won't it just even out

jenlhugg

I have been doing this for a while now, and it is working. Roughly 26 weeks with 26 pound loss. I know that soon I will reach my goal weight. I just can't imagine eating more than I do now, I eat a lot. If I just keep going with the same amount of calories and exercise, won't my weight just even out with how may calories I am consuming. For the maintenance of my goal weight do I really need to add more calories to my diet?

Oompa_Loompa

Good question. I'm interested to hear the responses because I was wondering the same thing.

lessertess

easy enough to find out. Go into goals and enter your goal weight and calculate your calories at maintenance.

stroutman81

Ditto what the above poster said... though I haven't toyed around with the MFP calculators.

Here's an example.

I'm 200 lbs. An estimate for my maintenance calories is 15 calories per pound... or 3000 calories per day.

If I wanted to lose fat/weight, I might cut my calories by 25% from maintenance.

25% of 3000 is 750 calories... so my daily intake for fat loss would be 2250.

Keeping in mind the general rule that 15 calories or so per pound is maintenance, we can then derive the weight for which 2250 would be maintenance.

2250/15 = 150 lbs.

Now please keep in mind this is all VERY general and it's a bit over-simplified.

For instance, maintenance of 15 calories per pound might be high or low for some folks depending on their level of activity, metabolism, dieting history, etc. But that holds true for all calorie requirement calculators.

Also, this math exercise above doesn't account for things such as the adaptive component of metabolism - what many folks refer to as starvation mode.

But the mile high view does say if you keep losing weight while maintaining a steady calorie deficit, eventually said deficit will turn into maintenance since a smaller body requires less fuel.

Now...

Riding a diet that far may or may not be appropriate depending on the person. If you'd like to give us more specifics about yourself such as your age, weight, calorie intake, etc. we might be able to offer more specific advice.

jenlhugg

I get what you are saying, but I don't consider the way I am eating now to be a "diet." I get plenty of what I need, I don't feel like I am hungry or deprived of anything. So if I am comfortable with what I am doing now, and it becomes "normal" for me then my body will end up where it is supposed to be, or what it feels comfortable with.

Mindful_Trent

I get what you are saying, but I don't consider the way I am eating now to be a "diet." I get plenty of what I need, I don't feel like I am hungry or deprived of anything. So if I am comfortable with what I am doing now, and it becomes "normal" for me then my body will end up where it is supposed to be, or what it feels comfortable with.

It probably depends on how much you are eating now... if you're only eating 1200 calories, that's probably pretty low for maintenance. Once you reach your goal weight, you might consider upping your calories gradually. For example, if you're eating 1200/day now, go up to 1400/day for a week or two, see if you keep losing... if you do, up to 1600/day, etc. It would be hard to go from eating 1200 to 2000/day for sure, but if you up things gradually it might be less stressful.

jenlhugg

On an average day, with my exercise I end up eating 1700-1800 calories, I think it is plenty

stroutman81

I get what you are saying, but I don't consider the way I am eating now to be a "diet." I get plenty of what I need, I don't feel like I am hungry or deprived of anything. So if I am comfortable with what I am doing now, and it becomes "normal" for me then my body will end up where it is supposed to be, or what it feels comfortable with.

Yeah.... I believe some of my intentions were lost in translation. Outside of athletes trying to make weight... I never mean "diet" to mean a temporary way of eating to achieve a temporary result. I mean diet in the literal sense... as in the foods you put in your mouth.

Best to you.