What’s the best motivator–depression or excitement–for successful weight loss?
April 29, 2010 by admin
Filed under Question & Answer
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If you’ve ever had a successful weight loss attempt, how was your mood at the beginning of it? Did you start a diet/exercise routine out of depression and disgust, or were you pumped up by the thought of your new lifestyle?
Right now I’m down in the dumps about the whole weight loss thing and tomorrow am starting yet another exercise routine out of necessity (health). I’ve about had it with dieting and trying to eat healthily. I see no light at the end of the tunnel.
Have you ever felt like that and ended up succeeding after all?
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I think being excited is better for successful weight loss. I have been on both ends of it, and excitement and motivation carried me a lot farther than depression. Depression makes me not want to do anything, when being excited about my body to come motivated me more to want to stick to a plan.
Hi Kate.
I just read a great article on MCNewsletters regarding this exact situation I’ll link to it below.
In short form, what’s causing you problems is your dopamine/ cycle. Dopamine is what excites you and gets you going. It’s a hormone released into the blood stream in response to excitement.
If the dopamine gets depleted, you get into a depression mode.
What you need to do is this. Next time you get excited, start taking action immediately. Not tomorrow, not tonight. Right away. Movement will clear the cobwebs and hormones in the system that are making you feel crappy.
Don’t “diet” make a lifestyle change. Any diet you go on may help you lose weight but you’ll tend to gain it back if you go back to your previous ways.
Eat a healthy well-balanced diet all the time…keep junk food, fast food, sweets, sodas, etc to a bare minimum (the occasional treat if you feel the need). Keep your calories over 1200 when trying to lose weight, and go for 4 – 6 small meals a day to keep your metabolism up for longer…add to that a lot of water, and at least 1 hour of exercise at least 5 days a week and you’ll be on your way!
When you reach your goal, simply modify your calorie intake and/or exercise to allow you to maintain your weight instead of continuing to lose.
As for me, I’ve yo-yo’d for years and it was hard to get it under control. I topped out at over 230 lbs and I’m 5′6″. I got down to 140ish and then put some back on…now I’ve got around 17 lbs I want to lose. I get mad at myself when I see my fat body in the mirror or my clothes are tight or I can’t get into something I’d really like to wear. That’s what usually prompts me to get back on track…good results keep me going.
Good luck!
This link will really help you get motivated.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/sclark16.htm