Is anyone on maintenance that isn't even that skinny?

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124

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  • fit4itall
    fit4itall Posts: 101 Member
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    arditarose wrote: »
    I'm in maintenance. I got tiny, then purposely bulked to try gain muscle over the winter. I tried to cut the fat but went through a lot of personal stress besides getting obsessed and weird with food. So...maybe I failed. But here I am. It's time for me to focus on getting mentally and physically healthy, which doesn't meant chasing a low body fat % at the very moment.

    You look amazing.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    fit4itall wrote: »
    arditarose wrote: »
    I'm in maintenance. I got tiny, then purposely bulked to try gain muscle over the winter. I tried to cut the fat but went through a lot of personal stress besides getting obsessed and weird with food. So...maybe I failed. But here I am. It's time for me to focus on getting mentally and physically healthy, which doesn't meant chasing a low body fat % at the very moment.

    You look amazing.

    That is sweet. Thank you :)
  • trina1049
    trina1049 Posts: 593 Member
    edited May 2016
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    I'm 66 years old, 5'2.5" with a medium frame and maintaining at 127 lbs. I think I look normal -- not fat, not skinny though pretty well defined because I started doing weight resistance and a bit of cardio when I first began to lose weight about 15 months ago. The weights really reshaped my body composition. I'm wearing US Petite size 6 (Mediums) or a Ladies 2 or 4 (Small).

    My BMI is at 22.9. I'm maintaining by eating anywhere from 1850 - 2000+ calories per day with moderate exercise 4Xs per week (weights/cardio).
  • victoria_1024
    victoria_1024 Posts: 915 Member
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    trina1049 wrote: »
    I'm 66 years old, 5'2.5" with a medium frame and maintaining at 127 lbs. I think I look normal -- not fat, not skinny though pretty well defined because I started doing weight resistance and a bit of cardio when I first began to lose weight about 15 months ago. The weights really reshaped my body composition. I'm wearing US Petite size 6 (Mediums) or a Ladies 2 or 4 (Small).

    My BMI is at 22.9. I'm maintaining by eating anywhere from 1850 - 2000+ calories per day with moderate exercise 4Xs per week (weights/cardio).

    You're my twin! I'm the same height about 125 and do strength training, and maintain around the same calories. ;)
  • GeorgiePie88
    GeorgiePie88 Posts: 54 Member
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    chimaerandi wrote: »
    I'm 5'3'' and my range is 132-127 and I'm moving into maintenance. I know many MFPers would rather get to like 115 or whatever but ehhh, I'm happy the way I am and I'm not trying to be a model or anything--I'm healthy and I can maintain at this weight without it turning into an obsession pretty easily. The only person who gets to have an opinion about whether you're thin enough to be on maintenance is you. You don't *have* to want to be at the bottom half of your BMI, though I know it can feel that way. You're allowed to like yourself where you are!

    My stats and goals are the exact same as you. I've given up on trying to fit the skinny ideal as it was both unsustainable and made me feel miserable. I obtained my thinnest weight by disordered eating, but I know I can maintain a healthy weight by eating more and engaging in a healthy relationship with food. All I want at this moment is to be happy and healthy.
  • trina1049
    trina1049 Posts: 593 Member
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    victoria_1024 wrote: »
    trina1049 wrote: »
    I'm 66 years old, 5'2.5" with a medium frame and maintaining at 127 lbs. I think I look normal -- not fat, not skinny though pretty well defined because I started doing weight resistance and a bit of cardio when I first began to lose weight about 15 months ago. The weights really reshaped my body composition. I'm wearing US Petite size 6 (Mediums) or a Ladies 2 or 4 (Small).

    My BMI is at 22.9. I'm maintaining by eating anywhere from 1850 - 2000+ calories per day with moderate exercise 4Xs per week (weights/cardio).

    You're my twin! I'm the same height about 125 and do strength training, and maintain around the same calories. ;)

    Nice! It's good validation for our maintenance calories!
  • chelseamoberg13
    chelseamoberg13 Posts: 6 Member
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    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm 5'5" and 136 pounds right now. Some people call me skinny because I have thin legs and arms but my midsection is definitely not skinny (although all the loose skin is making it hard to know).

    My goal is/was 130 pounds but it's just not been happening and I've been maintaining at 134-136 for 2 years. I'm just too hungry as a whole and not willing to give up things I like just to lose a couple vanity pounds (and I'd have to eat less to maintain that too - can't even imagine that). I mean, I'm still trying to keep a deficit most weeks, but I typically end up wiping it the following week (or during PMS), and my weight just hasn't come down, so... whatever I guess.

    Still struggling with it a bit though and I haven't reached the acceptance stage yet. But what I've been doing seems to work to maintain, so I don't really want to change it anyway.

    Have you tried adding in more exercise/muscle building? Loosing weight (especially for women) messes with the amount of muscle you have & muscle is what burns calories. You could keep eating what you love, add in some weight lifting, and still be able to hit your goal. I am getting ready to start yoga for that reason - it strengthens so many muscles!! Either way - congrats on getting to a place where you are healthy & your body is happy. :smile:
  • srecupid
    srecupid Posts: 660 Member
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    I'm 5"10 170. I'm pretty fat but got burned out so I'm taking a break for now.
  • lolosensan2
    lolosensan2 Posts: 28 Member
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    chelseamoberg13 wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm 5'5" and 136 pounds right now. Some people call me skinny because I have thin legs and arms but my midsection is definitely not skinny (although all the loose skin is making it hard to know).

    My goal is/was 130 pounds but it's just not been happening and I've been maintaining at 134-136 for 2 years. I'm just too hungry as a whole and not willing to give up things I like just to lose a couple vanity pounds (and I'd have to eat less to maintain that too - can't even imagine that). I mean, I'm still trying to keep a deficit most weeks, but I typically end up wiping it the following week (or during PMS), and my weight just hasn't come down, so... whatever I guess.

    Still struggling with it a bit though and I haven't reached the acceptance stage yet. But what I've been doing seems to work to maintain, so I don't really want to change it anyway.

    Have you tried adding in more exercise/muscle building? Loosing weight (especially for women) messes with the amount of muscle you have & muscle is what burns calories. You could keep eating what you love, add in some weight lifting, and still be able to hit your goal. I am getting ready to start yoga for that reason - it strengthens so many muscles!! Either way - congrats on getting to a place where you are healthy & your body is happy. :smile:

    I was thinking this exactly. I am 5'5'' too and 136 is actually my end goal. I am probably around 148. I don't own a scale but I think I'm in the higher 140s right now. Do you lift? I think lifting makes all the difference in appearance.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    chelseamoberg13 wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm 5'5" and 136 pounds right now. Some people call me skinny because I have thin legs and arms but my midsection is definitely not skinny (although all the loose skin is making it hard to know).

    My goal is/was 130 pounds but it's just not been happening and I've been maintaining at 134-136 for 2 years. I'm just too hungry as a whole and not willing to give up things I like just to lose a couple vanity pounds (and I'd have to eat less to maintain that too - can't even imagine that). I mean, I'm still trying to keep a deficit most weeks, but I typically end up wiping it the following week (or during PMS), and my weight just hasn't come down, so... whatever I guess.

    Still struggling with it a bit though and I haven't reached the acceptance stage yet. But what I've been doing seems to work to maintain, so I don't really want to change it anyway.

    Have you tried adding in more exercise/muscle building? Loosing weight (especially for women) messes with the amount of muscle you have & muscle is what burns calories. You could keep eating what you love, add in some weight lifting, and still be able to hit your goal. I am getting ready to start yoga for that reason - it strengthens so many muscles!! Either way - congrats on getting to a place where you are healthy & your body is happy. :smile:

    Hate lifting and I don't want my arms to get more muscular, and I like my legs too, so it's kinda a moot point anyway... I still lift... occasionally.
  • Heartisalonelyhunter
    Heartisalonelyhunter Posts: 786 Member
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    lolosensan2 wrote: »
    chelseamoberg13 wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    I'm 5'5" and 136 pounds right now. Some people call me skinny because I have thin legs and arms but my midsection is definitely not skinny (although all the loose skin is making it hard to know).

    My goal is/was 130 pounds but it's just not been happening and I've been maintaining at 134-136 for 2 years. I'm just too hungry as a whole and not willing to give up things I like just to lose a couple vanity pounds (and I'd have to eat less to maintain that too - can't even imagine that). I mean, I'm still trying to keep a deficit most weeks, but I typically end up wiping it the following week (or during PMS), and my weight just hasn't come down, so... whatever I guess.

    Still struggling with it a bit though and I haven't reached the acceptance stage yet. But what I've been doing seems to work to maintain, so I don't really want to change it anyway.

    Have you tried adding in more exercise/muscle building? Loosing weight (especially for women) messes with the amount of muscle you have & muscle is what burns calories. You could keep eating what you love, add in some weight lifting, and still be able to hit your goal. I am getting ready to start yoga for that reason - it strengthens so many muscles!! Either way - congrats on getting to a place where you are healthy & your body is happy. :smile:

    I was thinking this exactly. I am 5'5'' too and 136 is actually my end goal. I am probably around 148. I don't own a scale but I think I'm in the higher 140s right now. Do you lift? I think lifting makes all the difference in appearance.

    Lifting does make a huge difference, as long as you use a proper progressive lifting routine. The weight you can lift will increase exponentially if you're doing it right. I get so sick of women on here saying they 'lift' when really they're faffing around with Dumbbells or doing Body Pump, neither of which help anything really, certainly not in the long term.
  • galprincess
    galprincess Posts: 682 Member
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    Hi I'm 31 years old mum of 3 and I'm in maintenance im 5'5 and 131lbs im happy and slowly increasing calories im looking ok and im ready to start recomp
  • batoolnabulsi
    batoolnabulsi Posts: 35 Member
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    Great! Nothing feels as good as accepting yourself, which I finally managed to do, 2 lbs to reach the NEW goal, at first I wanted to reach 113 lbs which is really low, but now my goal is 119 lbs then I'll start maintaining and focus on getting fitter and more flexible, there's no point in eating less and feeling annoyed.. Although I sometimes stress over weight, I fear gaining it, but I need to accept myself..
    I can never look skinny, I do have a flat stomach but I'm curvy and will always look curvy.. So it's okay..leaner legs aren't for me after all...
    Cheers for accepting ourselves :smiley:
  • vingogly
    vingogly Posts: 1,785 Member
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    I'm 69yo, 5'11" and I went into maintenance after losing 51 lbs (216 lbs) maybe a year and a half ago. I just got tired of paying that much attention to what I was eating. I kept most of the weight off for the year and a half. What I learned from this experience was that I need to log what I eat -- even when I'm in maintenance. Going on maintenance even if you haven't reached your goal is I think a valuable thing to do because (a) you're proving to yourself that yes, you can go into maintenance and stay there and (b) you're learning what you need to do to successfully stay at your goal weight -- provided you continue to log everything and monitor your weight.

    Last November, I decided to stay at a calorie level that would let me lose about a pound a week. I've done so since then, and now I'm up to 72 lbs lost (184 lbs). My current goal for final weight is 160 lbs - 170 lbs which is right in the "normal weight" sweet spot for me. This has nothing to do with aesthetics, it's a matter of health because I have atrial fibrillation, hypertension, and prostate cancer. So by the end of the year, I should be there. Staying there will be a matter of staying vigilant, weighing myself, and taking corrective action if I see the weight going up again.

    I'm doing cardio now, plan to get back on a weight program when I get the OK from my surgeon (I had hernia surgery a couple of weeks ago).
  • vicky1947mfp
    vicky1947mfp Posts: 1,527 Member
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    vingogly wrote: »
    I'm 69yo, 5'11" and I went into maintenance after losing 51 lbs (216 lbs) maybe a year and a half ago. I just got tired of paying that much attention to what I was eating. I kept most of the weight off for the year and a half. What I learned from this experience was that I need to log what I eat -- even when I'm in maintenance. Going on maintenance even if you haven't reached your goal is I think a valuable thing to do because (a) you're proving to yourself that yes, you can go into maintenance and stay there and (b) you're learning what you need to do to successfully stay at your goal weight -- provided you continue to log everything and monitor your weight.

    Last November, I decided to stay at a calorie level that would let me lose about a pound a week. I've done so since then, and now I'm up to 72 lbs lost (184 lbs). My current goal for final weight is 160 lbs - 170 lbs which is right in the "normal weight" sweet spot for me. This has nothing to do with aesthetics, it's a matter of health because I have atrial fibrillation, hypertension, and prostate cancer. So by the end of the year, I should be there. Staying there will be a matter of staying vigilant, weighing myself, and taking corrective action if I see the weight going up again.

    I'm doing cardio now, plan to get back on a weight program when I get the OK from my surgeon (I had hernia surgery a couple of weeks ago).
    Great job. Good luck with your healthy lifestyle.
  • vicky1947mfp
    vicky1947mfp Posts: 1,527 Member
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    mamadon wrote: »
    I'm 5'4 and weigh around 150. When I was younger and thinner, I would have felt horrible at this weight. Being 54 years old and coming from 268 pounds, I am perfectly happy not being "skinny"

    Healthy and happy is the key.
  • VitaSh
    VitaSh Posts: 113 Member
    edited June 2016
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    I suggest you look up Layne Norton's videos on Youtube about reverse dieting and how you can slowly reverse your calories higher to help increase your metabolism and change body composition, and then it will be much easier to lose weight from a higher caloric intake and/or maintain weight at higher calories, if you're interested.

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