How long does it take for your body to adjust

clareyoung80

Does anyone have any experience of what your body does when you've reached your goal weight and progress into maintenance mode? Like, is there a period where your body adjusts and shifts around a little?

I know that when I reach my goal body fat percentage that I'll probably be a little 'skinny fat', I'm guessing in body building terms I'm cutting right now. So when I reach a good bf%, I'm going to work up to maintenance calories and up the intensity of my workouts. So I know that this will have an affect on what my body looks like, because obviously I'll still be changing.

But...well, what I'm trying to figure out is there a pattern where you can often have the look of a deflated balloon after weight loss? And do you 'bounce back' after a while? I'm not talking about excess skin - I know this can happen with some folks, my goal is to lose around 70lbs in total (50 so far) and I don't have that as an issue.

But I do know that my face, to me, looks a little...deflated. Not skinny and chiseled nor gaunt. Just...deflated. I'm in my early 30's, so I'm not bothered by wrinkles or wondering why a 50lbs loss hasn't revealed the face of my 18-year-old self, but I'm wondering how much of this is because I'm still in weight-loss mode. And just exactly how much can your body re-adjust itself once you stop being in weight-loss mode?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

chezjuan

I have been at maintenance calories now for about 2 months now, and my weight is basically stable (varies by +/- a couple of lbs at any given weigh-in ). Inches are very stable, and even somewhat improving as I am working on toning now. I can't specifically speak to the "deflated" look, but if you keep working out and toning, it should probably go away.

When I got near my goal, I started increasing my calories by 100 every couple of weeks, so that when I reached my goal, I was eating at maintenance. By doing that, I really didn't have any "bounce back" weight gains when I hit my goal.

SkinnyMsFitness

Hi! My bf lost (probably) a good 40-50 lbs 5+ years ago and has maintained it...he may have had some loose skin in the stomach area, but it has tightened up. I don't know, but I would say it took a good 6 months to a year...maybe longer? He hasn't really worked that area much.

Me = I still have 50 to lose, but I've already lost 33 lbs and have noticed my stomach is starting to look, well, a little strange...I just bought Nivea Skin Firming Lotion last night and saw it has good reviews! So, I'm hoping it'll help!

I think our bodies adjust and shift while we're losing weight. My bf also told me that our skin is less likely to be loose when weight is lost gradually instead of dramatically.

I think the more progress you've made, the more our bodies shift. I don't know if this is TMI, but I'll tell ya...my butt, which was always small & petite when I was skinny, has gained fat (of course) since I gained 80-90 lbs. However, since I've started to lose weight, it's starting to look a little weird...lol...where it meets my thighs. I figured whatever starts to "shift" while in progress will give me motivation to work on those 'problem' areas.

And the skinny-fat thing, I think it depends on your approach. If you're losing weight the unhealthy way (starving, no exercise), then you could be skinny-fat in the process or in the end - depending how far an individual goes.

Just try to progress using good methods and you'll do fine! I remind myself that after allowing myself to gain so much weight, my body will not look as great as it used to b/4 I gained it, but at least I'll be healthy again! And I'll feel 100% better about myself! Also, no one has to see you naked unless you allow them to. lol