Has anyone tried maintaining in the middle of weight loss?

Options
2»

Replies

  • Koldnomore
    Koldnomore Posts: 1,613 Member
    Options
    I normally switch to maintenance in winter as it is very difficult to get a whole lot of activity in around here during the coldest days. I'm in Canada and it isn't out of the ordinary for it to be so cold around here that hey will caution you NOT to go outside. I do what I can but it's nothing like the activity I get in the warmer months.
  • GaleHawkins
    GaleHawkins Posts: 8,160 Member
    Options
    amazon35 wrote: »
    I was thinking about it today. I may decide to try and maintain for 6 months after my first 100lbs. Just so my body and mind can have a break and get adjusted I guess. I'm also thinking it'll help me make this a permanent change. Then after the 6 months jump back on it and loose the last 40-50lbs but do it super slowly until I figure out what weight I want to stay at. Does this make sense? Has anyone done this?

    From the research that I have read that is the only way real way to prevent a 100%+ regain.

    The source I was reading stated to lose 10% of starting weight and maintain it for 6 months then lose another 10%.

    The point seems to be if you can not maintain a new lower weight for 6 months you are not going to do it for 6 years. We know today a person who is 150 pounds (any amount) should NOT lose a pound if they are just going to regain it because they may shorten their life. Yo Yoing weight is a killer.

    Over the last 18 months I have lost 40 pounds. The first 20 was the old CICO method that has always equalled 100%+ regain over the last 40 years. The last 20 pounds has been by LCHF. I have not lost/gained a net pound in 3 months. Now I want to lose 10 more pounds to get me to 199. :)

    Over the last 3 months I have been eating like 3000 a day with carbs <50 grams daily and about 70-80% fats. I lost one inch in the waist which is the only measurement I have tracked. I will soon be buying my second new belt. :)

    In my case if I regain one more time it will be a premature death for me without question. Thankfully I have proven if I leave off the carbs my body will drift towards its ideal weight eating at 2500 calories daily and I can maintain at 3000 calories.
  • tephanies1234
    tephanies1234 Posts: 299 Member
    Options
    GaleHawkins wrote: »
    amazon35 wrote: »
    I was thinking about it today. I may decide to try and maintain for 6 months after my first 100lbs. Just so my body and mind can have a break and get adjusted I guess. I'm also thinking it'll help me make this a permanent change. Then after the 6 months jump back on it and loose the last 40-50lbs but do it super slowly until I figure out what weight I want to stay at. Does this make sense? Has anyone done this?

    From the research that I have read that is the only way real way to prevent a 100%+ regain.

    The source I was reading stated to lose 10% of starting weight and maintain it for 6 months then lose another 10%.

    The point seems to be if you can not maintain a new lower weight for 6 months you are not going to do it for 6 years. We know today a person who is 150 pounds (any amount) should NOT lose a pound if they are just going to regain it because they may shorten their life. Yo Yoing weight is a killer.

    Over the last 18 months I have lost 40 pounds. The first 20 was the old CICO method that has always equalled 100%+ regain over the last 40 years. The last 20 pounds has been by LCHF. I have not lost/gained a net pound in 3 months. Now I want to lose 10 more pounds to get me to 199. :)

    Over the last 3 months I have been eating like 3000 a day with carbs <50 grams daily and about 70-80% fats. I lost one inch in the waist which is the only measurement I have tracked. I will soon be buying my second new belt. :)

    In my case if I regain one more time it will be a premature death for me without question. Thankfully I have proven if I leave off the carbs my body will drift towards its ideal weight eating at 2500 calories daily and I can maintain at 3000 calories.


    What's your source on "yo-yoing weight being a killer"?
  • krissyrey
    krissyrey Posts: 67 Member
    Options
    That is the exact question I wanted to ask? Can you please share that source about yo-yoing weight being a killer? Thanks in advance.
  • Allelito
    Allelito Posts: 179 Member
    Options
    Umm, isn't yo-yoing weight exactly what cutting and bulking is? :D
    I seirously doubt there's anything "killer" about yo-yoing weight.
  • kickassbarbie
    kickassbarbie Posts: 286 Member
    edited May 2015
    Options
    Yes, I maintained about 12 lbs from my original goal weight, it has really helped me mentaly. Stopping losing gave me the time to reevaluate my goals and focus on my health fitness goals for a while instead of my weight.

    Tbh my goals changed massively once I switched to maintance and got out of the losing frame of mind. I'm back at losing again this last few weeks no problem and with a different outlook and renewed drive.

    Edit: yo-yo dieting is never a good thing but how did we get to your will kill you on this thread?
  • JayRuby84
    JayRuby84 Posts: 557 Member
    Options
    I've been maintaining throughout my cut for a while now...not on purpose. Just eating too much. But now I know what my maintenance intake should be.
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,779 Member
    Options
    I dieted for 8 months with only two breaks (of 10 days and two weeks), while losing 56 pounds. I'm now eating almost to maintenance most days. I still have 9-19 pounds to lose, but having a current BMI of 23.2, I just don't feel the urgency.

    I'm tired of it. Tired of saying "no" to other people and myself when food is offered. Tired of shrinking out of clothes the day after I wear them for the first time. Tired of constantly having to pull at my too-large underwear because I don't want to go out and buy more again. Tired of feeling unable to bake because I know it means I will either be over my calories or under my protein goal.

    I'll get back to it when I get my mind right, or maybe I'll just continue this 100-200 calorie deficit and recomp. IDK. I'm going to keep tracking my intake--maybe that will be a lifelong thing for me--but I'm done with the 500+ calorie deficits I've had.
  • Tubbs216
    Tubbs216 Posts: 6,597 Member
    Options
    As someone who is now less than 15lbs to my initial goal weight, these perspectives are really interesting. Thank you.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
    Options
    I've done it for short amounts of time - a week or so. Usually if I know life is going to be chaos, or holidays. When I reach my next goal I may 'break' for a week or so at maintenance.
  • Docbanana2002
    Docbanana2002 Posts: 357 Member
    edited May 2015
    Options
    I've taken breaks of a week or two along the way, for various reasons--holidays, vacations, recovering from a cold, weeks when I was just tired of restricting and wanted to have some treats. I trained for a 10K and intentionally slowed my weight loss down so I had plenty of fuel for my runs. I've never taken a longer break primarily because I'm motivated to just get this done so I can move on the next phase. I have some fitness goals that are on hold until I can reach my goal weight (like training for a half marathon).

    That being said, I am definitely planning a "maintenance break" when I drop into the normal BMI range-I'm 5 pounds away. I might stay there forever, might try to drop a pound here and there to get into the middle of the normal BMI range. Might try a recomp. Not sure. I'll focus more on body fat % and fitness goals though, since my primary reason for losing (health) has been addressed.
  • mjglantz
    mjglantz Posts: 489 Member
    Options
    amazon35 wrote: »
    I was thinking about it today. I may decide to try and maintain for 6 months after my first 100lbs. Just so my body and mind can have a break and get adjusted I guess. I'm also thinking it'll help me make this a permanent change. Then after the 6 months jump back on it and loose the last 40-50lbs but do it super slowly until I figure out what weight I want to stay at. Does this make sense? Has anyone done this?

    I think I kind of did that. My initial goal was 174-175 and when I got there I upped my calories, but kept losing. When I got to around 173 I had a heart attack :( and that was the wake up call to get to a "normal" BMI I'd reached my original goal in Oct and the heart attack was in Feb. After I reached my new goal of 162 I kept losing even though I kept adding in calories. I think the cardio and weights was what did it.
  • ncfitbit
    ncfitbit Posts: 1,058 Member
    Options
    OP, thanks for asking this question! It's good to know what others have done. I'm trying to figure this out right now.
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,779 Member
    Options
    ncfitbit wrote: »
    OP, thanks for asking this question! It's good to know what others have done. I'm trying to figure this out right now.

    Yeah, same. I've been feeling guilty for eating close to maintenance every day. Even at a BMI of 23.2 and single-digit pants sizes, I still see a fat girl in the mirror. So I'm glad to read about other people who stopped actively losing during their loss--it alleviates that guilt somewhat.
  • amazon35
    amazon35 Posts: 98 Member
    Options
    Thank you guys so much for the responses!! I just wanted to make sure I wasn't setting myself for failure. I have decided that this is what i'm going to do. I think 140lbs loss deserves 3 legs to reach my goal.

Categories