Maintaining is Harder than Losing.

CouleeRunner

Yep I've lost 200 pounds and have kept it off for over 2 years now, but I must stay on top of it. I really do not track my calories on a daily basis, but I do weigh everyday. I have given myself a 3 pound limit. If I reach 3 pounds above my goal weight, I track every bite that goes in my mouth and cut my calories to 1300-1500 (down from my usual 2000). I have a deep fear of waking up 200 pounds heavier again : (

I love this! I would love to learn how much to eat without tracking daily. I think this is a wonderful way to keep yourself in check.

summalovaable

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False. Just look at the dozens if not hundreds of members that are "plateaued" or "stalled" and are just maintaining but can't lose any more weight.

If that's your reasoning it could work in the opposite, look at the thousands of people who have lost tremendous amounts of weight (or even small amounts) and gained it all back if not more.

Who told them to overeat or stop working out? Maintenance is easier than losing weight. That is my answer to the question, obviously gaining weight is easy.

You cant just cut out the second part of my post so it looks like I'm trying to be a snob. lol I agreed with you, I personally find it easier to maintain than to lose. I just simply said you cannot say one is easier over the other simply because a vast majority of people have had problems with it (because in the weight loss world it works both ways). No one ever wakes up and says "fantastic, I worked hard for months to lose all this weight, I feel great, i look great, time to be a slob and gain it all right back so i can hate how i look again! " No one ever tells you to stop working out and over eat, but when you aren't as committed to maintaining as you were to losing, sometimes it happens.

TubbsMcGee

I completely agree.
I've been trying to maintain since February. I've basically been hovering around my goal weight since then, but it's tough to shake the mentality of having to keep losing the weight, after working so hard at trying to reach my goal.
And it's impossible to not want to track everything you eat. Siiiigh.

Lift_hard_eat_big

You cant just cut out the second part of my post so it looks like I'm trying to be a snob. lol I agreed with you, I personally find it easier to maintain than to lose. I just simply said you cannot say one is easier over the other simply because a vast majority of people have had problems with it (because in the weight loss world it works both ways). No one ever wakes up and says "fantastic, I worked hard for months to lose all this weight, I feel great, i look great, time to be a slob and gain it all right back so i can hate how i look again! " No one ever tells you to stop working out and over eat, but when you aren't as committed to maintaining as you were to losing, sometimes it happens.

Sorry, I wasn't trying to be sneeky or make you look like a snob. I have OCD and have a thing with quoting long post. But back to the OP's question, which is harder, maintenance or weight loss. Obviously weight loss is harder, eating at a deficit is harder than eating at maintenance. Plain and simple, it boggles my mind when people (not you) feel the need to make simple subject matter into a nuclear fussion test LOL.

Improvised

Maintaining is WAY easier for me than losing. I can eat a frosted 9x13 cake in a day and not gain. Losing is much, much more difficult for me.

Gee45

Maintaining is easier.
I've been trying to lose for 20 years, lol.

kmcrey87

I think it is different for everyone....

Maintaining has been a piece of cake for me ( It has been over four years and my body is still improving) because I never put myself on a strict diet and made gradual changes to my daily routines which made it easier for it to become a routine. I never felt like I HAD to have a "cheat" day. If I wanted something "bad" for me, I ate it and just worked out harder the following day. I have NO guilt over eating something I want which I think has helped me maintain easier because I am not stressing out about every little thing. When ever we go on vacation now I end up losing weight even though I eat way too many calories and drink far too much.

stefchica

i find it a lot easier to maintain! losing a pound or two versus losing like 10+ pounds takes a lot less effort

Hellbent_Heidi

I think some people diet to lose, with the intention of getting to a goal weight and then being "done", but not taking into consideration that you can't go back to your previous lifestyle, and you can't stop doing the things that got you to your goal in the first place. These are often the people who gain weight back. I have accepted that I'm probably never going to be eating pizza once a week again, or downing a pint of Haagen Daaz because "its my time of month and I'm craving it". I won't be able to stop weighing myself regularly, or slipping back into denial about how I treat my body.

It should be about making a lifestyle change and becoming a person who takes care of themself. If we all take that approach, maintenance shouldn't be that hard. There will always be challenges and difficult times of the year (holidays, Halloween candy, summer barbeques). We just need to accept that we aren't able to over-indulge just because we got to our goal weight.

Paige1108

For me they are apples and oranges, maintenance and losing present totally different challenges.

With losing the challenges were all specific and rigid. And because of that is was easy to "measure" my sense of accomplishment. losing also had weekly-ish rewards, the weight in, the new clothes.

Maintenance is more fluid and the challenges are with myself not a number I can put outside myself. Definitely more challenging than I thought it would be. But my body is the body I've always wanted to day to day I love that.

I hope that makes sense. Good luck everyone no matter where you are in your journey.

brit49

Everyone is different, for me that statement is so true. This time around I have made some changes I eat more protein, and less sugar, added sugar:)

LorinaLynn

Don't hate me, but neither was hard for me... once I knew what I was doing.

The only time I struggled to lose weight, I wasn't doing it right. I was starving myself and felt hungry, miserable and deprived. That's not to say I didn't work hard to lose weight, but it wasn't hard work, if that makes sense. I enjoyed the foods I ate and (most of) the exercises I did. I wasn't thinking, "Gah... I can't wait until this weight is GONE and I can start living normal again!" because it always felt normal and sustainable.

bcattoes

I think I might agree. For me, exercise plays a bigger role in weight loss than diet as I have eaten healthy for the past 30 years or so. Fitting regular exercise into my schedule is hard. It means giving up time and time is my most precious commodity. Whenever I've gained weight it's because I stopped exercising regularly. But I've never just stopped completely, it's a slow creep. I'll skip a day here and there, then that will become the norm, then skip more and so on, until I realize I'm only exercising one or two days a month and I've packed on 20 - 30 lbs. Then I get back on track. But it is easier to stay focused on exercise when you are losing, than when you are already thin.

bellinachuchina

I think some people diet to lose, with the intention of getting to a goal weight and then being "done", but not taking into consideration that you can't go back to your previous lifestyle, and you can't stop doing the things that got you to your goal in the first place. These are often the people who gain weight back. I have accepted that I'm probably never going to be eating pizza once a week again, or downing a pint of Haagen Daaz because "its my time of month and I'm craving it". I won't be able to stop weighing myself regularly, or slipping back into denial about how I treat my body.

It should be about making a lifestyle change and becoming a person who takes care of themself. If we all take that approach, maintenance shouldn't be that hard. There will always be challenges and difficult times of the year (holidays, Halloween candy, summer barbeques). We just need to accept that we aren't able to over-indulge just because we got to our goal weight.

I have maintained only by following my newly acquired lifestyle, which proves you can maintain after losing a significant amount of weight in a reasonable amount of time.

I've gotten over the temptation at family events, birthdays, etc. Those challenges are not what makes maintenance hard. It's the "What do i do now?" problem. I lost an entire person...what can top that? haha.