I'm not enjoying maintenance #rant

squander

1st off, I am going to do the whole thanks thing. Your posts are entertaining and informative. I appreciate the counter argument comments on the blog posts MFP pushes.

There are tons of "good things" about being "fit." Obviously this should be a life style change, not just losing weight to hit a number and go back to your old ways. To do so you've got to focus on other aspects of your health to keep up, faster stronger better.

So I am more cut than I've ever been, 10% bf if my scale is to be believed. I broke a 6 min* mile, which I never thought I'd ever do after high school. I can juggle a soccer ball 250 times without dropping it... that's something that's sure to upset my downstairs neighbors. (The simple pleasures.)

But I'm not in high school. I've about negative interest in running a 5k let alone a marathon. And even back when I ran track to be enticing for schools, the colleges I applied to didn't give a *kitten*, all they cared about was nepotism. (Lucky for me.)

And--for me--I'd rather just run a 10 min mile. It burns more calories than a faster mile. I don't have any need to be fast. I'm basically never chased by bears or ninjas. And if you keep getting better faster stronger eventually you become elite... which seems like it isn't healthy. Like--pro sports players pretty much all die before the national average. This mindset makes maintenance even more boring.

I think about food all the time. The mindshare and exercise regimen this takes up -- isn't worth it.

Eating less calories makes me stupid. I haven't seen other people talk about this, but I eat, exercise, sleep. Any creative activity is like pushing through a haze.

How horrible is yo-yoing? Because losing lbs is kind of fun. It's like a little reward and maybe I could just flux every 5-10 weeks between 150-160. Two months on, one month off? (It might be even less than that off, I could probably eat 4k a day without any trouble.)

I started this transformation into healthy because I hit 172 which is the most I'd ever been. And I felt a smidge sluggish. Now I'm in the 154 range. (I drink a lot of water and fluctuate +/-8lbs through out the day.)

But before I started counting calories and exercising for the purpose of health, rather than simple circumstance, I never thought about food. If I was hungry, I ate. And I ate whatever I wanted to eat. I offer that I was appreciably happier when I didn't think about my health.

Also, I see a ton of people with posts like, "Does it ever get old, how awesome it feels to be skinny!" I wore a vest, so people told me I was skinny at 170, people say the same thing at 154. I was hoping girls would flip out when I took off my shirt but no one gives a *kitten*. I'm like, are you kidding me, do you know how hard I worked for this, just to turn you on? And they're all, "Surprisingly, I like your personality."

"But despite my body?" I ask.

*shrug*

I had one girl show me a picture she took of me a year ago and was like, "Look how skinny you used to be!" If I didn't know her so well, I'd assume she was trolling me. But no one knows, no one can tell. I've 0 interest in getting a cockroach stomach or learning how to bench my body weight. I'm more muscly than I've ever wanted to be, but mfp and the rest of the internet has convinced me it's for the best to lift at least a little bit so I will probably keep doing the 30-60 minutes a week.

I like running, it's a habit, I'll keep doing that... but I am frustrated with thinking about food and counting calories.

Anyway, I wanted to rant. Ask the yo-you question and the one about cognitive ability. Do any of you feel slow, on low calorie diets?

{*On a treadmill so it kind of doesn't count.}

ladipoet

Sounds to me like you may need to increase the healthy fat in your diet. Should help with the brain fog. Do you follow a specific way of eating (WOE)? If so, what?

jennifer_417

It sounds like you have some serious anger around this issue. It's great to have an awesome personality, you should be glad that some women like that. Having a great body is just a bonus. I'd love to have a guy with a great body, but it will NEVER make up for a crappy personality.

Look, the bottom line is: it's your body. If what you're doing isn't making you happy or getting you what you wanted to get out of the deal, then change.

edvsoreos

From your rant and your profile, I get the impression that you are making this a little harder than it needs to be. Can’t see your diary, and know nothing about your stats, but for most, sub 2000 cals is no good with lots of running. Also, what about the quality of your food? I have lots of friends that manage calories well, but eat like $h!t. Not just junk food either. Too much ‘food like product’ will keep you feeling bad. You live in a first world country, so you will always obsess about food. One big problem with the yo-yo approach is that you will likely find it harder to get back down as you age. You’ll get frustrated, quit more often, and will start suffering consequences of your bad food choices in ways other than just body fat.

Low weight/body fat doesn’t equal good health. It also doesn’t get you chicks…increases your probability at pool/beach parties, but usually not the deal maker. Great fitness is like a 401K plan. You’re like ‘why am I doing this crap’ now, but you will love it when you are older and most people around you are dealing with food related illness. If you stop, you’ll probably regret it.

Sometimes it feels good to just rant. Hopefully that is all you’re doing and will continue to maintain a fit (and hopefully happier) lifestyle. Good luck!

BrickFox

Why don't you try picking up a combat sport, like Wrestling, Judo, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, or MMA?

I find getting fit for something like that is worth it over being the fastest runner, or being able to lift the most poundage off of your chest.

I train Brazilian Jiu Jitsu exclusively, so if you're interested in learning more about that, feel free to hit me up.

hekla90

Then run a 10 minute mile. Eat more, do whatever. I personally maintain on a .5 lb loss a week and then don't track at all on vacations/ going out of town/ drinking on weekends. I don't feel restricted at all, maybe try something similar that isn't quite yo yo dieting because that could end up badly!