Need to keep it off

[JacquiT1102]

Alright so I'm new to the Fitbit community, and I was also recently told I a pre-diabetic. I have lost 2 lbs. since then. But I need help getting motivated to lose more and KEEP IT OFF!!! Any tips, tricks, ideas? Greatly appreciated, Thank you ❤️

[WendyB]

You can do it. Stay positive

Hold on to those walking goals as well. They will me a lot6 done the road

[Daves_Not_Here]

Hi @JacquiT1102 - welcome!  Regarding slowing or preventing the onset of diabetes, you probably should avoid taking advice from "some guy on the internet" - this is worth an on-going dialog with your physician and other qualified professionals.  That said, I don't think it's controversial to suggest that losing excess weight and reducing sugar intake should be priorities.  

There is a lot of discussion these days about how reducing processed carbs might be worth investigating by those who are concerned about diabetes.  I'm purposely avoiding the low-carb / low-fat debate, but I'd suggest you can google "pre-diabetes nutrition" for a wealth of information from credible sources.

I can't tell much from your post -- you mention you are motivated to lose more weight.  If you are comfortable disclosing, please let us know how much weight you need to lose, what you've tried in the past, age, limitations related to diet and exercise, etc., and the responses you get will be more focused.

[Dominique]

Weight loss is simple, but it’s not easy. There are no "tricks" or "hacks". There are many ways to do it, but in the end it boils down to maintaining a sustainable caloric deficit for long enough to get tangible results. There are two main variables you can control: what (and how much) you eat and your activity. Fitbit can help you with both: the Food Plan (if you decide to use it) will let you log your eating and your tracker will tell you how many calories you are burning through the day. Some other important variables: stress and sleep.

Many people (myself included) are uncomfortable with the idea of logging everything into an app (be it Fitbit, MyFitnessPal, LoseIt etc.), for the reasons mentioned by @Daves_Not_Here in this other topic. OTOH, many people have been very successful with that approach. Regardless of what approach you decide to adopt, you must have some kind of action plan.

Obviously your pre-diabetic condition sets some restrictions as to what you can eat, but I assume your doctor has provided you with some guidelines (other than with the general goal of losing some of your extra weight). I do know that many community members have been able to eliminate the symptoms of their pre-diabetic condition and the need for medication. Hopefully they will share their experience. 

For accountability and motivation, many of us like the various challenges found under this forum and/or the Weekly Weigh In topic that has been going on for almost two years now.

Other than that, I agree with @Daves_Not_Here: more info about yourself is needed to provide meaningful advice.

[SunsetRunner]

This would motivate the heck out of me:  You need to choose what kind of life you want.

• Cardiovascular disease. Diabetes dramatically increases the risk of various cardiovascular problems, including coronary artery disease with chest pain (angina), heart attack, stroke and narrowing of arteries (atherosclerosis). If you have diabetes, you are more likely to have heart disease or stroke.
• Nerve damage (neuropathy). Excess sugar can injure the walls of the tiny blood vessels (capillaries) that nourish your nerves, especially in your legs. This can cause tingling, numbness, burning or pain that usually begins at the tips of the toes or fingers and gradually spreads upward. Left untreated, you could lose all sense of feeling in the affected limbs. Damage to the nerves related to digestion can cause problems with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or constipation. For men, it may lead to erectile dysfunction.
• Kidney damage (nephropathy). The kidneys contain millions of tiny blood vessel clusters (glomeruli) that filter waste from your blood. Diabetes can damage this delicate filtering system. Severe damage can lead to kidney failure or irreversible end-stage kidney disease, which may require dialysis or a kidney transplant.
• Eye damage (retinopathy). Diabetes can damage the blood vessels of the retina (diabetic retinopathy), potentially leading to blindness. Diabetes also increases the risk of other serious vision conditions, such as cataracts and glaucoma.
• Foot damage. Nerve damage in the feet or poor blood flow to the feet increases the risk of various foot complications. Left untreated, cuts and blisters can develop serious infections, which often heal poorly. These infections may ultimately require toe, foot or leg amputation.
• Skin conditions. Diabetes may leave you more susceptible to skin problems, including bacterial and fungal infections.
• Hearing impairment. Hearing problems are more common in people with diabetes.
• Alzheimer's disease. Type 2 diabetes may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The poorer your blood sugar control, the greater the risk appears to be. Although there are theories as to how these disorders might be connected, none has yet been proved.
  
  http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/basics/complications/con-20033091

[emili]

@JacquiT1102 welcome to the community! I have a slightly cynical view on motivation. It is an emotion that comes and goes similar to happy, sad, angry, etc. You can't really count on motivation as a constant companion to successful lifestyle change... it will leave you at a moments notice. What you need are reasons for wanting to change your life because reasons won't leave. They will always be with you, reminding you what needs to be done. So whether it is because of health, vanity, family or lower life insurance payments- whatever your reason or reasons are.. those you need to keep top of mind each time you want to eat something you shouldn't, skip a workout or reduce your step goal.

Make a commitment to yourself ... good luck to you in your journey.. best, E

[Baltoscott · Accepted solution]

 Hi @JacquiT1102 - Eat less sugar is a good mantra for all of us.  But to do that, you probably need to break it down.  What in particular will you eat less of (soda, Frappuccinos, cookies ...)?  Log your food for a while and take stock of what sweets you are eating now, and think about what you can do a little less of on a daily, or every other day, basis.  You don’t have to, and probably shouldn’t try to give up everything at once.  You might have the will power to do that for a week or a month, but forever?  See this other thread about a more incremental approach. 

And while you think about what you will eat less of don’t forget that you still have to eat, so think about what you will eat more of — veggies maybe?  Whole grains?  Lean meats?  Plan it out step by step and you’ll do great.