I am so scared...

I was overweight all my life (except when I was two years old, all other ages was overweight, in my later years even obese). I've now been at a healthy weight for about two years of using mfp. It has not been difficult to keep it off.

I know now I'm in control over my body. I also learnt that gaining weight (back) is not the end of the world, you took it of once, you can do it again. Don't let fear of gaining weight (back) prevent you from accomplishing your goals. Definitely don't use it as an excuse to prevent you from continuing, and feeling physically ánd mentally healthier and fitter.

I had a point of fear like this when I got close to 80 kilograms - I 'subconsciously' knew that for me, when I got past that number, there would be no turning back. That meant no going back to the old, chubby, much more insecure me that I knew for 25 years, felt comfortable with, and loved (even though I was lighter than 80 kg most of those years). I'm not sure if something like this may be at the root of your fear - but let me emphasize what I found when I continued on past 80 kg: you will not lose yourself when you lose the weight. You will just feel better about yourself, and be able to do more things.

When we lose the weight we feel good, look good and we're too busy enjoying the moment. We forget that we now have to have a healthy lifestyle otherwise the weight will creep back on. Also if we are having a stressful time, either at work, with family or having major work done on your house, the last thing we think of is living healthy (eating right & exercising). I am now committing to get back on track, lose all the weight I gained back. I want to have my energy back, be healthier and bonus is looking good too.

The key is to do more strength training. The more muscle you have the easier it'll be to maintain. As you will burn a lot of calories passively.

Once you get to your goal weight OP, just stick to your maintenance calories (along with logging your food), do some kind of exercise at least 3 times a week and you should be fine.
I would definitely gain weight eating at my maintenance calories i'm on now and not doing any exercise.

DeguelloTex wrote: »

angeliebeh wrote: »

The key is to do more strength training. The more muscle you have the easier it'll be to maintain. As you will burn a lot of calories passively.

You'll burn very few extra calories because of additional muscle.

Interesting point-of-view. At 35% BF I have a TDEE of around 300 calories less to consume then at 25% BF and at the same weight. 300 calorie a day difference seems more then 'very few extra calories'.

I had a good long think about this topic yesterday. I'm 43, and in my teen-through adult life I've ranged from quite thin to a bit chunky. I've lost over 30 pounds twice in my life through exercise and food control. (Not counting calories, but just "watching it.") And then a LOT of other times I've taken off 5 or 10 pounds and then gained back 10 or 5. And then a little more...

When I look back at the times where I was at a healthy BMI and maintaining, what was the trick?

It was getting regular exercise. I am naturally lazy, so this is big for me to admit! Sure I can lose weight by counting calories alone. And I have done, over and over and over! But it's the exercise habit that kept ME going in those glorious times of thinhood. It gave me energy, confidence and motivation to eat better, drink less alcohol, etc.

I'm crossing my fingers that this time it sticks. It sounds sad that I can't fully commit, but it's the hard truth... It's all up to me! I have to find it within myself to form habits that I keep forever.

jokoh92 wrote: »

I have been reading up on some articles that say the likelihood of regaining weight is greater than keeping it off long term, especially for those who have always been overweight or obese.

I can't imagine getting down to my goal weight only to regain most of it back. I think that would kill me.

According to some sources, most people who have kept the weight loss off for a significant amount of years was either once small or fit to begin with.

I have never been small, even at 3 I was chubby. So its like will my body just eventually go back to being what it knows best?

I plan to keep weighing myself & logging food for years. I know I'm going to have to work at it for the rest of my life at this point.
I think it will take effort to keep at a certain weight just like it does to lose weight.
One thing that seems to me to be common to people about regaining is that they stop monitoring their weight regularly and go back to eating more than they burn.

_Terrapin_ wrote: »

DeguelloTex wrote: »

angeliebeh wrote: »

The key is to do more strength training. The more muscle you have the easier it'll be to maintain. As you will burn a lot of calories passively.

You'll burn very few extra calories because of additional muscle.

Interesting point-of-view. At 35% BF I have a TDEE of around 300 calories less to consume then at 25% BF and at the same weight. 300 calorie a day difference seems more then 'very few extra calories'.

It's not a point of view. It's a fact.

Muscle burns somewhere around six calories per pound per day. Fat around two. If you put on 20 pounds of muscle, you're burning an 120 extra calories a day. If you put on 20 pounds of muscle and lose 10 pounds of fat, you're burning around 100 extra calories a day.

And adding 20 pounds of muscle is non-trivial for a male and very difficult indeed for a woman.

I think we need to deal with it as an eating disorder, lets face it we know we over eat. Sometimes for comfort, sometimes because the food just tastes so good, but we know we overeat, therefore we cannot trust ourself once we get to goal to keep on track without supervision. We need some accountability, which an app such as MFP offers. We all know that it is not going to be easy to loose the weight, and even harder to keep it off, as we might relax our habits a bit and there comes the slippery slope and the pounds comes back on again.

I think we all need a plan for what to do once we have reached goal (apart from the massive shopping trip) How will we keep it off? Tracking, exercise, a mix? Without a plan and sticking to it, I do think the majority will be putting a considerable amount of weight back on again. A lot of us have been overweight for the majority of our lives, being slim and fit will be a new experience, fun yes, but new to us.

So for me, I am not treating this like a diet, this is a lifestyle, I treat myself, I go out, I do not deprive myself, I work my butt off in the gym, eat healthily most of the time and have made new habits, such as walking a lot and cycling instead of taking the bus/public transport. I think it is all about making long term plans and starting to incorporate them now and making them part of your lifestyle, so when maintenance comes you have your base already in place.

My gym work consists of a lot of weight work and some cardio as I want to build muscles and tone up. If you compare 1 lb of fat to 1 lb of muscle it is like comparing a grape to a raisin size wise.

crazyjerseygirl wrote: »

I to have been overweight my whole adult life. I see a social worker. She specializes in weight loss (yes,they exist!) she lost and kept off over 200lbs over the past 20yrs.

One thing she said that changed my outlook on weightloss, and why I think that I will be ultimately successful, is to treat the process the same way an alcoholic treats getting sober.

Basically everyday is work. You HAVE to keep on top of it for the rest of your life. She's logged food for 20years. I'm only at 6mo but I now know that this is something I'll probably need to do forever.

Does it suck? yep. Is it fair? nope. Will I slip up? Absolutely, but long term I think it's what will give me success.

I don't wade into these threads often, but I'm feeling compelled to note that this is exactly the realization I've come to - for myself (important delineation) - and it has actually taken some of the fear of regaining away. Once I realized that I needed to frame it this way, it was like a pressure valve released because I suddenly realized what I needed to do. It helped explain a lot of my past behavior and much of the internal dialogue that I still wrangle with. It's different for everyone of course, but for me this is the mindset that has kind of pulled back the curtain.