I thought it would be helpful to find out what people use to motivate themselves. I'm big on charts myself. I have one I keep with 40 plus milestones which I cross off as I reach them and list the date. The milestones include things like every 5 pounds, each time I lose 10% of my weight, each time I hit a new decade, when I pass into a new weight category (like obese from morbidly obese), quarter of the way there, etc. I really look forward to hitting each new mini goal and crossing it off. I also have some apps I like on my phone (My Diet Coach, Happy scale and Goal Weight). On previous diets I put a bean for each pound in one container and transferred them to the other as I lost weight.

What ideas can you give me? I would really appreciate some more ideas.

I stay motivated by setting short term goals (not related to the numbers on the scale) and celebrating milestones with rewards.

Short term goals are usually events: art or writing classes, concerts, plays, trips, etc.

My rewards tend to be massages and mani-pedis.

@@j16 - i love your suggestions - and will use them.

I focus on short term objectives - and mostly around setting a pattern - because i tend to either start and stop things quickly, or attempt to change or do too much all at once and fail at them all.

So, for the first 4 months I focused on eating: Making sure I log everything in my app and i like keeping the streak going. I rewarded myself a minute of massage for each day i logged and made good choices.

Now, I am focusing on the exercise portion - I worked out with a trainer 2x a week during the first 4 months - but now i am working on exercising a minimum of 5 times a week for at least 60 minutes. I log everything in an app as well. I am rewarding myself with new workout clothes for goal attained. Right now it is $0.05 per minute I work out - I know it sounds silly but it keeps me motivated. I plan when i finish the c2 5k program to treat myself to a weekend getaway because i have stopped and started that program 5 times..

I actually have rewarded myself as well with a walk to the beach to sit and watch the sunset instead of working and that was great as well!

I agree. I think that setting goals around actions I control rather than things I can't (like the numbers on the scale) is much more effective.

I love the idea of "paying myself" for good behaviors! Also, good point about setting goals around actions I can control

The main reason why I had the surgery was to cure (place into remission) several of my medical conditions (high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea, severe acid reflux (GERD)). About 2 weeks after surgery all these conditions went into remission and I was off all my meds. So that was the only goal that mattered to me.

I dropped weight pretty quick after surgery. The only thing that motivated me was to shop for new clothes. I would buy a pair of pants or a shirt, that I could barely fit into. You know, the kind that you have to take a deep breath to put on. One week later, those clothes would fit like a glove. That was a powerful motivator.

I started a twice-daily text to my OA sponsor 7 months ago. My food has been clean since I started that. I also weigh daily. When I wasn't doing these things, I easily slipped into denial and watched the scale number creep up. I've slowly lost 24 pounds doing this and have 36 pounds left to goal. I'm 2 years post LapBand.

JustWatchMe