What is the hardest thing about maintenance for you?
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marekdds
Posts: 2,211 Member
For me, having gained and lost many times, it is the mental game. I can lose weight, I would just never keep it off. I finally learned there is no going back to "normal". This is my normal. Exercise is a requirement, not an option, so find something you like. I can't eat massive amounts of crap and not gain weight. I eat what I want, when I want, just under control. I don't keep trigger foods in the house. If they aren't there, I can't eat them. Being happy with how I look has been huge. Yes, I have some floppy skin, no hard body here, but that is ok, I feel great. I went from a 24 to a 4. Got to love that. The best part is that food doesn't control me. I don't feed my emotions or reward myself with food. All of this is changing my mental attitude, so hard. What about you guys?
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For me the hardest thing is that my intuitive eating level is actually well over the amount I need to maintain - about half a pound a week weight gain. I manage my weight with one very low calorie day a week as daily restriction bores and frustrates me.
At the moment it's relatively easy for me to exercise a lot and therefore actually eat an amount that feels "normal". Luckily I enjoy both exercise and food so it's a win/win.
So for me, although I'm enjoying maintenance enormously, the price of maintenance is eternal vigilance plus one day a week restricting calories.0 -
I agree with you on the mental change. I'm not in maintenance yet and still finding I need to work mostly on the mental challenges. Fortunately, I am very stubborn and pig-headed and sometimes in life that comes in handy. If I keep my focus and truly make my fitness a priority, I will be O.K.
My biggest fear about transitioning to maintenance is allowing my focus to change and doing the yo-yo thing again. This time definitely feels different for me though.
It is really nice to hear from those of you already experiencing maintenance and encouraging to hear about your success, thanks for sharing.0 -
So for me, although I'm enjoying maintenance enormously, the price of maintenance is eternal vigilance plus one day a week restricting calories.
This is what I have not been able to do yet. I work hard, lose the weight, and when I am "done," i.e. at goal weight I am so sick of weighing and measuring everything that I quit, start eating too much again, and eventually gain again. I just can't wrap my head around the fact that I have to weigh, measure and count calories FOR LIFE.0 -
Yup, that's what I did for decades. Now I know getting fat again isn't an option, too old to do this again. This time I decided I wouldn't do anything I couldn't sustain forever. So far it is working. I don't weigh everything, not super anal about it. Just keep tabs on the weight and ramp it up if I gain a few pounds.0
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I was to the point that I couldn't do many of the activities I enjoy. So I wrote a list of the things I want to continue to be able to do. I'm not completely there yet, but I can now do at least 75% of them and I continue to improve. Carrying all of the extra weight around all day was just wearing me out. It's no wonder I feel like I have so much more energy!0
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Wow, this is really appropriate for me today as I actually just went into maintenance yesterday. It's a very weird feeling. Right now, I'm only planning on increasing my daily cals by about 100 which will put me at around 1850 and then see how I feel.
I have ZERO plans to leave MFP or quit logging!
I've committed myself to my news feed, my friends here, and several groups that I enjoy participating in. I'm also fortunate enough to have a personal trainer who keeps me on my toes and striving for new physical accomplishments.
I can't quite release the idea that I'm still 10-12 lbs overweight but both my doctor and my trainer want me right where I am now so I'm going with their advice...........for now!
I have to confess that I'm a little scared though.
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I think scared is the appropriate reaction. I have nightmares about waking up and being fat again. Yikes! I guess the price of good health is eternal vigilance.0
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Depressing. Think I'll go eat a box of cookies. (just kidding!) 0
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I think scared is the appropriate reaction. I have nightmares about waking up and being fat again. Yikes! I guess the price of good health is eternal vigilance.
Lol about the nightmares. I keep worrying that one day my new clothes will be too tight! Eternal vigilance is the plan. I think I have it together but I'm not 100% sure. Thank God for MFP though. I refuse to be a "back again" story here!0 -
So for me, although I'm enjoying maintenance enormously, the price of maintenance is eternal vigilance plus one day a week restricting calories.
This is what I have not been able to do yet. I work hard, lose the weight, and when I am "done," i.e. at goal weight I am so sick of weighing and measuring everything that I quit, start eating too much again, and eventually gain again. I just can't wrap my head around the fact that I have to weigh, measure and count calories FOR LIFE.
The "for life" thing is what made me look at my logging with a view to making it easier.
I round up my weekly routine of cycling/walking as part of my commute into my calorie goal.
I only weigh and measure items that are calorie dense or unusual.
Don't obsess over exercise logging accuracy, near enough or an educated guess is OK.
Take a weekly view rather than be restricted daily. Happy to roll over surplus or deficit to other days.
Quick add calories for when things are simply to complex to log.
I'm pretty sure I could maintain now without logging but it's not so onerous that it's a chore.
As long as I'm in my goal weight range then it's good enough. I'm also a daily weigher which means I'm in tune with my weight fluctuations and can recognise a drift before it becomes a slide.0 -
I think when I get to maintenance I will still be logging. I gain weight easily so know eternal vigilance is the present and the future.0
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It is incredibly important to have people "at maintenance" continuing to log and participate/lead groups. It is an incentive to the rest of us to see that people do, in fact, succeed. It is also an important reminder that we need to continue to be vigilant in our choices; that this is a continuing journey and not just a short-term destination. Thank you to all the inspiring folks out there that are at "maintenance" that continue to share your journeys, struggles and successes with us.0
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It's not necessarily a life sentence. I have an incredibly short attention span. If I work at it really hard I can manage to consistently log for about six months. After six months I see something shiny and lose focus. I still weigh my a lot of my food (not everything). I don't understand why I get bored with logging, but have no problem weighing out a serving size. I've managed to maintain my goal weight for nearly 4 years without logging.I just can't wrap my head around the fact that I have to weigh, measure and count calories FOR LIFE.
The hardest part for me is adjusting to a new mindset. I thought I would find contentment once I hit goal weight. And I was satisfied for a while (about a year). Eventually I wanted to get stronger and leaner. It's like there's an overbearing coach in my head shouting, "Go Go Go". My fitness continues to improve, however my current self is at odds with my former self. My former self was quite content to sit on the couch with a beer in one hand and a remote in the other. I'm still working out the mental game. My imaginary coach has set new goals and has me logging again. Man I hate logging.
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That's the truth. I manage to keep up with the grand kids now. Thanks for reminding me about the things that matter.0
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The absolute hardest thing about maintenance? GETTING THERE!!
Bwhahahaha!!
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The mental part of this is the hardest.0
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I started maintenance a little over four weeks ago at the request of my husband who said I was a bit too cranky from my calorie deficit. I was 5# short of my goal so what the heck. MFP gave me 340 calories more per day!!! Yee ha! I was so used to losing I just kept right on losing - 4 more pounds. I kept the same weight for 3 Fridays (weigh-in day). I snuck a look at the scale this morning and am down another 2#. I know it's silly, but how do I eat so many more calories without gaining again? Maybe it is the I don't want to be fat again mentality? I exercise rather a lot and have started some strength training. I have officially lost 56# on MFP, 59 all together, 61 if we count this morning.0
