Dumb question about maintenance

Frenchgrad

Hi everyone! I'm hoping you can help me with a quick question. I'm nearly to my goal weight (aiming for 135, down from 185; hit 139 this morning!), so I'm thinking about what maintenance will look like. Please pardon the dumb question, but I wanna be sure that I know what I'm doing when I get there.

Right now, as I've been losing, I have a calorie goal of 1420. As I go to bed each night, I usually have a deficit of a hundred or so calories (a big green number, Calories Remaining). For example, here's what I've got for today:



This has been working for me as I've lost weight. But when I reach maintenance, I'll have more calories to eat. I assume that "calories remaining" number should be as small as possible, right? Like close to zero and not too negative or positive? Do I have the right idea? I'm wondering because I tested out what my maintenance calorie goal would be, and it's 1600 or so! That seems like a lot of food to eat.

Thanks for your help and insight.

richardgavel

The issue is the exercise calories, because while you can get pretty precise with food calories if you use good DB entries and food scale, actual exercise calories can be off by a lot. Many people eat back only half.

bioklutz

When you hit maintenance you can go into your settings and change your goal to maintaining your weight. You would want to eat all of the calories allotted to you. Many people find that there is a little bit of a trial period to get the number right. If you have been plotting your weight loss and calories you can calculate what your calorie allotment would be. If you are losing 1 pound a week that means you have a 500 calorie deficit a day. Half a pound a week would be a 250 calorie deficit a day.

Some people find it helpful to slowly raise calories to maintenance. It gives you time to adjust to more food. You could eat an extra hundred calories a day for a week or two. Then add another 100 - repeat until you are at your maintenance calories. If you are having a hard time with the extra volume of food eat more fat! It is calorie dense and doesn't take up much room in your belly.

When you transition into maintenance you may notice a temporary increase on the scale. It is not a fat gain. It is water and extra food going through your system. Stay the course - it will pass. Think of your weight as a range not a single number.

sijomial

The issue is the exercise calories, because while you can get pretty precise with food calories if you use good DB entries and food scale, actual exercise calories can be off by a lot. Many people eat back only half.

Exercise calories can also be easy to estimate, exercise calories can also be pretty insignificant as not everyone is a high exerciser. Eating half is simplistic and doesn't make an estimate better - it just makes it lower!

OP - yes you have the right idea. Just stick to your routine but eat more once you get to maintenance - some experimentation may be required to find your level.
The rate of your current weight loss is a better guide to your maintenance calories than anything else.
1600 may be "a lot" for one meal but it's not a lot for a day!

MsRuffBuffNStuff

It's not a dumb question and I'm really still figuring this out myself... I've been on maintenance for a year, up and down over the same 3 pounds. So I guess I'm maintaining..but my calories are crazy. I'm well over 2000 most days and never lower than 1600. I'm only 5'5 and maintaining at 144

I should add I do at least 30 minutes of heavy weight lifting almost every day...no calories calculated for that.

jaxxie

Tough time reponding from my phone, but quick answer is research reverse dieting. Just your current intake ma
kes me cringe. Not even considering your workout level.
Seriously......try reverse dieting. Start slowly. The objective is to eat as much as you can while still losing. Not the reverse. Good kuck.

Frenchgrad

bioklutz wrote: »

Think of your weight as a range not a single number.

Yes, thank you, I have that in mind. Sorry, my post wasn't clear on that point. When I say "aiming for 135" I mean that 135 should be the highest I go. With that in mind, I was thinking of losing until I reach a lower point (like 132 or so) so that my weight can fluctuate a bit, but 135 would be the high point.

I agree that exercise makes an exact number tricky to come up with, but it's good to know that at least I'm on the right track.

bioklutz wrote: »

If you are losing 1 pound a week that means you have a 500 calorie deficit a day. Half a pound a week would be a 250 calorie deficit a day.

Some people find it helpful to slowly raise calories to maintenance. It gives you time to adjust to more food. You could eat an extra hundred calories a day for a week or two. Then add another 100 - repeat until you are at your maintenance calories. If you are having a hard time with the extra volume of food eat more fat! It is calorie dense and doesn't take up much room in your belly.

Aha, that also helps! I've trained myself so well to think low calorie that eating more food is honestly kinda scary; like a total mindset change. If I eat a huge meal outside of my calorie goal, I'm used to thinking "Gotta walk this off later." But it'll be another mindset change like when I first made the change to my eating habits when I started losing.

Thank you to everyone for responding, very helpful info.

Cahgetsfit

I don't enter my exercise calories. I put them all down as 1. so then I don't (most of the time) eat back the calories.