Is maintaining weight, just as hard as losing weight?
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In some ways it's harder... Without a goal to work for and the constant feedback of the scale going down, blowing off a day/week/month can be tempting. A successful day in weight maintenance is a day when you do everything you're supposed to, and... and?... AND!!! ......... and NOTHING CHANGES. :grumble:
What a lot of us do is find new goals... Lifting more weight... Running faster or longer... Taking up a new sport... Doing push-ups, pull-ups, or whatever we couldn't do before. That helps to keep a focus on fitness.
Figuring out your maintenance calories is trickier than finding a deficit, but it's not really THAT hard: If you see the scale trending down over time, you eat a bit more; if you see the scale trending up over time (aside from the immediate glycogen bump or the expected TOM bloat), you eat a bit less. My weight has been pretty stable (i.e., always within a couple pounds of goal weight in either direction) through 8-9 months of maintenance with little adjustments when I felt I needed a change.
The harder part is staying the course, not letting the demands of daily life derail you and the pounds creep back on over time. For that part, I really recommend MOAR GOALZ.
Wow great answer! Bumping for later once I hit maintenance!!
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Ohhhh yes, I think it's harder than losing weight. I have lost the same 10lbs about 3-4 times now! My problem is that once I lose the weight, I think that I can eat whatever I want. I reward myself with food! I am finally realizing that I need to continue to count my calories during maintenance and not go crazy! Good luck - I bet you'll do great! 0
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I have been maintaining for several months, even though I am 1 lb from my original goal and 11 lbs from my dream goal. I find it too hard for me to lose weight in the winter - I hate the cold and basically hibernate. I have stayed within one pound of my low for these 3 months. And I may actually decide that this is a good weight for me. It feels really great and I am always getting compliments.
In the past maintaining was impossible - that's why I'm on MFP now. I couldn't do it and couldn't even keep losing after 20 lbs or so. I think as long as I log my food and keep up with my MFP friends I'll be fine.
The thing with maintaining is, you should have made all the lifestyle changes when you were losing. If you didn't you'll just go back to the way you were. I have a totally different relationship with food now. I think about it differently. I crave differently. When I'm hungry I look for something that will help my body, not something that tickles my fancy. So ultimately, losing weight wasn't about how many pounds I could lose. It was all about getting a healthy mindset and establishing healthy habits.
Oh yeah, and having other types of goals really help. I'm getting a fitbit next week (Spring Break from school) and beginning an exercise routine. I plan to start C25K and learn to run - by my 57th birthday!0 -
It's at least as hard, if not harder. Between 2006 and 2007 I lost about 120 lbs (getting down to 220 at a height of 6'3") and while it was an accomplishment, it wasn't all that challenging once I got into a good routine. At the time I was losing weight so I could join the Army, so I was very motivated. At the end of 2009 I got medically discharged from the Army, and I started gaining weight almost immediately. It didn't all come back at once, but as I slowly drifted further and further away from daily workouts and conscious calorie control and got into a comfortable rut (dating someone long term, enjoying the company of good friends who loved to go out, etc.), I started gaining more weight every week. By the beginning of 2013, I had ballooned all the way up to 380 lbs, which was 40 lbs more than I had weighed when I had started working out in 2006! I didn't realize how much my workout routine had allowed me to eat without gaining weight. Now I'm back down to 304 lbs (though I didn't start using MyFitnessPal until I hit 334) and I have to say it is a bit harder to lose weight as a 27 year old than as a 20-21 year olds, and you get a lot fewer kudos when you're doing it for the second time,
I hope this isn't terribly demotivating, but I just wanted to let people know how important it is to keep consciously monitoring your weight and calories after you've hit your goal weight. Good luck, everyone!1 -
Yes, because once I started losing weight I couldn't stop. Now I need to put back on about 15 pounds!!0
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Maintenance is easy for me. I still have goals to hit for fitness. I am able to maintain through intuitive eating, that allows me to focus all my energy on health and fitness. I still eat the same foods but I am able to read real hunger cues, so I eat when I am hungry and stop when full (not stuffed but just full). Everybody is going to have a different experience with maintaining, but for me it is easy. I maintained this way for a year then decided to lose a bit more body fat. I did count at that point, but once I hit my goal I went right back into maintaining without logging.0
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I think it all depends on how committed you are. If you truly adopt a healthy lifestyle then it should be easy without a doubt, but if you're not then it's easier to fall back. This happened to me just this past month. I got lazy, ate more burgers, sugary cereal, etc. than I should have and gained 3 pounds. Not terribly bad, but it made me feel bad! I've been working so hard for the past year and I in less than a month I gained weight back. It will be something you'll have to strive for every day, but I believe once you fully adopt the lifestyle it will be come habit. You'll find what works for your body and what doesn't.
Short answer: yes and no; it depends on your commitment.0 -
I have a hard time when I'm maintaining to not obsess over small fluctuations (like during shark week or just general stress bloat). Then sometimes I get downhearted about the weight rise, and I will just eat everything because I start thinking that I'm doomed. Then I go through the weight loss process again. I haven't found a balance yet, even with a good exercise regimen and healthy eating habits, there is always some excuse for me to eat more than I should. So, I'm right with the people who say it's hard. If it weren't, tMFP and other apps/sites like this wouldn't exist because we'd all be at goal weight forever!1
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Thanks for the feedback you guys....I greatly appreciate it. Good luck to you all...YOU CAN DO IT!0
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No it was not hard at all. I maintained my 35 pound lost for the last 6 months without exercising. I didn't log, but I already knew what I needed to do. I ate more than when I was losing weight, but I knew how to balance it. I also weigh everyday. So I can tell if I needed to cut back for a couple days. It is all about balancing your lifestyle. Good luck, it won't be as hard if you don't let it.
I am now wanting to lose a little more and back on the logging everyday and exercising.0 -
Depends, you you view this as a diet it will be hard. If you change your lifestyle then it should be okay. I am maintaining and don't have issues. I have a completely different relationship with food now.1
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Yes, because once I started losing weight I couldn't stop. Now I need to put back on about 15 pounds!!
This was how it was for me too. In the process of adding some pounds now and then when I get back to where I feel I should be I''ll give maintenance another shot.0 -
Harder for me. Losing all you need is a deficit. Maintaining you need to have figured out your real tdee numbers.
My TDEE changes all the time, since my activity levels are not the same from day to day. I can go from couch potato one day to half-marathon another, to walking dogs for a week, to hardcore backpacking for 3 days, back to couch potato for a week. I have no set routine. So instead of TDEE, which I would go insane trying to calculate every day, I just use the base maintenance calories MFP gives me as a sedentary person and then add in any exercise calories I earn.
OP, I've been maintaining here for almost 3 years doing this. I find that it is habit now (like brushing my teeth) and super easy, so I just keep doing it. My weight only changes by a couple of pounds up or down depending on "Time of the Month," but otherwise, it's stayed the same since I figured out my maintenance sweet spot (which can take a little time.) I thought losing was harder than maintenance. :flowerforyou:1 -
I find maintaining easier -(get to eat normally) but less exciting - (no specific target)
^ Yes, this too.0 -
I don't find it hard. There is nothing to feel daunted or discouraged by. You are already at goal and just continue to work at it. I feel good about where I am at and get feedback (compliments or people asking for fitness advice). So, in maintenance you just get to enjoy the body you worked for. Sometimes I am very motivated to keep going and improving and seeing progress with my fitness and goals. Other times I'm not motivated, so I go into a lower maintenance kind of maintenance in which I am just maintaining and not necessarily trying to improve at that time. Then motivation and drive returns and I get back to it, but I am at a great starting place (no weight to lose except maybe a couple pounds). Or I find new things that I enjoy and add. It's easy because I count calories. I just lower or raise depending on my activity level or the slight changes that I see. It's a habit now.1
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In some ways it's harder... Without a goal to work for and the constant feedback of the scale going down, blowing off a day/week/month can be tempting. A successful day in weight maintenance is a day when you do everything you're supposed to, and... and?... AND!!! ......... and NOTHING CHANGES. :grumble:
What a lot of us do is find new goals... Lifting more weight... Running faster or longer... Taking up a new sport... Doing push-ups, pull-ups, or whatever we couldn't do before. That helps to keep a focus on fitness.
Figuring out your maintenance calories is trickier than finding a deficit, but it's not really THAT hard: If you see the scale trending down over time, you eat a bit more; if you see the scale trending up over time (aside from the immediate glycogen bump or the expected TOM bloat), you eat a bit less. My weight has been pretty stable (i.e., always within a couple pounds of goal weight in either direction) through 8-9 months of maintenance with little adjustments when I felt I needed a change.
The harder part is staying the course, not letting the demands of daily life derail you and the pounds creep back on over time. For that part, I really recommend MOAR GOALZ.
^^definitely this0 -
it's harder to maintain it, for me.0
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In some ways it's harder... Without a goal to work for and the constant feedback of the scale going down, blowing off a day/week/month can be tempting. A successful day in weight maintenance is a day when you do everything you're supposed to, and... and?... AND!!! ......... and NOTHING CHANGES. :grumble:
What a lot of us do is find new goals... Lifting more weight... Running faster or longer... Taking up a new sport... Doing push-ups, pull-ups, or whatever we couldn't do before. That helps to keep a focus on fitness.
Figuring out your maintenance calories is trickier than finding a deficit, but it's not really THAT hard: If you see the scale trending down over time, you eat a bit more; if you see the scale trending up over time (aside from the immediate glycogen bump or the expected TOM bloat), you eat a bit less. My weight has been pretty stable (i.e., always within a couple pounds of goal weight in either direction) through 8-9 months of maintenance with little adjustments when I felt I needed a change.
The harder part is staying the course, not letting the demands of daily life derail you and the pounds creep back on over time. For that part, I really recommend MOAR GOALZ.
^^definitely this
I can see this being the issue...
I have 6lbs to maintenance...lookiing foward to a summer deficet free. Will re-evaluate my goals after that esp since I will continue my lifting etc.
My food choices will remain the same just a bit more so I don't see that being an issue.0 -
Its the same. Just has a different feel about it.0
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