How long have you maintained?

cmcollins001

I was watching a video today from someone who lost weight and got fit, however, they made the statement that you can't lose weight AND keep it off by calorie counting. I find this hard to believe. Just listening to "how they did it," they basically reduced their calories by meeting certain timing requirements as well as a very high protein diet.

So, my question to you is, how long have you been at your goal and maintaining...or at least been able to still head toward your goal by tracking your calories?


TL;DR - Does this work long term and if it has for you, how long?

pkw58

I just started my second year of maintenance. I actually agree that you can't just count calories and maintain. You have to get sleep, drink water, exercise and eat the right things (whatever those things are to you) so you don't binge and fall off the wagon.

I also agree you can maintain without counting calories. BUT - I need to log to maintain. So I log my calories and practice mindful eating. And exercising, and getting enough sleep... so to each his or her own.

sbrownallison

I'm virtually at maintenance; maybe a couple of pounds to go, which are coming off very slowly. I expect to continue with MFP, logging daily, and continuing an exercise regimen. Having been overweight most of my life, and having lost weight before, I understand that maintenance is probably the most difficult phase. I also accept that this is what I will have to do to maintain a normal weight and continue a healthy lifestyle. When I lost weight previously, there was a sense of "I'm done now, so I can go back to being like everyone else." The truth is I am not like everyone else: I have a natural tendency to tip toward obesity and toward being sedentary. I have now become a person who eats less and moves more. I don't expect that to change much. This is my new normal. One thing that I see consistently in articles about being successful at weight loss/maintenance is that exercise may be helpful for weight loss -- but it is crucial for weight maintenance.

exWHYzee1337

ive maintained about a year and a half. counting calories and working out. I think it depends on where you are when maintenance begins. if your lifting regularly then stop but continue counting, you will lose muscle mass. so I think it just depends on goals, but for maintaining weight I think counting only would work for the most part.

Kymmu

I have gone up and down by the same 4 pounds for about 2 years.
I guess this is maintenance.
If I'm careful for about a month it's down if I let myself go it's up.
I will never let it go more than 4 pounds though before I rein it in again.
good luck!

Yeller_Sensation

I have maintained my weight within a band of 4 lbs for a year but my goal now is to gain. I am eating at a surplus in order to build muscle.

harleygroomer

for every 15 pounds I lose my trainer makes me STOP and maintain it for a week so that I know the triggers for gaining weight. I go up and down some--but after all this time I know what I can and can't have and so I just view this as a lifestyle change and not a diet. But I do not deny myself something I want--may only be a tablespoon of whatever--but I do not feel deprived and can live with that.

Sabine_Stroehm

10+ years.
For the first 9, no I didn't count calories. I maintained the same basic principles of healthy eating that I adopted while losing.
Now, yes tracking, because I'm peri-menopausal and my metabolism has slowed etc. etc. etc. So now I'm counting.

MB_Positif

I've pretty much been maintaining since January of 2012 with the exception of a few pounds of fluctuation and a small gain of 6 pounds after a major surgery. My life has been chaotic to say the least and pretty much all I had the capability to do at some points was count calories with no exercise at all and it absolutely worked. The only reason I gained a little after surgery was because awesome people were bringing us free meals and I decided to just eat to feed my healing brain.

TravelDog14

Only maintaining for 5 months so far, and I'm still logging and counting calories diligently.

Don't see myself stopping with this for the foreseeable future as it's been a huge part of why I've been successful.
Right now I don't need to mess with success.

CoderGal

Over a year. I don't count anymore really (though I did log today). I think they're getting at the point it's inconvenient. And it is. If I start going up however, counting usually gives me a reality check.

Deipneus

I was watching a video today from someone who lost weight and got fit, however, they made the statement that you can't lose weight AND keep it off by calorie counting. I find this hard to believe.

Me too, especially since I've been on maintenance since May of last year. Not only that, but I lost weight 5 or 6 years ago and gained half of it back because I quit keeping track of what I was eating.

I do track less precisely than I used to and I don't track my last meal because once I decide to eat it, it doesn't matter. I'm not keeping a historical record I'm just trying to make sure I don't over eat. To me it's like using a map. If I don't have one, I don't know where I am. I just have no memory or judgement when it comes to eating.

cmcollins001

I'm not ready for maintenance yet, but I have people on my FL that are maintaining and have for a long time.

Over the last year I've been tracking, pretty regularly for the most part, and I don't see where it's going to be a problem when I get to maintenance. I'm not anal about it, and I'm accurate as I can be about 90% of the time (give or take). I enjoy birthdays, and holidays and time with friends without worrying about one day or even a weekend here and there.

I just didn't agree with the speaker saying that calorie counting doesn't work long term when I know people on MFP and using other counting methods have been able to maintain for a while.

nf3dude

Nearly one year and counting. Just being mindful of the scale. I go up a little, I go down a little. Never more then 7 lbs.

jdm_taco

2.5 years

thepetiterunner

I've been going on almost 3 years now. I don't strictly count calories, but I'm aware enough to be cautious of serving sizes and I've continued to maintain an active lifestyle. I fluctuate about 3-5 lbs, within my goal weight, and that's totally acceptable to me

j1wright

I have maintained for over a year now. Actually lost a little bit on maintenance while tracking so I stopped tracking and stopped cardio. I think I have finally found my balance. I am what you might call "skinny fat". I need to tone but have been putting it off. I do track when I feel bloated and disgusted with myself. It is just a form of control, it makes me feel good and helps me to control what I eat so I don't bloat up and feel bad.

PaytraB

5 months now. I'm slowly starting to "eyeball" amounts and not weigh everything. It's a bit scary but I think I've learned enough from MFP to make it work. By weighing and measuring everything my weight is steady within 0.2Kg each month. I'm hoping that by easing this a bit, my weight will be maintained within a pound or two. I will be keeping an eagle-eye on my weight each month until I have more confidence in my "eyeballing" abilities. I only weigh myself once a month.

lithezebra

I've maintained for a longer time than I spent at my heaviest weight. I was really only at my heaviest for about 5 years, and I've been at least 15 pounds lighter for about 18 years. I wasn't counting calories the whole time. Keeping the last 5 pounds off requires calorie counting.

Seaduck79

I've been maintaining for about 5 months now. It would seem foolish to me to abandon the methods and practices and habits I used to lose the weight, so while I upped my daily caloric allowance to a weight-neutral number, I still track my exercise and calories, just so I don't slip into old habits.

As long as I stay within a pound or two either way of my goal weight of 175, I'm not worried about it.

The only concession I've made is that I can have an occasional "bad" day. Just not a "bad" week.

SalishSea

I have maintained for 18 months now! Even after surgery for continued Grade 4 Endometriosis. And working 12hr night shifts.

The key for me is mfp logging. Walking hard. Meal planning. Higher fat. Higher protein. Lower carb. And a new closet full of cute clothes.

MoreBean13

Well you know my story, but I've been maintaining for 5 months. I stopped tracking, but kept to pretty much the same eating habits as I was when I was losing, with a day of tracking here and there. Then, as they say, life got in the way and I started eating out more often and i started losing touch with my daily calories. I came back to MFP and started tracking again when I felt myself slipping, BEFORE I gained any weight.

This is how I see myself maintaining long-term, logging for periods of time to establish routines, and not logging when I feel comfortable doing so, and then logging again when I feel like I'm losing grasp.

BinaryPulsar

When I joined mfp I only weighed 4 pounds more than I do now. I've been using mfp for over a year, on maintenance. It's easier to be on maintenance and stay there consistently since joining mfp. I'm not strict about the calorie counting. I estimate and eyeball. I keep within a range (calorie needs are always changing). I take days or weeks off (and can still eat the same way, even though I'm not counting or tracking). I enjoy myself. But, it gives me an understanding of the calories in my food and what works and doesn't. It helps me track my protein and calcium. I see this is as being an effective way to maintain and continue working on my fitness, especially as I get older. And I've learned a lot from doing it, which would make maintaining easier if I did stop counting (as a result of all the counting I have already done).

JeanneTops

Two years.

I think it depends on how overweight you were and for how long. For me, oh, 90 pounds for 30 years. The way I see it, after 30 years of maintaining a 90 pound weight loss, I can start thinking about not counting calories any more. Course, I'll be 92...

Jeanne

BluejayNY

I lost 50 lbs 6 years ago and never gained any of it back. The highest I ever got was 3 lbs over my goal weight (125) which was in hopes it would increase my fertility.

I do it by portioning my food, counting calories when the scale goes up, and eating certain foods in moderation. I basically changed my lifestyle to one I am comfortable living with. Its basically entirely by diet. I have worked out often and not at all and saw no difference in the scale. When I work out, I get hungrier and eat more. If I do not work out, I am less hungry and eat less.

I haven't found maintaining difficult...YET. I am expecting that may change as I age.

LuckyFur

Sobriety?

About 10 minutes.

natalie412

I have been maintaining since May 2012. I hit my goal (135), went into maintenance, continued to lose until I stabilized around 130. I kept counting calories until this summer, when I tried not logging, and started to gain a little. I got back around 135 again, and started logging again. Now I am around 133 avg.

Maintenance is not hard at all - I like logging, it works for me (I am also a runner, so it helps me make sure I am eating the right amount) - I definitely estimate a little more and am a little less accurate and more likely to take a day or two off logging.

I weigh myself most mornings, and if I consistently start seeing a weight above the top of my "happy range" then I know I need to do something.

donna1432

started my journey 2009 and its a lifestyle journey now no longer just maintenance!!

greedygirl118

I was only just bordering on overweight when I lost more than twenty pounds, back in 2001/2. I went below my goal weight initially, then maintained at around 147-150 lbs until January this year, when I decided to lose the ten pounds that had been bugging me for years! I've been maintaining at 140lbs since Easter (i'm 5'8).

For me, maintaining is about constant vigilence, and being determined to lose those few pounds you inevitably gain while on holiday/at Christmas etc. If I can mix my metaphors, it's so much easier to nip things in the bud than to bury your head in the sand!

I lost the ten pounds by doing 5:2 fasting. I'm maintaining by fasting one day a week. I like it because it means only really watching what you eat for one day in every seven. The rest of the time I eat pretty much what I like, within reason.

melusinagr

I've been on maintenance since December 2011. Lost about 5 kilos the first year of maintenance and I think I have the right balance now. I count calories, exercise, eat healthy, etc., etc.

jennaworksout

i lost about 60 pounds, and pretty much have been maintaining for about 8 months now....i have come to the conclusion that I just won't ever lose the last 5- 7 pounds I want to , so maintenance lifestyle for me :happy: