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So, I've pretty much given up on myself. The PCOS makes it almost impossible to lose weight, and so for the past couple of years I've pretty much given up on fitness and diet and myself in general. Now my PCOS is even worse, plus I just feel like rubbish in general.
I need to get in shape, or at least back into putting the effort in. What do you do to GET yourself motivated, and then STAY motivated? Sticky notes around the house? Daily butt kickin with a friend? What do you do?
I find I have to get obsessed and stay obsessed. All of the above and more worked for me.
The main thing I found that worked for me was a personal trainer. It's a psychological thing for me having an appointment with someone. I could easily skip a class but I could never leave someone waiting for me.
A really unflattering photo of myself usually does it for me. Another good motivator is an item of clothing that you would love to wear in a few sizes too small. Lastly I picture myself the size I want to be and focus on that image when I am forcing myself to exercise.
I find I sign up to something like a fun run or something and it gives me a goal to head to. Just gotta keep finding goals. :)
Sent from my smart phone using Tapatalk.(Occasional fat fingers syndrome might occur)
Don't take this the wrong way PLEASE!!! But I think one of the first things to do is to refuse to let yourself use PCOS as an excuse.
I have PCOS and I am overweight too. I struggle with it, so I know it isn't easy, but the reality is women with PCOS can and do lose weight. We just have to really limit our carbs, and then only eat low gi carbs. It's not fair and it sucks but it's what we have to do. Carbs are our enemy. They are what makes us fat - not dietary fats.
Have you tried something like Calorie King? It's good to set it up so all of your nutritional requirements are 'targets' for you.
It becomes like a little game after a few days.
If you're mathematically minded, work out your basal metabolic rate (google a good BMR calculator), then, based on the fact it takes a calorie deficit of 7000 calories to lose a kilo, work out how many cals a day you can eat a day and how many cals you need to burn through exercise to lose a kilo. Like I said, it becomes
like a maths game.
Read Niadella's blog. It is really inspirational. She has had great success since last August!!
If you are a cook, sit down and 'de-calorise' your favourite recipes. Again, it's a little challenge to keep you
engaged.
I really do know how hard it is. I do. I promise you. But I am doing an unofficial Ten Week Challenge with a goal of losing between five and ten kilos before April 26 (when I next see my FS). I am only on day 6 but I am determined :)
I really hope you can get into the groove and stay there for as long as you need.
Take care x
Things which have worked in the past for me are, printing horrid photos of myself and nice ones and having them next to each other for comparison. Sticky notes with goals or motivational quotes on them. Just not having junk in the house or any spare money around to go and buy it with. Knowing what I will be eating, so a loose kind of meal plan, if not a propper written out menu (a la weight watchers). Weight watchers! Faking it til I make it, so just going through the motions and knowing what needs to be done until one day I realise it's become habbit and not so much effort any more.
TBH I think you just have to commit and do it. Book it in and don't negotiate out of it. The exercise and eating here are getting that way - so much so I cannot be bothered too much with meal planning etc. I get up - walk/run and then get on with my day. Good luck - it is a constant challenge here but we can do this. xx
Thanks ladies :) I know what you mean N2L, don't worry! Mentally, I seem to have to place blame somewhere though. Another thing I'm working on. But I had to change my focus a couple years ago, because I was counting calories and looking at meal breakdowns and obsessing over exercise to an unhealthy point, and was blaming myself when my weight didn't go down. I can't let myself get to THAT point again, so in my head I've changed it to 'exercising so I feel healthy, even if my weight doesn't change'. Does that make sense?
Myfitnesspal has a BMR calculator in the 'tools' tab of their website.
Totally agree with the blame thing.
Be annoyed that you have to do things differently... but that is all it is differently.
No I don't sit down and consume a bucket of chicken and 2 litres of coke in one sitting. But I do know what I *should* be doing. And just because what I should be doing (whether it's eating or exercise) is different to the next person (whether it's harder or not that's a mindset thing... it's different) doesn't mean I can't do it. And it doesn't mean you can't either.
If I want to lose weight I need to change this. If you want to lose weight you need to change this. It's not too hard. You can do it. But what I had to stop doing was placing the blame elsewhere. I know my limits, my needs and what I have to do. The fact I haven't done it, is up to me. No one else.
Not being harsh. But it's the truth. I think we sugar coat these things too much and we get no where. If we want to change we need to own it and be honest about it.
:hug:
I think that's true Rouge.
For me, weightloss is about being an adult and facing facts. I know EXACTLY what I need to do. But the child in me crosses its arms, stamps its feet and sulks saying, 'it's not fair! Why shouldn't I be able to eat that pancake? Or that biscuit? Or that chocolate? I deserve to be able to eat it. Everyone else is eating it, why can't I?'
I can't let that child win.
I am an adult. I know I can't eat those things. I know I have to exercise. I have to take responsibility. Sure, it's not fair. But, life's not fair. So I just have to suck it up.
For YEARS I've tried to get on the whole weightloss and fitness bandwagon. I'd start and then days later I'd give it. It was always too hard, or I was too tired or.. blah blah blah.
I went and had counselling for my depression midway through last year and once we got through the nitty gritty, we got onto my weight. For me, it was a huge factor in how horrible I was feeling. I had to speak the truth with someone. She gave me honest answers. We worked out ways to try and combat my fears and excuses and it really just put me in the right frame of mind to get into it.
After that, I found the program that I'm on now. I've now managed to lose 32kgs since August 15th last year. Seems alot in such a short time... but I'm not even halfway yet.
I have those days. Those days I don't want to get out of bed. Those days I am just so down and want to devour all the fatty, sugary crappy stuff. Sometimes I indulge, sometimes I don't. I have goals I want to achieve and it doesn't take me long to remember those, kick myself in the @rse and get back on track.
It helps that the program I'm on there are so many people who are where I am, and have been where I have been. It's really tough when you are well over 100kgs trying to find that motivation and dedication but I assure you, you can.
Photos of yourself are a HUGE motivator! Gosh, if you do come across my blog I have underwear pics of myself in there. The biggest pic is not even me at my biggest and boy does it bring tears to my eyes when I look at it. But I look at my latest pic and see how far I've come. I see where I was and I vow to myself to NEVER EVER let myself get back there.
I also encourage you to find some exercises that you enjoy. For me, I started off with things like a strength training session with the local ladies. It was a nice casual, relaxed session where we can chat about anything and have a laugh. I then started playing netball (at my largest) which I REALLY enjoy... I'm certainly a team sport player if anything.
After that I dabbled in Zumba (LOVED it! SO much fun!) and I've now come across bootcamp via my sisters and I really really enjoy that. I also play tennis in the netball off season, I go for a walk/jog 1-2 times most weeks, I was doing a double personal training session....
I found it hard because I'm almost an hour from the nearest town. In the middle of farming country. There was not much access to anything out here and the cost of fuel to get into town was a BIG red flag, BUT I decided that my health and that of my family were totally worth every cent.
It's really really REALLY hard to stay on track. The first week is the hardest. If you can find an eating plan/recipes that you like and are low calorie options, stick with them. If you've got a friend or a few who want to exercise, get them onto it. Time goes so much faster when you have someone else there to talk to. Drink HEAPS of water!! The change within a week of drinking 3 litres of water a day was phenomenal! And most importantly, DO NOT BEAT YOURSELF UP if you fall off the wagon. EVERYONE does at some point. The real test is getting right back into it again and not letting that fear of failure beat you.
I'm on a journey to lose 78kgs. I have 46kgs to go and I plan on getting it all off this year. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it. Find groups of people who understand where you are going through and share your journey. It makes you feel accountable. Start a blog! I've never written before in my life, but wanted to document my journey so I could go back and see where I was and where I wanted to go. I could see where I went wrong and all of those times I went right. ;)
N2L has given you some great advice and I highly recommend a calorie controlled diet to anyone wanting to lose weight ( I love my numbers and it just makes total sense the whole calories in and calories out thing).
If you ever want to chat to anyone the weightloss group ladies are always there with fab advice, and I'm always around to try and help where I can.
It seems SO SO hard when you just start out. I promise you, once you're on your way you look back and wonder what you were afraid of. It really isn't that hard at all, you just have to be consistent with everything.
Good luck!!! (and sorry for the novel!).
Indeed, support helps and keeps you motivated. Find some friends who are doing the same and band together. Do regular weigh ins, log your exercise, motivate each other.
Maybe start in the diet and weight loss section here on BB, but FB has a heap of weight loss pages too. Being accountable to others helps when you find you can't be accountable to yourself.
I am really tight with spending money, so I finally joined a gym to exercise. It made me go because I hate paying for something that I don't use.
After 3 months, I had lost no weight (but lost cm's). I was almost ready to throw in the towel and then suddenly the weight started falling off. I think my hormones and metabolism were so out of wack it took 3 months for my body to get with the program!
Gluck!!!
I write down what I want to achieve, by when & how I am going to do it. I write down excuses (internal & external in my control & external out of my control) I'd find to not eat well & not exercise. I set appointments in my diary when I am going to exercise and I meal plan weekly.
I am currently following the Michelle Bridges 12WBT, so that is where I find my drive comes from. Plus I went out last night and saw people whom I haven't seen for probably nearly 12 months. In that time I have lost nearly 15kgs & that is driving me to lose more atm.
Sushee, you've made my day! I didn't know what BMR was, I thought it was the same as BMI. Just checked it out on the website and got totally schooled. I've been getting down on myself because I wasn't keeping my calories below 1200 a day, which is what I thought I had to do. Turns out my BMR is 2213, so the 1500 calories I was doing easily was still over 700 calorie loss - WOO!!
Also, just set up a schedule with Professor for us to exercise at home together, and we're each gonna make the other one DO IT. To start it off I weighed myself for the first time in a month or so, and dude, I HAVE LOST 4 KILO'S!
Niadalla, just went to your blog - you are a freakin ROCK STAR. Go you good thing! :cheer:
WOOOOOHOOO!
Go you :D Congratulations! Awesome work. It will get more and more addictive ;)
4 kilos, Keike that's awesome! Well done :D
Kieke no one should try to do a calorie intake of less than 1200 a day. Everyone needs 1200 at least or their metabolism starts to slow.
On my lapband forum, people's weight loss stall when their calorie intake is too low. You see it all the time. We tell them to up it to 1200 and bam! they start losing it again. Every time.
Check your BMR regularly too. As you lose weight, your BMR drops. Mine started at over 2000 and is now 1267. So you'll need to adjust your diet and exercise as you get lighter and fitter.
It's really important to eat all of your calories too (the amount worked out by Fitness Pal or Calorie King or whatever for weight loss). So, for instance, if they say eat 1800 calories, DO IT!!! That is the best for sustainable weightloss. Don't be tempted to eat 1200 or whatever, thinking it will help you loe weight faster. Although it seems counterintuitive, the larger you are, the more you need to eat to lose weight.
Many people also advocate eating back your exercise calories to maintain that level. So, if you burn 300 cals through exercise a day, add another 300 cals to that day's caloric intake.
As Sushee said, if you eat too few calories, your body goes into starvation mode and your metabolism slows. It thinks you are starving so 'holds onto the calories'. It is counter productive.
Well done on your loss :D
Oh, does that mean I'm supposed to aim to be eating 2200 calories daily? Obviously not adding it up with chips'n'chocolate, but that the 1500 is too low?
Lol no 1500 is good. It's GREAT. But in an earlier post you said you were beating yourself up for not eating less than 1200. No one should eat less than 1200.
Sorry I just read n2l's post in full. I didn't count calaories when I was losing. I ate well and I exercised at least 3 times a week. But by my rough calculations, I was eating about 1200 - 1500 calories a day in my losing phase even though my BMR was over 2000. I have to admit at the time, that my lapband helped a lot with portion control, I couldn't PHYSICALLY eat more than 1500 even if I tried if I ate 'good' food. But now my lapband is leaking and I have no restriction, I have found that the lessons I learnt about 'good' food has stayed with me and I can still eat around 1200 calories a day without really thinking about it (and I eat back my exercise calories to maintain my weight).
I believe that I maintained my metabolism by exercising. More muscle = higher metabolism. Your metabolism also stays up at a higher rate for a few hours after exercise.
If you're eating 1500 cals a day easy, then stay on that, I would say. But start exercising. I cannot stress enough how much exercising is the key to weight loss. If you want to lose, if you want to sustain, you have to exercise. No one really likes doing it, but do it enough and it becomes habit. And you can get very addicted to how it makes you feel *afterwards*. Trust me. :)
4 kgs is amazing Keike!! Well done!!
Agree with the others, under 1200 is a no no. My plan is a 1200 cal diet and to not eat my cals back and it works for me. I do sometimes bump it up to 1400 or 1500 to keep my metabolism on it's toes ;) hehe
You're doing an amazing job! Well done!
Oh and I thought I'd mention that the first time I got on my exercise bike, I did 6 min and about 2kms and felt like I was going to have a heart attack. But I got better and faster as I kept doing it, and eventually, after 6 months, was riding 40kms each session. Exercising is a pain in the ass, but so rewarding if you stick at it.
I've just started exercising formally again after 18 months of just incidental exercise. I am feeling the pain of starting from scratch too, trust me. So curse and swear and hate it, but do it. I am exercising 30 mins Mon, Wed and Fridays, rain, hail, shine, sickness or just plain laziness. Walking, cycling, running. Whatever.
30 mins a week is just 90 mins in a week that consists of 10080 mins. Not much at all when you think of it.
I wanted to add about the exercising that it doesn't take long where you get to the point where you feel crappy if you DON'T do it every day. I started on Jan 3 this year and I"m averaging 9kms a day, over 3 sessions a day. Either walking outside or on the treadmill and I feel a bit antsy if I'm pressed for time and I dont think I can fit it in during the day. So it is something you really have to make yourself *do* in the first week or so, but after that it's easy to keep doing. If I'm struggling to keep the motivation, I just use the treadmill instead and put a DVD on - so easy to walk for an hour if you're watching a show that goes for an hour kwim?
If your anxiety problems prevent you from going outside, then look into hiring a treadmill or exercise bike etc so you can't use it as an excuse to not leave the house to exercise. It is really easy to become self defeatist and look for ways to avoid it. Things like weather - 'oh it's raining, can't exercise today', but if you have a treadmill there is no excuse!
We actually have a treadmill and a stationary bike, so I don't hafta go outside :) This morning was our first 'together' session - we got outta bed at 5am, did a half hour workout alternating between bike and treadmill, and then Professor got ready for work. I feel awesome, and also sore because I neglected to stretch, so I've hurt my back like a dipstick :doh: So, doing stretches every so often today to work it out, and then making absolutely sure we do a proper warm up from now on!
I don't stretch before. I do a slower pace warm up of 5 mins before I go hell for leather for as long as possible, lol. But stretching afterwards is so important. Take note of where it hurts and stretch those muscles. Doing it now and throughout the day is actually very, very good for those sore and aching muscles. And gentle exercise tomorrow will help them heal faster too.