What does maintenance do?

amonkey794

Sorry if this is old, but I'm new and not a big fan of reading EVERY possible post

calorie deficit = fat loss
calorie surplus = muscle gain
maintenance calories = ?

Also what should I do about calories if I KNOW my metabolism is quite damaged and I can maintain already at what should be a cut value?

Thank you!

gadenni34

I am no expert.

I have about 25-30 more pounds like I would ideally like to lose. I have however decided to follow the recommendations laid out in the book. with no deficit or surplus just exactly what the formula suggests I eat. I have lost about 10 pounds doing that, I think that is about right. slow and steady.

however I would think you could eat at the recommendations in the book and maintain too. He mentions it being ok to cut them a bit to lose but as I said I decided to just try it and see what happened. That would be my suggestion to you. eat what the book suggests, give it about 6 weeks or so and see what happens. All the while making sure you are also taking measurements and photos to get an accurate picture of how your body is reacting. your weight may fluctuate a bit but stick with it to really see what is going to happen.

just my $.02

Good luck to you!

holleysings

Maintenance for me caused me to lose a pants size and inches while not losing any weight on the scale. Which is what I want. I would rather be physically smaller than weigh less right now.

perfect10isha

I ate at maintenance for stages 1 and 2 and while I did get stronger the scale did not change nor did my inches. I will say that I'm not overweight, I'm looking to decrease body fat and lose inches. Losing an additional 5 lbs or so would be icing on the cake for me.I did enjoy eating close to 2000 calories everyday :blushing: But I didn't see any results so I have been eating at a deficit for stages 3 and 4. I've lost 1-2 lbs, I haven't measured yet, but I would guess I may see a small loss there too. At a deficit I see a little more definition and feel much firmer all over. Everyone is different so you'll need to eat at maintenance for at least 4-6 weeks and assess.

amonkey794

Okay just curious because I am already a size 0-1 (US) and I don't have anything to lose. How do you think this would effect my result?

holleysings

Okay just curious because I am already a size 0-1 (US) and I don't have anything to lose. How do you think this would effect my result?

If you're really that tiny, it's possible you'll gain inches in some places, which I don't think would be a bad thing. Your body will definitely change and firm up! You should go for it.