I reached my UGW- now what? HELP!!

allehp
allehp Posts: 96
edited October 3 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey MFP :( I reached my ultimate goal weight (finally!) and now I'm absolutely terrified- I don't know how to eat. I've been eating 1200 cals a day for the past few months, counting every little calorie that goes in my mouth. Now what? I know I need to up my cals (especially since I'm going to start training for a 5k and will be running 4 days a week) but how much, how fast, how soon? HELP!!!

Replies

  • Elizabeth_C34
    Elizabeth_C34 Posts: 6,376 Member
    Firstly congrats! That's great work!

    Secondly, why not take it easy? Ease into a higher calorie diet by adding 100-200 daily calories per week or so until you get up to where you need ot be for maintenance?
  • HoopFire5602
    HoopFire5602 Posts: 423 Member
    What should have happened as you got closer to your goal you increased your calories gradually so your body got used to eating more. Once you hit your goal, you would be at maintenance. Don't change it to be tons of calories drastically; it will backfire on you. I know from my own experience.
  • McKayMachina
    McKayMachina Posts: 2,670 Member
    Firstly congrats! That's great work!

    Secondly, why not take it easy? Ease into a higher calorie diet by adding 100-200 daily calories per week or so until you get up to where you need ot be for maintenance?

    This is good advice. Don't stress.

    And congratulations.
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    Good work. Ideally, you should have been slowly raising calories along the way, such that you would be hitting your goal just as your calorie deficit approached 0. At this point, figure out your TDEE, and then slowly ramp up, increasing your calories by, say 200, every week until you reach equilibrium.
  • fh1951
    fh1951 Posts: 440 Member
    nice job reaching your goal! that doesn't mean you stop tracking your food and exercise calories... have you reprogrammed your goals? you should go in and change your goal from whatever you had it - to losing '0'. mfp will give you a new daily maintenance calorie number. then just keep doing what you've been doing but use the new calorie number as your daily goal.

    i've been in maintenance for a couple of months - i'm finding it was easier to lose a couple pounds a week than not to gain any back. gl!
  • lily1972
    lily1972 Posts: 375 Member
    Congratulations!! :drinker: I know how you feel... I've been maintaining for a few months now and the best advice I can give you is to consult a trainer/nutritionist to make sure you're getting the nutrients you need when you need it most during the day. Many amateur athletes end up with a major burnout from eating imbalanced meals! It's really worth the expense - your health is at stake! :flowerforyou:
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