Maintaining is way harder than losing

Tia_N_Mac

Once I got into a groove, I lost 30 pounds. I started to like working out, ate well, everything was good. Then I thought I could take a few days off, thought I had it all figured out and here I sit having put back on 28 pounds. I suck at maintenance. I need some friends to walk through this with me again. I'm 42, stay-at-home mom, great motivator and listener. Please add me!

Annr

Here is the hard truth....you can never take a few days off.... That is the realities of being mindful in eating. So I have realized that I will be eating this way until I die. Is that a bad thing? Naaaa not really in the long run. The fact that if I eat healthy, respect myself, and move every day, I shall live longer anyway. That alone makes me persevere in this endeavor. I do congratulate you on losing the 30 lbs though!! You got to maintenance and you thought it might give you a free pass in paying attention. A couple of days off shouldn't have put you in jeopardy though. Maybe it was more of a couple of weeks. In the past I have done that, time sneaks up on you :-) Add me if you wish to....I am Soup Queen!!

queenliz99

Annr wrote: »

Here is the hard truth....you can never take a few days off.... That is the realities of being mindful in eating. So I have realized that I will be eating this way until I die. Is that a bad thing? Naaaa not really in the long run. The fact that if I eat healthy, respect myself, and move every day, I shall live longer anyway. That alone makes me persevere in this endeavor. I do congratulate you on losing the 30 lbs though!! You got to maintenance and you thought it might give you a free pass in paying attention. A couple of days off shouldn't have put you in jeopardy though. Maybe it was more of a couple of weeks. In the past I have done that, time sneaks up on you :-) Add me if you wish to....I am Soup Queen!!

This^^ You have to keep logging after you reach maintenance until you can let go. You can do this!!

Losinandmovin

Losing the weight really is the easy part-- though while we're doing it, we always feel like it's not happening fast enough. Diets never work, because if you go back to the way you were eating, you'll weigh what you did when you were eating that way. So many of us have lost, quite literally, hundreds of pounds over the years. We absolutely have to find an eating plan that we can continue for the rest of our lives. So, no low carb (you're gonna eventually want bread and pasta) or fat free( unless you just like being hungry all the time) or plant only (cause who doesn't like a cookie every once in a while) ☺ Once you learn to weigh and measure everything you eat, you become mindful and aware of every choice you make. Eat what you like, and stay within your calories as best you can. Definitely a plan we can continue for life. So, best of luck to all of us!

airangel59

@Annr & @Losinandmovin ...so true, so very true.

Maintaining is NOT easy....I'm a former (and hopefully will stay former, lol) Yo Yo "dieter". Lost it, and gained it all back and more. This time I realize that I will be a logger for life, and I'm ok with that as I never want to go back to my former lifestyle. I'm still losing as I'm trying to figure out just how much I can eat & burn without putting the pounds back on.

OP, if you're like most of us, food is always going to be an issue until you realize you have to be mindful and conscious of each bite you take....I've come to the fact I'll never be "cured" and I'm ok with this.

I eat what I want to eat, I pre plan/pre log ahead of time, putting enough cals/carbs etc into snacks so I can adjust thru the day. This way I have not gone over my calories, I don't feel deprived (I eat junk food, am a chocoholic, I eat out, I eat processed food etc)

One day, one pound, one step at a time has been my motto since I started. You now realize that once you do lose weight the journey's not over, not by a long shot . You can do it OP, we've all been there.

Losinandmovin

airangel59 wrote: »

@Annr & @Losinandmovin ...so true, so very true.

Maintaining is NOT easy....I'm a former (and hopefully will stay former, lol) Yo Yo "dieter". Lost it, and gained it all back and more. This time I realize that I will be a logger for life, and I'm ok with that as I never want to go back to my former lifestyle. I'm still losing as I'm trying to figure out just how much I can eat & burn without putting the pounds back on.

OP, if you're like most of us, food is always going to be an issue until you realize you have to be mindful and conscious of each bite you take....I've come to the fact I'll never be "cured" and I'm ok with this.

I eat what I want to eat, I pre plan/pre log ahead of time, putting enough cals/carbs etc into snacks so I can adjust thru the day. This way I have not gone over my calories, I don't feel deprived (I eat junk food, am a chocoholic, I eat out, I eat processed food etc)

One day, one pound, one step at a time has been my motto since I started. You now realize that once you do lose weight the journey's not over, not by a long shot . You can do it OP, we've all been there.

PinkPixiexox

I spent quite a few years losing weight and then coming off of my 'healthy eating plan' because I'd finished!
I assumed that since I was now thin, I wouldn't need to continue making the right choices - this led me to gaining 30 lbs! I was so, so shocked. I've now learnt that this really is a lifetime thing. I have spent quite a lot of my life overweight because I didn't continue my healthy habits and I know I will always keep track of my food regardless of whether I get to goal or not. You can do this!

Tia_N_Mac

PinkPixiexox wrote: »

I spent quite a few years losing weight and then coming off of my 'healthy eating plan' because I'd finished!
I assumed that since I was now thin, I wouldn't need to continue making the right choices - this led me to gaining 30 lbs! I was so, so shocked. I've now learnt that this really is a lifetime thing. I have spent quite a lot of my life overweight because I didn't continue my healthy habits and I know I will always keep track of my food regardless of whether I get to goal or not. You can do this!

That is EXACTLY what happened. I let my guard down and within 18 months, I had gained back 20 pounds. I have to keep track and be aware if I'm going to make it stick.