Ways of motivation.

[BlinkyTheRed]

Oh man.. it's been so long since I've been active in here! So sorry, every one.. I'm a jerk.

But I'm back! This summer I'm staying home for the sole purpose of getting healthy again.

I'm waaay over weight.. like almost 190 pounds.. gonk I need to be 145 pounds to be considered NORMAL weight.. (even though 145 is on the heavy side of normal.. it's still normal) so I have a lot of work ahead of me.

I've never been this heavy in my life, so it's really discouraging. From all the exercise I've done lately, I feel like I've lost some fat-- and it just hasn't shown in my weight. But that's cool.

Right now, my mini-goal.. fitting into these jeans I have. IN a weird size, from some stupid place that has nonstandard sizes.. but I basically need to be at like 170 pounds in order to get them on. XD Even if it's not the most comfortable fit.

I feel really good about myself when I'm around 160 pounds, so I'd love to get close to that by the end of the summer..  

[kochi~mochi]

My motivation... Well, theres health, of coarse, but i don't really think of that when i'm trying to convince myself not to ask my mom for a ride, or while i'm at the gym not wanting to do anymore, or anything like that...

P.E. would be alot easier if i was in better shape.

One day, i want to be able to barrow my big sister's cloths (i'll never fit all of them, i'm too tall, but she has this really cute skirt...)

Current fashion - A line skirts. A line skirts - look stupid on me, i'm too big. Therefor, current fashion is not equal to me.

Bathing suit. Nuff said.

boys. ^^  

[Papple]

Well, ok...here goes: all my motivations are purely shallow. Really, I think that being in America and having a country that can afford to support a obese population on it's scale is a blessing. I think we're extremly fortunate. I'd live out all my (life expectancy reduced) years being morbidly obese and in a wheelchair watching TV like meh aunts if...

-I didn't want to up my self esteem
-attract more guys (plus it's got to be handier when it comes to sex obviously rolleyes )
-Not worry about the size of anything
-look better for job interviews, etc etc

Feh, I feel like a lousy person now *nonetheless hopps on elliptical* xd  

[Divash]

I think that my motivations tie in very closely with my measures of success. If my measures of success is simply to be thinner or to weigh less, then I can motivate myself by visualizing a smaller number on the scale or wearing a smaller size.

If my motivation is greater health and better feeling, then my measure of success is whether I've eaten whole grains, healthy oils, fruits, vegetables; whether I've avoided eating foods that make me want to overeat; whether I've successfully managed to work out at least three times a week; whether I huff and puff less during my workouts, or when going about my daily chores.

If my motivation is to develop discipline and to feel better about myself, then my measure of success is whether I stood in front of the mirror thinking "You're so fat, you're so ugly, you're so worthless," or whether I've stood in front of the mirror thinking "Wow, that's a great outfit" or "Man, my skin is looking fabulous," or "Yeah, I'd shag me," or even whether I've bothered to look in the mirror at all -- I think I do best when I stop getting hung up on what the mirror shows me, and instead focus on how I feel about myself.

If you're losing weight at a healthy rate of one to two pounds per week, the scale isn't going to change fast enough to make you feel fabulous. Neither is the mirror. Neither is your clothing size going to change fast enough to suit you. All those things will only frustrate you, because the changes are happening steadily, but slowly, so you can't see a change from day to day. Therefore, you have to measure your success by how you feel about yourself and how faithful you've been to whatever program you're on.

Only really weigh yourself as a gauge, a snapshot in time. Weight at the same time of day, on only one day per week. It's best to do it Sunday morning, after using the bathroom but before having anything to eat or drink, while naked. That way you won't be thinking "Oh, but I was wearing big heavy boots today. Oh, but I had a big lunch/dinner. Oh, but I just had a big glass of water. Oh, I weigh a lot less, but it's also springtime and I'm wearing shorts instead of the big baggy sweater I had on last week, so this isn't real weight I'm losing." Even then, keep in mind that your body goes through cycles. You retain water before and during menstruation, and also if you've had a lot of salty foods.

Most of all, don't look for a huge change from day to day or even week to week. Look for a big change each MONTH. Losing five pounds in a month's time is healthy and normal; losing ten is great; losing fifteen is pushing the limits of what's healthy; losing twenty is TOO FAST, and it won't last.  

[Chemicat]

Knowledge. Knowing how many calories I should be eating and what types of foods I should be eating is a big motivation. I have seen what unhealthy lifestyles can do to people (not only the outsides of their bodies, the insides as well). I want to be happy and healthy, and have some self-esteem about my looks, and this is the only way I'm going to reach those goals.

Every time I feel stressed or want to give up, I try to remember why I'm doing this in the first place. It's to feel better in the long run. Eating that serving of French Fries will make me happy for about 4 minutes, until they're gone and I ate them all. Then I wil only feel guilty about eating them. It's totally NOT WORTH IT!

I have my sister and mother helping me too. They encourage me and help me to eat healthier. My mother lost weight the healthy way awhile back and she is sort of coaching me on how to do it. She has also kept it off for years as well. It's really inspiring.  

[Miya12]

Chemicat

Knowledge. Knowing how many calories I should be eating and what types of foods I should be eating is a big motivation. I have seen what unhealthy lifestyles can do to people (not only the outsides of their bodies, the insides as well). I want to be happy and healthy, and have some self-esteem about my looks, and this is the only way I'm going to reach those goals.

Every time I feel stressed or want to give up, I try to remember why I'm doing this in the first place. It's to feel better in the long run. Eating that serving of French Fries will make me happy for about 4 minutes, until they're gone and I ate them all. Then I wil only feel guilty about eating them. It's totally NOT WORTH IT!

I have my sister and mother helping me too. They encourage me and help me to eat healthier. My mother lost weight the healthy way awhile back and she is sort of coaching me on how to do it. She has also kept it off for years as well. It's really inspiring.

thats cool that your family support you. my mum started losing weight when i did, its horried though because she always weighs lower than me no matter how much i lose. grrrr  

[~Skelly.Storyteller~]

My motivations I guess are:
1: Health - diabetes runs in my mom's family, so I've got to be careful
2: Self-esteem - I love pretty clothes, and I want to look - and feel - good wearing them...I want the confidence to wear them to school and show them off.
3: Um...this is pretty dumb, but...I never go to school dances because there's really nothing to do there but dance, and I don't want to dance because I'll look stupid, so I just stay on the sides and go home miserable. I want to go to a dance or party and have fun for once. sweatdrop
4: I also want to feel comfortable enough to go to the beach this summer and actually go swimming. sweatdrop
5: I already posted this in the intro thread, but...I recently got dumped, not because of my weight, but still. I want to walk up to my ex one day and say, "See what you're missing?" twisted heart