Motivation

Hey, I am curious to find out what other people's short term goals were and what the corresponding rewards are.  I'm thinking that I need a weekly or biweekly goal to shoot for because it's going to take me a year to lose all the weight I want.

Or should I just have a goal of losing 10 lbs at a time?

What do you think?

Christina

I totally understand how you feel! It is going to take me quite a number of months to get all my weight off as well. I think the best thing for me to do is to take it a week at a time. 1 or 2 pounds a week is awesome. You could always celebrate after a certain number of pounds you drop, like for every 25 pounds you lose let yourself go out for a meal at your favorite restaurant or something. I think its most important that each week you reflect on what you have done to achieve your goal. If for some reason you have not achieved it for the week then always look back and see where you might have slipped. I really havent set any huge goals. but I do know that I would like to be at least 65 pounds lighter by August. Let me know what you come up with!

Every pound that I lose is like a huge accomplishment and celebration....
Right now, I will treat myself for every 1 pound I lose. It doesn't have to be anything huge...simply a facial, pedicure or bubble bath these are all cheap things I can do at home for free.
I'm trying to be really good to myself and celebrate every accomplishment....I've found that this really helps me and keeps me motivated.
Since I'm losing 1lb per week, I will celebrate every week.

I need to lose around 150 pounds so I set my first goal for 30 pounds. When I reach that, I will probably treat myself to a new shirt or pair of pants...but for every 5 pounds I lose, I'm treating myself to something small, such as a paperback or something along those lines.

Because I need  to change the bad habits that allowed me to get fat in the first place, I am rewarding myself for sticking with the lifestyle changes. Every two weeks I will have a manicure and pedicure. Every 6 weeks I'll have my hair cut and colored.

Today marks the completion of week three. I've lost 18 pounds, 9 inches from my waist, 2.9 from my BMI, and brought my blood pressure into "normal" range. Raw fruits and veggie are the bulk of my diet. Lean proteins have replaced half a large pizza for dinner. My plan is working! By the way, my nails look great and I can't wait to cover this gray!

 

 It's a really great idea to reward yourself with treats like a nice bath or some such!  For bigger goals buy yourself a new piece of clothing you've wanted for a while, or a game or movie. 

It's better not to reward yourself with food, as that makes it something you deny yourself/something you can't stop thinking about/a goal.  Food shouldn't be the goal!  Instead, don't deny yourself and find creative ways to have the food you want and still be healthy, and treat yourself with something fun and long lasting!

my rewards have basically been new clothes because I needed them anyway, lol.  But I do love my clothes shopping.

I started in August, with the goal of losing 120 pounds. My first goal was to lose the 40 pounds I'd gained in the 2 previous years since starting on insulin. I didn't have a specific reward for that, just the satisfaction of knowing that I had "undone" the damage I'd done over the prior two years. After that, my goals came in 10 pound increments for a while (50, 60, 70) ... and now my goals come in 5 pound increments since my weight loss is slowing. My reward? Filling in my profile with the date I've achieved each goal ... for some reason, I get a real kick out of updating my profile goals!!

When I lost 50 pounds, my wonderful DH bought me a new bike.

When I lost 70 pounds, my wonderful DH booked us a 7-day Alaskan Cruise (We sail on May 3!)  He also surprised me with jewelry, some collectibles, and other surprises.

I've now lost 75 pounds ... with 45 to go.

When I hit the century mark (100 pounds lost), he's promised me a new wardrobe ... though, honestly, he's been buying me new clothes for months since nothing fit any more!

We haven't talked about how we will celebrate when I've lost that first 120 pounds ... other than the fact that he's promised to make me Garlic-Cheddar sourdough toast with butter and Cheez Whiz.

=^..^= MOLLY

I planning on loosing 25 pounds, so I haven't made any short term goals regarding my pounds.  What I am doing is following the <a href="http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/a rticle/exercise_plan.html:>12 week exercise plan</a>, and giving myself a small reward every week if I have done all my workouts.  This week I think I'll either get a new pair of running shoes, or a good book.  Also when I come home from a workout I usually have a bubble bath.

I'm paying myself.  Small amounts so I won't miss them from my budget.  I get $1 for each pound lost, $5 for meeting my exercise goals (30 minutes cardio, 5 days per week), and $25 for bigger goals (usually stuff that will take me a few weeks).  I'm one of those people who needs to achieve more than just dropping pounds, running further/faster, or having my clothes loser -- I need to see some hard core rewards.  So when the balance in my reward account grows, I feel like I've done something good. 

It also really helped me get off of food rewards (you know, I was really good this week so 1 slice of pizza won't hurt).  And helped me be subjective in giving myself rewards. 

I love having goals and rewards. Since my goal weight is FAR off, looking at the big picture gets discouraging. I like to look at each 10 lb weight loss as a small goal....and every time I can move the weight chub down another 50...that's a big goal!

My rewards are shopping in my own closet. I've got jeans and tops I've purchased as "goals" and I use my weight loss victories to dive into a few new outfits. Also, I have all the clothes I had purchased on the way "up" (my weight) and so now as I come back down, I can get back into them.

It's very motivating for me to be able to get back into clothes that haven't fit for a while...and to know that before too long, they'll be too big!

So instead of looking at the goal weight....I just look at some jeans and say, "10 more lbs and I'll fit into those!" It's a fun way to reward myself...and it doesn't cost me any money!

I think everyone should have goals and rewards...whatever floats your boat and works for you. Just don't use food as a reward! This journey should be to develop a new relationship with food, as nourishment and something to enjoy. Looking at is as "good" and "bad" or "reward" and "punishment" sets the stage for many more years of the same battle. No food should ever be forbidden so a food reward is dangerous! Remember, all things in moderation and EAT TO LIVE, don't LIVE TO EAT!

Good luck on your journey!

I'm getting a massage after I lose my first 10 lbs.....one more pound to go!!!!!

I have various rewards for every 5 pounds.  I have lost my first 5 pounds. (3 weeks to acheive) I think I am picking a massage as my body is killing me from all the weights and cardio work .  Other options:

pedicure/manicure

teeth whitening

shopping for new outfit ( at least 10 pounds)

new hair style /color( saving for 20 pounds)

I try not to use food as a reward . However, If you keep 600 calorie meal for dinner you can  go to lone star and have their 6 oz filet minion is about 360 calories..  1/2 sweet potatoe (80)and salad (80)with little dressing (40) no crutons.  The fat is high but worth every bite after all the low fat meals.  It was best meal I had in 2 weeks.  I remember it fondly...  :) Keep Smiling, Cktopaz

My long term (Not so long!!!) goal is 19 lbs +/-, but my present goal is to be at 150 by my birthday in about a month, which is 9lbs....... Then I get a new outfit to wear out that night!!!

My goal is to be at 140, I am 5'8 and would love to be able to attain the weights that shorter people can!!! 140 for me is low to mid range of healthy BMI but when I read of people getting to 120 or less the sound of 140 sucks!!!

When I was first losing, I signed up for the 180s, 170s, 160s, etc as I got into each range.  I also signed up for the 10 lbs at a time group when I was around 185, so I had goals every 5 lbs.

I got a lot of encouragement from members when I posted my results.  Also, the journals are a great way to write and communicate without tying up the boards. 

Thanks everyone for all the great ideas!

I'm going to give myself small rewards for every 10 lbs.. like a new book, or some downloads on itunes.

For larger milestones (like getting under 200)  I will earn a bigger reward.. still thinking about what that will be though!