There is no end point

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  • soozle2
    soozle2 Posts: 2 Member
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    I consider eating a healthy diet, exercising, and maintaining a healthy weight as the cornerstone of self care. Yes, there is no end point, but so what? We should never stop taking care of ourselves. We do a whole slew of things (hopefully!) to look after ourselves (regular check-ups, wearing a seat belt, flossing and brushing our teeth) and those things also have no expiration date.

    But I have found maintenance is more interesting if I set regular monthly fitness and health goals. This month I'm targeting reducing my Fitbit reported December sedentary minutes by 5%. I want to sit a lot less!

    This is great! What other goals have you had? I do not have a Fitbit yet....
  • 970Mikaela1
    970Mikaela1 Posts: 2,013 Member
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    Maintenance was very much harder for me. I still go up ten or so lbs from time to time. (ie. halloween thru new years) but then i have something to concentrate on for a few months. I am one of the people who will have to log and weigh food foreverish.
  • onedaybeforethenext
    onedaybeforethenext Posts: 46 Member
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    Great Stuff Everyone. Keep on Keeping on :) For me, I don't differentiate between how I go about Maintenance of how I went about Losing just my calorie intake is higher. No I just keep logging and working out (changing up my workout routines every 90 days.)
  • dixieracer27
    dixieracer27 Posts: 79 Member
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    Well said!
  • emjaycazz
    emjaycazz Posts: 330 Member
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    Gotta bring this back to the first page of the forum for all the new-to-maintenance folks (congrats on making your weight goals).
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    The secret to maintenance for me is to take it one day at a time and to stay conscious of my food intake.
  • mccindy72
    mccindy72 Posts: 7,001 Member
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    Gotta bring this back to the first page of the forum for all the new-to-maintenance folks (congrats on making your weight goals).

    :flowerforyou:
  • phoenixgirl81
    phoenixgirl81 Posts: 309 Member
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    Putting my 2c in.

    I've been in maintenance since October 2013. I bounce between 71-75 kg. When I get to 75kg, I eat in deficit until I get back to about 73 kg and then go back to maintenance calories and control my weight more through exercise.

    I have had three periods since October where I haven't logged. One week in October when I went away for a week, during the Christmas/New Year period and a week ago after I sustained an injury through a long distance running race and decided to take a week to not stress/focus on food and just to focus on healing.

    I enjoyed those 3 weeks of "free eating" (at times this means over eating, at times this means eating things I wouldn't normally allow myself to eat while I'm logging because I can see they are 'dead calories' like jam doughnuts and wine), and at times it means being able to order what I want at a restaurant without worrying about how many calories/carbs/fat/protein/etc is in the meal.

    Unfortunately, I usually gain weight during these periods because I suck at estimating and sometimes go a little wild because I'm NOT logging and this is evidence to me that I still have an unhealthy relationship with food and I therefore know I will need to log for the long term.

    One of the hardest things for me being in maintenance is knowing what to say when people ask me how much I have lost. At my lowest weight, I had lost 69kg. When I gain a little in maintenance, it feels wrong to say I have lost 69kg when, gor example now, my weight is "only" 65kg less than when I started. I feel fraudulent, but I know I have lost that amount. I have the photo of the scales to prove it! Lol.

    At the same time, I know my running has picked up. Where I used to 'die' after 5km, I can now run 15-20km 'easily'. Therefore, I know my muscles are developing and getting stronger, therefore there's a chance that the weight I've "gained" is actually muscle weight. Hence why I don't try to get back down to 71kg.

    All up, I completely agree that this is a lifestyle thing for life. It doesn't stop when the scales show you're at goal
  • TriShamelessly
    TriShamelessly Posts: 905 Member
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    Amen!
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
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    So true! I reached my goal in March 2013 and it's almost a year later and I'm up about 7 lbs from my goal. I was up 10 lbs a month ago, and then I smartened up! It takes work to keep the weight off.
  • KristinaB83
    KristinaB83 Posts: 440 Member
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    Yep, sounds about right.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
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    I agree with OP totally on this one. That "end point" is the major reason most diets fail. Health and fitness should be life-long pursuits. To me it's kind of like marriage: I didn't just get to goal (to the altar) sign the paper and then stop making an effort. I maintain my relationship and have made it a life-long priority. I've been on maintenance for years, I'm going to be there forever, and I'm cool with that. Totally worth it. :flowerforyou:
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    This is a journey not a destination

    What is a journey without a destination? Aimless rambling?

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