Staying motivated

After this week's weigh in I found my motivation levels had dropped. I know that a four pound loss would be a dream come true for most people, but having done this all before and had excellent results I felt kind of cheated. So I looked back at my weight loss journal from 14 years ago to see what I did differently.

It turns out that my weight loss slowed on week three back then too, it accelerated in week four and then settled into a five to six pound average loss each week. I'm also fourteen years older, less active and have to be careful of a damaged disc in my spine. I'm feeling better about my perceived lack of achievement. This made me think about motivation and if I felt knocked back after this minor hiccup, then how would I cope if I were to not lose weight one week, despite doing everything right?

I know that weight loss is essentially a simple calculation, consume less calories than you use and your body uses the stored fat to make up the energy deficit. Your body however does some strange things and your weight fluctuates daily, so you could be unlucky and get weighed on the day your body decides it needs to hang on to some extra water for whatever reason. Knowing this doesn't help my comfort eating brain, so I decided to make a disaster recovery plan to boost my motivation.

• Recognise your progress. Last week I calculated my weight loss in cola bottles then went out and bought that many bottles and was amazed at what it felt like to carry them all at once. Today I would need to add another two liter bottle to that load.

• Visualise your goals. I have a spread sheet that I record my progress on, with intermittent goals marked on and a forecast of when I could reach my goal if I lose five pounds a week. I did a second calculation based on an average of four pounds a week. It wasn't that much different when I think about my ultimate goal. I'll only get there if I stick to it and the desire to not go back to how I felt last month is stronger than the need for a consoling chocolate bar.

• Take it one day at a time. I didn't wake up fat and unfit, I managed to get here by a tough regime of overeating, sofa bashing and carefully selecting exactly the wrong foods. Getting fit can take just a long, tough regime of under-eating, pavement bashing and carefully selecting all the right foods to eat.

• Don't think it, do it. Rather than just sit there worrying that I've eaten something wrong, or a new food I added to my menu was the cause of my lack of progress, I should get up off my arse and do something. Do some chores, go for a walk. I'm already feeling the benefits of my weight loss in simple things like walking, go enjoy these new feelings. Strangely once I start doing something and feel good about myself, I feel motivated to continue and this feeling persists for quite some time after. 

• Perspective. I need to remember that this is not a diet, this is normal life now. Sandwiches are no longer considered a staple food group. Chocolate is an occasional treat, not an essential source of calcium. As nice as pizza and junk food is, waking up each morning in less pain, with a clear head, higher energy levels is so much better.

• Refocus. To anyone watching me walk through our village, I'd probably be dismissed as just a fat bloke walking about. I need to remember that if they stopped me and I told them what I had achieved in three weeks, they would be amazed, changing their perception of me. I need to change my perception too. 

As the quote in the picture says, it doesn't get easier, I just get better. The longer I stick with this, the more weight I will lose and the better I will feel. The cravings will subside, the old habits will be broken. I'll learn to replace comfort eating with better coping strategies and it will all seem easier because I'm better.