Tracey's Maintenance Journal - Year One
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Thanks Jim, I have no other option than to figure this maintenance thing out because I refuse to go back from where I came from. My new plan is a conglomerate of different IF plans that I put together to be the best fit for me.2
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I'm like you, I refuse to go back. I guess that's why when I reached maintenance I was terrified of relaxing, letting up, or otherwise taking my eye off the ball. I think we need to be cautious, go slow and get maintenance right for our particular lifestyle. If that means some experimentation or reshuffling of the plan, so be it.tlblanksfit wrote: »Thanks Jim, I have no other option than to figure this maintenance thing out because I refuse to go back from where I came from. My new plan is a conglomerate of different IF plans that I put together to be the best fit for me.
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200-lbs is my upper limit. I get there and I get serious again. Right now I'm just hovering around 197 and will think about trying to go lower after the holidays. I weigh daily to make sure I know what is going on.0
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160 pounds is my do not pass limit. I would like to not go above 155 but until I get my maintenance plan right, I see myself getting past 155 every now and again. I usually weigh everyday, but I forgot to weigh this morning. When I weigh tomorrow, TrendWeight will fill in a weight for me for today so I will just go with that.
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tlblanksfit wrote: »160 pounds is my do not pass limit. I would like to not go above 155 but until I get my maintenance plan right, I see myself getting past 155 every now and again. I usually weigh everyday, but I forgot to weigh this morning. When I weigh tomorrow, TrendWeight will fill in a weight for me for today so I will just go with that.
Sounds like your on top of it!0 -
tlblanksfit wrote: »Day one of the plan went smoothly. So far today is going without a hitch. I do think this will work for the long haul.
Nice, I can't wait to hear all about it
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I’ve got an upper limit which I can’t go past as well. Trying to get back below it.
Good to hear that you’ve found something that will work long term. Good luck for the weigh in tomorrow!0 -
Merry Christmas everyone!1
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You too!0
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Hello everyone, I have decided to go back into weight loss mode for the month of January. I have been above my maintenance range now for 16 days and I need to get back down. I am going to go back to strict Basic OMAD and hopefully that will get me back closer to 150 by the end of the month.1
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I know you can do it Tracey 1
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Thanks Brenda!1
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tlblanksfit wrote: »Hello everyone, I have decided to go back into weight loss mode for the month of January. I have been above my maintenance range now for 16 days and I need to get back down. I am going to go back to strict Basic OMAD and hopefully that will get me back closer to 150 by the end of the month.
You can do it!0 -
tlblanksfit wrote: »Hello everyone, I have decided to go back into weight loss mode for the month of January. I have been above my maintenance range now for 16 days and I need to get back down. I am going to go back to strict Basic OMAD and hopefully that will get me back closer to 150 by the end of the month.
You can do it!
May I ask what "basic" OMAD is?0 -
Good luck with the plan. I’m sure you can do it! Take one day at a time and you’ll get to goal soon.
Hope to hear more of your progress updates!0 -
Good luck with the plan. I’m sure you can do it! Take one day at a time and you’ll get to goal soon.
Hope to hear more of your progress updates!0 -
As you can see from my chart below, I have averaged a 2 pound gain for the last 2 weeks which screams to be handled. I think my best most reliable plan is OMAD. All other modifications have led to gains so I will be doing the Basic OMAD (one small plate) through the month of January and then resume maintenance doing OMAD.
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OMAD THE BASICSas posted by Joe.
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It violates all modern dietary advice, but this is how our hunter-gatherer ancestors ate since the time before humans could even be called humans. And this is the ONLY way I know of that basically guarantees that you will lose the weight and keep it off forever. Not only that, but you will feel better and be sick less. I am living proof. Here are the basics...
#1) Pick a goal weight range--not a weight, but a weight range of about 15 pounds since we humans are always in a state of flux. This will change as you get more confidence and approach where you first set out to be at.
#2) Weigh yourself to begin with. Weigh yourself when you wake up and use the same scale.
#3) Continue to weigh yourself ONLY ONCE every seven days. Don’t break this rule! Pick a day of the week and weigh yourself on that day without fail. Body weight fluctuates, so don’t weigh everyday. You will psych yourself out. For every 3,500 calories reduced over 7 days, that is generally 1 pound of body fat lost. You lose weekly, NOT daily. So weigh weekly.
#4) Set aside a 4-hour window to eat in. It should be the same time everyday. It can be morning, noon, or evening. It won’t change the results, but keep the same window everyday.
#5) Eat your one meal within your window always. Do not vary the times.
#6) Eat with "the 4 ones" in mind…
A. Only ONE meal per day - no snacking or anything with calories afterwards. Any medications or supplements can be taken with the meal. Eat whatever you want. You'll find you crave healthier foods as time passes and your stomach shrinks. Don't worry about that now. Just no "junk food" (i.e. foods like chips or candy that you'd never want to make a meal of anyway).
B. Eat ONE average-sized dinner plate completely filled up - including any desserts, sauces, etc. No eating from containers or bags, but fill up your plate. Don’t starve (there is a difference between being hungry and starving, btw). The idea is not to starve, but to shrink your stomach back to a reasonable size. This is especially important if you are a binge-eater and can consume six plate-fulls of food and thousands of calories per day. Don't try to overdo your efforts. Fill up. It is mightily difficult to get more than 1,700 calories on one plate. This is a form of de facto calorie-counting, but also invokes the fasting portion to reset and regulate blood-sugar levels and metabolism. This is why this plan works when others do not. There is a reason why every culture the world over has historically had fasting as an integral part of their regimens. It helps the mind and body.
C. Have ONE calorie beverage with the meal - this will help get your calories (beer, milk, or juices, but should generally be no more than 12 to 16 oz in size). Save the calorie-free beverages for later as meal replacements. You want your body to associate them with no insulin production.
D. Finish within ONE hour. Eat and be done with it.
#7) After the meal, only calorie-free liquid consumption can be had, like water, coffee, and teas. Diet sodas and water enhancers are also an option, but teas and coffees are preferred since they aid in weight loss tremendously and have next to no calories at all. It is best, however, to vary your beverages since you build up resistance to the weight loss effects if done every single day. Mix them up.
*** If you are diabetic and have unsafe blood-sugar drops, you can use juices to raise it back up, but only if medically necessary to do so. You don’t want your pancreas active during fasting. ***
#8) At least twice a week at meals, consume 1 cup of the juice of your choice with two tablespoons of raw, un-distilled apple cider vinegar. This is an old folk remedy, but will help enormously in losing weight. It makes the body more alkaline and has a plentitude of health benefits.
#9) Allow one splurge day per week. For this splurge, you will eat one meal or multiple throughout the day, but ignore the one-plate/one-beverage rules. Try not to gorge, but it’s ok if you do (generally, when you are more thirsty than hungry, you can stop eating). The splurge will push your metabolism into high gear and help to make up for any deficiencies. Vary your splurge days, but never have more than two splurge days back to back unless you are close to your goal weight.
#10) Try not to deviate from too many of the above rules. You can have what you want, but you only have 23 hours at the longest until your next meal. Don’t get talked out of it. OMAD doesn’t “teach your body to store fat,” does not “mess up your metabolism,” and is not “unhealthy.” Don’t listen to the parrots. They only know what they hear from the nonsense dietary wisdom of their time, which happens to be false.
This will work if you do it. “The shakes” will go away and you’ll feel better as the weeks progress, although the first week will be difficult. It is no different from a drug addict having to detox. You must learn to break your dependence on food. Your following your cravings and psychological eating is what made you need to lose weight in the first place, not pigging out at Thanksgiving. By eating at the same time everyday, you will never again struggle with weight for as long as you do this. But your body will always go for what it is IN your stomach instead of ON your stomach if you keep up the multiple feedings. This is why those who carry on about eating multiple times a day either don’t lose weight, or don’t lose beyond a certain point. Serious weight loss requires being a little hungry, even though this is against modern dietary advice.
This demands some sacrifice, yes, but the difficulty passes, and it calls for less sacrifice than merely “moderating” portions three times a day. It is precisely because this is difficult that you know it will work--because anything worth anything costs something. Don’t give up. It doesn’t matter what anyone else says or does. For you, you eat once a day. Stick to that resolution and the pounds will fall right off!2 -
Today's meal. I also had an apple with a tablespoon of peanut butter and a chocolate kale shake.
Half BLT Sandwich with pickle spear, salad, and chicken vegetable soup
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You can do it. I do think it is unreasonable to try to stay at an exact weight. Like Joe said pick a weight range to work with. I find that I bounce around in a 5-lb window and once I hit the upper end, I try to get busy again. Good luck!0
