Maintaing Weight is Harder than losing

My guess is that once you hit your goal weight, you let go of all the healthy habits you built while you were losing. Is this a correct assumption?


Achieving weight loss goals is AWESOME, but it doesn't mean that you can go back to eating irresponsibly and being lazy about working out. The trick is to continue to monitor your calorie intake so that you are eating enough to maintain, not go over.

I would agree that it's really tough to maintain. I would argue that it's all mental though.

Once people reach their goal, I think they tend to take their foot off the gas pedal and slowly get back into bad habits thinking they can afford to reward themselves for reaching their goal.

There are definitely ways to do it, but it is a lot less motivating to work hard to stay where you are currently than it is to work hard and see improvements.

I guess it depends on how much of a swing you are seeing. I gain/lose 5lbs on a daily basis so I have a pretty big "maintenance" range.

I don't know anyone who can stay at the exact same weight every single day, even my husband who is not susceptible at all to carb/salt/overeating water retention. He swings three pounds all the time. I have a maintenance range of 5 pounds. If I go above that, I start to tighten up my eating, log more days out of the week (I might log 5 normally, but I'll tighten that to 6-7 if I'm high).

I once heard maintenance described as gaining and losing the same five pounds over and over again, and that might be accurate, but a lot of that is just allowing for life (holidays, birthdays, events) and then returning to normal.

I find maintenance to be challenging because it's so boring. Losing weight was fun. Every week I'd be rewarded with a lower number on the scale. Also, I got to buy pretty new clothes with a smaller number on them. How fun is that??? Now, I don't get those rewards anymore. I need to find something else to focus on. I use fitness as a way to combat the boredom. I need to go faster on the elliptical than last week, or squat with a higher weight, or hold the plank a bit longer.

Does anyone else NEED something to focus on? Or is maintenance just something you do, no thought involved?

I definitely need focus, but I gotta say, maintenance is so much better for me than weight loss. I'm not ruled by the scale like I was while I was losing. I weigh in *maybe* once a month. I know I'm up a few pounds from Christmas because I can feel it in my clothes but I'm not bummed about it. I just returned to normal, and when I weigh again, I hope to see myself right in my range but I won't stress about it.

Fitness is what I focus on right now....that's my goal. Just being more awesome in the gym.

Also, clothes buying is more fun now because what I buy I know will fit for ages, not just until I hit a new size. I can focus on investing in classics. I'm small enough to shop anywhere. I love the thrill of thrift/consignment shopping and finding amazing labels at great prices. Though it's less exciting fitting into a single digit size than it used to be, I'm still having fun

I never go over 10 pounds gain, but that's still a lot. It mostly happens during the holiday as well. You have friends and family over the you don't want to be the odd one to go the gym and leave everyone alone.

I know when I indulge I can easily gain 5-8 lbs of water weight just from increased carbs and sodium. Usually takes like 3-5 days for that to drop. Your gain may not be as much as you think.

I find maintenance to be challenging because it's so boring. Losing weight was fun. Every week I'd be rewarded with a lower number on the scale. Also, I got to buy pretty new clothes with a smaller number on them. How fun is that??? Now, I don't get those rewards anymore. I need to find something else to focus on. I use fitness as a way to combat the boredom. I need to go faster on the elliptical than last week, or squat with a higher weight, or hold the plank a bit longer.

Does anyone else NEED something to focus on? Or is maintenance just something you do, no thought involved?


Yes I so agree with maintaince you need to find a new goal and new focud and give yourself a weight range I give myself 5 lbs either way........

Fitness is what I focus on right now....that's my goal. Just being more awesome in the gym.

Love it! Just being more awesome in the gym. THAT'S my goal!

Fitness is what I focus on right now....that's my goal. Just being more awesome in the gym.

Love it! Just being more awesome in the gym. THAT'S my goal!

Then it gives you so many options! Right now I'm really into this step class taught by a particular instructor. It's a crazy, frenzied, highly choreographed class with complicated steps and I was utterly lost when I accidentally took it the first time. Now it's my damn GOAL to get good at that class.

Before that I ran a half marathon, and that was a good goal.

I also like lifting, as you mentioned, because it's a pretty steady progression. At least one lift is always getting a little better, deeper, more reps. It's sweet seeing progress.

But yeah, overall? just be more awesome

Edited to add: Just saw your ticker. AMAZING job!!

Fitness is what I focus on right now....that's my goal. Just being more awesome in the gym.

Love it! Just being more awesome in the gym. THAT'S my goal!

Pretty much this. I make short-term goals along the way, too. Right now mine is to run 50 miles in January.

I definitely need focus, but I gotta say, maintenance is so much better for me than weight loss. I'm not ruled by the scale like I was while I was losing. I weigh in *maybe* once a month. I know I'm up a few pounds from Christmas because I can feel it in my clothes but I'm not bummed about it. I just returned to normal, and when I weigh again, I hope to see myself right in my range but I won't stress about it.

Love that attitude! I wish I wouldn't be so hard on myself but the scale was my monitor for years. Now I step on every few days. I put on three over the holidays and now I'm tightening up, but really, it's just life, like you're saying.

Giving up that scale addiction was the best mental health choice I made. But you MUST be consistently "in the game" for this to work. If you're floundering on diet and/or exercise, this could get you into trouble. 10+ pounds of trouble. Regular weighing, imo, is key while habits are solidifying or need resetting. My habits now are solid, though.

It's funny, every time I weigh myself, even when my clothes are fitting perfectly and I have that thin "feeling" (you know what I mean!) I still get terrified when I step on the scale. Like magic, though, I've been maintaining, even through those "life" weeks or months that make things fun and delicious.

But daily weighing, seeing those ups and downs, it was just too much for me. I know when I need to tighten up the good habits and swat out the bad; I can feel it in my clothes, and it does not feel good in my mind. Seeing a number on the scale I don't like is just a head game I don't want to play anymore.

The scale is important to me still; I do still weigh in. But I'm so far from the daily weighing ritual I put myself through while losing.