To all of you that have lost 75 or more

Hey there! I've lost exactly 75 pounds altogether but I fluctuate between 75-70 so I hope its okay for me to respond. )

Its been a very educating experience to say the least. When I initially lost the weight I was overwhelmed by I guess fear? Is this too much? Is this too little? Should I really start eating to MAINTAIN now? Which meant eating MORE calories. That whole idea was so foreign to me that I didn't even want to think about it. I didn't want to go off of dieting in any way I was so afraid the weight would just jump right back on for the ride!

But it hasn't been like that at all. I baby stepped it that is for sure. Slowly I started eating more and more (I have multiple health issues so that was difficult to work around as well) but I started eating more calories versus eating to loose. Occasionally I partake in some baked goodies (homemade muffins and cookies!) here and there since those are my fav's but I tend to stay away from anything that comes packaged still. If I ever splurge its usually something homemade and I'm still staying in my calories. I'm not saying I don't exit out of that zone. When I do the scale is not mean to me. It can be a 2-3 pound difference in the next couple of days after my "fun" night but after I get on track my body looses the extra sodium or I burn the extra calories and we are good to go! Its like your body is rewired. I'm just not interested in eating an after dinner snack, one of the best tips I can offer! But you have to keep the what you are doing habitual because eating a frozen reeses can become habitual too (one of my old favorite goodies!) I still work out but it is WAY more fun then it ever was!

Overall, I would say even though I have a sick old body (lol!) my body has kept up with the changes that have taken place! I thought for SURE since I had to fight so hard to get it off it would want to jump right back on. So far its been about two months and we are going strong. Check in with me in about 6 months...haha! Lets see how its going then! I think once you have been there, 185+ pounds, its hard to forget. Especially when it was a lifestyle change that made you get here. When the weight is gone, its a second nature! )

I'll be curious to hear from more of the veteran side of things though! I've very freshly lost my weight! ) So I'll be eager to read what others say! Congrats on your 7 pounds lady! )

I lost 75 lbs in 2006-2007 on a low carb diet. I tracked my food every day for 9 months, and then went to Vegas and didn't log for a week, and just kind of stopped. I also weighed myself every day.

Since that fateful trip to Vegas, I mostly use the scale to decide if I'm on track. If I see the weight ticking up, I try to eat better. If it gets to my "freak out number" (140 lbs for me) I go back to the daily logging. When I'm not tracking, but maintaining, I can eat desserts occasionally, and bread, and potatoes, and all those no-no foods on low carb. The key word is occasionally. When the dessert/french fries/dinner rolls becomes a daily affair, my weight creeps up.

My eating is drastically and permanently different than before the weight loss. I eat a lot more vegetables and salads than I used to (and I like it, mostly!). I try to only eat when hungry and I'm much more aware of stress eating (which is an issue for me). Again, that's not to say I never fall back into those old habits, but I do a better job of spotting them earlier. And I weigh myself every day. For me that is my canary. It is the only way I truly know if I'm within the range of healthy, or if it's gotten way out of control.

Hope that helps and good luck on your journey!

75 even as of this morning.

I would definitely say the way I eat has changed a lot.

First of all, was serving size. I used to eat special K (now its a treat) and I'd just fill up the bowl and eat and think "It's healthy, right? Says so on the box." But the serving size for it to be "healthy" was probably a third of what I was eating. And I used to get seconds a lot at dinner - of food that was not inherently healthy anyway.

Which brings me to what I cooked before. Pasta. Cheese. Stuff that, in reality, I do still eat - I just eat it sparingly. What I cook now: Lots of veggies. Lots of meat (usually pretty lean stuff). Occasionally, as a special treat and if we have the calories we'll have pasta, or rice or a dinner roll. And only in fairly reasonable calories. But when I look at what I'm spending my calories on - rice, which is pretty much filler, is not what I want to spend them on. Blech.

I've learned A LOT about cooking and recipes and vegetables. And the food is good. I can't actually say that anything I eat isn't good. A lot of it is wonderful and savory and even MORE flavorful that what we ate before - which was often some meat and cheese sauce that had a lot of Tony Chachere's in it (very high sodium). To give you an idea I had a lot of casserole type dishes that had no sides with them. Now, everything I make has a side, even if it's just a steamed vegetable - because the entire meal isn't a casserole of a bunch of junk in a cream sauce. But good food is still possible and, IMO, is still a must. I got here because I like food. And being a foodie is just something I have to work with on this, and I find that with the right recipes, I definitely can.

As for sweets - I have not cut them out. Me and hubby eat skinny cows pretty regularly, along with smart ones ice cream. I also got some low calorie hot cocoa mix recently. I make tasty low cal cupcakes and that sort of thing. And on family birthdays, I'll still try to have a little cake. I've got one hell of a sweet tooth, and there are plenty of great products or recipes I've found to keep the calories down and still satisfy it.

And I'm an exercise calorie eater too, just for the record. I spend those calories (unless I'm splurging) on granola bars, Planters Nutrition, or PB sandwich before the gym to power me through.

I'm not actually to maintaining yet. My final goal is 2 lbs away, but I might keep going.

But that's really it as far as food. I DEFINITELY changed how much and what I was eating. But I don't feel like I've sacrificed as far as enjoyment of the food I eat.