Finally at weight now need to maintain any pointers

Well done! calculate your TDEE on for example: http://www.iifym.com/tdee-calculator/. Than you will maintain your weight

That stands for: TOTAL ENERGY EXPENDITURE. This shows you the amount of calories you need on a day. If you go under you lose weight, if you eat your tdee you maintain your weight, if you eat more, you gain waight.

I'm always unsure about what my TDEE should be. Don't know whether I count as "sedentary" or "lightly active", don't know how much excercise to add because I usually do 30 minutes a day of cardio but a couple times a week I'll do 45 minutes or strength training.

Now that you reached your goal... don't talk about it with too many people. They will start offering you candy.... pizza... all the temptations .... some people will do that... not all... You have created a lifestyle of eating and exercising.... Continue to log all of that as often as you can... so you are not tempted to go off the plan and regain the weight. I'm not saying people are mean, but once they see how good you look, some jealousy and intimidation may occur by the closest people. They are afraid you will leave.... and explore the world .... but no.. you won't ..You are just showing self love... and that is okay...

Soloflyergirl2 wrote: »

Now that you reached your goal... don't talk about it with too many people. They will start offering you candy.... pizza... all the temptations .... some people will do that... not all... You have created a lifestyle of eating and exercising.... Continue to log all of that as often as you can... so you are not tempted to go off the plan and regain the weight. I'm not saying people are mean, but once they see how good you look, some jealousy and intimidation may occur by the closest people. They are afraid you will leave.... and explore the world .... but no.. you won't ..You are just showing self love... and that is okay...

Dreysander wrote: »

You can eat candy and pizza if you work it into your calories / macros.

Both of these are true. Yes, you can fit whatever you want into your calories/macros, but unless you want to be hungry all day long, you can't fit them in at every meal, which is what can happen if you see these food-pushers on a daily basis. Also, eating healthier feels good overall, so I personally don't make the extra effort to add in a treat everyday like I used to. If I crave something, I'll fit in on my own time.
My more insecure acquaintances have definitely tried to get me to eat whatever they're eating (usually calorie-dense and not worth it imo), and if I wasn't so dead set on this new lifestyle, I might've caved in. Still, it is indeed very tempting to fall back into old habits and mindlessly eat once again, so it is true that based on your personality/willpower, it is best to keep quiet.

cthakkar1985 wrote: »

I reached my goal weight and then ended up regaining 30 lbs in the next few months. I'm currently trying to get back to where I was, but it's discouraging to have backtracked. If I think of the mistakes I made -

1) I stopped checking my weight frequently. I thought that I was finished and I didn't have to monitor my weight as much. This is wrong, especially for those that have a tendency to put on weight quickly. I hadn't checked in a couple weeks and realized I had gained 10 lbs. Check your weight every day.

A million times this!!

I maintain without tracking most of the time, but I check my weight pretty much every day. That way I will know when I've gone up. It's a lot easier to correct a 2-pound gain than a 10-pound gain!

This is also why I keep a relatively narrow range. If I see my weight up two pounds or more for more than a few days, I start restricting a bit. I don't wait to see if it will become 3 or 4 pounds. In fact, if I stop seeing my target weight or the number one below it for more than about a week, I cut back until I'm seeing it again. I know that for me, if I don't see my target number for more than a week, I've gained a bit. My normal fluctuations don't last that long.

If much rather stay on top of my weight and only have to lose a pound or two than to have a larger range and have to keep dieting to get back to my target weight. Keeping a narrow range and cutting back occasionally as needed feels much more natural to me than perpetually tracking.

That's my other piece of advice. Find a way of maintaining your weight that works for you. My way is probably not your way, but you need to figure out a method that will work for you long term. Be realistic about your personality and strengths and find something that works for you. For me, it's essentially IF plus close weight tracking. For you, it may be tracking or something else. Some people partially fast a couple of days a week. Find what works for you.