Is it easier to lose weight you have already lost once?

tumbledownhouse

Hi Guys,

I'm Annie, 30 from Scotland. Just weighing in (lols) to ask people who have lost then gained a bit whether the second time round the weight comes off any easier? At my lowest weight I had lost about 60lbs but have been steadily piling back on the beef, for reasons that are totally obvious like eating too much and not hitting the gym as much!! I weighed in at around a stone higher than my lowest weight the other day (albeit the day after a 40 mile cycle followed by a massive pizza, go figure) and am just kind of hoping that now I am resolute to get back to my old habits and shake that extra stone and a couple more off I might be able to lose that weight with slightly more ease than before???

Bit of wishful thinking at breakfast time! Thoughts? Unsolicited advice? Friend requests? I'll TAKE EM!!

Thanks

Soopatt

No expert here, but I think it might be harder in some ways, easier in others.

Harder because you know you put it back on so you might not trust yourself (and I also read some other stuff on the net about chemical reactions that make weight loss more difficult over time - will look for link)...

Easier in other ways because you know you can do it and you know the routine you need to follow to get it done

Gel_W91

harder i think. losing weight is a long hard process. doing it twice is torture. i'm back too! i think it's knowing every lb i lose, i was once there before plus lots. so it's hard to celebrate

tomatoey

Soopatt wrote: »

No expert here, but I think it might be harder in some ways, easier in others.

Harder because you know you put it back on so you might not trust yourself (and I also read some other stuff on the net about chemical reactions that make weight loss more difficult over time - will look for link)...

Easier in other ways because you know you can do it and you know the routine you need to follow to get it done

Yeah, I think the first time you lose, you're full of fire & convinced it's going to be forever. You're singlemindedly focused on your target, see the whole process as linear, you're moving towards that one goal. You're seeing results for the first time, and it's exciting. Definite motivational advantage. Also, though, you're more likely to do extreme stuff that works fast but is hard on the body (eg Insanity, plyometrics).

2nd time = older (maybe you've got some injuries) and wiser (the tools are there). I think knowing from experience that life situations are going to be up and down does make it harder.

duddysdad

I lost around 110 pounds back in 2007-2008. It took around 18 months to do it. I gained back up to 337 pounds as of last Christmas, 2014. Since December of last year I've gone from 337 to my current 192. 145 pounds in 8 months. I would say it has been easier this time, mainly because I know what to do to get the results I want. I know my TDEE, which I hadn't even heard of before. I know about MFP. I did WW last time. In those ways it is easier. It still takes as much work to lose 1 pound, but I know how to lose that 1 pound quicker. Good luck.

suziecue20

I am in the same boat - lost the weight then slowly piled it back on by going back to bad habit eating. Now I've gone back to eating a healthy balanced diet I could kick myself for eating too many 'baddies' because I actually enjoy the food I'm eating now much more.

I have just started again (2nd week) but lost 2lbs the first week - some of that could be water though. I think the weight will be a bit harder to shift this time, we shall see. If it does pan out to be harder to shift I think that is a really good incentive the keep the weight I lose off - a third time would be horrendous for me!

flrancho

Having lost weight more than once, I think its harder if you've already lost before.

tumbledownhouse

I was hoping everyone would say it is wayyy easier At a point I was convinced that I had changed my lifestyle so much that it wouldn't support weight gain... WRONG!! The thing I have noticed is that putting it on isn't linear either... sometimes I would think I had "got away" with a holiday or some lazy munching weeks but I hadn't!! Sometimes knowing where you are going wrong isn't quite enough to stop you! Think I need to stop setting myself goals like "by this point I will be..." as it seems to veer me off track somehow I am much better staying in the here and now!

tumbledownhouse

suziecue20 wrote: »

If it does pan out to be harder to shift I think that is a really good incentive the keep the weight I lose off - a third time would be horrendous for me!

This is very true!

freeza12

I find it easier. The mindset is the hardest thing, but by now you should have figured:

You know what works
That it actually DOES work.

The first two weeks of dedication are the hardest, but if you truly are doing the right thing dietwise, you should definitely be seeing results at that stage. And thereafter you should be motivated enough to continue doing what is working and kicking goals.

Stick to it, see the difference, motivate yourself to keep going You've done it before, you know you can do it again.

tumbledownhouse

I hope so I'm just glad I've kept a bit of a handle on it so its not all the weight I lost back on but just a stone of it... Though that still fewls like a lot!

azulvioleta6

I think that it is harder. I've also noticed that as I lose and gain and lose the same 5-10 pounds, it comes of in different places at different times.

Bodies are strange.

tincanonastring

It's the same. A deficit of 3500 calories will burn a pound of fat. That doesn't change just because you've yoyoed.

caroldavison332

According to Dr Joel Fuhrman, no. Not only do you gain dangerous fat inside your body around your organs rather than relatiely healthy bell fat, repeat dieting makes it harder for your body to loose and yo yo dieting negatively impacts your bodies ability to loose for months.

maxit

tincanonastring wrote: »

It's the same. A deficit of 3500 calories will burn a pound of fat. That doesn't change just because you've yoyoed.

Well .... weight loss is also about losing lean muscle mass in addition to fat, and weight re-gain is often about gained fat and not muscle. So what I notice is that weight regains are likely to result in an increase of fat % overall - metabolic advantages (however small) one might have had as a young person cutting weight may be metabolic disadvantages a couple of yo-yo diets + years later. The affect of this is that what might have resulted in a 1#/week weight loss at, say, 1500 calories daily back then, which may have been perceived as difficult but doable, requires 1200 calories now....which feels harder.

BWBTrish

Lost some weight before and due to an injury gained some.
Never was really on a diet..because i dont see it that way

But it is the same for everybody physically...a pound is a pound..you lose it when your deficit is 3500 calories.

Mentally is another story. I am not the kind of person who is influenced by that.
Also because like i said before i am not on a diet...i just eat less. For others the mind game is hard.

All depends from person to person.

tincanonastring

maxit wrote: »

tincanonastring wrote: »

It's the same. A deficit of 3500 calories will burn a pound of fat. That doesn't change just because you've yoyoed.

Well .... weight loss is also about losing lean muscle mass in addition to fat, and weight re-gain is often about gained fat and not muscle. So what I notice is that weight regains are likely to result in an increase of fat % overall - metabolic advantages (however small) one might have had as a young person cutting weight may be metabolic disadvantages a couple of yo-yo diets + years later. The affect of this is that what might have resulted in a 1#/week weight loss at, say, 1500 calories daily back then, which may have been perceived as difficult but doable, requires 1200 calories now....which feels harder.

Loss of muscle mass can be limited by proper macro management and strength training. I'm not sure what that has to do metabolic changes over time (I'd like to see evidence that yoyo dieting causes them rather than just the natural slow-down caused by the aging process), but the deficit required to lose a pound is still the same.

jessmessmfp

For me, it's a bit of both. I lose/gain the same 7-8 lbs (fluctuating from 120-128lbs). Once I get to 120, its verrrry hard for me to get the scale to budge (more mental than actual difficulty). But if I'm at 128, I know that xxx amount of calories will help me lose weight - 1lb a week. Since I'm short, and at an average weight, losing weight is a slooooooow process. I lose max 1 lb a week. So 8 weeks of keeping calorie count low, and I finally get to 120...it's hard for me to keep going past that point. It's hard, but I can do it. Because I've not been lower than 120 since high school - I'm not sure what it is - but it's just much harder on me.

daniwilford

Easier this time for me. While I am older and physically less able to engage in certain calorie burning activities not to mention a slower metabolism, my mental state is so much more healthy. My motivations for getting fit and trim have much more to do with health and well being than appearance. My motivation for being overweight was all about comfort and protection. I have different coping skills now that were absent in my younger years.

airbent

I'm finding it harder this time. On the one hand you know what habits to form and what works, because you've done it before. That's the easy part. I've fallen back into healthier habits so quickly that I can't believe that I managed to fall out of them!

but it's been 3 years, I'm a little older, and the fat seems to be more stubborn this time around. Last time I was able to lose 1.5-2lb a week without even weighing my food. This time I weigh everything, and I'm lifting heavy weights, but struggling to take a pound off a week. It's definitely harder--but that doesn't mean it will be harder for everyone. You just have to jump back into it and work hard. If you eat at a deficit you WILL lose weight.

JeffBrown3

The first time I lost the weight, I thought it was easy. But the second time is definitely harder. I'm sure it's just "in my head" but I don't get excited over losses anymore. I just feel guilty because here I am losing the same weight over again. I believe it's being scared of failing again and again. Dieting and losing pounds is simple. Getting in the right frame of mind isn't always so simple.

nm212

I think the hardest thing is maintaining, after losing the weight. I am also back for the 2nd time trying to lose again what I had lost a year ago. It's hard, but you know that you can do it!! I think the best strategy to keep it off long term is to eat what you would normally eat, in smaller quantities and treat yourself once in a while. Otherwise, it's easy to go crazy once you hit your goal because you feel like you deserve it after "depriving" yourself for so long! At least this is my experience...I went gluten free to help me lose and it worked! BUT to maintain that for the long term was not realistic for me and I know that now, I have to eat what I enjoy normally and just keep it in balance. It may take much longer to lose, but like they say it's a lifestyle change, so you're more likely to keep it off in the long term that way. GOOD LUCK! You can do it and you're not alone!!

playmadcats

I found it easier this time. However I have sorted the problems out I had the first time. Firstly being far too strict and secondly if I have a blip. I put it down as a treat not a oh no I've totally failed. I think if I hadn't sorted them it would be even harder as I would be totally stressing about making a mistake.

tumbledownhouse

Thanks everyone

Liftng4Lis

It's the same, since : CICO

tomatoey

JeffBrown3 wrote: »

The first time I lost the weight, I thought it was easy. But the second time is definitely harder. I'm sure it's just "in my head" but I don't get excited over losses anymore. I just feel guilty because here I am losing the same weight over again. I believe it's being scared of failing again and again. Dieting and losing pounds is simple. Getting in the right frame of mind isn't always so simple.

Yeah. In the first round, you've got that sense of certainty that you'll succeed. It's a confidence trick.

Second time around, you have to think about it differently. For me, my motivations have changed a little. In addition to the aesthetic ones (which are still there), I want to take care of some creeping health conditions (arthritis, high cholesterol), manage others (IBS), & do my best to stave off the worst. That motivation might not be so available to very young people, though, who haven't seen things show up yet.

I see some people in their 60s, 70s, 80s with very limited lifestyles due to illnesses and chronic pain. (I am related to some.) I know you can't control everything, especially when it comes to health (genes of course play a role), but I don't want to be like them. I want to be like the older people who are still hiking & walking & dancing and enjoying their lives. (Also, exercise can reduce the odds of Alzheimer's, for example.)

So I look at it as body maintenance, like you'd look at car maintenance or something like that. Take care of it and it'll serve you better for longer. (Also as a kind of hygiene. The number of things I have to do on a daily or monthly basis to keep myself in working order has increased by the year I mean, for me it's very clear and immediately obvious that when I don't take care of myself, in a smart way, things start to fall apart.

I think it's important to do that, as a responsible person. Again, you can't control everything, but if you do what you can to keep the worst from happening, maybe it'll lighten the load on people who might have to take care of you later, as well as help maintain a good quality of life.

So for me it's down to that kind of long-term thinking (which quite honestly is kind of a grind, if I let myself think about it, which I don't, I try to let it just amount to habit). Almost as much as wanting to look good in a bathing suit