new here! hello!

FluffyDogsRule

Hi! I'm moving on over to maintenance!! I'm 5'5 and currently 115. Please friend me if you want! I've been on maintenance only for 2 weeks now...here's my problem...did anyone else start off feeling this way? I feel satisfied and like i've eaten healthy foods and done "a good job" at around 1300 calories. but i know i'll continue to lose at that. i've found, so far at least, that if i go much above 1300, i'm eating candy, desserts, beer...stuff my body doesn't really need. like my body doesn't really "need" the extra 200 calories...i'm not hungry, i'm not feeling deprived, i feel like i've eaten really well. and when i start eating the extra 200, i find that i then eat an extra 600 calories, because it's food that i don't want to stop eating. if that makes any sense????

so should i make myself find healthy foods to get to 1500 (maintenance) or just eat what i think is healthy and continue to lose weight?

i guess what i'm leaning toward is eating what i find healthy (1300ish) and then not feeling at all guilty when i go out to dinner or out with friends and go over my 1500 limit (which is i realize probably too low for maintenance).

anyway, just wondering if these were feelings others have had at the beginning. i don't really want to waste away to nothing, but of course i don't mind losing weight.

Lizi19

I'm in the exact same position! I can eat well at 1300, then I break out the chocolate and go to 1700 or higher. I'm trying out different strategies and seeing what works. Right now, I am trying to diet during weekdays and cheat on the weekends and hope that it averages out to maintenance. The results are not that great...I'll give it another week before I try something else.

ladybg81

What worked for me was adding in higher calorie healthy foods such as nuts, peanut butter, cheese, etc. Mostly the things I did not eat while losing. Feel free to look at my diary to get some ideas. I am not nearly as obsessive as I was so you'll see some pretty "interesting" things going on.

FluffyDogsRule

thanks, ladies!! lizi, let me know how that ends up working out for you...doesn't sound like a bad plan. i just hate to eat calories just to eat them, you know?? not that there aren't times when i stuff my face with candy or ice cream, etc....but i don't feel like making what feels like overeating a habit. if i'm not hungry, why should i eat just to stop losing weight? but, geez, what the heck will i end up a size 2??? i don't necessarily want that either, plus i can't exactly afford to buy an entire new wardrobe, but everything is help up with belts now.

this is so WEIRD!!! i never thought it would be HARD to eat enough. it's just that my whole mindset about food has changed (usually...haha...again, of course there are days when i overeat the wrong types of foods) and i dont want to eat just to eat...i want to give my body what it needs and not overdo it.

okay, enough rambling.

melsinct

I also use nuts to keep the calories up- my daily almond snack comes in at 170 calories for 1 serving.

cathy825

thanks, ladies!! lizi, let me know how that ends up working out for you...doesn't sound like a bad plan. i just hate to eat calories just to eat them, you know?? not that there aren't times when i stuff my face with candy or ice cream, etc....but i don't feel like making what feels like overeating a habit. if i'm not hungry, why should i eat just to stop losing weight? but, geez, what the heck will i end up a size 2??? i don't necessarily want that either, plus i can't exactly afford to buy an entire new wardrobe, but everything is help up with belts now.

this is so WEIRD!!! i never thought it would be HARD to eat enough. it's just that my whole mindset about food has changed (usually...haha...again, of course there are days when i overeat the wrong types of foods) and i dont want to eat just to eat...i want to give my body what it needs and not overdo it.

okay, enough rambling.

Hi I'm new here and my calories are set at 1600 most days I eat about 1,000- 1,200... I'm 5 '4 and weight 120 lbs and I dont want to lose another pound... I really enjoy working out I do it about 3-4 days a week Kickboxing, jogging, and zumba but I'm scared that I'm going to keep losing weight if I dont stuff myself full of (what I think is) unnessary foods.

I'm glad I read your post I thought I was the only one who felt they were eating way to much in one day.

Cilenia

Eat bigger portions of the healthy food you eat
Eat the normal versions of the food instead of the diet versions (normal greek yoghurt instead of low fat)
Eat more caloriedense foods (nuts, peanutbutter etc)

And eating 80% healthy and 20% not so healthy is what i do. I dont stop eating chocolate and other treats. I just eat them in moderation.

ATM i eating 2100 calories a day. My diary is open if people want to have a look (please note not all days are super healthy :P)

FluffyDogsRule

i've since relaxed about it and just let my body decide (well, within reason...otherwise sometimes it would pick 3000 calories, haha). some days i only eat 1100....other days 2000. mostly, i've felt best at around 1300. if that means i end up losing a few more pounds, then so be it. although i've only lost 1 more pound since i started maintenance.

quietHiker

Eat bigger portions of the healthy food you eat
Eat the normal versions of the food instead of the diet versions (normal greek yoghurt instead of low fat)
Eat more caloriedense foods (nuts, peanutbutter etc)

And eating 80% healthy and 20% not so healthy is what i do. I dont stop eating chocolate and other treats. I just eat them in moderation.

ATM i eating 2100 calories a day. My diary is open if people want to have a look (please note not all days are super healthy :P)

I like this advice. This is a very useful thread because I feel the same way. I've been on maintenance mode since the end of May, and since then have lost 2 lbs because I can't get my calories up to maintenance calories, and I continue to exercise because I like it (bike rides, hiking, strength training etc.)

and this quote above seems like the best advice for me...eat more portions of healthy stuff and quite buying the light stuff...good idea

BTW, I am 5' 6" (really 6.5 inches) and weight 126 LBs on MFP (but hovering at 125 on my scale at home most days)....I don't want to go below that! I've been there and it's too light for my frame size.

kristen6022

In my experience if you keep eating the reduced calories (or even just a 100 more) you will continue to lose weight. I'm now 12 pounds under goal and I find it hard to eat the 2000 calories I need to maintain.

I started adding more snacks since I was so used to eating less in a portion. I don't want to lose any more - I think I'll look sick (many people are commenting on how thin I am already).

I thought that if I just treated myself every now and then I'd stay the same weight - wrong.

quietHiker

In my experience if you keep eating the reduced calories (or even just a 100 more) you will continue to lose weight. I'm now 12 pounds under goal and I find it hard to eat the 2000 calories I need to maintain.

I started adding more snacks since I was so used to eating less in a portion. I don't want to lose any more - I think I'll look sick (many people are commenting on how thin I am already).

I thought that if I just treated myself every now and then I'd stay the same weight - wrong.

I am having that same exact issue. for the past 4 weeks, I've lost an additional 3 lbs past my goal weight...I'm now at a weight where I don't want to lose anymore and it's hard switching to maintenance mode in my mind...saying things like, "I can eat that" or "I can choose more of that" is hard to do, even when I know it's healthy stuff.

love4fitnesslove4food_wechange

IT really isn't difficult...I think what happens is a fear of WHOLE foods WITH fat and calories...

1/2 an avocado is 125 calories--slice it up and put it on a sandwich
use REGULAR bread with 100 calories a slice
have peanut butter in a smoothie or with apple slice to add 200 calories for 2 tbsp
don't steam your veggies sautee them in olive oil

An example of a day with 1800-1900 calories that's NOT super filling:

1. BREAKFAST: 1/2 cup oatmeal (150) cooked in 1 cup skim milk (80) w/ 1/2 a mashed banana (50) mixed in and 2 tbsp peanut butter (200)--480 calories

2. LUNCH: sandwich w/ 2 slices bread (200) 1/2 an avocado (125) 1 slice cheese (60) and veggie meat or deli meat (50) ---435 calories

3. SNACK: 1 oz nuts (160) w/ 1 string cheese (80) ---240 calories

4. DINNER: 1 serving ww pasta (180) tossed in 1 tbsp olive oil (120) w/ 1 cup veggies (30) and 1/2 cup beans (100) and 1 oz parmesan (100)--530 calories

5. DESSERT: 1 cup sorbet (200) w/ 1 cup berries (80) --280 calories

soooo that's effectively:

bowl of oatmeal
1 sandwich
cheese and buts
1 bowl of pasta
1 cup of sorbet with berries