Preparing for maintenance ahead of time

bbontheb

Hi everyone. In April I decided enough of my sulking, excuse-driven life and started making healthy changes. I am not a dieter and knew that my bad habits were making me sick, and obese. For the first 25 years of my life I was fairly thin. Had kids, got depressed, lazy...anyhow, I'm still 50-60 lbs from goal weight but I want to prepare for maintenance ahead of time. What does maintenance look like? Do I figure out what my calorie intake would be at that point to really understand what food level I will need to eat, etc?

I have incorporated some exercise (cardio) little bit at a time. Nothing crazy. I began to log food, and eat differently and learning moderation. For me it's all about changing the way I think about food. Finding other ways to deal with stress (than eating tons).

I do better (success) if I have an idea of what to expect, a visual process or idea of how I will need my life to be-will I forget to do things, become complacent and gain weight? Are there techniques (still weigh self every so often) that I should still do to help?

Any ideas would be helpful-thank you!

socioseguro

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10177803/recomposition-maintaining-weight-while-losing-fat/p1

bioklutz

There is no big secret to maintenance. You would just consistently the number of calories needed to maintain your weight. You will need to think of your weight as a range not a stagnant number (typically a 5-10 pound range). Or how your clothes fit. Or how you look in the mirror.

RaspberryTickleChicken

bbontheb wrote: »

Hi everyone. In April I decided enough of my sulking, excuse-driven life and started making healthy changes. I am not a dieter and knew that my bad habits were making me sick, and obese. For the first 25 years of my life I was fairly thin. Had kids, got depressed, lazy...anyhow, I'm still 50-60 lbs from goal weight but I want to prepare for maintenance ahead of time. What does maintenance look like? Do I figure out what my calorie intake would be at that point to really understand what food level I will need to eat, etc?

I have incorporated some exercise (cardio) little bit at a time. Nothing crazy. I began to log food, and eat differently and learning moderation. For me it's all about changing the way I think about food. Finding other ways to deal with stress (than eating tons).

I do better (success) if I have an idea of what to expect, a visual process or idea of how I will need my life to be-will I forget to do things, become complacent and gain weight? Are there techniques (still weigh self every so often) that I should still do to help?

Any ideas would be helpful-thank you!

This is an impossible question to answer because just like losing weight is different for individuals so is maint. There is no magic formula or a single blanket approach that works for everyone.

Here are two articles that I think would be most helpful:

BEST TIPS FROM LONG TERM MAINTAINERS (NATIONAL WEIGHT CONTROL REGISTRY): Weight Loss Maintenance Tips

KEY TO SUCCESSFUL MAINTENANCE: Doing Less

Many of the things you mentioned are habits which should be groomed over time to a healthier alternative. Try to think of the loosing weight phase not as to lose X weight in X time then VUALA - D-O-N-E DONE! Rather think of the losing weight phase as nothing more but a long preparation for maint aka the rest of your life.

Best of luck to you!

kailyw05

I've only been maintaining for a week, but it looks very similar to my weight loss stage. I can just eat a little more. It's only a difference of a couple hundred extra calories per day, so I use those to get a bit extra protein in my diet since I've amped up my workouts a little bit. I am still eating a slight deficit so that if I want to go over on the weekends (and I usually do) I can, guilt-free. If I find my weight changes over the next few weeks I will adjust accordingly.

I still plan on tracking all my calories. I will continue to eat similar meals and snacks I always did, but maybe add in a slightly larger portion or a couple extra snacks. My main focus now is on fitness related goals.

I think it's great you're already thinking about maintenance. I had this in mind everyday. Keep telling yourself, this isn't a quick-fix. Make choices you can live with forever and it will make your transition to maintenance that much easier.

Good luck to you!

maxit

bbontheb wrote: »

Hi everyone. In April I decided enough of my sulking, excuse-driven life and started making healthy changes. I am not a dieter and knew that my bad habits were making me sick, and obese. For the first 25 years of my life I was fairly thin. Had kids, got depressed, lazy...anyhow, I'm still 50-60 lbs from goal weight but I want to prepare for maintenance ahead of time. What does maintenance look like? Do I figure out what my calorie intake would be at that point to really understand what food level I will need to eat, etc?

I have incorporated some exercise (cardio) little bit at a time. Nothing crazy. I began to log food, and eat differently and learning moderation. For me it's all about changing the way I think about food. Finding other ways to deal with stress (than eating tons).

I do better (success) if I have an idea of what to expect, a visual process or idea of how I will need my life to be-will I forget to do things, become complacent and gain weight? Are there techniques (still weigh self every so often) that I should still do to help?

Any ideas would be helpful-thank you!

Establish habits that you can continue for the next decade. Like what you eat while on your weight loss journey and continue to eat those things in maintenance. Figure out how to move every day so that you are "lightly active" more hours than "sedentary," at the least. Have a goal "range" rather than particular number.

Patttience

I hear you and like you, i started to think about maintenance well before I got there but i can tell you this, what i thought i would do I didn't do. I couldn't do what i thought i would/should do. By the time i got to goal i was pretty tired of all the food logging and i wasn't even counting calories. I even got bored with daily weighing.

So I suggest weighing once a week and keeping track in a journal. Its hard to actually stay exactly the same weight so be prepared for fluctuations.

To cope with stress, i go and see a councillor. You have to resolve the problems and it often helps if you have someone you can talk it through with. Its if its stress from feeling overwhelmed, getting it all out is a good thing. I still usually have a little time of feeling stressed before i go to see someone so in that period, i tend to put on weight. And then i have to lose it again and that's what i'm doing here now.

If you find you ways of resolving stress quickly, you should be able to avoid putting on too much. I still haven't gone above my healthy weight range.

You also want to avoid getting back to a position of not caring. That's when your weight will likely go above your healthy weight range.

But also while you are losing try to figure out your new healthy way of eating where you are not likely to put on weight so fast and you find it easier to lose again. For me its because i had a quit sugar campaign which i stick to and intend doing forever. Its not that i never eat sugar but i never buy sweets for myself or cook sweets. I eat fruit instead. You have different weaknesses but if you've got a serious weakness, it will probably always be your weakness so having a strategy for life is a good idea.

Also when you go into maintenance, don't make a big increase in your daily calories. Increase them only slowly.

Learning to eat so that you are not eating to fullness is a good thing to keep your weight from rising. Also don't resume a habit of snacking. Sticking to designated meals is the best way.

bbontheb

Thank you for the wonderful advice. So many great tips, and points to consider.

I fear I will get tired of logging, weighing. It's happened with multiple other new things in my life (I have adhd so it's fairly typical). Figuring out what strategies might work for me is key I think.

Thank you so much for all this. Coming back tomorrow to re-read them after I get some sleep

sistrsprkl

I like to plan too but I really wouldn't worry too much about it. The hard part is losing the weight, then when reasonable eating and exercise are habits and part of your life - it's pretty easy to maintain. That's been my experience at least. I'm not tired of logging but I take little breaks sometimes if I get super busy or travel.