Those who gained back...

journey_man

...why did you?

My goal is far, but looking to learn now to avoid a similar fate down the road.

Alatariel75

Falling back into old habits, and not changing my mindset when I was losing. I saw the losing phase as a "diet" that had an end date, when I could get back to "normal". "Normal" was how I got fat in the first place.

Learning to maintain begins the day you decide to start losing. It's a challenge in and of itself.

Shynique37

I lost the 30lbs starting thinking I was fabulous because everyone was complimenting me. So I stop going to the gym started eating again & here I am again with 35lbs gained back. I need to learn to just keep going don't stop even when people say you look great. Keep going even when I feel great. No stopping until you reach your ultimate goal. I'm 240 I would like to be 220 by March 1. My goal is far too but you know what it's true change the diet mind set and adapt a new me attitude. I just joined this site a few days ago and honestly it's very motivating.

Walter__

Falling back into old habits, and not changing my mindset when I was losing. I saw the losing phase as a "diet" that had an end date, when I could get back to "normal". "Normal" was how I got fat in the first place.

Learning to maintain begins the day you decide to start losing. It's a challenge in and of itself.

This.

It's a lifestyle change. That's why stupid diets that completely ban certain types of foods NEVER work. It is unsustainable in the long term.

stormbornkraken

1st I got "too busy" for a workout. Total crap. If anything I needed the stress relief and outlet more at that time.
2nd became lax on portion control.

I know exactly what my lame excuses were and they contributed to a bad situation.

I am just as stressed as I was then but taking control of my lifestyle and health add energy and motivation. I accomplish more now, even with more on my plate. Win-win!

Just my experience. Best of luck with yours!

shanteel612

Weight started coming of slowly and I lost motivation to continue.

MyOwnSunshine

Faulty thinking. When you hit your goal weight, you're not "done." It's just a point in the process. You need to maintain the behaviors that you develop while you are losing in order to maintain.

If you log and work out while losing, you will have to log and work out while maintaining.

If you eat no carbs while you are losing, it's likely you will regain your weight if you suddenly start eating all the carbs you want when you reach goal.

Whatever you decide to do to lose your weight, make sure you can continue it forever.

ravenribbs

Deluding myself that diet alone or exercise alone would suffice. Not for me, it doesn't. The apathy and depression are close to the surface--a couple disciplined, kickass days will go a long way for me.........

journey_man

Thank you to everyone who replied for your candor.

Faulty thinking. When you hit your goal weight, you're not "done." It's just a point in the process. You need to maintain the behaviors that you develop while you are losing in order to maintain.

If you log and work out while losing, you will have to log and work out while maintaining.

If you eat no carbs while you are losing, it's likely you will regain your weight if you suddenly start eating all the carbs you want when you reach goal.

Whatever you decide to do to lose your weight, make sure you can continue it forever.

Well then we have a problem because I have no intention of logging my food for the rest of my life. Hoping that portion control can be exercised without. I am approaching logging as a learning tool for that. The risks are evident, but I'm just gonna have to try and see what happens.

jhmomofmany

I gained back nearly 20 pounds in about six to eight months from rebounding off a 10-day juice only fast. So stupid, SMH.

Even two pregnancies didn't set me back like that stupid juicing.

michellerawrrr_72

I gained back 10 pounds and honestly it's not the biggest deal. I'm not pleased, but I know exactly why and more importantly I know how to get it off again. I had knee surgery so that set me back, combine that with some loss in my family and boom my clean eating went out the door. I don't believe in diets and I have always allowed myself anything I want within reason. I learned that no matter the circumstances I need to plan and track my calories through all of life's challenges.

Nightdust

I gained 40 pounds back for several excuses. I moved, missed my family (especially my mom) and my home state. I hated my job, and my next one, and the one after that. I had too many changes. I got lazy with portions and didn't care about counting calories anymore. I hit my goal of 150-155 but was still very unhappy with how I looked and when I tried to lose more weight and lowering my calories to around 1250 a day I got frustrated and just quit caring. These were just excuses.

I made my mom proud like I had never seen her before when I reached my goal. She thought I was so beautiful but I couldn't see it. She's my best friend and I felt like I let her down. I let myself down.

Now a year and a half later I am here to lose what I gained back but this time with exercising a hell of a lot more and lifting weights. I didn't like the way I looked at my old goal weight because I wasn't toned like I could and should have been.

Yeah, hard/bad things happen in life. Basically you get over it and fight for what you want. That is why I gained my weight back and that is why I will never do it again and I WILL reach my goal. 135-140 at 5'3 toned. I will enjoy what I eat because I love food and what I do because I will not do exercise that isn't fun for me.

I am a fighter. We all are.

cafeaulait7

I lost too much weight because I kept eating what I thought I should calorie-wise and it ended up being too low. So I knew I had to eat more. That didn't work out so well for me

And all of my old bad habits slowly crept back over time, too. It came back slowly, but I gained every single pound back! Just those darned bad habits. You still have to watch them because they creep back in sneakily!

Chizakura

The wrong mindset.

I exercised solely to burn calories, not to become fit/healthy, not for fun, just to drop pounds. Once I was satisfied with the weight loss, I stopped all exercise and returned to being a couch potato. Over the years the weight slowly came back.

This time though, I know that when I get to my goal, it's the real deal. I've changed. I don't exercise to drop pounds. I exercise because I've discovered a love for it, and because I want to be fit/healthy. The fact that poundage comes off too just sweetens the deal. I know I'll keep exercising forever, because it's become a part of who I am now.

RaggedyPond

Had a baby and husband left for Korea for a year. I was too tired to care.

gapm

Thank you to everyone who replied for your candor.

Faulty thinking. When you hit your goal weight, you're not "done." It's just a point in the process. You need to maintain the behaviors that you develop while you are losing in order to maintain.

If you log and work out while losing, you will have to log and work out while maintaining.

If you eat no carbs while you are losing, it's likely you will regain your weight if you suddenly start eating all the carbs you want when you reach goal.

Whatever you decide to do to lose your weight, make sure you can continue it forever.

Well then we have a problem because I have no intention of logging my food for the rest of my life. Hoping that portion control can be exercised without. I am approaching logging as a learning tool for that. The risks are evident, but I'm just gonna have to try and see what happens.

I've been through two rounds of logging my food religiously. While logging my food, I lost 20 lb the first time and 10 lb the second. I could stand to lose another 15 to 30 lb, but I'm ok if I stay where I'm at.

In between the first two rounds I simply maintained; no weight lost or gained. After the last round over the past month I gained 5 pounds back of the 30 I had lost. So here I am again recording my food. The funny thing is that I don't think I eat any differently when I record my food vs. when I don't, but the scale says otherwise.

Francl27

Restrictive diet I couldn't follow once I started working, so I fell back into my old habits because I never learned to eat properly.

greengoddess0123

I've lost and gained since puberty. Every time I gained it back, it was because I stopped being so active. Then, when I was at my fattest, I had a baby. Which pushed my "fattest ever" weight up another 50 pounds.

abbieleighton

I rediscovered takeaways and bread.

pickleRH83

I fell in love and moved in with a man, doomed

DonaldChadDavis

I lost 120 lbs. Then gained 60lbs and I've since lost 30lbs. I'm 267 down from 365lbs. I gained it back by eating too many calories. It may seem straight forward, but it's quite obvious how people gain weight back. They stop a calorie deficit diet, skip a maintenance diet, and go back to a calorie surplus diet. No matter the excuse I give, it's going to be as simple as I ate too much food.

Keep up with what you eat. There's no excuse for it. We live in the most convenient time in human existence. Food acquisition is easy but so is gaining knowledge about proper diet. It's a matter of making the right decision everyday, all day. And when you make the wrong one, own it, then move on.