How do I become disciplined enough to stop being obese?

[North of 60]

And exercise you like, or at least tolerate

Start slow and work yourself up in aerobic exercise.

 

[jaredg]

Hire a trainer. Can't stress this enough. I have been a gym rat my whole life. I hire a personal trainer when I was in my late 40s. Still have him to this day. Trainers hold you accountable and make sure that you are putting effort where effort needs to be put. I see so many people at the gym "spinning their wheels in one place". The money my wife and I spend a month on gym memberships, nutrition and training would cover a modest mortgage. But to be honest, I can't afford not to invest in my health at my age (low 50s). You would also be surprised by the 15lb that melts off after you quit drinking alcohol. How much is your health worth to you?

 

[Coveyleader]

The food in the US is simply poison. It’s all junk. All of it. Disgrace what it’s become and it’s destroying our people.

 

[pacoalcracker]

Pharmseller.....sure the drugs will work but even with them a bad diet and little exercise will outrun it. Plus, hiring a fitness coach will be a lot less expensive and yield better results, both short term and long term. In addition, who knows what the long term effects are of these new drugs. We will all find out in 10-20 years. Besides, he isn't exactly the target patient just yet as there are more things he can try first.

 

[DisplacedHusky]

Habits take a while to form. Keep at it but be patient. Find what diet works for you but keep your protein up.

As @pacoalcracker and others have mentioned. Resistance train regularly. Muscle mass burns calories while you sleep. The gym might feel foreign at first if you aren’t a gym guy but give it some time. Find something you like about it and let that keeps you going.

“People do not decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.” - FM Alexander

 

[Pharmseller]

Pharmseller.....sure the drugs will work but even with them a bad diet and little exercise will outrun it. Plus, hiring a fitness coach will be a lot less expensive and yield better results, both short term and long term. In addition, who knows what the long term effects are of these new drugs. We will all find out in 10-20 years. Besides, he isn't exactly the target patient just yet as there are more things he can try first.

GLP-1 receptor agonists have been out for more than 20 years.

It comes down to motivation, though, and if meds help, I’m for it.

 

[DisplacedHusky]

Also, there are plenty of little tricks to help along the way. As far as diet goes, buy a pellet grill and make a bunch of protein to make meal prep easy. I make a crap ton of chicken thighs and tri-tip and then just freeze individual packets. I don’t mind eating those cold if I’m on the go.

Also, learn how to make delicious roast vegetables in the oven. I can eat a whole sheet pan of roast, broccoli, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts that just have salt, garlic powder, and olive oil.

Whichever path you pick isn’t going to be easy. But which is tougher, living the rest of your life dealing with the problems that obesity brings or going to the gym and eating fairly healthy?

 

[Steve300xcw]

If that’s what he needs to course correct, why not?

Sometimes it’s easy to lose hope when you’re so far from the target that you figure throwing in the towel is the best option. If a weight-loss med gives him the push he needs to lose it AND KEEP IT OFF then I say run, don’t walk, to a weight doctor.

I'm about as anti medication as a guy can get, so take my opinion as you will.

Sitting there telling yourself you need to loose 60+ lbs is a pretty big goal. Be easy to give up on that. Shoot for 5lbs or somethin at a time though..Lil different story.

 

[Cannonball]

eat clean carni/keto but I dont think diet alone is the best choice..

Check out Berberine for cravings.

I eat eggs, protein (ham/sausage/beef) and avocado for breakfast. Grilled chicken thighs or ground beef and avocado for lunch, and usually the same for dinner. Snacks are fruit, nuts, raw carrots, or Greek yogurt with blueberries. No processed grains or carbs. Cook with beef tallow, EV olive oil or avocado oil

Im 5'7 and 49. Over the past year Im down to 175 from 191 Currently Im doing 5-10 hours of cardio a week training for a mountain half-marathon. My exercise is a mix of running, hiking, rucking, biking. Having an event goal to train for helps with motivation. So does having an exercise buddy or 2 to "compete" with. Im also using Runna, a run training plan. That is keeping me accountable to get the training runs in.

Ive hit kind of a plateau where Im hungry a lot and not dropping more weight. I know when i was in the best shape of my life 10 years ago (165lbs and a lot more lean muscle) I was doing weights 4 days a week. I think that is the next step for me is adding in weight days on top of the aerobic exercise.

 

[Fireflyfishing]

I am male, 33, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 245 pounds and I have a 46 inch waist. Doctor told me the other day to do a PSMF until I get to at least 35 waist inches.

PSMF is all lean protein with veggies for fiber and very little fat. Only what comes on the protein in trace amounts.

Every time I start I make it a few days and then break. How can I become disciplined enough to do what the doctor says and stop being obese and change my life?

What does your normal diet look like. How about your activity level per day?

 

[Marbles]

This is a long term lifestyle change, well personality change really. You are rebuilding who you are and how you live. Like remodeling a house you live in, you have to take it on in a way where life continues. Trying to do everything at once is a a good way to fail (but some people pull it off). Trying to go too fast will fail as it is not sustainable.

Start small.
-Add consistent exercises for at least 30 minutes 5 days a week.
-Cut out or reduce things that really hurt, alcohol followed by fatty sweats, followed by sweets, followed by snacking on anything other than vegetables.

Find a way to make it fun, track both your fitness and weight. Use multiple metrics to track weight, scale weight how a pair of almost too small jeans (no stretch) fit, hole you use on your belt.

A DEXA scan can be nice. I lost down to 170, but the gained back to 183. However on repeat DEXA my body fat was down a lean mass and bone mass had both increased, which tracked with the mirror and my clothes, but not the scale. It was nice to confirm.

For me, training for something helps. The abstract of being healthier never really motivated change, but wanting to hunt in the mountains or finish a race is a nice reward to help me achieve the more abstract end goal.

Good luck.

P.S. GLP1s are an excellent tool to help with the changes needed, they are just that, a tool that can both be used well or used to avoid actually changing.

 

[Serrano]

The weight will fly off if you cut back on the simple carbs.

Alcohol, soda, sports drinks and energy drinks are the easiest to see. But sugar is addictive, and the cravings will be there.

Finding an active hobby will help as well. I like biking and pickleball.

 

[rogerdoger]

Join a group to exercise with to help stay motivated. Years ago I was struggling, I joined CrossFit and got into it, lost weight and felt good. No longer do CrossFit but it gave me the routine to exercise regularly and watch what I eat.

 

[Tod osier]

I am male, 33, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 245 pounds and I have a 46 inch waist. Doctor told me the other day to do a PSMF until I get to at least 35 waist inches.

PSMF is all lean protein with veggies for fiber and very little fat. Only what comes on the protein in trace amounts.

Every time I start I make it a few days and then break. How can I become disciplined enough to do what the doctor says and stop being obese and change my life?

I did it and it was horrible. I'm as stubborn and driven as can be and I was barely able to change the 30 years of habit that got me there. I always ate insanely clean, just way too much as was too sedentary at times. There isn't an easy fix that I think will last. Eat less (track your calories using an app like myfitnesspal- this is a pita) and be more active. If you want "X" you need to give up on "Y" or increase activity "Z" amount. It is absolutely worth it and with time the goal posts will reset some and it won't be such a struggle, but there may be new goal posts you set for yourself.

 

[Rich M]

You gotta want it. I go thru periods of want then get slapped by work stress and pounds appear out of mid-air.

I go work a long weekend on hunt property in summer and lose 10-15# in 3-4 days. Back to work and stress and it comes right back. Had a particulary nutty day last week and gained 12# in 1 day. I’m back down a bit but stress sucks when trying to lose and keep weight off.

It all does come down to desire. Do 4-6 weeks without sugar or carbs and you’ll be down 25-30#.

Best of health to you!

 

[Kbhillhunter]

Intermittent fasting and protein shakes helped me drop 30lbs in three months (close to 45lbs now over the last two years since I started). I struggle with my relationship with food. You have to really want it. Break the urges for sugar and salt. Surround yourself with healthier snacks that will help you fight cravings.

 

[bojangles808]

Keto diet is the only way I can have discipline with sugar and fast food. Psychologically knowing that I'll kick myself out of ketosis is enough for me to say no. If not I eat terribly. I've done it a couple 6month stints over the last 2 years but I think I'm switching for good now. I have some quest PB cups and a pint of keto ice cream on the weekends for a treat. There's some good recipes for brownies/cookies sweetened with monk fruit and I cheat a little with keto bread and the carb smart tortillas occasionally. I'm not perfect with it but it's by far been the most effective for eating better.

 

[180ls1]

Setup your environment to default you into good decisions. Have you read any of the books on habit?

 

[112Savage]

In late 2020 I found myself out of breath to the point of being useless when trying to chase cattle into a pen and work them. I was 33 at the time and the heaviest in my life at about 190#. I’m 6’ tall and nobody would have said I was out of shape but I could feel it. I knew I had to change.
I started by eating half a sandwich as my packed lunch, instead of whole. I had already cut all fast food, at that time I also started taking a medication which necessitated reducing alcohol consumption to almost zero. My suppers were salads with meat or simple grilled meats with carb and veggies. It was 2020-2021 so I did videos on “yoga for weight loss”. As spring came I started running. The lowest I got was 154 pounds and people thought I had something wrong with me. This really showed me how the people in our area view health. I have stabilized at 165-175 and feel much better.
Long story short, I wanted change. The more change I had, the more I wanted. I wanted to get on the scale. I wanted to run or to do a video. I wanted to run to get things rather than driving a 4-wheeler or truck. You’ve just gotta make sacrifices that you want.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Learn to love water. Stop diet drinks and low fat foods. Stop all sweet sugar and its replacements.

In other words, eat Whole Foods. No junk. Drink water. Eat 5-6 small meals. Discipline yourself. Go to bed early and get up early. Eat protein but, don’t be scared of carbs either.


There’s all kinds of gimmick diets. Losing weight is the key. But, make it stored fat and not muscle.


A 300 calorie breakfast. A 250-300 calorie brunch. A 300 calorie lunch. A 250-300 calorie 3 o’clock snack. And a 450 calorie supper. Exercise 30 minutes a day getting your heart rate up. Be better if you could get an hour a day.


Eat raw vegetables and let that be your carbs, vitamins, and minerals. Eat protein. Not too much. Servings of 4 ounces if it’s red meat per supper or lunch meals. 6 ounces of chicken or fish.

You don’t need loads of protein. 75 grams a day is plenty. However, You will need carbs as you increase your activity as the weight begins to fall off. No low carb gimmicks. Your diet will define you.



You are fighting an insulin predicament. Fouled up by sugar. Leave it all. You’ll forget about it in a week. Eat Whole Foods. Lots of raw veggies and boiled eggs. 5-6 meals a day. Exercise. It will stabilize your sugar levels and insulin production. The weight will fall off you after your body resets.


You have to change your eating habits and lifestyles. For life or it’s going to come right back. Drop alcohol.


The more veggies you eat in your meals the better. If you do t like counting micronutrients or calories. Eat 5-6 meals a day of all the raw veggies you want. With a much smaller percentage of protein in each serving.


You’ll get there.