Maintenance & Logging

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mum2littledove
mum2littledove Posts: 53 Member
in Motivation and Support
Hi all,

I am now down to 1 lb above my goal weight (which seemed ridiculously low at the time I set it) and feel happy with where I am. I don't really want to lose any more as I will have zero boobs left, and I've spent a fortune on a new wardrobe (my motivational treats) which fits just right. My issue is that I have recently become a bit stressed out about food, logging everything I eat, and the stress of it makes me want to eat more. Mentally, I believe I am now at the hardest part of my journey, i.e. maintaining the "new me" and making sure I don't put it all back on again. Therefore I realise that being stressed out about what I'm eating/ food in general could be my undoing. So today, for the first time in 95 days, I have liberated myself from logging any food, to try and make me feel less stressed. I just wondered:

1) Have others found that reaching their goal weight brings its own challenges that they never foresaw;
2) How do people actually "do" maintainance. My plan is to keep on exercising, eat as I please without logging, but avoid forbidden foods (cold turkey works best for me personally where those foods are concerned).
3) Or do people continue logging/ weighing because of the discipline that brings?

Replies

  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    I am officially in maintenance mode as of a few days ago.

    I was going to stop logging, but I feel like it helps me to track what I'm eating and to see if I'm getting out of control for some reason. I also like to track when I work out, etc.

    I do think it's okay to relax some , but not so much that you fall back into old habits.

    I've set new goals that have nothing to do with a number on the scale. It helps me to focus on these so I don't slide back into obsessing about calories in, calories out, etc.
  • fitnessGETZeasy
    fitnessGETZeasy Posts: 79 Member
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    bump....I'm always interested in peoples' response to this topic.
  • therobinator
    therobinator Posts: 832 Member
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    I would suggest maybe changing your MFP goals to your maintenance weight, and follow that caloric recommendation for a week or two....see if you stop losing weight or perhaps you will still keep losing. You may be surprised to find that your true maintenance calories are higher than MFP will tell you. Then, once you figure out the true caloric level, try eating what you want for a couple weeks, but still logging, to see if you lose/gain/maintain that way.....I bet you will find that you still come close to the maintenance calorie limit/goal without even trying. After this long journey, you have trained your body and mind to know what to do and you will probably automatically do what's right and necessary for your new body, and do so easily.
  • avenathus
    avenathus Posts: 113 Member
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    I am dealing with this exact same problem! I've been maintaining within my goal range for over a month now. I've upped the intensity of my workouts, which are still fun and awesome, but I find that calorie counting maybe isn't helping me as much anymore and is causing me some stress. I've noticed that since I began maintaining I've been craving crappier food and having mini-binges. I've been debating taking a break from counting calories for a bit, just to let things cool off. Let us know how it works for you!
  • Dcgfeller
    Dcgfeller Posts: 83
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    My first major round of weight loss didnt involve calorie counting per se, it was more an educational experience on being healthy and since I had a ton to lose it was relatively easy. As a result, maintaining wasn't terribly difficult or different when I wasn't really losing any more. I just weighed in every week or so and if I was up, I watched myself a bit for a week and was OK. That worked for 4 years or so.

    Now that I am trying to kick the last 40lbs and they are a little clingier than before I have decided to actually keep a tab on my calories, and am quickly becoming addicted to it! However I know I wont want to be doing that forever. I am hoping that once I am at goal weight as long as I can stay active I will be smart enough to maintain at that weight too by just hopping on the scale on occasion...I guess time will tell.

    That's not really much advice, but I guess I would say that your #2 looks about like how I would do it, but I would still involve the scale in #3.

    Also, grats on being to maintenance!

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