Pre-Maintenance

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  • tech_kitten
    tech_kitten Posts: 221 Member
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    As someone who has been in maintenance for just a few months, I'd say to make sure that you have realistic expectations. It is highly likely that you will gain back a couple of pounds when you go into maintenance- because your body will replenish its glycogen stores. DON'T PANIC! This is normal.

    A lot of people lose a few extra pounds before going into maintenance just for that reason- so say you want your maintenance weight to be 130. You could consider losing a few extra pounds down to 127 before going into maintenance, knowing that you're going to rebound back up to 130. No problem!

    My other tip would be to expect your weight to fluctuate. Most people have a 3-5 lb band that their weight fluctuates in. As long as they're within that band, then they know they are maintaining. If they go over or under that band then they can eat less or more to fix the fluctuation. For me, that band is 126-129. If I weigh in at 130, I would double check to make sure I'm not overeating. If I go under 126 then I make sure that I'm eating enough to account for my exercise.

    Good luck with maintenance! Enjoy the extra food! :drinker: :flowerforyou:

    +1!
    Great advice!
    I hope that when I get there I will be able to take all of these tips and be successful at maintenance.
  • EvilFeevil
    EvilFeevil Posts: 95 Member
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    I'm still anywhere from 10-20 lbs from my goal (out of 40-50 to go at the start of this journey) and I plan to continue doing what I'm doing now when I get to maintenance, which is counting and daily weighing. As a female, it's important for me to know how hormonal and dietary changes affect my weight so I don't get freaked out if I suddenly gain 3 lbs, hence the daily weighing.

    I'm not even sure if I can eat my projected maintenance calories without gaining and I don't know what my final weight will be until I get there. If I feel thin enough at 110 lbs, I'll stop trying to lose and go on maint. If I need to go to 105 or 100 before I can lose my muffin top, so be it. I used to weigh 100 back in the pre-muffin top days but maybe I'll be happy at 105 or 110 at this stage of my life. As soon as I can get back into my old size 3 and 5 (US) jeans (comfortably), I'll know I'm at my goal. And never looking back! :smile:

    Thanks for the good reads, everyone! :heart:
  • idojpdx
    idojpdx Posts: 83 Member
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    I think I should get a heart monitor to see what I really burn during workouts. Plus, I love gadgets! My kids got me a Nexus 5 for my birthday. I have it all figured out except phone calls! Don't know how to do call waiting yet. I love the MyFitnessPro app; very easy to use.

    idoJ, if you only had 13 pounds to lose, that's not bad at all! For some reason, after I had each kid, I got really thin. I used to complain that my butt was too big. Then my belly started getting big, and my rear end got flatter. I spoke too soon!

    Part of the reason I gained weight was from quitting smoking. Then I started drinking a lot of wine, which made me hungry, so I ate more. My highest was 176. I was in a 2X, because I am only 5'1. I am 141 now, and want to get down to 130, maybe eventually 120.

    Maintenance for me will still start at 130. I want to lose the last 10 pounds very slowly.

    Hoo boy! I wish I only had 13 to lose. I actually gained back all but about 13 pounds of my original loss of 60.
  • Junebuggyzy
    Junebuggyzy Posts: 345 Member
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    Hoo boy! I wish I only had 13 to lose. I actually gained back all but about 13 pounds of my original loss of 60.

    I know you will do it!!! You have been doing so well. It really helps to have you all as cheerleaders. :)
    You all that are on maintenance and sharing your stories with us, I just want to let you know how much you are helping us figure out what we will do once we get to maintenance.

    I wondered why I rarely get as far as maintenance. I started thinking, maybe there's something in it for us to self-sabotage our efforts. To go through all the work to get fit and healthy, then let it all go. I just wonder what is in it for us.

    I have a sister who has been overweight as long as I can remember. She shared it with me that she feels protected by a wall of fat around her. Maybe that's it, somehow we feel insulated from the world if we stay heavy.
  • skittlesnhoney
    skittlesnhoney Posts: 651 Member
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    I'm not nearly there yet, but I couldn't agree more.
  • IIIIISerenityNowIIIII
    IIIIISerenityNowIIIII Posts: 425 Member
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    I'm supposed to hit my GW in mid-July and planning to get pregnant around December so I have to figure out how to maintain the weight between those months and then gain healthily for a pregnancy.
  • bumblebeez86
    bumblebeez86 Posts: 208 Member
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    A lot of people lose a few extra pounds before going into maintenance just for that reason- so say you want your maintenance weight to be 130. You could consider losing a few extra pounds down to 127 before going into maintenance, knowing that you're going to rebound back up to 130. No problem!

    My other tip would be to expect your weight to fluctuate. Most people have a 3-5 lb band that their weight fluctuates in. As long as they're within that band, then they know they are maintaining. If they go over or under that band then they can eat less or more to fix the fluctuation.
    Good luck with maintenance!

    good advice thanks - I have 5lb till 'goal' weight so might aim a little lower now for the 'rebound' effect
  • Rose6300
    Rose6300 Posts: 232 Member
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    Again, the best tool to work out your deficit and your TDEE relative to your food intake etc is the scales - it will tell you more than a formula on the internet about the state of your body at the time.

    I agree with this in theory, but I've not been able to get an accurate number for myself. I have a big spreadsheet I created to track my rolling 7-day average weight during this loss period. I added a few columns on it to try and get at my TDEE, but it ranges from 1200-3000 based on the values in my spreadsheet. I tried to get at my TDEE by taking my loss for the week and multiplying by 3500 then dividing by 7, and adding this value to my net calories for the week divided by 7. My most likely error is in estimating exercise calories, since I weigh my food etc. etc. But when I try to isolate this as the problem, I can't. And I am pretty good at analyzing data usually so I'm at a loss. End of the day, I'm going to just keep on as I have been during the loss and add back 100 calories the first week of maintenance, another 100 the second week, etc.
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
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    You may need to take your averages over a longer time - water weight can cause quite significant fluctuations, especially when hormones come in to play.

    I presume you're trying to work out TDEE without exercise?

    Normally it would be included - so your TDEE would be deficit from weight loss+food.

    Even with a HRM and other sensors (ie cycle, power, GPS mapping which include elevation etc), it's still going to be a bit of a guess. Maybe your body doesn't quite match the algorithms.
  • Rose6300
    Rose6300 Posts: 232 Member
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    You may need to take your averages over a longer time - water weight can cause quite significant fluctuations, especially when hormones come in to play.

    I presume you're trying to work out TDEE without exercise?

    Normally it would be included - so your TDEE would be deficit from weight loss+food.

    Even with a HRM and other sensors (ie cycle, power, GPS mapping which include elevation etc), it's still going to be a bit of a guess. Maybe your body doesn't quite match the algorithms.

    What I'm trying to do is work out TDEE assuming my exercise levels stay the same, as I'm planning to keep the exercise up when I hit maintenance. I just reran the numbers using calories eaten instead of calories less exercise, and I get essentially the same results (i.e., all over the map). It's funny because throughout this weight loss journey, my body has pretty much exactly matched what I expected it to, that is, my loss has been remarkably linear. There's probably something wrong with my spreadsheet for this maintenance calc, I'll just have to look at it some more I guess.
  • mlt2908
    mlt2908 Posts: 123 Member
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    This is so perfect for me! I have gained and lost the same 10 lbs more times than I can count over the past 3 years. I understand that I am fortunate I can stop my fluctuation at 10 lbs, but also really want to learn how to maintain. Why do I spend 6 months beign so dilligent only to let it slip away with summer BBQ's, concerts, tailgating, and so on...

    I have truly made exercise a lifestyle and have stuck with it consistently through every fluctuation. My treats tend to become more and more frequent the closer I get to my goal weight and the pounds slowly come back on every single time. I do think of this as a lifestyle but have found myself gravitating to the maintenence boards more than anything else.

    any suggestions or feedback would be wonderful!
    Same for me! Exercising is never the problem; it always ends up being allowing myself too many treats and too large of portion sizes.
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
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    I'd try averaging over a longer period if you have appropriate figures for that.

    Of course, it may be fluctuations in water retention are actually keeping your weight loss consistent masking differences in TDEE.
  • Rose6300
    Rose6300 Posts: 232 Member
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    I'd try averaging over a longer period if you have appropriate figures for that.

    Of course, it may be fluctuations in water retention are actually keeping your weight loss consistent masking differences in TDEE.

    When I average all my weekly "maintenance", I get 1,867, which is eminently reasonable (as I'm 51). That's probably the ticket. Thanks!
  • spirit095
    spirit095 Posts: 1,017 Member
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    I need this thread. I'm about 5lbs away from my ultimate goal weight, and have been trying to crunch the numbers.

    If you use the TDEE calculators, which one have you found to be most accurate? The IIFYM and Scooby ones give me pretty different numbers.

    Thanks!
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
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    If you use the TDEE calculators, which one have you found to be most accurate? The IIFYM and Scooby ones give me pretty different numbers.
    Being accurate for other people doesn't mean they are accurate for you. Could be the opposite.
  • spirit095
    spirit095 Posts: 1,017 Member
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    If you use the TDEE calculators, which one have you found to be most accurate? The IIFYM and Scooby ones give me pretty different numbers.
    Being accurate for other people doesn't mean they are accurate for you. Could be the opposite.

    That's true. I guess I'll figure out the numbers when I get to that stage and experiment.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
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    Idoj, I tried looking at that site you mentioned and I couldn't figure it out for the life of me!

    LOL! Sorry. I hate math, too. Here's the important part (BMR is basal metabolic rate, or the number of calories your body needs to maintain vital functions at rest, or before any exercise is figured in.):


    BMR for Men: = 66 + (6.23 X weight in pounds) + (12.7 X height in inches) – (6.8 X age)

    BMR for Women: = 655 + (4.35 X weight in pounds) + (4.7 X height in inches) – (4.7 X age)

    Activity Multiplier:
    Little or No Exercise, Desk Job: 1.2 x BMR
    Light Exercise, Sports 1 to 3 Times Per Week: 1.375 x BMR
    Moderate Exercise, Sports 3 to 5 Times Per Week 1x BMR
    Heavy Exercise, Sports 6 to 7 Times Per Week: 1.725 x BMR

    I'd be happy to figure your maintenance calorie needs for you, if you give me goal weight, height, age, and the amount of exercise you plan to do.
    As I am doing my research on maintaining I plugged in my numbers using the formula you gave. Looks like you missed a digit on the moderate exercise but I used 1.5 as the multiplier because it fit the pattern.

    My question is would it be just as easy to use the calculator built into MFP that I have been using? My running and fitbit sync my activity and it is where I log my meals and weight. This way if I get slack in one aspect it will effect the other.
  • RetiredAndLovingIt
    RetiredAndLovingIt Posts: 1,394 Member
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    Bump
  • Junebuggyzy
    Junebuggyzy Posts: 345 Member
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    ....My question is would it be just as easy to use the calculator built into MFP that I have been using? My running and fitbit sync my activity and it is where I log my meals and weight. This way if I get slack in one aspect it will effect the other.

    So do you mean the calculator that you use to plug in your activities and food? Sorry, I am getting lost in all the acronyms! ;)
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
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    By calculator I mean when I setup MFP (My Fitness Pal) I input activity level, age, amount to lose etc. and it keeps track of my calories via what I input and credits my exercise or calories I burn. I guess I can adjust my account with my new weight and activity level to maintain. If I don't need to lose and I keep logging and syncing my workouts It should work for me.

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