10 pounds to maintenance - should I be changing my strategy?

Soopatt

I am 5kgs/ten pounds away from my goal and I wonder if I should perhaps be changing my strategy as I head into maintenance. I am interested to hear what others have done to transition as they got down to the last stretch.

My strategy since April when I started on MFP (I have lost 13kgs so far) has been to eat between 1200 and 1300 (I was very strict in the beginning on 1200 but less so in the last two months). I eat back half my exercise calories which are never much as I am pretty sedentary. I lose around 0.3kg - 0.4kgs a week on average and I weigh and log everything (I have an open diary).

I currently weight 65kgs/143 pounds and my goal is 60kgs/132 pounds. I am 5.7 but I have a very small, narrow frame for my height. I am 40 years old with some health issues which are related to why I need to eat a little less than others as tall as me (early onset menopause since my thirties).

I am not unhappy with my current calories or rate of loss - I am managing fine - I just want to avoid a "now what?" moment when I get to maintenance.

I also worry that my head is going to strange places as I get closer to goal. I have never been a binger and I am not particularly hungry (I used to be, before eating more protein) but lately I seem to want to eat large volumes of things in one sitting and then to eat less in between to make up for it, telling myself that I deserve to give myself a break as I get closer to goal. Hunger is not driving this - it is more a case of "I have earned it!". These episodes, although far from real binges, have slowed me down in the past few weeks.

bioklutz

You have somewhere between a 300-400 calorie deficit correct?
When you are 2-3 pounds from your goal weight you could add back in 100 calories/day, wait 2 weeks than add another 100 calories/day for another 2 weeks. Repeat until you are at your maintenance calories. You will lose the last few pounds slowly but at the same time you will be adjusting to the extra calories.

I love to eat big. So I give into it. You can eat a lot of cucumber for very few calories.

LivingtheLeanDream

You can change your strategy but if what you've been doing works for you then you could simply stick with it?
if you feel the need for more calories then of course up your cals by say 100-200 a day, it'll make your deficit smaller and you'll still lose just at a slower pace.

The binge thoughts might be because your head has just had enough of you eating fewer calories, do you feel genuinely hungry when these thoughts occur? All I would say is plan your meals ahead so you are fuelling your body well and you'll be less inclined to feel hungry.

Try and get out of the mindset of 'I've earned it', its best to think about food as fuelling your body's needs and giving you energy.

You've done so well, all the best for those last remaining pounds

dlmciver

I am 60, and 5'5" and have lost 120+ pounds. I am seven pounds from the low end of my maintenance range and am still losing ~1.5 pounds per week. I have added 100 healthy calories per day and will reassess in a week. If I have lost 1.5 pounds or more, I'll add another 100 healthy calories per day. If I've lost less, I'll hold where I am and reassess in an additional week.
I'm looking forward to figuring out my true needs for maintenance. I have set a six point range of "comfortable" (141-147). 149 is my "red weight", at which point I revert to weight loss mode.

pondee629

When I got to within 5 pounds of my goal weight, I lowered my weekly expected loss to a half pound from one pound. Thought I would kinda ease into maintenance. Still losing that half pound a week ;-)

Yi5hedr3

Nope, too soon.

Soopatt

Thank you for your posts.

I am not hungry, but I do think I am going through a bit of a rebellious stage.

I invested in a fitbit this week and I am going to start to gradually increase my activity level. I have been a lot less active this year - I have only focused on calories (which has worked - but for sustainability I want to be fit too).

Perhaps I can find some middle ground by increasing my calories through extra exercise, while still keeping my same deficit.

Francl27

Unless you're hungry, I wouldn't change anything. My appetite increased when I increased my calories and never reached my goal weight...

nxd10

Ten pounds can take a long time to lose, as you slow down as you get closer to goal. It took me longer to lose the last 5 pounds than the first 30. Just keep at it.

Soopatt

I had to let go of the idea that it was going to be gone by Christmas. Christmas NEXT year maybe!

starfish235

The thing is you need be careful and be very accurate in your calorie counting. I couldn't lose the last 5 until I got on MFP and was detailed in my count.

nxd10

Soopatt wrote: »

I had to let go of the idea that it was going to be gone by Christmas. Christmas NEXT year maybe!

One of the nice things about having a goal RANGE is that you can celebrate when you hit the top of it, but keep losing until you hit the bottom. Mine was between 150-155 (I'm 5'10"). So I hit 155 in January but didn't hit 150 until May. I never did change my calorie strategy - it just took longer and longer to lose weight. It had dropped super fast at first.

But your idea about the fitbit is excellent. I bought one when I hit the top of my range and it allowed me to eat more flexibly because I was measuring my steps more accurately. I had always logged but I found it motivated. Still do in fact. I used a pedometer, then the fitbit, and now an apple watch.

Soopatt

starfish235 wrote: »

The thing is you need be careful and be very accurate in your calorie counting. I couldn't lose the last 5 until I got on MFP and was detailed in my count.

Agreed. I think I am pretty good with my accuracy, but I know there are still a few areas that I could tighten up. I don't weigh eggs for example and I have an averaged amount of milk that I use as an entry for a cup of coffee. I also make a batch of overnight oats using the recipe builder, weigh everything and portion it into five, rather than knowing the exact calories of that particular serving.

I might need to correct these areas as I go.

smelbo

pondee629 wrote: »

When I got to within 5 pounds of my goal weight, I lowered my weekly expected loss to a half pound from one pound. Thought I would kinda ease into maintenance. Still losing that half pound a week ;-)

Michael190lbs

Get to maintenance first or a little below then work on staying there I have been at maintenance for 5 months my weight fluctuates 7 pounds most of which is water I'm sure but I stay between 183 and 190.

jeepinshawn

I concur with others, stay on your deficit. It is easier to slow down and be more disappointed and try to go back to a steeper deficit again. I wish I had lost another 10lbs, before I had switched...Also remember when you switch to maintaining you will likely gain up to 3lbs as your muscles gain back some of the calories they lost while you were at a deficit.

BurnWithBarn2015

I wanted to ease into maintenance level.
Which i am trying for some months now.

My goal was healthy weight ( 150.2 lbs for me). And since a couple of months i am at a healthy weight.

So tried to be around the 145 lbs and i did....and i was slowly upping calories ( 3 to 4 weeks in between)

Now what surprises me is the fact i am still losing. Very slowly but i do.
I am very accurate I was the whole year and still am.
Everything i weigh in grams...everything spices, herbs all condiments, milk etc i dont use cups and spoons.
Yes even coffee get logged.

So i have a pretty good overview of my numbers/data
And it showed my maintenance would be above the 2000 ( TDEE) but couldn't believe it. So i was careful.
I did it up slowly. At this moment 1850 for 6 days a week and on my rest day a bit less.
But i lost 1.5 pound again which would mean 4900 calories more to consume over 10 days !!!!!!
That's a lot.

But i am brave and amazed and will up to 2000 calories next week when this 1.5 pound stays off and from there it is 4 weeks again to see what happens.

Its a mind game to me and that is what i didn't expect. The numbers told me...but just could not believe it. But it comes very ...very close to the projected data. And dont get me wrong lol....the more the better hehehehe.

Orphia

Thanks for starting this thread! It's been helpful.

I'm 6-8 kg away from my goal range.

Reading all these responses, I think I'm doing pretty well. I'm keeping at my deficit, and I do a lot of exercise which I track with my Fitbit Charge HR, and that earns me more calories that I sometimes don't know what to do with! I average eating back 50-75% of them, though, so that's OK. It's a nice "problem" to have!

I plan to keep exercising, since I love it, and have fitness goals.

My goal range is right in the middle of my height's Healthy BMI range, so once I get there, I'll worry about adding calories back bit by bit. If I go under, it still won't be unhealthy, and will be a nice challenge to get back UP to my goal weight.

crb426

I reached my first goal of 135 without slowing down. I decided to work on losing 5-10 more since I still feel like I can lose a bit more. Instead of a complete maintenance, I have stuck to the calorie cut as I did before, but am a lot more relaxed about going a bit over (like eating a slice of the cake my coworker brings in) without the guilt. I am hovering somewhere between the calories to lose and calories to maintain. It's nice to relax without giving up completely on the plan.

So I am easing into maintenance, but didn't do it until I met my original goal. This will also allow a buffer of a range.

mjglantz

I hit my goal of 162 in April 2013 and actually added calories at the same time I upped my cardio and added weights. Over the next 6 months I lost 20 lbs. At 5'8" being in the range of 140 -143 is perfect for me.

swim777

I keep adjusting my goal too. After reading how most gain four lbs back when they start move into maintenance, I've dropped my goal again to 4 lbs below the range I had chosen. That makes three more months instead of two before I hit my goal. I know it will be worth it...just so ready to be there!!