Struggling to stay motivated.

[WontStop]

Hey everyone, I am new first post. But I joined this thread, because frankly I am struggling mightily right now to keep going. 3 weeks ago I decided it was time to change my life. I was eating out a lot and was drinking mass amounts of pop at least 40oz a day. Well it has been 3 weeks and I have cut that out of my life, I am doing 30 minutes of cardio at least 5 days a week at a vigorous pace on the elliptical followed by 30-45 minutes of weight lifting. My calorie intake has also been very strict compare to my previous eating habits. A typical day for me would be waking up with 2 eggs and 2 pieces of turkey bacon maybe a piece of toast. For lunch I have a lean cuisine and for dinner it is a piece of chicken with white or brown rice usually brown but I ran out for a week and only had white left. My drinks are Poweraide, Water, and Chocolate milk.

After doing all of this, I have lost a whooping 3lbs in a 3 weeks. And I am not sure what to do. It seems as though my unhealthy life was basically producing the same results. I really want to get back to my high school weight of 195-200lbs.

What should I do? Perhaps my expectations where to much but I just figured such a drastic change in my lifestyle alone would lead to some weight loss at a better rate than this. Thanks for any suggestions thoughts or help.

X Factors: I am on night schedule so my sleep schedule is tough.
: Just last week I started taking Allie to try and help.

[lpowers5]

first off, why so much protein? No veggies or fruit? I think you may want to change that a little. Also, increase water only to half your body weight... that's how many oz you need everyday. Good luck and hang in there.

[Guinea Piggy]

To begin with - CONGRATULATIONS on making so many healthy lifestyle changes all at once. I know that the result isn't yet what you imagined, but if you keep going and make a few adjustments you will get there.

One thing I noted right away was the high calorie beverages you are drinking. Skip the poweraide and chocolate milk and stick to water and green tea. Sports drinks like poweraide have a terrible amount of calories in them. Chocolate milk is quite high in calories too.

I agree with lpower that there is a lack of vegetables and fruits in your diet. Also, are you eating any snacks? If so, what are they and can you find healthier versions of them? An apple, a small bag of baby carrots, a yogurt cup, a banana - all good and easy snacks that can get your fruit and veggie intake higher.

Don't become discouraged - I know it's hard. Sometimes you think you're doing all the right things and still the weight does't come off. But trust me, you are on the road to a healthier body and there are a million good reasons to have better health other than just losing weight. Keep at it and keep us posted on your progress.

[WontStop]

Thanks for the advice, the hard thing for me is I was such an addict when it came to Coca-Cola, that the only thing that I was able to do was drink my Chocolate Milk and Poweraide to get me off them. I have now limited those as well this week no more Poweraide and only 1 80 calorie Gatoraide pre-workout. As for the Chocolate milk well still working on that. I have added salad to my diet this week as well, it actually has taken the spot of the rice with my dinners that and or a small helping of cottage cheese.

As for my snacks I have pre-portioned everything out I have some peanuts, Fiber One yogurts, and some 80 calorie a serving jerky.

Hopefully with all of this my next weigh in sunday will show some good results.

Thanks again for the advice any and all is welcome, before I gained all this weight I was in great shape never thought it would be so hard to get back to that haha.

[lpowers5]

wow, its great to see your working on the adjustments. It may seem like a challenge but not only will it become easier in time but also pay off with your weight and even better....your health. WAY TO GO!!!!
Quick word of wisdom no one shared with me. Salad needs to have rich colors (instead of ice berg lettuce try romaine lettuce), and read the back of your dressing for serving size and calories, and last but not least... those croutons that taste amazing.... not a good choice. lol . Wish someone would have told me and I didn't have to learn on my own.

[lily curtis]

Lpower is right,. you need to read the label very carefully especially if you are health conscious and if you want to eat healthily. there are products in the market that says low or non fat when in fact its the other way around.

In addition, if you are having a hard time eating the salad because like me, you are a meat person, try to put more colors on it. Red and yellow are very appetizing, it will help you want to eat the salad. On the other hand, blue will make you dislike the food. its not appetizing and therefore, will help you suppress your appetite.

[WontStop]

So just an update I took some of your guys advice and have really cranked up the cardio and lowered the weight lifting and now have gone from losing 3lbs to 11lbs . This week is kind of my kill it week, where I am taking my intensity up to another level this week to so try and get to an idea of how far I have came since the 2nd week of January. My hope is to try and lose another 3-5lbs this week so wish me luck!

What is even better than just losing my weight my girlfriend has also lost 10lbs making it so that we together have lost 21lbs as a couple since January it can be very fun to lose weight and see the difference.

[Guinea Piggy]

That is FANTASTIC!!! Way to go. I am so happy for you. You are really doing well. Keep at it and keep us posted. Increasing the intensity of your workouts is going to be key, so you are on the right track. Nicely done :)

[stace26]

WOW! That is pretty impressive! I managed to lose 11lbs. Then got back with my ex. And sp the eating habits have gone back to what they were. Maybe ill try to suggest me and my.partner try to lose some weight together.

[WontStop]

WOW! That is pretty impressive! I managed to lose 11lbs. Then got back with my ex. And sp the eating habits have gone back to what they were. Maybe ill try to suggest me and my.partner try to lose some weight together.

It can be a lot of fun as a couple and it makes it a lot easier if you are both motivated. Both my girlfriend and I use to be high school athletes and when we got together we were in great shape. After 5 almost 6 years we realized Love Chub had taken full affect and we are no longer even close to what we use to be. We both have tried many times but for some reason this time it has stuck and we just keep going. We have little challenges with awards, and we both keep a food journal to count our calories. It so far as been a great experience minus the crankiness assoicated with some withdrawals haha.

[flareman]

Good news on your progress mate! I'm not sure what you are doing for your cardio, is it steady state or sprints? Personally, I saw the most progress when I was doing empty stomach HIIT (High Intensity Interval Trainings). Its bloody brutal, but it is very very effective especially at getting rid of the last 10-20 lbs of fat and giving you that lean, dry angular look within a short period of time.

Also, I agree with Guinea Pig's post above about the beverages. You can so easily pack on calories by drinking them and not even aware how much you've consumed. Make water your default beverage to go along with all meals (except breakfast, because having water for breakfast is just sad) and you should see some new progress in your weight loss.

Let us know how you go. Good luck!

[stace26]

It can be a lot of fun as a couple and it makes it a lot easier if you are both motivated. Both my girlfriend and I use to be high school athletes and when we got together we were in great shape. After 5 almost 6 years we realized Love Chub had taken full affect and we are no longer even close to what we use to be. We both have tried many times but for some reason this time it has stuck and we just keep going. We have little challenges with awards, and we both keep a food journal to count our calories. It so far as been a great experience minus the crankiness assoicated with some withdrawals haha.

Its great that your both sticking to it. I lost motivation and kinda fell back into my eating habits that i had through and after my pregnancy (3 years ago now but ive been telling myself it isnt so bad to be as big as i have gotten) but surprosingly ive still lost another 2lbs in the past 2 weeks. Considering ive not eaten too great im pretty impressed!

[XYZobesenomore]

For me the best thing to keep me motivated is pictures of my old, 200 pound self.
Also, forum threads like this one make me smile and give me motivation :)