Developing intrinsic motivation to keep at it?

I've been obese for 15 years now (more than half my life) and have next to no memories involving anything physical from before that. I've been focusing on weight loss for a month now, with the goal being to at least go all out for a year and then use what I've learned to stick with a healthier lifestyle, but my motivating factors are purely extrinsic (namely, meeting some of my friends abroad and not wanting to be fat when that happens). So far I've largely been completely okay with this, but I've been having doubts today as yesterday's workout was unexpectedly greatly depressing and I ended up passing out within an hour of getting back home. I feel like much of that is because I have no intrinsic motivation to do what I'm doing and I'm therefore deriving no satisfaction from small regular victories and whatnot but feel miserable whenever I'm doing something wrong (yesterday some guy kindly pointed out that my back was all kinds of messed up when doing bent-over DB rows, but as polite as I was externally I internally interpreted it as a strong personal attack and it affected me greatly until I passed out).

Unfortunately I've got a few nasty factors working against me in that sense: as I was born with heart problems and was told early in my life that my life expectancy would be lower than most, living longer from being in better shape doesn't mean much to me when it just means I'll die from a heart attack anyway. Depression certainly isn't helping in that regard, and neither is ADHD, and those eliminate a good few motivating factors as well.

That said, I'm sure there are plenty others who have had similar problems or even worse yet found some sort of intrinsic motivating factor. How did you manage to find something, and what did it end up being?

(I'm not even remotely thinking of quitting, I've made certain of that by buying a 12 month subscription to my gym, so don't worry about that. I'd still love to at least know how to look for a way to motivate myself to keep at it and derive enjoyment from it that comes purely from within.)

submitted by /u/dniwehtotnoituac
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2BDA4DN

Down 25lbs but lost it all from my ass. How do you deal with losing parts of yourself that you liked?

I (23f) am down 25 pounds today! While I am happy with my progress, I can't help but be upset that it seems that all of my weight loss has been from my chest or ass. I am proud of how far I've come and definitely feel healthier and better from the loss but that doesn't change the fact that I want to look good. Even with the loss I still lack confidence. I'm still a bit far from my goal weight and do want to continue to keep losing, but I'm worried about my motivation going forward. I'm hoping that as I continue to lose things will even out more and I'll look less like a board, but I'm still worried that won't be the case. What do ya'll recommend for helping your motivation when the results aren't quite what you imagined? 5ft2 down from 150lbs

submitted by /u/NotAWadOfDick
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2MGjKZc

The reason you fall off the wagon is because you think if you mess up one meal, it messes up your entire progress

This is a cognitive distortion called black and white thinking (aka splitting). Splitting is an inability in a person's thinking to bring together the dichotomy of both positive and negative qualities into a cohesive, realistic whole. Its a defense mechanism I employ frequently and see it so much in other aspects of my life. Weight loss is no different: it’s easy to think in extremes where our choices all good or all bad with no middle ground.

Let’s say your goal is to have 1200 calories a day and you accidentally eat all those calories before noon. You haven’t failed. You can still commit to eating appropriate and healthy portion sizes for lunch, dinner, and all the snacks you eat for the rest of the day.

You don’t have to start fresh tomorrow. You can start today, even after eating your entire calorie budget. I promise you that the healthy eating patterns and shift in black and white thinking will outweigh any small shortcomings.

One thing my therapist told me is that starting to eat healthy doesn’t mean I’m going to pig out and eat my last meal tonight and promise to do better tomorrow. This isn’t my last meal! I can commit to healthy choices every hour of every day and not feel dejected if I fall short of my expectations for myself.

submitted by /u/moods-
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/3617hqv

Starting to struggle with my meal sizes more and more

I started losing weight in January at 295, I'm currently at 229 with a goal weight of 175. When I started losing weight It was a bit of struggle dealing with not eating as much, I felt hongry often. That started to lessen over time and eventually I got better at dealing with cravings and lapses.

Lately I've been noticing the opposite. I've been struggling to finish/enjoy the portion sizes of my meals. I've started to reduce the size of my meals quite drastically and even then I still sometimes too full. Right now my stomach is cramping from my dinner even though I cut the amount of food in half essentially.

I'm just wondering if anybody has experience with the amount of food their able to eat going down during weight loss? It seems natural to me that if it's true you start to be able to eat more as you gain weight then you opposite should also be true, right?

submitted by /u/chrisd848
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/33USOul

Does anyone else feel like they can't give themselves credit because you haven't lost "enough" weight?

I can't seem to get out of my own head on this. Starting weight was 295 and I'm currently 250. But even though I've lost 45 pounds, all I can see is how much further I still have to go. Some days I feel like I'm starting to look ok in the mirror, but then I catch a side eye reflection of myself when I'm out somewhere and think, "Oh my god, is that STILL what I look like!?" It doesn't help that I've lost weight before and gained it back (previously started at 280 and got down to 220 before gaining it back plus some). So now whenever I think about it, it's like this current weight loss doesn't and won't count until I get back to where I was at 220 and proceed from there.

Anyone else experience this? How'd you work through it?

submitted by /u/aiakia
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/35Z3nP1

SV: I am in two-derland! 55 pounds in 100 days!

100 days to the day I started Saxenda and logging everything in MFP, I am under 300 lbs!

I have had a calorie goal of 1600, and have achieved an average of 1605. I let myself eat anything, and had daily goals of < 1400: I would encourage myself to eat, 1600 was perfect, 1800 was ok, and 2000 was definitely time to stop eating. I figure the "maintain" caloric intake for my body should be 2800 - 3500 calories, based on the weight I have lost and the exercise I am doing (or not). I have gone swimming about 12 times, and have walked the dog 20+ times... not great for 100 days, but more that I would normally do.

​

I have an appt with the doctor next month, looking forward to it, and have been speaking with a dietician (Hi Andrea!). I am also in the queue for a government sponsored weight loss program - it may be a year wait. Hopefully I don't need it then, but if I do, I commit that I will go.

​

Warning: this is going to sound like a drug advertisement... I generally anti-drug / anti-medicine unless it is really needed, but in my case, I think it was warranted. With that, I have been taking Saxenda (and paying out of pocket) for 100 days. It has really, really helped me with reduced appetite, I wish I knew about it when it was FDA approved. It is an epi-pen like injection (pretty small & short needle), and it reduces what I call "the hunger" - a desire to eat a lot of food, especially at bedtime for me. The side effects for me are pretty minor - in decreasing order: diarrhea, constipation, a generalized stomach pain (like feeling full, feeling hungry & feeling like you have to go to the bathroom) and nausea. I would take all of these side effects & more for the results I have achieved. It is not snake-oil, its FDA approved, prescribed by a doctor, filled by a pharmacist... people thought I was taking some random garbage. The first prescription was about $4 / day, now it is about $8 / day (I have been underdosing myself and using my hunger & side effects as a guide to dosage).

submitted by /u/throwaway_lose_it
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/33Qr75U

I just hit a whole bunch of SVs, and I simply can’t contain myself

Ok, so I’m f/37/SW355/CW255. I’ve been doing CICO for about 11 months (this time). Normally I save my SVs for the designated thread, but I just can’t help myself.

This morning, I hit 255. This marks 100 pounds lost, exactly halfway to my goal, and the lowest weight I’ve been since I was a teenager. I’ve tried and failed to lose weight for decades, losing as much as 80 pounds, but always gaining it back and then some. This time is just different. I put a lot of time into figuring out why I’d give in and binge, and I’ve finally hit a point where going back to eating the way I used to is unthinkable. I do allow myself to eat a big, fatty, delicious meal once every couple of months, but getting back on track is easy in a way it never was before. So if you’re like me and have failed over and over, don’t give up! I know that “if I can do it, anyone can” is a cliché, but in this case it 100% true.

I still have massive mental struggles... I’m still very fat, so I feel like I look the same. I KNOW that 100 pounds in 11 months is an awesome pace (and I’ve been more consistent than ever), but I still feel like I could have done better. Losing 100 pounds has been mentally exhausting, and now I need to loose 100 more, which is pretty hard to face. I’m doing this while also starting out a new career and getting a masters, so my life is a grind and most of the time I feel like I’ll just be halfway there for forever...

I have a hard time feeling proud of myself and I don’t talk about my weight loss in real life, so thank you to this sub for allowing me to ramble for a minute!

submitted by /u/IrrawaddyWoman
[link] [comments]

from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2pOoDXe