Feeling discouraged

I wrote this in a private message to someone kind on the board who reached out to ask me how it was going.  I thought I would post it here and see if anyone has any helpful feedback for me....

I didn't weigh in this morning.  I have been working out everyday, and watching my calories, but I feel like everyday I have one attack where I blow my calorie intake.  Somedays it has been the dreaded halloween candy, last night it was a second helping at dinner, the night before it was that I failed to plan for dinner and was coerced into a chinese buffet and I ate poorly.

UGH.  I know I am still taking in a considerable amount less then I was before, but I am sabotaging my weight loss plans by constantly giving in to these temptations.  I am so darn busy, and have not really taken the time to plan out meals, and to clean out the cabinets and to stock up on healthy choices. 

I suppose I will try to have a good day today, and will weigh in tomorrow morning.  Maybe I will have lost a lb.  Who knows.  It is sooooo hard, and the goal seems so far away and impossible to reach.  How in the world do you all do it??

It is tough at this time of year.  Halloween (candy) then Thanksgiving and Christmas, big "eating" holidays. 

If you've been working out every day, your overindulgences may not have had such a negative impact ... but if you feel better giving yourself another week to get back on track, then that is what you should do.

In looking at goals that seem so far away ... be sure to set yourself some milestones along the way.  I have probably 4 or 5 mini-goals on the way to my goal of losing 60 pounds.  And you can set other goal accomplishments that don't rely on the scale!  Set goals for exercise time or activity (I know I was so proud when I went from 12 minutes on the ski machine to 20!! Wooooo!!)

Another tip (and I wish I could remember who said it) is to "postpone" any indulgence!  Whenever you catch yourself heading to the fridge or cupboard for something that is going to make you feel guilty, tell yourself "I'll wait 30 minutes before I eat this."  Then drink some water or Crystal Light and in 30 minutes that "bad" thing may be the furthest thing from your mind!

But don't give up!  You seem to have a really good handle on what you need to do, and I KNOW you can do it!!  Stick around here, I'm sure many more informative and helpful suggestions are on the way.

And don't worry anymore about yesterday!  Today is a new day and you shouldn't waste a MINUTE of it on what has already passed. 

Me too, but in a different way.  I've been keeping to my 1600 calories a day and exercising 35-40 minutes a day for 10 days and I weighed myself today and I haven't lost a single pound.  So I'm thinking...if it doesn't matter whether I eat cheeseburgers and fries or kale and shredded wheat, why the hell should I eat healthy?  Generally I'm a healthy cooker, but I did used to eat pretty fattening lunches on a regular basis (not giant portions, just fattening food) and snack on whatever I wanted.  I've always been good about portion control.  I've slowly put on 20 pounds over five years that I want to take off.  I'm not trying to do it fast and furious.  If I can do it by next summer, great, but this is not a good start.  Depressing, actually.  I mean can't I lose ONE pound in ten days of being good and exercising every single day?   I feel your pain.  Motivation is easily diverted in so many ways.

I know, it is hard. 

I definitely agree with the milestones - I have over 100 pounds to lose, but I set my first goal at just 37 pounds.  Set even smaller ones than that, and maybe reward yourself for meeting each small goal?

I know it's hard and women and mothers are so busy but it's worth it to take the time to plan meals.  Can you get your significant other to help you out?  Without planning, I wouldn't be able to stick to my diet  AT ALL.

Good luck to you, and don't beat yourself up! 

Newme2008: I am really proud of you because you workout everyday. Not many people can manage that.

Don't worry about those cravings... it happens to everyone. the key is to not let that get you down.

another thing: why do you weigh yourself everyday? set a goal to step on the scale once a week to see your progress.

Good luck:)

Newme2008- I want you to know first off that you should be proud of yourself for all of the good changes you have made.  Coming here to discuss your doubts is a great way to break the cycle you may be in right now.  That said, I can tell you from personal experience that I have had days that I have felt so down and like all of this is not worth it-pretty much a great big pitty party for me!  Sometimes, I think our minds have a hard time wrapping themselves around the changes our bodies are going through so they kind of "trick us", for lack of a better way of saying it.  Just do your best to stay the course, and you should continue to see the weight come off.  We all have bad days-the important thing is to get back to it.  Good luck to you!

pennsylvanian--you haven't lost weight because your body is building muscle.  While you are reducing your calorie intake and exercising, you are losing fat, but you are also gaining a lot of muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat.  You need to give it more time than 10 days to start seeing results.  I have started so many diets and quit early because I wasn't seeing results right away.  What I have done this time is the day I started my diet, I marked a month after that day on my calendar and that was the first day I weighed myself.  It was brutal to not know if my efforts were doing any good, but when my weigh-in day came, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I had lost 7 pounds.  I suggest you stay away from the scale for a little while so you don't hinder your motivation as I have done so many times.  I hope this helps you.

Thanks abby721.  That's what my fiance says too, but I find it hard to believe.  I am generally pretty musuclar and have worked out sporadically for years.  I had the same experience when I joined Curves.  I worked out 3 days a week for a month and when I went to get weighed and measured, I hadn't lost an inch or a pound.  The Curves staff were stunned and didn't even know what to say because they know I was working at it.  It's extremely demoralizing.  I wasn't paying attention to my intake then, so I figured I was just eating more and not paying attention.  This time, I KNOW I am logging every calorie in addition to daily exertion. 

I'm not asking for miracles.  If I had lost one pound I would be happy, but to not see anything at all is so completely demotivating.  I've been in a bad mood all day and was cursing my 270 calorie lunch, but I ate it and logged it.  It's going to be a lot harder dragging my ass out of bed an hour early every day next week, but hopefully I can keep the faith.  Thanks for the pep talk.

I had a horrible day yesterday, following a frustrating month of yo-yo-ing.  I really wanted to just say forget it, be happy where you are, who cares if you work out?  But I did it, and this morning I was back down to where I was a month ago!  Usually I don't get such immediate reinforcement, but if I stick with it then it always is worth it in the end.

Hang in there newme! Here are some ideas that have worked for me.  Take five minutes at a time and clean a shelf out of your cupboard of any "bad" stuff.  Talk to your kids and family about what you are doing and why, ask them for their support.  I don't know about your beliefs, but I pray daily  for the ability to stick with this and be successful.  Find somebody on CC you can talk to (I volunteer, as I am sure many people would).  I am online all day, everyday at work, so if you have a weak moment just im me.  Having someone in your corner is the very best thing you can do!

Good luck!  I will keep you in my thoughts (and prayers!)

Thank you all so much!  Your replies and postings on my journal have helped me pull out of my mire of negativity. 

I went to the local Sports store and bought some great shoes for workingout in.  I am very flat-footed and have been in pain lately after each workout.  So I treated my body to some new shoes.  They are great, worth every penny I spent.

Then I went to the gym.  My normal class I take was cancelled, but I did a decent workout on my own, and with a few other class members.  So, again, I feel great!

I have for today, stuck to a really healthy eating plan.  Oatmeal for breakfast.  A big apple for a snack.  Lots of water.  At the gym I joined, you can order salads and sandwiches from a local health store and they are ready and waiting for you when you are done working out.  I did that today, and have a wonderful turkey sandwich on freshly baked whole grain bread.  Yummmmmm.

I have resisted all temptations, including goodies put out for a work group that is moving out of our office.  I have not dipped my hand in the Halloween candy on the reception counter.  I have not even had my daily diet pepsi.  Tonight is left overs for dinner, and I have some whole wheat pasta and a salad or some low cal beef and rice stew to choose from. 

I can make it through today.  Tomorrow I will deal with tomorrow. :-D

Thanks again!

Trish

Wow! What a great menu! Good job.

A thought on the Diet Pepsi, contains sodium and chemicals that your body doesn't need. I read somewhere that by drinking sweet tasting diet sodas you are signaling to your body that you are consuming sugary carbs and then nothing! The brain says "Hey, where's my mid-afternoon sugar fix?" and the cravings set in. I think there is some truth to it plus soda dehydrates rather than hydrates. So why not try an ice cold bottle of spring water? Will quench your thirst and you will feel good about the change. Rather than going cold turkey, try having soda every other day with water in between. It's the baby steps that will lead you to a healthier and longer life.