How do you stay firm in your purpose?

Question

I was losing 2 pounds every 3 days on the keswick/atkins diet, and was making amazing progress on this book I was writing... and now all of a sudden I'm at a stand still and I've actually started to gain weight... I don't know where I can get the motivation to keep going... It's been 4 months... and I don't see very much progress. I just have all these skinny friends and I think that it would take months, maybe years for me to get down to their size and I look at this book I'm trying to write, and I think where am I goign to get new information for my book?

timberlake · Accepted Answer

that's the problem with dieting. you lose and than you gain and then you become frustrated and there are so many restrictions.

losing weight takes a good while. I hate to break it to you, but if you gained all the weight in years, you're going to have to lose the weight in years. I'm overweight and I have been on every diet imaginable. yeah, I lost weight, but I either started giving up because of the restrictions or I gained weight after a standstill, or I was just plain straving from the little amounts of food.

in the last four months I've lost 22 pounds (last I check, but it's probably more now). I went from a size 20/22 to a 14/16. I'm still trying to lose some more weight. I want to at least be a size 10 or something. I'm not on a diet or anything. I'm just making better choices for myself. I don't consume red meats and pork like I used to (you don't realize how much of that is bad for you and how much of it you eat). I drink lots of water and I exercise. I choose the baked over fried and I allow myself some cheats here and there. I eat better and I try to go to the gym at least once a week and I stay there for two hours and jog/walk around the indoor track. I do some toning exercises or take a spinning class.

i've eased myself into and I'm being patient with my body and it's paying off. people have noticed my weight loss when I lost 10 pounds, let alone 22. it's not a competition to lose weight. you need to do it at a pace that your body can adjust to and fall into rhythm with so you aren't forcing it.

good luck with that book. I don't really know what you're writing about tho, haha

sammyangel9991 · Accepted Answer

Just so you know, Atkins is not a good diet. Most people just gain back all the weight they lose and more. It is not healthy. You need a balanced diet and there is too much fat in the atkins one and very limited carbs. Its not a healthy way to lose weight. Try weight watchers. You don't need to cut out carbs, you just need to have less of them. You need to watch portion sizes, but you do not have to and should not cut out carbohydrates. Trust me on this...there have been so many studies and I just think that if you are going to work hard to lose weight, you should be doing it in a safe and healthy way that won't cause you to regain everything you worked so hard to lose.

Nikie · Accepted Answer

It's all just time, it seems tough but sometimes you just need to take a break from the strenuous routines and allow your body some indulgence. Of course, you can't throw yourself overboard, with the willpower it takes to even get a diet to work correctly, you can easily cut it out when you're ready.

Another thing to keep in mind is that.. Losing two pounds a week is normal. Your body may be plateauing (As the dieter's tend to say) to compensate for the sudden shift in weight. If you just maintain your weight, exercise and stay positive, I'm absolutely sure you'll continue to lose weight. Just drink a lot of water and never, ever skip breakfast (Have a yogurt in the morning, or a bowl of oatmeal.. Whatever suits your fancy in the 100 - 250 calorie range)

I remember when I stopped losing weight for a while and I told myself that I had to keep trucking, and I did and it paid off. Usually after plateauing for a long time, your body picks up the slack and you'll see weight fly off. But then another plateau usually follows. Just don't get discouraged! Losing weight is a long process, but something that you should be respected and admired for.

Good luck!

cityboy2323 · Accepted Answer

i think you need to find a reason to loose weight. My reason to gain weight was cause my ex cheated on me with a big football jounior in 10th grade and broke my heart so I dedicated myself to lifting and swimming and now I'm 175lbs with 7% body fat... really you just need something to drive you.

Btw she came back and told me she wanted me back and it was the best feeling I've ever had to tell the girl that I thought I was in love with and who totaly broke my heart that we had no chance ever again after what she did to me.

Seriously do a lot of cartio (running and swimming) that will burn off fat and lifting (low weights cause ur a girl and don't want to get buff) will also help a lot and try to dedicate at least 2 hours a day to a set plan.

i swim for 3 hours a day along with lifting for an hour each day. I'm sure that you can't dedicate like that but even just an hour or two and you'll notice a huge diffrence.

Good luck!

dasouthernicon · Answer

It's real simple... Just adopt an attitude that will not allow you to regress in your goals. Ignore all ur skinny friends- this is about you and what you want. I had the same thing happen. I dropped over 125 lbs from 2002-2004 (went from 290 to 165). I werked out twice a day, ran- on average, 8-10 miles a day, 6/7 days a week, ate less than 100 calories a day, werked a physically demanding job, and all that. I had lotsa folk against me- they were so jealous, they even put out rumors alledging I was on drugs! Honey, just keep ur head in the game. Weight loss, like so many other things, is about mental focus, drive and determination. I was a personal trainer bacc in the days- I had a 3 tier system I used with others and myself. It's 1. Actualization- determining what you want in ur life  2. Familiarity- getting used to ur new lifestyle  3. Mastery- living the lifestyle and mastering it, taking on new stuff. Hope this advice will help, for it's up to you to get it done... And you will get all kinda material to write about, with YOU as the subject.. trust me.

sweetaspie · Answer

Dieting is terrible for you. When you don't give your body enough calories it eventually goes into starvatioin mode and holds everything you eat thus making you gain MORE weight. Just eat CLEAN. Cut out unnecessary sugars, white carbs, junk food...eat protein, fruits, vegetables. Eat no less than 12000/1400 calories a day. Exercise. Exercising boost your metabolism and you burn fat even when your body is at rest. Also pelase know that your body may have found a weight it is comfortable at. Sometimes you can't even reach your goal weight because it just isn't the weight you are supposed to be. Don't stress about anything either, stress leads to weight gain. Don't try and be their size, try and be fit and healthy FOR YOU. You may never be able to be their size so don't make that your goal, just be the healthiest you that you can be! I lost 25 pounds but it took me almost a year to do it. The closer you are to the weight you should be the harder it is to lose. That is why someone who is 100 lbs overweight can get the first 60 lbs off pretty easy and then it gets harder to lose. The last ten pounds is always hardest to lose because there is 150 a day difference between 10lbs. Meaning 1500 calories may support 130 pounds while 1350 supports 120 lbs. That is why it is so hard to lose weight and why exercise is so important to boost your metabolism. Good luck to you, if you go about weight loss the right way it will take longer but you will keep it off and feel better about yourself!

TimB -1-2-3 · Answer

I've made a couple of blog posts about this very subject. I've basically explained motivation in detail and have listed helpful tips and cheats to achieve it. So do read them all (start from the bottom of the list and work your way upwards), and you'll know what you need to know.  ;p But do remember that faith is a big part in this also. If you don't BELIEVE that you can do this, you'll never be able to... So always consciously coach yourself and amp yourself up. YOU CAN DO IT! Keep a positive attitude about it, mmkay? Good luck, and have a great day! ^^

aceofdiamond · Answer

think of how much you've done! how much progress you made. do you want to lose all your progress? how can you write a book if you don't pick up a pencil and write? I lose faith sometimes and I have to look back and think of how much I did to get as far as I am. and then I look forward and see how much farther I can go and I reach for it. then, you have your motivation back. hoep this helped! ^.^ just know I'm rooting for you from the sidelines and if you need more help, then I will be willing to help. I can give you advice and I can try and help but you have to start moving again. think of how much farther you can go and how muxch you've done already and then reach for your goal.

MrSchneider · Answer

well look at your diet. the atkins diet looks at just not eating carbs. but you need carbs. and any carb you eat will store more water, depending on the carb. carbohydrates are the purest form of energy for us. Complex carbohydrates are preferred, but all of them do the same thing. Provide energy for us!

The best way to lose weight? BALANCED DIET

No fad diet with a shortage of any nutrient should ever help in a real sense. Because by providing yourself with a deficit, you body will

And all the protein you consume through the atkins isn't too good for your kidneys either.

as for the keswick diet, I'm not fully aware of what it is. could you explain that? But it sounds like a handful of nuts every 4 hours. That seems like starving yourself. I wouldn't do either of the diets.

But if you are looking to loose weight, just be patient.

soOUCH · Answer

WOW! Great question, I am going through almost the same thing. I used to be so "together" my room was always clean, always had a nice boyfriend/great prospects, did awesome in school, but recently things took a dive. I realized that is sometimes hard to get something you want, and you just have to fall back in love with yourself and who you are to be that again.

Take it from me, I'm cleaning my room, asked out a nice guy today, and made a B in Calc 3.

YOU CAN DO IT!

Reeses-pieces777 · Answer

I like to stick post it notes on my door or wall saying stuff or I write in my diary stuff I want to do and accomplish. I just write down, ok I'm going to do 2 hours of work out or something like that and it reminds me.

i think 2 pounds per three days is pretty fast.

i've been trying to lose 5 pounds and it's been pretty hard lol

cjwright79 · Answer

It can actually be better to 'overeat' -- your brain is hungry for calories. Maybe after firming up your body, your brain is saying 'Now me'! So go with it. After all you've lost weight once before, so you know you can do it again when your brain has developed nicely.

Anonymous · Answer

honestly this is what I do; I have a pic of me from when I was super skinny and great looking, and I post it on my fridge so that I think 2X before snacking like crazy.

vanessa9 · Answer

the atkins diet is the worst! no wonder you're having trouble.  at best, it simply doesn't work.  if you really want to lose weight and keep it off, eat less meat, or better yet, none.  look into it.

Littletad · Answer

Motivation. Listen to music that gets you going. Ask your friends what they think of your progress. Make motivational posters or buy some.

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