Article: Motivation - What has made the biggest difference?

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Article: Motivation - What has made the biggest difference?
What one small step have you made that has made the biggest difference in your weight loss journey?

Dawn

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Ok, laugh if you must, but to me, NEW SHOES have been very motivating! I purchased some good running shoes (I don't run, only walk, but was told by someone "in the know" that running shoes will be more supporting & comfy even for walking).

When I'm walking they feel good, afterward I'm not quite as sore as when I wore worn out tennies, and to tell you the truth, I wear them around the house when I'm cleaning etc. The benefit here is twofold: I'm physically less tired & sore at the end of the day and I feel like more of a jock when I see them on my feet!

This makes me move a little quicker, step a little springier and helps me to feel healthy so I'm more likely to reach for a water than a Coke. (I LOVE Coke.) While I realize there's nothing earthshaking about this, it has been helpful. Remeber back in grade school, if you were lucky enough to start each year with new folders, pens, crayons, how you felt inspired to work SO hard & do your BEST? Well, new running shoes bring about a similar feeling for me.

Looking forward to replies from the rest of you! You are all teaching me so much! Thanks!
Xena

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I think the biggest difference I've made is lunches. "Eating out for lunch" used to be a bacon cheeseburger and fries. Now I look for places that serve deli-type sandwichs so I can order something lean. If I get fries I find it easy to eat just a few. Lunch at home is either a bowl of fruit salad or a bowl of cheerios.....something lower in calories and which add some good nutrients.

Xena, I've never tried running shoes but I wouldn't even think of going out for a walk without a good pair of walking shoes. They do make a world of difference. When it's time for a change I'll look for running shoes next time.

Em

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I have been thinking about this since I asked the question. I think my biggest change is the water I am drinking. I have done many things, but the water has really made me healthier, made me feel better, AND helped with my weight loss. I had heard many times how important water is to weight loss and health, but usually would drink a LOT for a short while and then feel bloated and stop.

EM you were a big help to me. Several months ago we posted (even before we were called BEST.... remember the Hi Everyone days?) about water. I was peeing 24/7 and miserable. You promised if I gave it time it would get better and my body would adjust. And you also told be to slow down drinking about 2PM on weight in day.

I can say 52 pounds later that I am a water lover. I drink a quart before I even make it out the door for work in the AM.. then another quart by 10 and another by noon. After lunch I let myslef have a pop (about 3). I only drink water at meals now. I am saving $$$$ and feeling quite good!

I could go on and on about other changes, but I think the H20 thing is the one I can see the most results from.

Hugs
Traci

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Lucky....please do go "on and on" about the changes. We could use all the help we can get!!

For me, the biggest and best change is cutting "junk food" out of my diet and really just thinking of putting "good fuel" into my body without even concentrating too much on the scale. So far,
in 1 1/2 mos. I have lost about 8 lbs. My health was really starting to become compromised. Now I'm just thinking about how important my health is and what I can do to make myself healthier. I have a friend who lost her job because of health issues and I can't have that happen to me.

Congratulations Lucy on your weight loss. You should be very
proud!

Nel

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Really, I had two:

1: I have a HALF CUP of nuts (plus some dried fruit) as a mid-morning snack. As a result, I don't feel I have to eat the whole world at lunch tim. You have to fit this carefully into your meal plan, as it's a whopping 500 calories. But it works for me.

2: WEIGHT TRAINING! I bit the bullet and bought a basic home gym. Between that and a few sets of dumbbells I already owned, I weight train four times a week, alternating between upper and lower body. I've gained muscle, my tendinitis-prone shoulders are healthier, and I'm losing weight.

Denise

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there were many small steps ...

Like Traci, there have been many small steps in my success so far. Keeping in mind that these were not all done at once, but over the course of a 1-2 years,

* Eat 3 smaller meals and have 3 snacks a day. THis means I eat every 2-3 hours and have to say that has all but eliminted wanting to eat everything in site because I am "sooo hungry" (January 2001)

* Drink 8-10 8oz glasses of water. This took me a very long time to get in the habit of doing. I had to almost litterally set an alarm as a reminder. (June 2001)

* Don't expect perfection when exercising in a class or to a tape. I wasn't born a leotard diva, and found myself rather uncoordinated when it came to keeping up with the class on some exercises. Not expecting perfection from myself, enabled me to concentrate on learning the correct moves rather than stressing over not getting them right. (Sometime in 1999)

* Get rid of clothes the bigger clothes that don't fit. I have kept one thing from my former size 22/24 self. That is a nightshirt. Mostly I've kept it because it's comfortable even though I look like a baglady in it. Everything else I have gotten rid of thinking if I have nothing to wear I will work hard to not morph into the larger size. (ongoing)

* Set an "Iron Ceiling". Borrowed from a project management model (and losing weight is a big project!) I set what I call my Iron Ceiling. Moving it is NOT an option. My current Iron Ceiling is 8lbs. If my weight goes up 8lbs it's time to crack down and be way more careful. (for me 5lbs was too low and 10 seemed like too much)(May 2002)

BSQ
(45-50lbs gone... depending on the day)

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I am really glad I read these posts again today. I can learn so much from all of you.

New shoes are sure needed here. The Iron Ceiling is such a great idea. I already toss my larger clothes and was beginning to feel wasteful so I am glad to know I am not alone. Water, weight training "cutting junk"... all ideas I need to read over and over to get jump started. This is such a long road it is nice to get boosts along the way by making small choices or changes.

Hugs and Skinny Thoughts

Traci
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The American Heart Association has a program called "Choose to Move".
Their site is choosetomove.org

They ask you to sign up (free), answer some questions online related to your excercise habits & health history, and then they send you a great booklet that I just received and that seems quite doable. I am a VERY tough case, can't seem to be consistent, but this seems to have possibilities. You may want to take a look.
Thank you all so much for your ideas. I need your help!
Xena

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I am on my way to that website... thanks xena!

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Mine would definitely be joining the gym. I now go five mornings a week - a mix of cardio and weight training. Fortunately the gym I go to is not full of 'lycra lovelies'.

I have sent all my 'fat' clothes to new homes too.

Diana

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I bought an popcorn air popper for snacking and a Black & Decker Flavor Scenter Steamer to make fish, vegetables, rice without fats. I have had to do more than cut back on food. Instead, I finally had to change to very lowfat eating with more vegetables and grains. I also monitor carbohydrate intake. Good luck. Love, Judi

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There are 3 things that I think made the big difference for me....

1. Changing gyms and changing my workouts. I had done step-aerobics for years (with light weights mixed in on alternate days). I switched to weight-lifting last November and added the treadmill and occaisonally the stairmaster a few days a week. Saw big, big changes in my body, mostly in the hips, butt, & tummy area.........my biggest problem areas. WHOOO HOOOO!

2. This is not an option for everyone, but I had been on an antidepressant (Pamelor) for a few years to help relieve TMJ symptoms that were ruining my life. Well, after my hyst, I felt so much better.........I waited a year to make sure it was going to stay that way, and then with doc's ok weaned myself off the antidepressant. Feel better now than I did on that stuff and I could NOT lose weight while on that stuff........looking at the bottle applied inches to my hips, I swear.

3. Going on a low/fat, high-protein, high fiber diet, and getting serious about it for the first time in my life. Actually, now, it's not a diet.........it has become my way of life. I don't even WANT the junk I used to eat.........I prefer my healither foods.

WHOOO HOOOO to being back in a size 10.............with every intention of staying there!!

Ann

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Hey there BEST Sisters!
I have to chime in with Traci and say that drinking enough water has been the biggest help in overall weight loss.

Attitude comes a close second as it influences the choices I make and how I view myself. I noticed the biggest changes when I decided that this was not just a diet I was on but a life style change.

Isabelle

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Hellooooooooooooooooooooooo

I would have to think there is several things that have made the difference for me.

1. I am actually in the right mind set for a lifestyle change.

2. Working out! It is huge in helping get fit , toned and emotionally healthy.

3. Water

4. I gave up cream in my coffee and rarely use butter or cheese. I also changed over to skim milk. These little changes should help year round.

Cath
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Wait, there are more!

Making my salad for the week the day the box comes from the veggie co-op. (Not to mention knowing that in a week another box is coming from the co-op, so I'd better eat those green beans). Now when I go to work in the morning, I just open the bowl in the fridge, grab a couple of fistfuls of salad, and dump them in my lunch container. Ta-dah! Lunch is made. I keep the salad dressing at work.

Prevacid! I have reflux and the pain of it was driving me to devour starchy foods to put the fire out.

Denise
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Attitude!

Hey girls, I've been doing the yo-yo diet routine all of my adult life (sound familiar, anyone?). The major difference came when I decided I would stop dieting and make a LIFE STYLE CHANGE, and it worked. People at work say to me when they see what I'm having for lunch, "Oh, I see you're on a diet." My response: "No, this is just how I eat all the time."

My cholesterol runs high (even eating low-fat--life just ain't fair!). I follow the heart association recommendation that no more than 30% of my calories come from fat. Enjoy doing my own low-fat cooking, and I have learned to make it taste really goooood. Don't do a lot of eating out. Walk 2 miles most days. Dance with my hubby and a group of friends. Work a full-time job that involves stair climbing. Eat 3 meals a day and at least 2 snacks in between meals.

So that's my major difference. I hope this gives someone else motivation to make a lifestyle change. I think it's great--hollym
Posted by Dany on 01-18-2003 09:44 AM:

I've been reading these posts and wondering what the big difference for me was and I know there's only one answer: the hyst!!! Let me explain:

All my life, or so it seems, I've been playing the yoyo diet. In the past 20 years, the yoyo's been going mostly up instead of down. To the point that the last weight gain lasted 6 years!!! However, I was kind of dreading loosing weight, because the last two times I lost weight, I ended up pregnant and gaining more than I had lost

Well, with the hyst, that meant that there was no longer a possibility of getting pregnant... so, I decided to try it, once again.

I think that, this time, I went about it in a different way: because of the major health problems I'd been struggling with until my hyst and because, at 46 and after a hyst, menopause is looming (in fact, I'm convinced I'm going into peri-menopause real fast!!!), I'm all the more aware of the health problems, potentially lethal, that are looming: in my father's family, there is an extremely high incidence of Heart disease, Diabetes, Arthritis and Cancer; in my mom's family, there is an unbelievably high incidence of Strokes (both my maternal grand-parents died from this awful disease, and all of my great-uncles) as well as a high incidence of Diabetes. Being overweight increases the risks for all of these conditions.... therefore, I figure that I'm putting the odds in my favor by achieving and maintaining a healthy BMI. I guess fear has a powerful hold on you

Of course, I also like that I now am buying my clothes in the smaller sizes (mostly size 8, sometimes size 10... if the clothes are made small) instead of the larger sizes (knew that I had to do something when I had to go size 18).

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* Hanging out here! (Getting ongoing support and encouragement.)
* Setting small interim goals that are so close I can almost touch them, and promising myself specific rewards for reaching them.
* Taking care of things that are obstacles to health and fitness, like seeing a podiatrist about my feet hurting, and an allergist about being stuffy all the time. (It's hard to get enthusiastic about being active when your feet hurt and you can't breathe.)
* Applying the things I learned from Weight Watchers, back when I did that. (Measuring portions, keeping a food diary...)
* Using www.fitday.com to track food/exercise.
* Making sure activity and exercise is fun and rewarding - riding my horse, doing yardwork, playing on a mini-trampoline to my favorite music, etc. If it were drudgery, I would not do it.
* Reminding myself constantly how much better I will feel when I'm 50, 60, 70, etc. if I take care of my health now.

Linda

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Thanks for the helpful hints

After reading all this, I am thrilled to know I am not alone in my worries about weight gain. I am now at the heaviest I've ever been, but the fibroid I have probably is part of the problem. I am pre-op, scheduled for TAH on 5-19-03. I am so glad that this forum is availible and that so many of you offered helpful hints.

I am going into this with the attitude that having the surgery is going to result in a different me. I am visualizing what the differences will be, and one of them is being fit and healthy. I have been walking daily for about six weeks now to get in shape for the surgery and because I live in a hot climate, I drink a lot of water.

I know that everybody is different and that each person has their own experiences, I am just thankful as can be that I found this site and am getting so much useful information.

Is there life after chocolate?

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Chocolate

Keysey,

I sure hope there's life after chocolate. Recently, my heart started beating in a most irregular way. The cardiologist and I determined that the most likely cause is caffeine. Sooo, I'm off chocolate and other forms of caffeine. It ain't easy, but I'm adjusting. Passing up all those rich chocolatey desserts also saves on the calories.

Keep drinking that water and good luck with your upcoming hyst!

hollym

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what has made the biggest difference

Rembering everyday that it took years of bad eating habits to get to the weight I'm at and I know that it will take time to change all of those habits.

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I've found that cutting out fast food, especially beloved french fries, potatoe chips and pizza, have been extremely helpful. I also drink more water and eat less carbs and more protein. I've never felt better and those food cravings are completely gone. My bad cholesterol has also gone down. And I take ONE DAY AT A TIME. If I "goof" and eat something I shouldn't I simply begin again. Somedays one just needs chocolate, wine or pizza. I've also made this a life style change. I don't consider it a diet at all.

For encouragement, I weigh myself each time I go to the bathroom. Not because I'm looking to see if I've lost more weight but to celebrate the weight I've already lost. I also love seing the size 12 inside my clothes. It's a whole lot better than the old sizes!!! Hopefully after the castle visit, and after healing, I can make it into a 10. Oh, I can only hope.

I also reward myself with either new clothes or a food treat that I've been cutting out. But I'm careful to not indulge too much or the weight will come back on.

Dossie

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What helped me the most was eating more calories each day and of the right food (Dr. said I was not eating enough) he was right, I have lost 15 lbs. in four weeks at about 1500-1800 cal. a day