Hello and happy February! Did January just fly by or what?!
So, how is everyone doing with their New Year’s resolutions and/or Lose the Dough challenge (if you joined)? Are you still gung-ho and motivated? February 1 always seems like the make-it or break-it point with New Years Resolutions.
Last week, I received a couple of emails from readers, who were looking for ways to re-motivate themselves. Both had mentioned that their enthusiasm was starting to wane due to yucky winter weather and lack of immediate results, which is totally understandable. I thought these emails would make a good blog post about weight loss, diet, and exercise motivation.
Over the years, a number of “strategies” have motivated me when I started to feel burnout:
- Set mini goals: Last week, for instance, my mini goal was to attend two Body Pump classes. A short-term, easily-attainable goal like this is likely to keep me on track– as opposed to looking at the entire 5-month Lose the Dough challenge, which is totally overwhelming.
- Be flexible with your expectations: Last week, I only made it to one Body Pump class, but instead of seeing this as a failure with regard to setting goals for myself, I was flexible with my expectations. I came up with a Plan B to attend a different strength training class (Gravity) in place of Body Pump, which worked out fabulously. Instead of an all-or-nothing approach, I altered my expectations when things didn’t go as planned.
- Try something new: Just like anything in life, eating the same foods and doing the same workout day after day gets really boring for me. This ultimately affects my motivation and commitment to my goals, and before I know it, I’m skipping workouts and eating junk. To keep myself motivated, I like to try new things. Most recently, I added chia seeds to my diet and gave Physique 57 a try for the first time. Incorporating new healthy elements into my life prevents me from getting bored. Plus, trying a new workout keeps my body guessing so that it doesn’t have a chance to adapt!
- Make a schedule and stick to it: When I started Lose the Dough, I made a weekly exercise schedule to keep myself on track. I’ve made a few changes here and there, but in general, I’ve done a good job sticking to it. I’m more likely to stay on track when my workouts are well-planned. (I explain recording my workouts in more detail here.)
Breakfast
I’m on a serious instant oatmeal kick lately! I love this “baked” oatmeal! I made another batch with canned pumpkin, raisins, and walnuts in the mix. So good!
And, as always, I enjoyed a nice glass of iced coffee with breakfast.
Question of the Day
Where does your motivation come from? How do you motivate yourself?
I have an insane day ahead! But, most of it is FUN stuff! 
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Great post-love it. I checked out your detailed workouts from October 2008–so funny, our planners could be twins! I do the same exact thing as far as planning and tracking!
I always wonder what someone would think if they picked up my planner and took a peak! lol
I just revamped my goals/plan for the month of February! I definitely love the idea of mini goals/weekly goals.
Lately my motivation to eat healthy has come from my dad who lost his battle against cancer on January 12th 2010. He took a nutritional approach to his cancer and it was a great success for the first three and a half years. Now I want to eat healthy and exercise in honor of my dad and his battle. I want to live my healthiest life so that I can live long enough to see my kids have kids, because it hurts so much to know my dad’s missing out on that.
I love reading your posts every day Tina, and I’m going to try your baked instant oatmeal tomorrow because I have an open can of pumpkin puree that I want to get rid of. Hopefully it’s as good as it looks on your blog!
So far this month I lost the 3 pounds I gradually gained from Holiday and I feel great! I’ve always been training for my first 5k and I think that helped a lot. Exercise really isn’t my concern because I really enjoy it and make sure I have time for it everyday! It was more my diet I was concerned about and how I was being a bit more easy on food. Like taking several spoonfuls of almond butter from the jar, which I’ve cut back on and will have a max of 2 spoonfuls. I cut back on chocolate because it became a daily thing after meals and it should be a special treat to happen once or twice a week but not several times a day! These little things added up and now I’ve taken control so they don’t add up and I can be at my happy weight!
that I want to let every ounce of self-doubt blow out the back window as I power ahead. That I finally FINALLY prove to myself that I AM listening to my body, fueling it and kicking ass.
Ohh..and to be able to do 30 burpies and 30 plant arm rows w/ leg kicks.
But that will only come when the doubt leaves.
i have certain tv shows, podcasts and magazines that i’ll only listen to when i work out at home, go for a walk, or go to the gym. that way i’ll always be motivated to do SOME sort of physical activity because i wanna catch up on my entertainment…
feeling good keeps me going. am finally hitting the sweet spot where if i crave sweets after dinner, I go for an orange first instead of chocolate (not always though mind you!) i like how my clothes fit and my body looks: that definitely keeps me motivated too!
I motivate myself in two main ways: 1) giving myself goals and challenges, such as the Lose the Dough challenge, and 2) asking myself this very important question: How does exercising and eating healthy make me FEEL? When I remind myself how much better I feel (physically and mentally) when I’m taking care of myself, it definitely motivates me to keep it up!
My biggest motivation right now is a vacation coming up in a few weeks! I’m so excited to a) get in a bikini and b) eat delicious, tropical foods
so I want to be prepared for both of those. I feel like I’m also going to be motivated to exercise a least a little bit while I’m there too since I’ll be in a bathing suit everyday!
I think scheduling is really important, too. I have started going to the gym first thing in the mornings even though I thought it would be terrible. Turns out it’s awesome and I get my work out in no matter what!
Last night I was on the phone with my mom and she was telling me about this hotel restaurant my parents ate at for breakfast a few days ago. She said her breakfast reminded her of me because it was an Oatmeal SOUFFLE! She said it even had a maple syrup “creme brulee”-like top. Can you imagine?! I didn’t even know something like this existed. I just thought I would mention it because your baked oatmeal breakfasts are similar in style.
My motivation comes when I have events coming up where my body has to look good. It definitely keeps me focused! I give myself a goal and I usually stick to it because I know that I have to go through with it! I start eating a lot better and I found out by getting desserts out of my diet, it saves me a lot of calories and I can usually a few pounds. I also like adding a lot of veggies and fruits to keep me full throughout the day.
My motivation comes from the mirror!!!
Great advice, very motivational
I love the look of the baked oatmeal, does it only work with instant? I don’t know if I have any- I can’t decide if that’s a good thing or if its sad.
I definitely motivate myself with goals – big and small: running a marathon, getting a PR in a race, having a few good runs during the week, trying one new food a week.
@Miriam: Sorry Tina! I’ve totally miss your loose the dough point… I tough your objective was too loose weight, I understand that it is not. So we’re saying the same thing : it is about lifestyle, long term change, healthy living and feeling good in our own skin.
Mmm, that oatmeal looks amazing!
Baked oatmeal sounds so good! I motivate myself with goals and rewards. Always gotta keep your eye on the prize!
Jenn
I have lost ten pounds since Dec. 09th. I joined Weight Watchers and will be keeping the weight off with the thoughts of getting into my skinny jeans by the end of February.
I will be trying that oatmeal later this week~ must buy canned pumpkin. Yummy!
My motivation comes from how good I feel when I DO workout and eat well. I just know that I feel so much better when I am taking care of myself. Its always fun to switch up what I do, but I always come back to running- there’s just no better stress reliever for me!
Sometimes I feel totally uninspired to exercise but I pretty much make myself go to the gym and say “do at least 15 minutes.” I can only think of a time or two where I didn’t want to stay and do more after that initial bit. The first 5 minutes can be tiresome, but after 10-15 minutes, I’m really in a groove. When an exercise funk hits, I like to try classes because I feel bad leaving in the middle so I stay and usually end up loving it. Good music and updating my iPod a lot is good motivation as well.
Right now I’m motivated by the fact that I
getting married in a little over 4 months and I want to look my best! But usually I am motivated by signing up for road races, especially half marathons! Knowing that I paid a good chunk of money to register and that I always am looking for a new PR really motivates me! Great tips girl!
I motivate myself by trying something new if I feel like my current method isn’t working. Right now, instead of being so calorie obsessed, I’m just trying to eat better and exercise more. More omega-3s, antioxidants, less sodium, less (refined) sugar, more exercise, and coming up with a “ritual” to relax myself when I get stressed. I’m giving it a month and then I’ll see what worked and what didn’t!
Recent discoveries: I LOVE sardines (is that weird?), sugar snap peas, and tofu. I am also not a lean cuisine girl – I tried it, but I am much happier and healthier when I’m cooking meals in the kitchen. But I still like having them on hand when I’m craving pizza or don’t have time to cook.
My motivation: I think about a “me” that I don’t want to be: lazy, unenergetic, tired, out of shape. That’s usually enough to get me to the gym or out for a run!
I am definitely motivated by races and challenges of any sort. But mostly just knowing how good everything I am doing makes me feel is a big motivator!
What helped me to get in the habit of exercising was just to make it a priority and, if I can, to do it early in the day. I’ve come to enjoy it after several years of building up strength and endurance and learning about different exercises. I think I’m addicted to it now! It helps me so much with stress + anxiety.
After a great workout and I feel fantastic–I tell myself to remember this feeling. I put it in the vault.
After I have something junkie food to eat and I don’t feel that great after, I also tell myself to remember this feeling.
Being mindful of how I feel, all the time, has helped me to stay motivated. Let’s face it, we all fall off the train once in a while…don’t we?
I’m very intersted in trying baked oatmeal. I’m not a big fan of oatmeal cooked on the stove it’s too slimy. But I can see the bake version being more up my alley.
I just had to comment and say that your methods for motivation are almost the EXACT steps to “self-change” that we are learning about in my Intro to Clinical Psychology class at school! They are proven to be very effective, you are definitely on the right track!
I have to make one of these 3 min cookies – they look amazing.
I have decided like a few others on here to take 2010 month by month so I can remain focused and it is not overwhelming. I read your blog daily to keep me focused on eating well and working out. I weigh myself in weekly to make sure I stay in my healthy weight range.
I find it very important to motivate myself with the more immediate “results” like feeling good about myself when I make good choices, the post exercise “rush” feeling, that healthy feeling after eating a nutritious meal rather than just focusing on the long term reward of actually losing weight.
Hey was wondering what could be used istead of canned pumpkin for this baked oatmeal. It looks so good but we can’t get canned pumpkin in NZ
Any suggestions?
@Roz: What about mashed banana?
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