me feel better to know im doing it the healthy way. :)

dont worry in like 3 weeks the scale will drop 5 pounds all of the sudden.. its weird

ah you just asked the same question i've been wondering forever! i am so impatient and its so frustrating. i know i wont lose 30-40 pounds in one day, but its like my brain has to see these super instant results or i'll just give up >_<. it sucks, and its the reason why i keep doing alright with eating well/exercising, then falling off the wagon again and again. i must've been falling off for about 4 years now.

i wish i could give advice on how to deal with it, but since i find it hard to deal with the frustration myself i kinda cant :/

slow is good.  i know it's not popular, and when you watch the biggest loser and see people losing 15 or 20 pounds in a week, it seems hopeless.  but here's the truth: it took me two years to lose 25 pounds.  i still want to lose five or ten pounds - will have to wait and see how i feel.  but the thing is, i've really changed.  when i gain a pound or two, i know exactly how it happened and exactly what i need to do differently.

&what also makes me feel better is knowing that i wont get any rebound weight back so quickly

Yeah, losing weight slowly is frustrating.  The way I handle it is to prioritize fitness goals over weight goals.  I'm not in control of how fast my body loses weight at a moderate deficit, and I don't feel good at a high deficit.  Meanwhile, I can make a lot of progress with running, cycling, weights, etc, and I'm in control (as long as I don't overtrain or get injured).

I see from your profile that you do lots of sports, so this may work for you. Also, you may want to take measurements, because you may see improvements in inches as your body weight redistributes before you see improvements in lbs.

It is frustrating some times yes, but I deal with it by not making my weight a priority in life. What IS a priority is staying on the path to losing it. A shift in attitude really CAN change everything. When you step on the scale (for me, it's every few weeks) you may be pleasantly surprised-- or not. It doesn't really matter, as long as you are still vaguely on the 'path'.

When I start worrying obsessively about my weight, I find something else to keep me occupied: there's the big ones, like school and various relationships, and then there's random others on the side-- find a new hobby, learn a new skill.

Weight change isn't something that happens in a day or even two days, so I just try to remember one thing: whether losing, maintaining, or gaining weight, there's still LIFE to get on with!

i know!  i sure wish the weight would come off as easily as it went on  :(  it takes forever to come off, but it comes on suddenly!

i guess that's how i cope  LOL  i figure at least i'm not gaining...  what really sucks though, is when you gain a pound or 2, but it WILL all come off.  don't worry, just stick with it!

What's your long term goal/short term goal?

Mine is a size 8/150 pounds.

I just chant that to myself every time I get frustrated, and know that it WILL happen as long as I stay strong, and keep at it!!!
Worst thing you can do is become demoralized and give up :(

Keep on trucking!

the measurement tape keeps my sanity..

I don't rely on the scale anymore

if i don't overeat, i've really accomplished something.  i'm losing weight in micro-ounces, but sometimes i think to myself, "well, at least i'm not gaining weight, bec i sure could be doing that quite easily!"  sometimes that saves me from having that extra gabillion calories worth of cookies.

I lose less than 5 pounds a year. I just tell myself that in 5 years I'll reach my goal...

I am VERY happy with my slow weight loss. 17 pounds since Sept. 25 is fantastic for me! I have dropped back to my old size 14's and I am thrilled! Hang in there, if you do it like CC says, it will amaze you! (didn't even gain any over the holidays!)