who has kept weight off for 2 years

It's an interesting topic
My experience is that to keep weight off required a change in lifestyle and attitude towards food and exercise

Food should taste good, but also be good for you
if it's not, then it is an occasional treat and in moderation only
it is also counterbalanced by a corresponding increase in exercise intensity or time
If i eat a pizza while drinking beer, it means an extra workout that week
If not, i know it will be reflected on the scales and no use complaining about it or wishing it wasn't so

And I made breakfast the most important meal of the day - too many people skip breakfast
i have a big bowl of 5 grain porridge with rice milk and all other sorts of super foods that boost immunity and aid health
(I have hep c so I pay particular attention to my health)
I eat my breakfast around 7am and it lasts me until around 1-2pm when i have a large lunch

to keep weight off i need to get some form of exercise after work every day, and on 2 -3 nights i will only have a small dinner
Sardines on toast or a smoothie of berries and protein powder maybe with a banana
I may go to bed a bit hungry sometimes, but means that I look forward to a big low GI breakfast the next morning
The old saying - breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper

To lose weight and keep it off, for me anyway, requires consistency, determination, will power, and bloody hard work

i also got to know my body and accept that sometimes it needs a break
When you've been flogging yourself in workouts and every muscle aches and you grunt when you get out of the chair
it's time for active recovery - a slow to brisk walk or a slow paced cycle or similar

I still try and remember that will power is good, but deprivation isn't
Donuts are great, but are 'dead food' - all calories for a short lived psychological benefit
Nuts and seeds are great and are good for you
i don't feel deprived saying no to a donut - I'll have some nuts and seeds instead

i don't want to sound puritanical - this is just my experience and what works for me
i have hep c from previous drug use and still struggle with life sometimes
I believe that food is just another type of addiction and can be dealt with in the same way
When i'm focused on my health and my weight, it diverts me from less healthy pursuits

This is mental, not physical. People gain the weight back because once they reach their goal, they assume that they're "done," and they stop trying to progress toward something, or they gradually fall back into their old eating habits because they stop tracking and they tell themselves "it's okay for me to eat like this more often because I'm not trying to lose weight anymore."

Do you know how easy it is to gain 20 lbs in a year? You'd only have to overeat by about 200 calories per day, on average. That is frighteningly easy to do, and I think after people struggle for so long to lose the last 10 lbs or so, they lull themselves into thinking that gaining it back will be just as slow and difficult. But if you like to eat, it's not difficult at all.

I have kept mine off almost exactly two years, and am at the low end of my BMI at 18.5.

I know our experiences differ vastly, but if I were to base it solely upon my own, I would say this article is utter horse sh**.

The reason I was overweight was because my diet was terrible. I cleaned it up, reduced my portion sizes, increased my fruit and veggie intake, and guess what! This is freaking easy to maintain.

The only purpose articles like this serve is to be an excuse or a crutch for someone who doesn't want to put in the work.

I agree/disagree. I'm with you in that I'm overweight because I work at a desk and I ate really crappy foods in really giant portions.

But I disagree that the article isn't accurate, at least so far as it's quoting science. I don't know about the 95% statistic, but this would be like me saying, "I didn't have X, Y, and Z health problems from my weight, so really, there's no health problem with being fat." (That, actually, is pretty much my only issue with the linked blog. I'm generally a fan of the author. )

Which isn't to say that you should be really proud of yourself! That your maintaining and comfortable is awesome! I'm really impressed with everyone in this thread. You guys are great!