Stick to the plan

[IAmGoingToTri]

It has probably happened to you a lot: you have just made a plan to reach your goal (for example losing weight), a plan that at the time seemed really good. You decide that you will start working on it. For a few days it goes really well. But then something unexpected happens. You start doubting whether your plan was really that good. You lose motivation to work on this plan, and immediately stop working on it and start checking other options.

I have made this mistake so often, and it can keep you from making progress in your goals for years, because you keep fooling yourself that if you have the "perfect" plan, that you can do it. I should have considered that perhaps the problem is not the plan, but it is my ability to stick to it that kept me from success.

The effect of this behavior is that you move back to square 1 over and over again, without learning. Even if your plan is not perfect, it is better to follow it for at least a month or so, so that at the very least you could learn something from it that you can use to make a better plan. You can't do this if you switch before you are sure that it is bad. And you don't need to have a perfect plan to do something, probably the not-so-perfect plan will also get you to where you want to go. And learning to keep going even if things are going different from what you expect will make you a stronger person in the process.

Do you recognize what I describe? How do you deal with this issue?

 

[Marawan Amer]

I will absolutely agree with you on this issue. It has happened countless times that I "blew" my diet because I didn´t hit my exact macros/calories I set for myself for that particular day. There is no one perfect plan that works for everybody. It takes time and effort to figure out what works best for yourself in the long run. Some do better on a diet when performing cardio, others not so much. Some can handle more carbs easily and see ongoing progress, some can´t. If you manage to find a plan that works consistently for you, then that is "perfect" enough in my opinion.

 

[IAmGoingToTri]

Hi Marawan! Interesting that you recognize this. I think it is a very common behavior. I agree that the "perfect" plan for someone is the one that someone is able to stick with.

Since writing this post, I also worked on losing weight, and several times unexpected things happened that made me deviate from my plans for a few days. However, instead of going back to the drawing board to re-evaluating my plans, I just went back to sticking with my old plan again, and this helped me make progress. The setbacks were actually good lessons, they give me some self-knowledge that I can use to stick better to my routine in the future. For example, when I am on business trips, I am usually quite tired in the evening when I arrive at my hotel, and I really don't feel like running then. So, I should not plan any runs for those days, and instead I can do something else, such as going for a walk around the area (for an hour or more), which I think I would enjoy. And I can plan my runs on other days, so that I do manage to do them (at least 3 per week).

It all sounds very logical when I write this, but this is not the way I acted for most of my 29 years of life. I am glad that I am learning this now, because I am sure that this is the way to get real progress, and not only that, it is much less stressful.

 

[Marawan Amer]

Yeah, that´s the ironic thing somehow

When one sits and creates his/her plans, it all seems like it can´t fail because one has considered just about everything and when the actual emotion hits you (boredom, tiredness, stress etc.) the whole thing seems to flip upside down.

I think meal timing is very useful to curb your cravings and appetite in advance and one of the most stupid mistakes I have have in any unsuccessful diet is to think "I am gonna suppress my hunger until I go to sleep and tomorrow it´s gonna be fine again".

It might work for a while but sooner or later one really starts hating the diet and binging/overeating becomes a very real possibility.

Do you find that cardio helps you suppress your appetite and make you feel much better afterwards?

Do you diet more aggressively or do you aim for let´s say 1 pound per week?

 

[IAmGoingToTri]

You are right, we tend to forget the emotions that we can feel in the real world, when we are making our plans. For example, I like to dream about going on holidays, how relaxed it may be to go to a tropical island or something. But then I forget how I can feel there. And I actually know. I have been to Zanzibar. You'd imagine that it was lovely. Well.. it was very hot, the sun was burning on my skin, there was no electricity on the island (only by generators), there was cholera, people were bothering me all the time, I was far from fluent in the language, I got one of the worst food poisonings in my life (perhaps it was cholera)... second only to the food poisoning I got in Tunisia, because I was ill I stayed in the hotel a lot, feeling bored, etc. But it was also nice and I have some really fond memories of it. I saw some amazing architecture, nature, gardens/agriculture, tropical beaches, etc. Those good things were so impressive that they are the things that stick in my memories (fortunately). But I will not forget the other side as well, and hopefully I can prevent some of the negative side. But my point is that it is true, when we make plans we tend to have overly romantic ideas of how it will be, but when we are there reality may be there to teach us a lesson!

Meal timing... I think that is important as well, but I don't really have an eating schedule. I do make sure that I eat 2-3 meals a day, and that I have healthy snacks (such as bananas, avocados and apples) in case I am hungry. And I drink a lot of water, which also works with the hunger. I don't fall for the mistake of trying to suppress my hunger until I sleep, it does not work... instead, this approach prepares you for failure. It's better to just eat a good evening meal.

Cardio works great for suppressing my hunger. It's very strange... it would be logical to be hungry after a 12 km run, but I really am not! I eat a piece of fruit and drink some water, and that is usually enough. Cardio does make me feel GREAT afterwards. It is great for sharpening my mind and getting rid of stress, and my body feels very strong and energetic. I really feel alive after (and during) exercising.

I try to find the sweet spot between pushing myself not so hard that other areas suffer, but hard enough so that I make maximum progress. I am for about 0.8 kg of weight loss per week, and last month I succesfully maintained that rate. I expect that I may be able to do 1 kg per week, perhaps even more, but while that would be nice, it's not my goal. 0.8 is fast enough. Also, I must note that I don't really call it dieting, to me that means that I would be doing a temporary thing, while I try to emphasize that I am adjusting my lifestyle so that I can enjoy healthy food and exercise more, and the benefits that they bring. So, the changes that I make now are meant to be for life.

Are you losing weight as well?

 

[Marien]

I totally get you. Trust me, I've been through the same. We used to be obese as a family, lol!
Hence, I really couldn't look to my immediate surroundings for encouragement. I tried going to the gym, controlling my diet and what not! What you need is proper motivation. There are some wonderful threads on this very forum itself that you can turn to for motivation. My brother and I, both decided to take the journey together. We used to motivate and encourage each other to achieve our targets and even remind ourselves about our goal. We used to even read up on online articles and blogs on motivation for weight loss. Pretty much did everything that we could.
I'll be honest with you, it was quite a struggle at the beginning. But it got much better later on and we were able to carry on by ourselves in the end. Similarly, you need to make sure that you find a method that works for you. For me, the 'buddy-system' worked fine. It's more or less a trial and error, to be honest. It will be worth it in the end, trust me

All the best on your journey.

 

[Marawan Amer]

Yeah, cardio is not just a good method, which allows you to eat more and still lose fat over time but the beneficial thing for me is that it makes me feel very energetic and clears my mind from all the unnecessary stresses.

I am making progress but I constantly have to push myself to not go too aggressive on the cut (will result in excessive hunger, mood fluctuations and maybe too much muscle loss).

Do you set a specific day where you eat cheat meals or something? For many folks it seems like a "must".