Making sure the weight STAYS off?
Options
weightofyourskin
Posts: 173
Again and again, I've seen the following statistic tossed around : only 3-5% of people who lose a decent amount of weight manage to keep it off for more than a year.
Nobody ever explains how they arrived at that figure. Is it based in fact at all? Does it only take into account people who go on fad diets or take weight-loss pills and then go back to their previous poor eating habits, or also people who do a thorough lifestyle change like members of MFP strive for? I saw a nutritionist from August 2010 to April 2011 and I've already gained back most of the weight I lost during that time. I freely admit that is my fault because I started going back to fast food instead of taking the time to cook for myself. After I started eating healthily again and exercising, the weight slowly started to come off again.
My husband and I eat out about once a week, but I always try to pick the healthier meal options then. Otherwise I cook myself, use cooking spray instead of oil, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink lots of water, etc. I exercise almost every day. I intend to keep eating well and counting calories for the rest of my life because it's easy and worth it. I intend to keep exercising because I'm actually starting to enjoy it and I want to be healthy. If I do these things, I'm bound to keep the weight off... right? I can't understand how it could come back, but I just want to make sure I've got all my bases covered.
I can't even imagine how crushing it would be to get to my goal weight and then gain the weight back. How can you make sure that your weight loss is sustainable? I know genetics and aging play a part in it, but overall does it come down to discipline and healthy eating like I hope it does?
Nobody ever explains how they arrived at that figure. Is it based in fact at all? Does it only take into account people who go on fad diets or take weight-loss pills and then go back to their previous poor eating habits, or also people who do a thorough lifestyle change like members of MFP strive for? I saw a nutritionist from August 2010 to April 2011 and I've already gained back most of the weight I lost during that time. I freely admit that is my fault because I started going back to fast food instead of taking the time to cook for myself. After I started eating healthily again and exercising, the weight slowly started to come off again.
My husband and I eat out about once a week, but I always try to pick the healthier meal options then. Otherwise I cook myself, use cooking spray instead of oil, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink lots of water, etc. I exercise almost every day. I intend to keep eating well and counting calories for the rest of my life because it's easy and worth it. I intend to keep exercising because I'm actually starting to enjoy it and I want to be healthy. If I do these things, I'm bound to keep the weight off... right? I can't understand how it could come back, but I just want to make sure I've got all my bases covered.
I can't even imagine how crushing it would be to get to my goal weight and then gain the weight back. How can you make sure that your weight loss is sustainable? I know genetics and aging play a part in it, but overall does it come down to discipline and healthy eating like I hope it does?
0
Replies
-
I certainly hope it does, I've wondered about that too and I do believe that most ppl gain back their lbs because they lost with 'diets' instead of making life changes...I think that as long as we eat more healthy and keep up some form of exercise that even as we get older if we DO happen to put on a few lbs due to older age, at least we'll be conditioned enough from past years to try to keep it up and not gain tons, lol - good thought!
0 -
Yes it does! That's it in a nutshell....It's a lifestyle change...0
-
the 3-5% are the people who commit to lifestyle changes most of the rest are fad/pills or someone else convinced them to lose the weight and as soon as the support mechanism is gone the weight is regained MFP is more on the side of lifestyle changes as you could stop it but keep what you learned and keep the weight off but with how easy it is to keep up with once the habit is build it will most likely continue.
Small note "Cooking Spray" is oil with a food grade propellant there is no real difference between using a table spoon of veg oil and the sprays just easier to use and for the most part using a good Olive oil is healthier then using the cheaper veg oils and give your food a better flavor so you don't need as many other flavoring
http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/olive-oil-vs-vegetable-oil.html0 -
Yes there is a way...................................don't diet. Eat the foods you like to eat. Unless your doctor states that foods that you're eating are actually going to kill you or compromise your health, eat what you want. Why? Because if you cut out foods that you enjoy, you'll crave them. And that's when the weight creeps back on.Again and again, I've seen the following statistic tossed around : only 3-5% of people who lose a decent amount of weight manage to keep it off for more than a year.
Nobody ever explains how they arrived at that figure. Is it based in fact at all? Does it only take into account people who go on fad diets or take weight-loss pills and then go back to their previous poor eating habits, or also people who do a thorough lifestyle change like members of MFP strive for? I saw a nutritionist from August 2010 to April 2011 and I've already gained back most of the weight I lost during that time. I freely admit that is my fault because I started going back to fast food instead of taking the time to cook for myself. After I started eating healthily again and exercising, the weight slowly started to come off again.
My husband and I eat out about once a week, but I always try to pick the healthier meal options then. Otherwise I cook myself, use cooking spray instead of oil, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink lots of water, etc. I exercise almost every day. I intend to keep eating well and counting calories for the rest of my life because it's easy and worth it. I intend to keep exercising because I'm actually starting to enjoy it and I want to be healthy. If I do these things, I'm bound to keep the weight off... right? I can't understand how it could come back, but I just want to make sure I've got all my bases covered.
I can't even imagine how crushing it would be to get to my goal weight and then gain the weight back. How can you make sure that your weight loss is sustainable? I know genetics and aging play a part in it, but overall does it come down to discipline and healthy eating like I hope it does?
You WILL have to counter the calories with lots of activity and exercise though. That's the trade off.
I eat McDonald's, Taco Bell, and indulge in ice cream at least 3 times a week. Have been doing this for the last 10 years and my weight may fluctuate 2-4lbs. I don't crave any foods because I eat them when I want to.
While healthy eating is a better choice and approach, I don't see myself being deprived when I go to a family party (which is often) and eating a lot of our cultural foods. If I can't ENJOY living life with what brings me joy, then really life would suck. Why bother if you have to count out every item that may have high caloric value.
Counter your calories.................that's the key. No secret.0 -
Absolutely it is about lifestyle changes. It doesn't mean you can never eat out again. It means you go every once in a while and the rest of the time you eat a healthy well balanced meal and you still active with some kind of exercise. If you continue that forever you should continue to be at a desired weight forever. Once you have that mindset it is a lot easier to keep it up!0
-
Small note "Cooking Spray" is oil with a food grade propellant there is no real difference between using a table spoon of veg oil and the sprays just easier to use and for the most part using a good Olive oil is healthier then using the cheaper veg oils and give your food a better flavor so you don't need as many other flavoring
http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/olive-oil-vs-vegetable-oil.html
Except that a table spoon of my vegetable oil is over 100 calories and my cooking spray is zero. I get my daily recommended fat intake, I just don't need the hundreds of extra calories a day from oil.
0 -
Yes there is a way...................................don't diet. Eat the foods you like to eat. Unless your doctor states that foods that you're eating are actually going to kill you or compromise your health, eat what you want. Why? Because if you cut out foods that you enjoy, you'll crave them. And that's when the weight creeps back on.Again and again, I've seen the following statistic tossed around : only 3-5% of people who lose a decent amount of weight manage to keep it off for more than a year.
Nobody ever explains how they arrived at that figure. Is it based in fact at all? Does it only take into account people who go on fad diets or take weight-loss pills and then go back to their previous poor eating habits, or also people who do a thorough lifestyle change like members of MFP strive for? I saw a nutritionist from August 2010 to April 2011 and I've already gained back most of the weight I lost during that time. I freely admit that is my fault because I started going back to fast food instead of taking the time to cook for myself. After I started eating healthily again and exercising, the weight slowly started to come off again.
My husband and I eat out about once a week, but I always try to pick the healthier meal options then. Otherwise I cook myself, use cooking spray instead of oil, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink lots of water, etc. I exercise almost every day. I intend to keep eating well and counting calories for the rest of my life because it's easy and worth it. I intend to keep exercising because I'm actually starting to enjoy it and I want to be healthy. If I do these things, I'm bound to keep the weight off... right? I can't understand how it could come back, but I just want to make sure I've got all my bases covered.
I can't even imagine how crushing it would be to get to my goal weight and then gain the weight back. How can you make sure that your weight loss is sustainable? I know genetics and aging play a part in it, but overall does it come down to discipline and healthy eating like I hope it does?
You WILL have to counter the calories with lots of activity and exercise though. That's the trade off.
I eat McDonald's, Taco Bell, and indulge in ice cream at least 3 times a week. Have been doing this for the last 10 years and my weight may fluctuate 2-4lbs. I don't crave any foods because I eat them when I want to.
While healthy eating is a better choice and approach, I don't see myself being deprived when I go to a family party (which is often) and eating a lot of our cultural foods. If I can't ENJOY living life with what brings me joy, then really life would suck. Why bother if you have to count out every item that may have high caloric value.
Counter your calories.................that's the key. No secret.
I don't deprive myself and I hope my original post didn't come across that way. I don't live on water and air! I eat chips and ice cream when I feel like it (I just measure them out in bowls/cups instead of digging into the bag or container like I used to...) Dinner tonight was Thai take-out, but instead of eating the whole box I measured out one cup of rice, one cup of vegetables, one cup of chicken... I have enough left for lunch tomorrow, which is a scary thought if you think about it.
What I was trying to say is that I've realized that, in my case, it's not that difficult to switch out unhealthy foods for healthy alternatives AND it doesn't reduce my quality of life. I'm fine with eating a granola bar with chocolate chips instead of a candy bar.0 -
I personally find maintenance even harder than trying to lose. I think about it this way... when you are on a weight-loss journey you are striving for a particular goal. You can visual yourself how you want to look and with every pound loss there is a bit of excitement, a boost to keep going. Progress is motivating. Watching your body change and your clothes get looser... it can be thrilling! You think about it as if you are running a race and the finish line is XXXlbs. Then one day you finally get there! Yipeeeeeee! Goal met! You are beyond thrilled! However, it's only after you cross the finish line that you realize that the race isn't actually over. You have to keep running... and guess what... there is no goal and you no longer see progress... why? Because you are in maintenance. You now have to continue to do what you'd been doing all along in order to maintain the goal you've reached. You get to keep running but without the motivation of getting to a goal. This is where I find folks get lazy. They feel like they've arrived at the destination. This is why it has to be a LIFESTYLE change... and to be successful you must go in knowing that these changes are for good. The race doesn't end... you have to keep running...0
-
Then you're doing it right. Where it goes wrong for people is when the want a chocolate bar and have to eat an apple instead. "Willfully" making a switch is different than "having" to make a switch. Good job.[
I don't deprive myself and I hope my original post didn't come across that way. I don't live on water and air! I eat chips and ice cream when I feel like it (I just measure them out in bowls/cups instead of digging into the bag or container like I used to...) Dinner tonight was Thai take-out, but instead of eating the whole box I measured out one cup of rice, one cup of vegetables, one cup of chicken... I have enough left for lunch tomorrow, which is a scary thought if you think about it.
What I was trying to say is that I've realized that, in my case, it's not that difficult to switch out unhealthy foods for healthy alternatives AND it doesn't reduce my quality of life. I'm fine with eating a granola bar with chocolate chips instead of a candy bar.0 -
Tru dat! This may be also the reason many people sabotage their plans....................success can be scary especially if the expectation is to stay successful.I personally find maintenance even harder than trying to lose. I think about it this way... when you are on a weight-loss journey you are striving for a particular goal. You can visual yourself how you want to look and with every pound loss there is a bit of excitement, a boost to keep going. Progress is motivating. Watching your body change and your clothes get looser... it can be thrilling! You think about it as if you are running a race and the finish line is XXXlbs. Then one day you finally get there! Yipeeeeeee! Goal met! You are beyond thrilled! However, it's only after you cross the finish line that you realize that the race isn't actually over. You have to keep running... and guess what... there is no goal and you no longer see progress... why? Because you are in maintenance. You now have to continue to do what you'd been doing all along in order to maintain the goal you've reached. You get to keep running but without the motivation of getting to a goal. This is where I find folks get lazy. They feel like they've arrived at the destination. This is why it has to be a LIFESTYLE change... and to be successful you must go in knowing that these changes are for good. The race doesn't end... you have to keep running...0 -
I personally find maintenance even harder than trying to lose. I think about it this way... when you are on a weight-loss journey you are striving for a particular goal. You can visual yourself how you want to look and with every pound loss there is a bit of excitement, a boost to keep going. Progress is motivating. Watching your body change and your clothes get looser... it can be thrilling! You think about it as if you are running a race and the finish line is XXXlbs. Then one day you finally get there! Yipeeeeeee! Goal met! You are beyond thrilled! However, it's only after you cross the finish line that you realize that the race isn't actually over. You have to keep running... and guess what... there is no goal and you no longer see progress... why? Because you are in maintenance. You now have to continue to do what you'd been doing all along in order to maintain the goal you've reached. You get to keep running but without the motivation of getting to a goal. This is where I find folks get lazy. They feel like they've arrived at the destination. This is why it has to be a LIFESTYLE change... and to be successful you must go in knowing that these changes are for good. The race doesn't end... you have to keep running...
I hadn't thought of it that way, but that really makes a lot of sense. Thanks for your input!0 -
[/quote]Then you're doing it right. Where it goes wrong for people is when the want a chocolate bar and have to eat an apple instead. "Willfully" making a switch is different than "having" to make a switch. Good job.
[/quote]
I'm sorry I really don't agree with this. You can't eat chocolate bars and expect to maintain. You can't eat ice cream or McD;s or whatever and expect to maintain. Sure, you can eat them occasionally like one of them once a week, but lifestyle change means eating differently - and the whole point is you stop eating this stuff and eat well and healthy and guess what you find you don't even like this junk once you've stopped eating it altogether.
Its all just marketing, all junk food is a just marketing with lots of sugar and salt etc to make people crave more. Don't allow yourself to be manipulated and put your health at risk into the bargain.0 -
Regarding the 3-5% of people, I think many people who lose weight do it in unhealthy ways, by yo-yo dieting, or whatever. Exercise and nutrition should increase those statistics I would think.0
-
Yes there is a way...................................don't diet. Eat the foods you like to eat. Unless your doctor states that foods that you're eating are actually going to kill you or compromise your health, eat what you want. Why? Because if you cut out foods that you enjoy, you'll crave them. And that's when the weight creeps back on.Again and again, I've seen the following statistic tossed around : only 3-5% of people who lose a decent amount of weight manage to keep it off for more than a year.
Nobody ever explains how they arrived at that figure. Is it based in fact at all? Does it only take into account people who go on fad diets or take weight-loss pills and then go back to their previous poor eating habits, or also people who do a thorough lifestyle change like members of MFP strive for? I saw a nutritionist from August 2010 to April 2011 and I've already gained back most of the weight I lost during that time. I freely admit that is my fault because I started going back to fast food instead of taking the time to cook for myself. After I started eating healthily again and exercising, the weight slowly started to come off again.
My husband and I eat out about once a week, but I always try to pick the healthier meal options then. Otherwise I cook myself, use cooking spray instead of oil, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, drink lots of water, etc. I exercise almost every day. I intend to keep eating well and counting calories for the rest of my life because it's easy and worth it. I intend to keep exercising because I'm actually starting to enjoy it and I want to be healthy. If I do these things, I'm bound to keep the weight off... right? I can't understand how it could come back, but I just want to make sure I've got all my bases covered.
I can't even imagine how crushing it would be to get to my goal weight and then gain the weight back. How can you make sure that your weight loss is sustainable? I know genetics and aging play a part in it, but overall does it come down to discipline and healthy eating like I hope it does?
You WILL have to counter the calories with lots of activity and exercise though. That's the trade off.
I eat McDonald's, Taco Bell, and indulge in ice cream at least 3 times a week. Have been doing this for the last 10 years and my weight may fluctuate 2-4lbs. I don't crave any foods because I eat them when I want to.
While healthy eating is a better choice and approach, I don't see myself being deprived when I go to a family party (which is often) and eating a lot of our cultural foods. If I can't ENJOY living life with what brings me joy, then really life would suck. Why bother if you have to count out every item that may have high caloric value.
Counter your calories.................that's the key. No secret.
Right on the money!!0 -
I personally find maintenance even harder than trying to lose. I think about it this way... when you are on a weight-loss journey you are striving for a particular goal. You can visual yourself how you want to look and with every pound loss there is a bit of excitement, a boost to keep going. Progress is motivating. Watching your body change and your clothes get looser... it can be thrilling! You think about it as if you are running a race and the finish line is XXXlbs. Then one day you finally get there! Yipeeeeeee! Goal met! You are beyond thrilled! However, it's only after you cross the finish line that you realize that the race isn't actually over. You have to keep running... and guess what... there is no goal and you no longer see progress... why? Because you are in maintenance. You now have to continue to do what you'd been doing all along in order to maintain the goal you've reached. You get to keep running but without the motivation of getting to a goal. This is where I find folks get lazy. They feel like they've arrived at the destination. This is why it has to be a LIFESTYLE change... and to be successful you must go in knowing that these changes are for good. The race doesn't end... you have to keep running...
Fantastic response! And so very true! I wasn't prepared for this at all, I don't know what I was expecting when i hit goal but it wasn't this sudden feeling of 'Oh... now what?' that I got!
The whole time I was striving for my goal I think I 'binged' maybe three/four times in the two year period and it was only by a few hundred calories. Since hitting maintenance i've had probably two/three bad binges a month because I find myself falling in to a trap of allowing myself cheat days because i'm at goal and as I can't handle the cheat days without triggering my binge switch... I punish myself and go back to a deficit...So if that's keeping my weight down at my goal level, you could definitely say i've made a lifestyle change! Whether it's a good one i'm not so sure.
Now I find myself focusing on different goals, fitness goals and diet goals, wanting to tweak things with my macro's and improve my fitness levels and running speeds.0 -
Continuing to exercise plays a big part in maintaining0
-
Yes it is hard to keep the weight off. I am talking from experience. I was in a weight loss competition 2 years ago and used a different calorie counter site (not as good as this one!), and lost 68 lbs. It is (to me) a whole lot easier to stay motivated when you have goals and incentives to loose weight than to just maintain. Oh wow, I am the same weight every week, how exciting!
The better part of this web site and the lifestyle change part is eating back the exercise calories. Since I am very active, that will make it much easier to stick with it when the loosing ends.
More of the story, over the past 2-3 years, I gained about 1/2 of the weight back, going crazy eating what ever I wanted, when ever. I was still exercising a lot, which I am sure slowed the gain. It was hard to log food constantly. Fortunately logging on this site is much easier, but once you achieve a goal, there is less motivation to log and easy to think that you can now keep up with it in your head.
I am struggling with this now as I have reached my first goal and am nearing my final goal. It is easy to stay motivated for a few months (and especially for me during spring and summer), but when it gets colder and you can't (or I don't) get to exercise outside as much, it is harder to stick with it.
You could try throwing out all your old fat clothes, that might be a motivation?0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 392.1K Introduce Yourself
- 43.6K Getting Started
- 259.9K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.7K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.4K Fitness and Exercise
- 403 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.8K Motivation and Support
- 7.9K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.4K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.4K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions