How do you do this?

Sued0nim
Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
edited November 14 in Goal: Maintaining Weight
How do you get to the firm belief that you are actually at maintenance weight range and should let go the tight calorie control.

I am set to maintenance on here, but mentally am still looking at my rolling 7 days and feeling a positive buzz out of having at least a 1500 calorie defecit

I have exercise goals rather than a weight goal but I'm struggling to let go of the controls week by week ...I have no plans to stop logging because I know the difference is only a few hundred calories a day and that's easily eaten ...I know I can eat that much but I don't know how to get the confidence that this is the weight range I stop at.

I'm pretty sure nobody else can tell me, that it has to be something I work out myself...but I'm wondering how others made that leap from successful cutting to maintenance



Replies

  • r5d5
    r5d5 Posts: 219 Member
    Last summer, I was in maintenance for a few months, and i agree, it's a mental hurdle you have to get over. (I left maintenance because I became depressed and ate myself to a higher weight. Now trying to lose it again. But my bmi is in the healthy range--Just giving an explanation so you know I do understand where you're at! haha)

    It's hard to not want to stay so rigid and keep seeing weight loss. When you've been at it so long, that's all you know! But with time, and shifts in your cognition, you'll get to that state where it's more about body fitness than calorie deficit :) It does take time. Try to remind yourself that maintenance is exactly that--maintaining the amazing body you worked so hard for! And by continually using the app and weighing yourself, you'll catch yourself before you get overweight again. And now you have the tools and knowledge to "fix" any issues before they become a huge problem. :)

    You can only come to that state of mind on your own, alas, but I know it's possible! Best of wishes to you!
  • kpk54
    kpk54 Posts: 4,474 Member
    +1 on the above. I too hit maintenance and did not go about maintaining in a proper fashion and gained a few more pounds than I am comfortable with (by over eating to an extreme). OP perhaps if you ease into it mentally by not eating the entire 1500 calories each week (because you can) but rather only a portion of that - 500 for example- for a couple of weeks. This will prove you can eat more and not gain. Then add a few more hundred calories the next couple of weeks. You might lose a little more in the interim but that is better than gaining and creating the confidence that you will be ok if you eat more. Hope that makes sense.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,756 Member
    I wasn't very successful at maintenance either...let a few things slip and here I am again. I am hoping to do better this time around and already almost back at my target weight.
    No advice from me either......sorry but I am sure there will be many people in the same boat.
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    What about a few bulk/cut cycles (if you like to log anyway)? Not sure what your exercise goals are but if they're strength goals, extra calories give you an amazing boost.

    I've no advise for sticking to maintenance - I've proved to myself, many times, that it's something I cannot do :/
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,809 Member
    I actually found maintaining my target weight range as much of a valid goal as losing weight was - equal satisfaction as well.
    In many ways it feels better to weigh myself and see I'm on target rather than thinking I'm overweight but improving.

    The big bonus was that I got to eat more and training is much more rewarding at maintenance.
  • Lissa_Kaye
    Lissa_Kaye Posts: 214 Member
    Congratz on getting to maintenance.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    Time. I hear what you're saying about getting a buzz off being really under. Me too. But I've been doing this for 3 years, and if I'm under, I'm happy. Sometimes I get buzz off of eating too.
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
    I tried logging one week, not logging the next, and watching the scale and how my clothes fit. I get too caught up in the numbers when logging all the time. I eventually stopped logging food for that reason. If I notice a real "need" to log (weight has shifted too much one way or the other) then I will start calorie counting again. Until then, I go with the scale, my clothes, and how I feel.
  • Springfield1970
    Springfield1970 Posts: 1,945 Member
    I oscillate between tiny bulks and tiny cuts! It is about a pound or two in weight difference but it is inches on me. I usually party for a couple of weeks then get my head down for a couple of weeks. It works for me. December is usually a free for all and January a monkish existence!!
  • ewhip17
    ewhip17 Posts: 515 Member
    I don't have a great answer for you unfortunately OP, just wanted to say that I'm working through the exact same thing at the moment. The "buzz" of seeing that deficit is tough to shake.

    I recently started working with someone who is helping me with a new workout plan as well as a nutrition plan with the goal of getting stronger and leaner. He's also helping me through the mental aspect of the big "what's next" question.

    I've discovered that I need a tangible goal to work towards and with his help I'm working on defining what that is. I don't think I'd be very successful at just "maintenance" if you know what I mean? So I think that that goal is going to be more related to strength gains and changes in body composition that are visible through progress pics. It's a little tougher to quantify than just seeing the number on the scale going down from the day before, but I'm working on it.

    The mental game is the toughest one to win.
  • WandaMM1
    WandaMM1 Posts: 132 Member
    Congratulations on making your goal! In life, I am a very goal driven person. I struggle with maintenance because I no longer have a goal of getting to a specific weight or losing 1 to 1.5 pounds a week. It's simple, really, but a friend of mine suggested I just set different goals. It was kind of a 'duh' moment for me. So, my current goal is to not go over or under my maintenance target (5 pound range) for 10 weeks. I have also included fitness goal.

    So for you, maybe, maintenance could be setting a goal where rather than a 1500 calorie deficit you target -1000 for a while, then maybe -500. You'll want to get to a point where your goal is zero and you'll get the buzz you've come to enjoy from breaking even.
  • helenbenzie75
    helenbenzie75 Posts: 95 Member
    I think this is something I'm going to struggle with too. I've so far lost 16lbs with MFP but has over all have lost 79lbs (over the last 6 years and have managed to keep it off).

    When I think about eating more calories I just think how? It will be nice to go out for dinner and not have to worry so much about what to eat. :smile:
  • mymodernbabylon
    mymodernbabylon Posts: 1,038 Member
    For me, maintenance is all about getting stronger and fitter - I will no longer be at a deficit so will be feeding my body what it needs more so than when on a deficit. That's my mindset that has helped when I got to goal 1 (and went to maintenance for a few months) and I can't wait to get back there again (once I reach my new goal). I have so much more strength eating more calories and I love that.
  • blankiefinder
    blankiefinder Posts: 3,599 Member
    Springfield1970 wrote: »
    I oscillate between tiny bulks and tiny cuts! It is about a pound or two in weight difference but it is inches on me. I usually party for a couple of weeks then get my head down for a couple of weeks. It works for me. December is usually a free for all and January a monkish existence!!

    @Springfield1970 So you find one month bulk and cuts effective? I'd really like to try this, as I don't have time for a long bulk and cut before an event this summer, and don't want to do a bulk leading into it without the cut o:)
  • higgins8283801
    higgins8283801 Posts: 844 Member
    Same here. My goal was 125 but I couldn't stop eating at a deficit and got down to 116. I realized I had to get over the mental thing because I was starting to look too thin. Finally got it figured out and am now 119 and range between 116-120
  • Springfield1970
    Springfield1970 Posts: 1,945 Member
    blankiefinder wrote: »
    Springfield1970 wrote: »
    I oscillate between tiny bulks and tiny cuts! It is about a pound or two in weight difference but it is inches on me. I usually party for a couple of weeks then get my head down for a couple of weeks. It works for me. December is usually a free for all and January a monkish existence!!

    @Springfield1970 So you find one month bulk and cuts effective? I'd really like to try this, as I don't have time for a long bulk and cut before an event this summer, and don't want to do a bulk leading into it without the cut o:)

    No. Not really effective, probably just maintaining the muscle I worked hard to get, though during my summer cardio training I possibly lose some. It's hard to tell.

    What did work was my 4 month proper bulk. Followed by a very slow cut. I hope I'm brave enough to do that again some day.
  • sunflowa77
    sunflowa77 Posts: 2 Member
    When I started I was eating 1250 cal. When I hit my goal weight I started upping the calories until I stopped dropping weight, am now eating 1950 calories and happily enjoying the extras. It was a bit of playing around with the numbers and adding extra snacks to get there. Now I have two breakfasts a day and this has helped (feel a bit like a hobbit)
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    Good job and congrats on getting into your maintenance range! If you add 100 cal/day and stick with that 2 weeks, then bump it up another 100 for 2 weeks, etc., the scale will continue to go down until you actually maintain. What helps me with the mental adjustment are the little things I love to eat that I can add when I have a few more calories to work with. Gotta say, though, my meals and snacks are the same in maintenance as deficit. More treats/extras on maintenance.
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