Maintenance Approach: Oversimplified or brilliant?

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  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,091 Member
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    A daily approach line that is too pedantic for me - and doesn't take into account natural fluctuations or changes in life from day to day - for example, if I am going out to dinner that day, I won't be changing my plan on account of a daily scale variation.

    I will stick to weighing myself weekly - and allowing myself a range of 1.5 kg (aprox 3lb) either side of my goal weight.
    I decided that if my weight gets outside this range for 2 consecutive weeks, I will adjust my daily calorie allowance.
    Hasn't happened yet in 5 months.
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
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    I kind of do it by a group of days. I weigh myself every 3 or 4 days. If it's right where I want it, I keep eating how I've been eating. If it's a little high, I usually know why (helloooo excessive amounts of Thai food followed by ice cream!) and I'll back off a bit and see where I'm at on the next weigh-in. Like someone else said, there are too many normal fluctuations for day-by-day, at least for me.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    terrible idea as you can fluctuate +/- 5 pounds a day just based on water weight alone.

    I would say weigh in once a week at same time ..if you see a trend of up, then cut back on intake; if trend is down, then increase intake ..
  • beamer0821
    beamer0821 Posts: 488 Member
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    I eat what I ate while losing.

    im no where near maintenance. (I'm working on 10% loss goal at at time) but this is my mentality as well. I'm eating how i want to eat for life. because I'm eating well low calorie and some spikes here and there for parties and events (which is a normal part of life) I'm losing weight. this is my plan. and if it stops working ill evaluate it at that time and change my plan. but this is my set-up for maintenance is to eat like I'm already there. maybe I'm wrong, but there is so much conflicting info out there I'm just doing what i think works for me.
  • PJPrimrose
    PJPrimrose Posts: 916 Member
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    I weigh daily as I'm starting maintenance. I'm not cutting back or adding but charting trends, everyday, for the next 6 months. I KNOW I will gain around my period. I do not freak out, as it is expected, but I do chart it so I can see exactly what I have going on. I also chart any weight gain from exceeding my calories on holidays so I can chart what my weight does then, too. I'm not reacting to the scale I'm just seeing what I'm doing weight wise for a base-line. I think I've found my base calorie count so it should remain stable.

    If the numbers on the scale cause distress I wouldn't recommend this approach!
  • Springfield1970
    Springfield1970 Posts: 1,945 Member
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    I weigh daily/2/3 days and average it once a week.

    To be honest it's so easy to eat over.

    It's soooo difficult to eat under.

    Personally I know what camp I'd be in.

    I like being utterly without a doubt sure of my calorie needs! I don't just like it, it takes massive amounts of stress out of my life.

    MFP is the part of the brain that I have missing when it comes to food!

    I've maintained with the skinny jeans concept. I know exactly where I am with them.

    Yet magically, when I gain weight, they seem to get lost in my cupboard....
  • lilawolf
    lilawolf Posts: 1,690 Member
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    One suggestion to "fine-tuning" this would be to change the "rule" to:
    "If the scale is above my predetermined maximum of my weight range for three days in a row, THEN I go back to tracking / calorie counting until I reach the minimum of my weight range."
    That way you would eliminate any little spikes or bloating issues.
    e.g., let's say the maintenance weight range you have set for yourself is 151-155. Let's say you have a day or two here and there weighing-in at 155.1 and 155.3 but then you drop back down again the following day below 155.0. So you don't do anything. But then you have three days in a row in which you weigh-in at 155.3, 155.5, and then the third day 155.1.
    So the idea would be that on the third day, when you weighed-in at 155.1, that would "trigger" calorie-counting and tracking until you reach 151 pounds again.

    This sounds like a great plan. I would adopt this if I went to maintenance (I plan on doing bulk/cut cycles though.)
  • runny111
    runny111 Posts: 58 Member
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    I have been maintaining 50lbs loss for a year now.
    I keep a weight range 112-115. I go over the range, I pair back until I get back to the bottom of that range. Really its a 1-1.5lbs range as it accounts for 1-2lbs hormonal fluctuations mid-month and PMS. I weigh daily.
    So in my view going by the day could work but might cause people to get frustrated. Twice a month, for 5-7days, I am up a pound because factors out of my control.
    Getting rid of your fat clothes is key.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    I eat what I ate while losing.

    im no where near maintenance. (I'm working on 10% loss goal at at time) but this is my mentality as well. I'm eating how i want to eat for life. because I'm eating well low calorie and some spikes here and there for parties and events (which is a normal part of life) I'm losing weight. this is my plan. and if it stops working ill evaluate it at that time and change my plan. but this is my set-up for maintenance is to eat like I'm already there. maybe I'm wrong, but there is so much conflicting info out there I'm just doing what i think works for me.
    Good for you. Keep doing it.

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