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Being a shorty and maintenance...

Leana088
Leana088 Posts: 581 Member
edited November 2024 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
This is a trick that I discovered which will work for ME in maintaining. (Once I get there, month or 2, give or take.)

I'm slowly easing out of counting calories. Still check now and again. Recently I started to notice that I have some very low calorie days (like a net total of 750), this happens when I eat lots of low calorie, high volume food, which makes me feel full faster. It's "autopilot" days.

Then it hit me that I was kind of doing a form of intermittent fasting. 2 or 3 low days a week and the rest more around maintenance level. So I figured, why not use this to my advantage in losing, and maintenance as well?

I'm a shorty and will maintain my weight on only 1650. (With exercise). But I very much burn close to 1000 calories on my low days. If I can add that extra to my higher days, I will be able to maintain on the "average" 2000 calories.

I think this could work for me. Don't know if anyone else is doing this. But I just thought I'd share anyhow. :)

Replies

  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    Seems you have stumbled into a style of eating very similar to 5:2.
    5 days at maintenance and 2 days very low calorie.

    You may find this interesting:
    http://thefastdiet.co.uk/

    There's a couple of 5:2 groups on here too.
    Personally I find this way of eating far easier for adherence to a weekly calorie goal.
  • bunnypy
    bunnypy Posts: 109 Member
    I also end up eating very low calories every after a day of eating at my maintenance, I'm just not thaaaaaat hungry. I'm also short 5'1, 108lbs, my maintenance is around 1400 calories. I guess we are somehow doing the 5:2 diet
  • Leana088
    Leana088 Posts: 581 Member
    Ah well. It's just another way to create a deficit I guess.

    It's funny, a long time ago, I was actively trying to do 5:2, but I just couldn't do it. Now I'm doing it on autopilot. But I think the difference is the fact that I eat 750-800 calories instead of just 500.
  • Leana088
    Leana088 Posts: 581 Member
    Also, weight lifting supresses my appetite. A lot.

    All my low-days seem to be on the days I lift.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,488 Member
    I tend to eat less mid week when my partner works away, and more towards the weekend. I don't think of it as a 5:2 because it is just the rhythm of my week. As long as I am in the region of my weekly goal I don't worry.

    I have been maintaining for 5+ yr, and count cals for a couple of months a year to realign my portion sizing

    Cheers, h
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