Why does it all come back?

hawthornerose
hawthornerose Posts: 16
in Health and Weight Loss
Why does your weight come bouncing back after a low calorie diet? I got fat because of a mix of not caring what I ate, no longer growing, and medical health issues. It seems like if I get down to my goal weight, and then focus on eating healthy and getting fit the weight should stay off, no matter how many calories I ate to get there. I understand why shedding all the weight and then going right back to my old habits wouldn't work, but if I change my habits once I'm at my goal, shouldn't the weight stay off? I'm not planning on starving myself or anything, I'm just confused and curious.

Replies

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    if you gained all the weight back then you over ate and are not in maintenance but are in fact in a surplus…..

    when you started gaining it back did you stop logging all your food, stop weighing it, etc? Something caused you to go into a surplus and gain the weight back but only you know what it is...
  • AllOutof_Bubblegum
    AllOutof_Bubblegum Posts: 3,646 Member
    Why would you change you habits after reaching goal in the first place?

    "If doing A gets me B, I'm going to stop doing A and do C, but still hope it gets me B. "

    Does not compute.
  • eatcleanNtraindirty
    eatcleanNtraindirty Posts: 444 Member
    Your weight has a lot to do with the amount of calories that you are eating and drinking. Just because something is healthy (healthy is a loose term because healthy to you might not be healthy to me and vice versa), doesn't mean that you can eat as much as you want.

    Portion control is key. That's why on this app for example, you have to input almost exactly what you ate to get the correct calorie amount.

    Eat a correct sized portion of your meals everyday and the weight will stay off. Eat more than your body can burn and the weight will come back.

    Calories in VS. Calories out
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    Why does your weight come bouncing back after a low calorie diet?
    Define "low calorie diet". How low? And were you not exercising to get to your goal weight, and then changed eating habits and added exercise? New workouts can cause water retention and a temp gain on the scale.

    But gaining it all back? Agree with ndj - must be eating at a surplus.
  • SharonNehring
    SharonNehring Posts: 535 Member
    Why are you planning to wait until you are at your goal to change your habits? Don't you need to change your habits now in order to lose the weight to begin with? You have to focus on eating healthy and getting fit to be able to reach your goal in the first place. The hope is that you will have learned those new healthy habits while in the process of losing.

    People regain because their "diet" has come to an end and they gradually go back to eating poorly. Too many calories and not exercising equals regaining the weight.
  • hawthornerose
    hawthornerose Posts: 16
    Oh, I'm nowhere near my goal yet! Sorry if my post was misleading. I just see people on the forums saying that low calorie diets aren't worth it because all of the weight comes right back, and I was wondering how that could happen if you eat healthy once you reach your goal. Hm, for low cal I'd say maybe 900-1000?
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    Oh, I'm nowhere near my goal yet! Sorry if my post was misleading. I just see people on the forums saying that low calorie diets aren't worth it because all of the weight comes right back, and I was wondering how that could happen if you eat healthy once you reach your goal. Hm, for low cal I'd say maybe 900-1000?

    usually because they have restricted themselves to a point where when they hit there "goal" weight they start eating all the foods that they thought were "bad' and then they stop weighing and logging and gain the weight back ….

    Instead, if they would of ate in a moderate deficit and lost about a pound per week they would have been able to keep eating the foods they like, and not feel deprived….at least that is my theory...
  • Sonicz90x
    Sonicz90x Posts: 40 Member
    The body adapts its metabolism downwards during hard dieting adding on to the fact that smaller bodies burn less calories. The metabolism takes time (read: months) to get back to its original state, and even then your maintenance will still probably be less than before.

    Most don't take this into account. Reverse dieting can limit fat gain rebound in this regard.
  • debr1126
    debr1126 Posts: 28 Member
    <q> Most don't take this into account. Reverse dieting can limit fat gain rebound in this regard. </q>

    What do you mean by "reverse dieting"?
  • debr1126
    debr1126 Posts: 28 Member
    Most don't take this into account. Reverse dieting can limit fat gain rebound in this regard.

    What do you mean by reverse dieting?

    Edited because I forgot how to do quotes. ;-)
  • Branstin
    Branstin Posts: 2,320 Member
    If the weight doesn't come back for a medical reason then it's because people overeat. The maintenance stage is just as important as the weight loss stage.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    Most don't take this into account. Reverse dieting can limit fat gain rebound in this regard.

    What do you mean by reverse dieting?

    Edited because I forgot how to do quotes. ;-)
    It's a slow and methodical method of adding a certain amounts of carbs, fats and proteins to your diet over a period of time. You should read and watch the work of Layne Norton if you want a better explanation.
  • Rocbola
    Rocbola Posts: 1,998 Member
    Focus on healthy eating, THEN get down to your goal weight. As long as you create lifelong healthy eating habits, the weight will never come back.

    Every time i gained weight back, it always started with the phrase "This little bit can't hurt....."
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    At the risk of oversimplifying I think this might answer your question.

    Person X is overweight at 180 pounds and wishes to get down to 130 pounds. They have a lean mass of 100 pounds (their mass without any fat including muscle bone water etc). They maintain their weight at an intake of 1800 calories a day. Person X then decides to go on overly aggressive extremely low calorie diet of 1000 calories a day while also engaging in lots of cardio. After 1 year they hit their target weight of 130 pounds (yay for scale weight). Person X then goes back to their maintenance diet of 2000 calories but whats this, they start putting on weight rapidly as fat...what happened? Well when person X dieted so extremely to get to 130 pounds their lean mass also plummeted from 100 pounds to 80 pounds and as a result their metabolism slowed and their BMR dropped. What was maintenance for them previously (1800 calories) is now a huge surplus with their lower weight, lower lean mass and run down body.


    Person Y starts at the same place. 180 pounds, wishes to get to 130, lean mass of 100 and maintains at 1800 calories. They go on a modest calorie deficit of still 1800 calories a day but with cardio for fitness and weight training for muscle retention and strength. After 2 years time they hit their goal of 130 pounds. The return to eating at maintenance and keep off the weight. What happened there? Well they maintained their lean mass, ramped up their metabolism with their active lifestyle and as such the amount they require for maintenance barely dropped at all despite the large weight loss.


    Bottom line if you put on weight its because you are eating at a surplus from what your body requires. Problem with crash dieting is your body tends to tune down what it requires and you lose muscle dropping that number even lower which makes eating at a surplus very very easy after you decide to stop your diet and attempt maintenance.
  • kdillson70
    kdillson70 Posts: 63
    Oh, I'm nowhere near my goal yet! Sorry if my post was misleading. I just see people on the forums saying that low calorie diets aren't worth it because all of the weight comes right back, and I was wondering how that could happen if you eat healthy once you reach your goal. Hm, for low cal I'd say maybe 900-1000?

    First of all, the word "diet" should not be in your vocabulary. It's a lifestyle change, which means you are always modifying (to an extent) your calorie intake and exercise once you get to the point you want to maintain. It always changes depending on your activity level. Unless you are a tiny person to begin with, no exercise what-so-ever you should be eating at least 1200 calories. Please read the following link, it's a guide to a lifestyle that constantly changes. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/931670-bmr-and-tdee-explained-for-those-needing-a-guide
  • Bernadette60614
    Bernadette60614 Posts: 707 Member
    For me, logging is key (or tracking.)

    I've been keeping a food diary for about 20 years. My whole family struggles with weight and the only thing which has prevented me from becoming large enough to block sunlight is keeping a food diary and weighing myself every morning. I'd like to lose a few for athletics, but for me the challenge is defying genetics and family eating habits.

    At my heaviest, I weighed almost 190 lbs and I "achieved" that by "just being careful"....I have to write it down and weigh in daily.

    It doesn't all come back if you catch it when a little bit starts creeping back.
  • angie007az
    angie007az Posts: 406 Member
    You really must count calories. Watch the scale, if you see it inch up a pound or two, cut back and move more.
    Keeping it off is going to be a full time job. But it's so worth it!!
  • wreasolis
    wreasolis Posts: 1
    If you change your eating habits first, it will be a lot easier to lose the weight and keep it off once you get used to your new and healthy eating habits.

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