Motivation questions

[tophat]

I have recently lost 3 stone due to old Weight Watchers and a bit of 30 days shred. I now weigh 9stone 5lb, I went down to 8st 12 pound and I can feel it coming back on and I know why ? self control. How do you keep the control? I feel like I?m going to pile it all back on.

I?ve been trying shred it with weight because I find it resistance training more enjoyable but I find cardio difficult because I just don?t know how to push myself enough. How do other push themselves?

You have to realise that you can't 'diet' forever- you have to change the way you eat forever or will go back to how you were

You must feel so proud after losing so much weight. Try to hang onto those feelings. Dont sabotage yourself

I started my diet in October, at 12 5 and reached a weight loss plateau in around February. It was then I read the dukan book and a lightbulb went off in my head that if I wanted to stay slim forever it was going to mean I had to change my eating habits forever. I have since read other books which all wgich confirm this view.

IMO this is a problem with weightwatchers, yes you can lose weight on it but as you can eat the same (but less of it) so you aren't forced to change your way of eating, and its hard to eat less forever.

Since the dukan lightbulb moment I haven't eaten any more breakfast cereal, I had to eventually throw out the half eaten box of special k. I rarely eat bread, and I eat a lot less carbs and I eat hardly any processed carbs.

So how do I keep the control (have only be maintaining for a few months so far - currently 8 7)
a) have a sports target to be training for, so far this year did blenheim triathlon and 5km race for life, have a duathlon and another triathlon in September, I am forcing myself to run home for work to be in shape for duathlon! Next summer plan to do olympic distance triathlon and maybe half marathon.
b) change your way of eating for good - 2 books I have read recently that i have found very useful are:
link
and Jillian Michael's book - which I bought as she claims to eat 2000 cals a day link both books recommend clean eating, ie lean protein, fruit vegetables, and no processed foods.
c) hypnosis - both Paul McKenna and Lisa Jackson good for this when I think I might be flagging
d) weighing myself regularly, I still log food on MFP
e) Have more goals, current is to get to 18% body fat (ideally without losing weight though)

thank you, my DH has also lost 3st and he is running a half marthon soon so he's weight isn't doing the same as mine because I think running really burns cals.

I am finding it hard at the moment to exercise because we're in the process of moving house and have two small children and I have lost my space in which I used to exercise. I am making an effort to do it when the children are in bed and my DH goes out for a run.

I think your right about needing to change the way I eat, I think its the snacks because on WW you can get junk snack just not so many and different types e.g. watzits instead of walkers ect. but it really needs to be fruit instead of chrips.

but I also think that I really need to start pushing through in exercising and I'm finding that really hard I dont know if maybe I need to change the type of exercise. I'm thinking about getting a good rowing machine to try and build my leg strengh up and keep doing shred it with weights but I'm worried that if I can push myself enough when doing shred I dont know if I will with rowing. I'm feeling a bit in a rut.

If you are finding it hard to exercise you might ahve to adjust your portions a bit (ie make smaller) for the meantime until you can exercise as you want to again.

Or just take kids out and have a run around for half an hour each day...hasnt got to be regulated exercise, just what gets your heart rate up

tophat agree with both points, the best snacks are fruit, I don't buy crisps or similar any more for either me or DC. I would have it as occasional treat but just don't really fancy eating those sorts of snacks anymore.

Yes, running uses loads of calories, but you can do shred at home with minimal space, or as cyb says eat a bit less to compensate. We had a rowing machine that we have now sold (wouldn't recommend), think exercise DVDs are better as more varied, rowing gets v boring v quickly.

I'm just thinking with the rowing machine that I could watch TV at the same time

I have shred or ripped in 30 on my laptop. Once you have done a couple of times, you can watch tv while you are doing it (ie with sound off)

yeah I do shred on the lap top, I just thought that rowing machine would be a good way to build my leg muscles as well and then I would be able to push it a bit harder when I'm doing shred.

I have great leg muscles now from running and also from doing squats and lunges literally whenever I have a spare minute, whether its wall squats each time go to toilet at work, normal squats in between each mouthful DS2 eats, lunges while watching TV.

See Lisa Jacksons great book "adore yourself slim" she has great ideas for what she calls sneaky workouts!