Getting and staying healthy is hard work. Weight loss motivation is easy to lose, but difficult to get back.

I’m working on weight loss and general healthy eating to get control of type 2 diabetes. I know the things I need to do:

• Limit carbs
• Ignore (most of the time) the sweet treats that scream my name
• Exercise
• Reduce stress
• Take my medication
• Get enough sleep
• Monitor my blood sugar
• Drink lots of water
• Eat my veggies
• Keep up with doctor visits
• Take some “me” time

And those things are all doable.

But sometimes…

It’s just all so much.

Sometimes I just want to stay in bed watching Netflix and eating Doritos and cream cheese frosted brownies all day, ignoring the world and my situation.

Anyone with me?  I’ll make some room in the bed and queue up “Weeds.”

OR…

We can fight through the “blah” feeling instead.

Here’s my go to list for keeping up the fight.

How to get your motivation back:

• Allow yourself a bit of wallowing time.  It’s okay to struggle.  It’s okay to be sad, overwhelmed, frustrated or whatever else you may be feeling.  Losing weight and getting healthy are huge, difficult endeavors.  If it came easily no one would ever be out of shape.  So it’s okay to wallow in those big feelings for a bit.  Spend an afternoon by yourself moping if you need it.  Then move on.  As I mentioned, this step usually involves junk food, a cozy bed and Netflix for me.  And cats.  Cats are good at helping with the wallowing phase.
• Think about what you’ve accomplished.  I’ve lost 90 pounds so far.  90!  Yes, I have another 90 to go, but I lost NINETY pounds.  WOW!  I’ve also started cooking more and can hold a plank for a minute.  Take some time to reflect on all you’ve done.
• Pick one focus area to keep you moving towards your goals.  You don’t have to do it all at once.  Pick one thing to focus on.  Maybe it’s going for  a walk three times a week or perhaps whipping up a green smoothie at breakfast.  I’m going to focus on avoiding sugar after too many cupcakes and pastries.  Once you feel in control of that piece of the puzzle, start on another.
• Build up your support system.  Post on Facebook.  Text your sister.  Invite a friend for a walk. Tell people your goals and ask for their support.  The more I share my journey the more likely I am to keep chugging forward.
• Pamper yourself – then jump into action.   I recently spent some time in the massage chair at the mall.  Then I picked up a new cookbook filled with recipes that fit into the sugar free grain free eating that works best for me.  That was the recovery time and inspiration I needed to hit the store for healthy ingredients on the way home.  Take a bubble bath, get a pedicure, enjoy a nice glass of wine with a beautiful view.  Then start working on your goals again.  Right away.

So here I go. I’m done wallowing. No more time for that.

What do you do when your motivation slows?

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