maintaining for the summer

katieross1508

So I am down 25 pounds with 20 left to go started in March. But for the summer I have decided to not count daily but still eat healthy and limit my intake which has become second nature to me now. My question is has anyone maintained for a while and then started seriously counting again after a month or 2? if you did, did you start losing right away or did you plateau for a while? I don't want to hinder my progress as I am super proud of myself and feel great. thanks

corryigo

You will be fine, Why is more the question, Just lower your goals from 1lb a week to half lb a week still lose just not as fast and overall better for you while increasing your calories a bit.

_lyndseybrooke_

Since when does maintaining mean not counting calories or macros? I've been maintaining for the majority of the past 9 months (minus an 8-week cut) and I still log daily.

Some people are able to stop counting and maintain their weight - a lot of people cannot, which is why most people gain back all of the weight they lost and then some after losing all the weight they wanted to lose. There are some people, however, that can eat intuitively (Google "intuitive eating" for more information) and maintain, lose, or gain weight according to their goals without counting/logging. There's no way any of us can know which group you fall into, but I say do what you think is best. It's definitely worth a shot.

My advice would be to still weigh yourself as often as you do now. If you see that your weight is going up (and staying up), make some changes or start counting again. I'm not talking about normal fluctuations - I'm talking about weight that doesn't go away within a few days.

Once you go back to eating at a deficit, you'll lose. It's not going to hinder your progress to maintain for a couple of weeks. The only thing that will hinder your progress is if you gain. Even if you gain a few pounds, though, that won't stop you from going right back to losing pounds once the summer is over.

Capt_Apollo

i would recommend switching to maintenance, but still logging calories and weighing in regularly. this will help ensure that you do actually maintain your weight- although a little fluctuation is normal.

i lost a significant amount of weight, maintained/plateaued for about a two years, and then dropped another 30 pounds when i went back to being super serious about logging and very strict with calorie counting.

iLoveMyPitbull1225

I would still log daily. If you don't, you could easily end up overeating and gaining even if you think you are still making health conscious decisions. Just switch your calories to maintenance for a while.

sweetpea03b

I agree with Lyndsey on this. I've been around here since 2008. I've lost, (stopped logging), gained over and over. The first time I was only 3# from my goal weight and I took for granted I could stop logging and maintain. I was wrong. Only you know what is best for you but I would definitely take the advice given and keep an eye on it because you might "come back" in 2 months with an extra 5 or 10# to lose.

katieross1508

thanks everyone for the responses. I have actually been not logging since a month or so and have still managed to lose. I am absolutely going to weigh myself on a regular basis cause no friggin way do I want to gain any of my loss back. If I see more then a pound or 2 I will start logging right away.
I don't have internet at my cottage so this is why it is somewhat of an issue. I can write it down and log on weekends but so time consuming (which I will do of I have too) but if I can stay the same and who knows even continue to lose because I am way more active this time of year then I am going to try it this way for a bit. thanks for all the advise !

katieross1508

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

i would recommend switching to maintenance, but still logging calories and weighing in regularly. this will help ensure that you do actually maintain your weight- although a little fluctuation is normal.

i lost a significant amount of weight, maintained/plateaued for about a two years, and then dropped another 30 pounds when i went back to being super serious about logging and very strict with calorie counting.

this is what I was curious about...good to know thanks.

katieross1508

LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »

Since when does maintaining mean not counting calories or macros? I've been maintaining for the majority of the past 9 months (minus an 8-week cut) and I still log daily.

No way do I plan to count calories for the rest of my life. My lifestyle has changed so dramatically that once I reach my goal I should be able to stay at my weight without having to log because it is becoming second nature.
I will continue to weigh myself and keep an eye that things don't go south and then if I need to lose a few pounds I will log again until it comes off but for the majority I see myself calorie counting free after I get to my goal weight.

Capt_Apollo

katieross1508 wrote: »

LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »

Since when does maintaining mean not counting calories or macros? I've been maintaining for the majority of the past 9 months (minus an 8-week cut) and I still log daily.

No way do I plan to count calories for the rest of my life. My lifestyle has changed so dramatically that once I reach my goal I should be able to stay at my weight without having to log because it is becoming second nature.
I will continue to weigh myself and keep an eye that things don't go south and then if I need to lose a few pounds I will log again until it comes off but for the majority I see myself calorie counting free after I get to my goal weight.

see, thats what you think. i obviously don't know how long you've been doing this, but i've been at this for five years. i stopped counting for a bit, thought i worked out hard enough to counter act some junk food and tried to be mindful of my eating, but it all went spiraling down eventually. thankfully i caught myself before it got too bad.

i've seen a lot of threads by people who got to goal weight, left mfp and stopped logging their food and bam, six months later they're back and they've regained everything.

am i going to log my food forever? i don't know, maybe. for the foreseeable future i will be.

katieross1508

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

katieross1508 wrote: »

LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »

Since when does maintaining mean not counting calories or macros? I've been maintaining for the majority of the past 9 months (minus an 8-week cut) and I still log daily.

No way do I plan to count calories for the rest of my life. My lifestyle has changed so dramatically that once I reach my goal I should be able to stay at my weight without having to log because it is becoming second nature.
I will continue to weigh myself and keep an eye that things don't go south and then if I need to lose a few pounds I will log again until it comes off but for the majority I see myself calorie counting free after I get to my goal weight.

see, thats what you think. i obviously don't know how long you've been doing this, but i've been at this for five years. i stopped counting for a bit, thought i worked out hard enough to counter act some junk food and tried to be mindful of my eating, but it all went spiraling down eventually. thankfully i caught myself before it got too bad.

i've seen a lot of threads by people who got to goal weight, left mfp and stopped logging their food and bam, six months later they're back and they've regained everything.

am i going to log my food forever? i don't know, maybe. for the foreseeable future i will be.

But to me those people looked at it as a diet to just lose the weight, they didn't change their lifestyle. If you go back to old habits then for sure you wont keep it off.
If you are healthy and totally changed the way you live and eat why would you have to log all the time? (and I am absolutey talking about when you have finished losing and maintained successfully for a period of time) I dont' eat much junk the odd ice cream on a hot day but it is not in my house and I have no need to eat it anymore. I actually don't even enjoy it the way I used to. don't know that is just my take on this process and I have reinvented myself and my old habits are gone. Its great.

Capt_Apollo

yeah, i thought i changed my lifestyle too. i started exercising a lot. i stopped smoking. i cut back on drinking. i started cooking more. but you know, it's easy to only have one treat a day when you have to log it. but before you know it you grabbed a snickers on the checkout line at the grocery because you were hangry, and at breakfast you didn't exactly measure the milk and cereal, and you had a tough day so go ahead and have a second glass of wine with a second helping of your dinner. i mean, your dinner is healthy, so a second helping is okay, right? not like you weighed and measured the first helping though (not to mention the wine). and because you were so good with your day (you already forgot about the candy bar) you are allowing yourself some ice cream after dinner because you deserve a treat!!!

it's easy to fall back into old habits, and it creeps up on you very quietly and before you know it you're looking for that box of old clothes that you stashed in the attic thinking you'd donate them eventually, but you're glad you didn't.

katieross1508

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

yeah, i thought i changed my lifestyle too. i started exercising a lot. i stopped smoking. i cut back on drinking. i started cooking more. but you know, it's easy to only have one treat a day when you have to log it. but before you know it you grabbed a snickers on the checkout line at the grocery because you were hangry, and at breakfast you didn't exactly measure the milk and cereal, and you had a tough day so go ahead and have a second glass of wine with a second helping of your dinner. i mean, your dinner is healthy, so a second helping is okay, right? not like you weighed and measured the first helping though (not to mention the wine). and because you were so good with your day (you already forgot about the candy bar) you are allowing yourself some ice cream after dinner because you deserve a treat!!!

it's easy to fall back into old habits, and it creeps up on you very quietly and before you know it you're looking for that box of old clothes that you stashed in the attic thinking you'd donate them eventually, but you're glad you didn't.

lol oh I can totally see how easy it can happen, I guess in my head I am detemined and stubborn and wont allow that to happen. I hope I am not eating my words in a few years lol. Gonna do my best.

_lyndseybrooke_

katieross1508 wrote: »

Capt_Apollo wrote: »

yeah, i thought i changed my lifestyle too. i started exercising a lot. i stopped smoking. i cut back on drinking. i started cooking more. but you know, it's easy to only have one treat a day when you have to log it. but before you know it you grabbed a snickers on the checkout line at the grocery because you were hangry, and at breakfast you didn't exactly measure the milk and cereal, and you had a tough day so go ahead and have a second glass of wine with a second helping of your dinner. i mean, your dinner is healthy, so a second helping is okay, right? not like you weighed and measured the first helping though (not to mention the wine). and because you were so good with your day (you already forgot about the candy bar) you are allowing yourself some ice cream after dinner because you deserve a treat!!!

it's easy to fall back into old habits, and it creeps up on you very quietly and before you know it you're looking for that box of old clothes that you stashed in the attic thinking you'd donate them eventually, but you're glad you didn't.

lol oh I can totally see how easy it can happen, I guess in my head I am detemined and stubborn and wont allow that to happen. I hope I am not eating my words in a few years lol. Gonna do my best.

Just don't be naive about it, or all of that weight will seem to reappear overnight. It's easy to let it get away from you without you realizing it.

katieross1508

I wont. I actually haven't logged in a really long time and weighed myself yesterday and I was down 3.8 pounds. So 2 milestones. Went over 30 pounds lost and finally under 160! from 188 to 157 since March. Feeling fantastic.