THIS is maintenance?

AngieGetsHealthyin2012

I started counting cals 90 days ago, and lost about 10 pounds. I have maybe 10 more I'd like to lose, but it just isn't coming off. I am set on 1200 calories a day, and sometimes I end up under that amount and sometimes over... I admit lately (since Thanksgiving) I haven't been as diligent as I should be with keeping up with it. I estimate on portions, though I try to estimate higher rather than lower.

So... I have basically been maintaining this same weight (145lbs) pretty consistently, which means I'm eating at maintenance, which is DEPRESSING to think about! Does that mean that in order not to gain weight back, I'm going to have to stay on this 1200 cal "diet" forever?

Three years ago I weighed 175 - very consistent. I rarely went over or under that amount by more than a couple of pounds. I didn't exercise, and definitely didn't watch what I was eating. And I had been maintaining that weight without effort for years and years.

Why now am I working so hard to maintain this 145lbs?

Any help in understanding how this works would be appreciated, thanks!

TheVirgoddess

You can't say that you're not logging accurately and then claim you're eating 1,200 calories a day.

If you aren't accurately logging, you have no idea what your maintenance actually is, because you have no idea how much you're ingesting.

Stop estimating and start being more diligent about your logging.

allyphoe

Since you aren't on a 1200 calorie diet now (what with not being diligent even in your eyeballing), there's no reason to think it's maintenance for you. And without more information about how long you've gone with no downward scale movement, there's no reason to think that whatever your actual intake is is maintenance, either.

AngieGetsHealthyin2012

I guess my confusion is really about how it was possible to maintain 175lbs three years ago, while eating a LOT more than I eat now.

(My eyeballing is pretty diligent. I'm just not weighing my food.)

Liftng4Lis

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

I guess my confusion is really about how it was possible to maintain 175lbs three years ago, while eating a LOT more than I eat now.

(My eyeballing is pretty diligent. I'm just not weighing my food.)

You weigh 30 pounds less than you did then, so obviously your body will need less calories to maintain than it did then.

TheVirgoddess

Liftng4Lis wrote: »

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

I guess my confusion is really about how it was possible to maintain 175lbs three years ago, while eating a LOT more than I eat now.

(My eyeballing is pretty diligent. I'm just not weighing my food.)

You weigh 30 pounds less than you did then, so obviously your body will need less calories to maintain than it did then.

Yep.

ana3067

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

I guess my confusion is really about how it was possible to maintain 175lbs three years ago, while eating a LOT more than I eat now.

(My eyeballing is pretty diligent. I'm just not weighing my food.)

Because as others said, you needed more food to maintain at 175lbs than you need now. And your eyeballing is likely not diligent. Start logging properly again/for the first time and you will very likekly start losing weight again.

madrose0715

What is your TDEE?

AngieGetsHealthyin2012

My diligence slipped at Thanksgiving, 10 days ago. Before that I was being very careful. I'm getting back in the swing of things now, thankfully. I've been stalled at 145 for over a month.

madrose, normal cals burned in a day is set to 1680, which gives a 480 cal deficit.

You are all right - I guess I'm expecting to burn the same amount of calories in a day now that I did at 175lbs.

It's so strange to think of that old lifestyle of no exercise and all-you-can-eat with steady maintenance, and compare it to this new lifestyle of weight training, gym workouts, and calorie counting to reach the same result of steady maintenance, just 30 lbs lighter.

TheVirgoddess

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

My diligence slipped at Thanksgiving, 10 days ago. Before that I was being very careful. I'm getting back in the swing of things now, thankfully. I've been stalled at 145 for over a month.

I just got out of a five week stall myself, so I know how frustrating it is. But the only way to get out of one is to get back to accurate and honest logging. You'll get there.

AngieGetsHealthyin2012

TheVirgoddess wrote: »

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

My diligence slipped at Thanksgiving, 10 days ago. Before that I was being very careful. I'm getting back in the swing of things now, thankfully. I've been stalled at 145 for over a month.

I just got out of a five week stall myself, so I know how frustrating it is. But the only way to get out of one is to get back to accurate and honest logging. You'll get there.

Thanks Virgoddess! Back on the wagon! I'm actually okay not losing more weight. I just want to comfort myself with the hope that maintenance isn't going to feel like deprivation. That may not be realistic thinking though.

TheVirgoddess

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

TheVirgoddess wrote: »

AngieGetsHealthyin2012 wrote: »

My diligence slipped at Thanksgiving, 10 days ago. Before that I was being very careful. I'm getting back in the swing of things now, thankfully. I've been stalled at 145 for over a month.

I just got out of a five week stall myself, so I know how frustrating it is. But the only way to get out of one is to get back to accurate and honest logging. You'll get there.

Thanks Virgoddess! Back on the wagon! I'm actually okay not losing more weight. I just want to comfort myself with the hope that maintenance isn't going to feel like deprivation. That may not be realistic thinking though.

Why don't you just eat like you're eating right now, and log it for a week or two to get an accurate reading of your calories? Then you can figure out where to go from there.

r5d5

Yes, accurate measurements are a necessity! I suggest you buy a food scale, or at the least use cups, teaspoons, ect... (But a food scale gives the most accurate measurements).
Make sure you log everything, even if it's just three grapes, or just one frenchfry. Those little nibbles and bits do add up! Also be sure that you're logging correctly--i.e. "homemade whatever" in the database might be very different from what you're actually eating. For example, one person's meatloaf recipe may be 180 calories, and someone else's is 400.
And then maybe try to change your settings on MFP. Maybe enter your current weight now (with the 10lbs lost) and change your pounds lost per week. If you have it set to 2lbs, try switching to maybe 1.5 or 1lbs.
good luck!!!

madrose0715

You state you want to lose another 10 pounds - you should be adjust your settings to 1/2 pound per week - you will be eating more and still losing provided you are accurate with your food and exercise tracking. Your TDEE will reduce somewhat when you get to goal and that number represents your maintenance calories - so you will be eating more than 1200 calories when you get to goal.

AngieGetsHealthyin2012

Thank you all for the help and encouragement! I'll try logging exactly what I'm eating now, see what my maintenance really is, and then lower it.

Madrose, does the MFP program adjust for the new weight when I update my weight on the home page, or do I need to put my new weight in somewhere else?

madrose0715

MFP will reflect your new weight, but it will not adjust your goals. You need to reset your goals to adjust to 1/2 pound weekly.