In a Maintenance Funk (and fighting weight creep)

ReaderGirl3

My 3 year maintenance anniversary is in a couple weeks, and instead of celebrating this milestone, I'm feeling very down about the whole weight/maintenance thing. I've lost over 50lbs and had been successfully maintaining within my maintenance range, but this past winter I totally lost focus and my weight-in this morning put me at the highest number I've seen sine 2013. It's still not a huge gain (my bmi is currently 21.5), but the weight creep is happening and if I don't get my head out of my bum now, I know where I'm going to end up (flirting again with T2). Sooo, having a bit of a pity party for myself right now

On a positive note, I've set my MFP account back up and this morning I'm starting a short weight loss phase again, to lose the creep. But, this experience has really hit me hard and I'm beginning to realize how difficult long term maintenance really is!

Any others out there who are/have struggled with long term maintenance? Any words of wisdom for how to keep focused?

Francl27

I'm still 4 pounds over my lowest weight 2 years ago. I can't seem to be able to shake it. I have to admit that I'm jealous of people who have no problem cutting again.. it's a big struggle for me! I do great for a week or two then mess up the 3rd week and I end up maintaining instead of losing... not a huge deal but it means I'm not losing the weight that slowly creeps up.. or it takes months.

So... I hear you.

tulips_and_tea

Do you workout or participate in any activities? If so, set fitness or activity related goals, instead of solely weight related goals. Maintenance can seem boring. No more scale changes and body changes can be very small. However, if you focus on fitness and what your body can do it seems to automatically help you eat better so as to reach those goals.

ReaderGirl3

BZAH10 wrote: »

Do you workout or participate in any activities? If so, set fitness or activity related goals, instead of solely weight related goals. Maintenance can seem boring. No more scale changes and body changes can be very small. However, if you focus on fitness and what your body can do it seems to automatically help you eat better so as to reach those goals.

I lost the weight without any exercise and since transitioning into maintenance I've gone through phases with it (mostly walking during summer months, along with some body-weight strength training on and off/currently off). Great point-exercising could be a great area to focus on!

I've logged my food for today (first time I've logged in a loooong time), and I'm already feeling better about my situation. I'm still a very healthy weight/bmi and my last blood work was really great (last October). I just need to tweak some things, get serious about logging again and then maybe adding some exercise to shake things up and give me new goals to work towards

ReaderGirl3

Francl27 wrote: »

I'm still 4 pounds over my lowest weight 2 years ago. I can't seem to be able to shake it. I have to admit that I'm jealous of people who have no problem cutting again.. it's a big struggle for me! I do great for a week or two then mess up the 3rd week and I end up maintaining instead of losing... not a huge deal but it means I'm not losing the weight that slowly creeps up.. or it takes months.

So... I hear you.

It's rough trying to figure out this whole thing long term! My initial weight loss phase was pretty easy (I did calorie restricting/IF), but that was for a few months worth of time. Maintenance could be 40+ years for me oiy!

trina1049

I've only be at it for a year or so but I've found that I have to keep logging and weighing/measuring all my food. I hit a healthy BMI last February (2015) and dropped a few more pounds transitioning to maintenance a few months ago. Since I'm old and small MFP gave me a only bit more maintenance calories so it wasn't much of a transition. Aside from continuing to log and weigh/measure your food can you add an activity tracker? Having a Fitbit has really helped me stay active and focused. As mentioned before try working on a fitness goal. I'm keeping a consistent gym schedule of moderate activity, weights and cardio 3Xs per week. So far I'm staying within my goal range and I've lost between 50-53 lbs (fluctuations).

Springfield1970

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

tahxirez

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

Genius!

ReaderGirl3

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

My weekends are all over the place, so I wonder if I could do a little under calories during the week, to give a cushion for the weekend?

Francl27

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

My weekends are all over the place, so I wonder if I could do a little under calories during the week, to give a cushion for the weekend?

It's pretty much how it ends up for me. 4-5 days with a 300/400 deficit, 1/2 days at maintenance, 1 day 600 to 800 over, lol.

ReaderGirl3

Francl27 wrote: »

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

My weekends are all over the place, so I wonder if I could do a little under calories during the week, to give a cushion for the weekend?

It's pretty much how it ends up for me. 4-5 days with a 300/400 deficit, 1/2 days at maintenance, 1 day 600 to 800 over, lol.

Thanks, I think this is something I definitely need to experiment with, after I get rid of the weight creep

ahoy_m8

Great job with the loss and 3 year maintenance! Don't be hard on yourself. As a long time maintainer, I go through spells--maybe several months at a time-- where I don't give energy to watching what I eat. Maybe something else in life is taking a lot of attention, or maybe I'm just unmotivated or more interested in other things. I keep up with exercise, but sometimes with more or less enthusiasm and vigor. The net result is creep. It never seems to creep down when I'm paying less attention. Only up. Ha! Anyway, the important thing is exactly what you have done: noticing you're at the top of your maintenance range and start tracking for a small deficit. We all go through ups and downs in various areas. It's a part of life. A little slack is ok. The important thing is knowing when to say enough.

FWIW, I'm another one of those that banks calories for the weekend. These days I maintain with one low day (usually Monday because I'm still full from Sunday), a slight deficit during the week, and wine on weekends. Whatever calories I have left over for the week, I eat them all on Sunday, which I intend to be several hundred kcal higher if I didn't blow it earlier. It breaks the monotony and gives me a big eating day to look forward to.

victoria_1024

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

My weekends are all over the place, so I wonder if I could do a little under calories during the week, to give a cushion for the weekend?

I've been doing this too. I like to indulge on the weekends. I'm happier eating at a deficit all week long and then eating more on Saturday or Sunday. Or both.

DoneWorking

When I hit maintenance, I did okay for a year or so, then the creep set in and the next thing I knew I was back up about 33 pounds. I tried to blame it on living my summers at the beach and too many rotating parties, but I only have myself to blame though because it was preventable if I'd just kept kept logging and adjusting. So here I am back at it. Maybe I'll try that banking idea when I get back to maintenance. Good luck and cheers to all!

veggiecanner

I'm starting to understand why my basically thin grandmother had a scale in her bathroom.

mamadon

Francl27 wrote: »

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Springfield1970 wrote: »

I've decided to log 100 calories under my maintenance and have a 'party' every week or two.
It's the only way to fight the creep.
Party's gonna party.

My weekends are all over the place, so I wonder if I could do a little under calories during the week, to give a cushion for the weekend?

It's pretty much how it ends up for me. 4-5 days with a 300/400 deficit, 1/2 days at maintenance, 1 day 600 to 800 over, lol.

Me too, on Fridays and Saturdays I tend to eat quite a bit over, so the other days I am usually eating around 300 calories under maintenance to even it out. I have been maintaining for two years and for me it takes constant vigilance. Worth it for sure, but hard work.

ReaderGirl3

Thanks everyone for the input! This morning I'm much calmer about the whole thing (seeing that higher number on the scale yesterday, after not weighing for a few months, put me in panic mode!), and I had a solid, on track day yesterday I even had a drop on the scale this morning (gotta love water weight lol).

I also started the 100 push-up challenge yesterday (I did it last year and had a lot of fun with it-crazy how last year I completed the whole thing, and yesterday it about killed me to do the first day/beginner mode ), and then my family went on a brisk 2 mile walk last night

Feel like I'm back in control!

Francl27

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the input! This morning I'm much calmer about the whole thing (seeing that higher number on the scale yesterday, after not weighing for a few months, put me in panic mode!), and I had a solid, on track day yesterday I even had a drop on the scale this morning (gotta love water weight lol).

I also started the 100 push-up challenge yesterday (I did it last year and had a lot of fun with it-crazy how last year I completed the whole thing, and yesterday it about killed me to do the first day/beginner mode ), and then my family went on a brisk 2 mile walk last night

Feel like I'm back in control!

Good job.

The key is to try not to lose control. Keep logging... keep exercising... keep trying to make good choices...

It's definitely hard though.

WinoGelato

I'm another that eats at a deficit for some of the week so I can save cals for the weekend. Also, When I was losing I always knew I had a buffer built into my calorie goal, so if I went over, even for the week, I knew it wouldn't make much difference. Not having that kind of stressed me out when I moved to maintenance so I actually set my calorie goal on here about 100 cals below what MFP thinks my maintenance level is. Not surprisingly, I've still been losing a bit and am actually below the bottom of my maintenance range for about 6 weeks now so I'm trying to figure out if I should up cals or keep where they are.

macchiatto

Yes. I've done way too much yoyo'ing in the past. I've learned as I've gone along (and keep learning as sometimes things that worked in the past stop working for me). So far I've only been maintaining for a few weeks but am hopeful about keeping this up long term.

Good luck. You can do this!! Nip it in the bud before it keeps creeping up. That's happened to me before. It sounds cheesy but I would do your best to focus on the positives and how well you've been doing over the past 3 years.

macchiatto

Also for me, setting fitness goals (e.g. training for a race, getting through a strength program, etc.) can help when I'm in a funk.

trina1049

ReaderGirl3 wrote: »

Thanks everyone for the input! This morning I'm much calmer about the whole thing (seeing that higher number on the scale yesterday, after not weighing for a few months, put me in panic mode!), and I had a solid, on track day yesterday I even had a drop on the scale this morning (gotta love water weight lol).

I also started the 100 push-up challenge yesterday (I did it last year and had a lot of fun with it-crazy how last year I completed the whole thing, and yesterday it about killed me to do the first day/beginner mode ), and then my family went on a brisk 2 mile walk last night

Feel like I'm back in control!

Yay, you! 3 years on maintenance is awesome so overall you're doing great. It's a new day, you have a better outlook and you can keep it under control! Stay calm and carry on.

ARGriffy

Francl27 wrote: »

I'm still 4 pounds over my lowest weight 2 years ago. I can't seem to be able to shake it. I have to admit that I'm jealous of people who have no problem cutting again.. it's a big struggle for me! I do great for a week or two then mess up the 3rd week and I end up maintaining instead of losing... not a huge deal but it means I'm not losing the weight that slowly creeps up.. or it takes months.

So... I hear you.

DITTO every word. I bounce from goal to +5 and I've got easily more to lose but will they shift after a year of maintenance? Nah. Same pattern of good then bad weeks. Sometimes you do wish you could be "like everyone else" and not look at a cake and analyse if you can eat it that day or not, have a mental battle over salad or fries etc however the reality is, "everyone else" isn't healthy so I guess that's the trade off!

joolie1234

1) Don't stop tracking your food. No matter how long you've been in maintenance, it's easy to get lazy and slip up.
2) When you mess up, forgive yourself and get back on the horse asap. Easier to correct course when you're up only 5 lbs then wait until it's 10, or to lose 10 rather than 20.
3) exercise for overall good health, you'll be more motivated to stick to a healthier diet if you feel strong and fit

julmaxeating

This winter I've gained about 8 lbs. I stopped tracking my food and was taking allergy pills which apparently increase your appetite (which was not mentioned by my doctor). I've never stopped exercising, just clearly ate more than I should have. So I started logging again and stopped the pills (which didn't do anything anyway except contributing to the weight gain). Hopefully, I'll get back to my ideal weight soon. It's such a bummer but I think I've noticed in time.

ReaderGirl3

julmaxeating wrote: »

This winter I've gained about 8 lbs. I stopped tracking my food and was taking allergy pills which apparently increase your appetite (which was not mentioned by my doctor). I've never stopped exercising, just clearly ate more than I should have. So I started logging again and stopped the pills (which didn't do anything anyway except contributing to the weight gain). Hopefully, I'll get back to my ideal weight soon. It's such a bummer but I think I've noticed in time.

Sounds like we're in similar positions, good thing is we both caught the creep before it became a real issue

Soundwave79

Totally understand. I haven't even hit my goal yet and I'm experiencing the creep. I'm eating far below my TDEE ( on most calculators) and I'm up 5+ pounds from my lowest weight which was still 7 pounds short of my goal. I'm on creatine and I lift heavy so I'm hoping it's mostly just water retention but it's been months and I'm still up the 5 pounds. I have fluctuations where I weigh in at 190 and the next day I'm 186 but never really below that. At one point I was 182 (prior to starting the creatine). I don't feel like I can lower my cal intake anymore and maintain my vigorous workouts. I struggle for energy now at times. So I try and increase activity even more by adding walking. But even with working out 6-7 days a week and hitting 10,000 steps on top I'm still stuck and experiencing the creep. Frustrating...

Francl27

Soundwave79 wrote: »

Totally understand. I haven't even hit my goal yet and I'm experiencing the creep. I'm eating far below my TDEE ( on most calculators) and I'm up 5+ pounds from my lowest weight which was still 7 pounds short of my goal. I'm on creatine and I lift heavy so I'm hoping it's mostly just water retention but it's been months and I'm still up the 5 pounds. I have fluctuations where I weigh in at 190 and the next day I'm 186 but never really below that. At one point I was 182 (prior to starting the creatine). I don't feel like I can lower my cal intake anymore and maintain my vigorous workouts. I struggle for energy now at times. So I try and increase activity even more by adding walking. But even with working out 6-7 days a week and hitting 10,000 steps on top I'm still stuck and experiencing the creep. Frustrating...

Might not be the place, but do you weigh your food? You're using some entries that are questionable (2 pieces of wheat toast is closer to 220 calories than 150, for example), and I know from experience that a scoop of protein powder is often 1.3 serving or something.

kasaz

The only way I can maintain is with exercise. I know that to lose it is more the food plan, but the exercise allows me to eat a little more so it is easier. The exercise I enjoy the most is hiking, so I'm out 4 or 5 days a weeks and I can go for hours. The exercise I need to focus on more is strength training. Good luck to you and don't beat yourself up, you've done very well.

LivingtheLeanDream

I'm also maintaining my loss for over 3 yrs but am finding it going smoothly in general. When I go on holidays I might gain a few pounds but within a week to 10 days that has gone.

I don't even log my foods any longer, sometimes I do for the heck of it, but I'm always on the button with calories. I do keep a mental tab of how much I've eaten and also try not to snack after 7pm.

I do a bit of what the other posters have already said, I consciously eat less during the week to allow for the weekends excess - it all balances out.


I eat around 1900-2000 calories on week days and around 2400-2500 on the weekends.

Soundwave79

Francl27 wrote: »

Soundwave79 wrote: »

Totally understand. I haven't even hit my goal yet and I'm experiencing the creep. I'm eating far below my TDEE ( on most calculators) and I'm up 5+ pounds from my lowest weight which was still 7 pounds short of my goal. I'm on creatine and I lift heavy so I'm hoping it's mostly just water retention but it's been months and I'm still up the 5 pounds. I have fluctuations where I weigh in at 190 and the next day I'm 186 but never really below that. At one point I was 182 (prior to starting the creatine). I don't feel like I can lower my cal intake anymore and maintain my vigorous workouts. I struggle for energy now at times. So I try and increase activity even more by adding walking. But even with working out 6-7 days a week and hitting 10,000 steps on top I'm still stuck and experiencing the creep. Frustrating...

Might not be the place, but do you weigh your food? You're using some entries that are questionable (2 pieces of wheat toast is closer to 220 calories than 150, for example), and I know from experience that a scoop of protein powder is often 1.3 serving or something.

Indeed, I freely admit I am not a super accurate logger. But my TDEE is 2800-3200 calories (depending on the calculator) and I set my daily goal to 2,000. I highly doubt I'm over eating anywhere near 800-1200 calories. I could be off 300-400 on some days no doubt but that still leaves me in quite a deficit.

At one point I logged in grams for an entire week to see if I was ridiculously over eating and I wasn't off more then a couple 100 calories from a similar day when I used ounces and cups. But I suppose tightening up the ship can't hurt aside from taking more time and would only help, thanks for the reply.