How do you all get back on track and stay on track

stephie_nyc · November 2019

I don´t. Food wise I am always on and off the track. I struggle. Gym wise though, I don´t rely on motivation. If I did, I would never have a consistent exercise routine. I just do it. Even when I don´t want to.

Antiopelle · December 2019

I can related to the OP. I've lost and gained and lost and gained... (repeat endlessly).

Now I've been at my goal weight (and even a bit below) for a few weeks and I am gaining again.
It seems to me that losing is kind of easy, as you have your goal in front of you. Gaining is even easier.
But to strike the right balance for controlling the maintenance weight is something that I find extremly difficult as so many thoughts are fighting a battle at every mealtime and snack opportunity - and basically all the time in between.
I've identified four "battles" so far:

1. It's ok to eat a little more because I'm at goal weight (hey, even my food log says so)
2. It's ok to eat even more because I'm below goal weight
3. After a couple of days of eating a some more, it seems to open the door to mindless eating again
4. At goal weight, I want to stop investing so much effort in controlling my weight. Because I really experience watching my food intake and making deliberate exercise choices to be difficult and time consuming.

I know people for who staying in the same routine comes naturally, but obviously not for everyone.
Being adamant to stay in maintance range and not gaining this time, I will reign in again, but boy ...it is a hard struggle !

sgriska · December 2019

I'm in a similar boat -- lost 150 lbs to get to my goal weight, and about a year later I've regained 25 lbs of that through bingeing on chocolate. Finally came to terms with all that and have "gotten my mind right" again, back on the wagon, and have lost five of the regained pounds so far. The key for me is just the sheer terror of failure. This is my third round of massive weight loss followed by even more massive regain, and it needs to be my last. I am using CBT techniques to keep "The Snake" (the unevolved reptile brain that wants to fatten me back up again following the self-imposed "famine") in-check, and that helps a lot. Just trying to keep my eyes on the big picture.

I have always found that weight loss is the easy part, it's maintenance that's really hard. Something about the shift of gears. I always think "this time is going to be different," and so far it seems like I fall into the same traps. However, at least this time I'm getting back on the wagon before I get enormous again, so hopefully it won't be as bad.

ChelleDee07 · December 2019

My approach to maintaining is different than most. I weighed 260 lbs in January of 2017. I loss over 100 lbs in 8 months and have been in maintenance since. I take my weekends off (from Friday at lunch through Sunday night) eating more freely, less healthy but without gorging myself. First thing Monday morning I am back to my healthier choices. In a sense, this always has me in 'loss mode' during the week... but it has been a sustainable method for me for more than 2 years. Typically my weight is up on the scale on Monday mornings, but by Wednesday or Thursday I usually have it right back in my 'comfort zone'.

Weight loss and Maintaining are both about moderation.... you just have to find what works for you to keep that balance.

Rfblanchette · December 2019

I have only been maintaining for a few months but I use the same method as ChelleDee07, only I count my weekend calories too. I cut calories during the week so I have a surplus to use on the weekends. I eat more on the weekends but I make sure I stay under my total allowed for the week. I used the same technique while losing and was able to keep up a steady loss even though I overate every weekend. Undereat during the week and overeat on the weekends. The only thing that matters is keeping your weekly total at or under your allowed calories.

William Anderson wrote a book called The Anderson Method that teaches how to structure your calorie counting. It talks about the psychology of eating and why reserving calories for the evenings and weekends works for most people. It's all about saving your calories for times when you are with your family and friends. That way you won't feel deprived. I lost 48 pounds in less than 6 months and have kept it off for three since using his method. That's not much of a history but it's working so I'm sticking with it. I got through Thanksgiving without gaining any weight and plan to get through Christmas and New Year's the same way. (Anderson lost 130 pounds 30 years ago and has kept it off.)

Even if I do blow it on a given day, I still count my calories. I like being honest with myself so I know how much of a deficit I need to eat for the next few days to make up for my binge. If you don't count, you don't know how much you are eating. I refuse to lie to myself anymore by thinking that I can estimate my calories.

Maintenance is a life-long challenge. You can't go back to your old habits or you'll go back to your old weight.

IsETHome · December 2019

riffraff2112 wrote: »

I go by how my pants are fitting. Once they get tight, its time to smarten up.I find it takes a few weeks of bad habits before that happens. It also usually takes about the same amount of strictness to make my excess lbs go away. After being overweight all those years it is easy to fall back into bad habits and I suspect no matter how long I am in maintenance I will always need these reality checks.

. Some women’s pants can stretch 4 sizes, ha. There is a pair of grey pants that I own that have fit the last 30 lbs. I think that might be ok for men’s structured pants but less so womens.

elisa123gal · December 2019

ChelleDee07 wrote: »

My approach to maintaining is different than most. I weighed 260 lbs in January of 2017. I loss over 100 lbs in 8 months and have been in maintenance since. I take my weekends off (from Friday at lunch through Sunday night) eating more freely, less healthy but without gorging myself. First thing Monday morning I am back to my healthier choices. In a sense, this always has me in 'loss mode' during the week... but it has been a sustainable method for me for more than 2 years. Typically my weight is up on the scale on Monday mornings, but by Wednesday or Thursday I usually have it right back in my 'comfort zone'. Weight loss and Maintaining are both about moderation.... you just have to find what works for you to keep that balance.

This guy has it right. when I lost my weight.. I stuck to my healthy plan during the week..and went out to dinner once or twice on the weekend..had a few cocktails and ate what I wanted but didn't binge or gorge myself. I lost all my weight doing this..and you can maintain doing this also. It isn't like many say where you have to log every bite for the rest of your life.

It is the day after day over eating, binging...that leads to the weight gain.

steveko89 · December 2019

Personally, "maintenance" eventually became less about the scale and more about continuous improvement. I lost about 30 lbs starting in early 2012 and got down to <160 lbs right around June of 2013 and hung out in the 160s for at least 18 months. My job changed in late 2014 and I gained some weight back but didn't really 100% like how I looked at either weight as I didn't have enough muscle so I started following more traditional weightlifting programs in lieu of P90X and P90X3 with which I had been dabbling. Since 2015 I've gained approximately 15 lbs of lean mass and lost ~8 lbs of fat which drastically improved my body composition. Just as important, I'm way stronger, more confident, and comfortable in my own skin than ever. Of course, that before/after picture doesn't capture the ups and downs along the way; I've been as heavy as 185 and as low as 170 at times since mid 2015. I'm currently trying to cut to around 10% so I can move away from this gradual recomposition and start actual bulk/cut cycles to make more efficient gains.

ETA: I log my accurately and completely now than I did when I lost weight initially. In July of '17 I thought I was doing all the right things; logging my food, recording exercise cals with a chest strap HR monitor, etc. I took a deep dive into my log and I found I was good Monday-Thursday, i might have 1/2 of Saturday logged and the weekends were blank. This was also about the time I started browsing the community more and saw the numerous posts discussing the inexact science of measuring workout calories and the importance of weighing portions. I also found r/fitness on reddit and their suggestion of using TDEE vs. NEAT+exercise and referenced a handy google sheet used for back-calculating observed TDEE from daily weight and the previous day's calories; in essence taking a black box approach to solve for TDEE. For the TDEE sheet to work well it required good input data. Being the science person that I am (Chemical Engineer) this instantly made it easy to track everything. Making the exercise part of necessary data collection removed any emotional component to what/how much I logged. Same with the scale, weighing daily has been a habit for close to 900 days so there's no event-based association (the TDEE sheet tracks a moving average and I also started using HappyScale to trend the data as a backup). It turns out I was eating well above my observed TDEE with the other method as the HR monitor and UA record was giving me 2-3x what it should have for my workouts. Getting logging dialed in let me easily lose 10 lbs of vanity weight from September 2017 through January of 2018, encompassing an annual event I attend in September, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and a week long trip at Christmas to see extended family.

jmule24 · December 2019

Goals, goals, goals......I'm a goal setter overall. Whether it be fitness related, work related, personal growth related, etc... I am always setting short term goals. It helps me to stay grateful for all of the good things happening. When I fall into a rut, which I'm confident we all do, I pull out my goals and remind myself how much I have accomplished so far.

It may seem cheesy but it works for me. I struggle with depression/anxiety and cope by isolating from people and eating my feelings. I've also learned that while physical health is important, mental health is just as important to focus on.

I hope my rambling helps a bit.

ChelleDee07 · December 2019

jmule24 wrote: »

Goals, goals, goals......I'm a goal setter overall. Whether it be fitness related, work related, personal growth related, etc... I am always setting short term goals. It helps me to stay grateful for all of the good things happening. When I fall into a rut, which I'm confident we all do, I pull out my goals and remind myself how much I have accomplished so far.

It may seem cheesy but it works for me. I struggle with depression/anxiety and cope by isolating from people and eating my feelings. I've also learned that while physical health is important, mental health is just as important to focus on.

I hope my rambling helps a bit.

Doesn't sound cheesy in the least. I also have issues with anxiety and getting my workouts makes all the difference in the world.

fiddletime · December 2019

elisa123gal wrote: »

This guy has it right. when I lost my weight.. I stuck to my healthy plan during the week..and went out to dinner once or twice on the weekend..had a few cocktails and ate what I wanted but didn't binge or gorge myself. I lost all my weight doing this..and you can maintain doing this also. It isn't like many say where you have to log every bite for the rest of your life.

It is the day after day over eating, binging...that leads to the weight gain.

I agree with this, as over the years I’ve slipped a meal here and there and a day here and there and get back to my regular weight with little effort.

It’s when I do the day after day for weeks or months, eat whatever I want, that I gain weight. I still record the calories though, when I do a meal or two over. When it’s weeks, I stop logging as it’s too depressing.

When I slip for more than a weekend I need to tighten things up and get back to logging and staying at my calorie count or “pay the price”.

katsheare · December 2019

fiddletime wrote: »

elisa123gal wrote: »

This guy has it right. when I lost my weight.. I stuck to my healthy plan during the week..and went out to dinner once or twice on the weekend..had a few cocktails and ate what I wanted but didn't binge or gorge myself. I lost all my weight doing this..and you can maintain doing this also. It isn't like many say where you have to log every bite for the rest of your life.

It is the day after day over eating, binging...that leads to the weight gain.

I agree with this, as over the years I’ve slipped a meal here and there and a day here and there and get back to my regular weight with little effort.

It’s when I do the day after day for weeks or months, eat whatever I want, that I gain weight. I still record the calories though, when I do a meal or two over. When it’s weeks, I stop logging as it’s too depressing.

When I slip for more than a weekend I need to tighten things up and get back to logging and staying at my calorie count or “pay the price”.

This. Yes. And I've finally had the grown-up talk with myself about it. That if I'm avoiding something owning that is a good thing to do.

Right now the conversation I'm having with me is that I will be logging for the long haul, and that there's nothing wrong with that. And both of me seem to agree.

MadisonMolly2017 · January 2020

I can answer this better now, as I’ve *just* managed to get back on track after the most carefree I’ve been with my food in 4 Years.

I stepped my walking distance wayyy up & added hills with lots of great fast music.
I rested
I looked at all my data.
I figured out a calorie count that would work.
I gave myself 3 days to transition.
I didn’t overplan my days.

From a post on MFP, I realized that my carbs didn’t go up, not my protein. My total fats did as well as my sat fat. The carbs stayed the same because I substituted sugar for veggies/fruits.

I made a list of all the habits I kept using over my vacation.
And a list of the ones I had mastered but let slip that I needed to get back in line Pronto.
Finally a list of a few things I’d like to do one I have the 2nd category back in line.

This gave me a plan.

I also looked at my weight each Jan 1 (or as close as I had it) for the past 10 years & paid attention as I easily strode up hill, remembering how painful it was when I was 70-80 lbs heavier. I focused on all my labs that are perfect.

Then I had my motivation.

June 2010 221
Nov 2011 231.5
Mar 2012 232.8 Highest wt 237ish I remember >240 at doctors 😳
May 2013 224
March 2014 208.5
Jan 2015 221.6
Jan 2016. 228.6 ——Began 3-year wt loss ——
Feb 7 2017 221
Jan 4 2018 190.2
Jan 4 2019 154.6
Sept 4 156.6
Oct 4 157.6
Nov 4. 154.2
Dec 4 159.4
Jan 4 2020 160.2

Good to keep perspective...AND I NEVER want to DIET again. Really. That’s my greatest motivation. It took over 3 years. I want to do other things with my life!

On to 155.

elisa123gal · January 2020

Two things. First, I threw out all my bigger clothes as I lost my weight. So, now that I'm stuffing myself into my jeans and have zero choice but to get back to basics. So that worked.

Second, i don't want to regain all my weight and be a failure. This time when I maintain, I'm going to reset my goal to truly maintaining. Not allowing for a five to 8 pound or so regain..then lose again. It is exhausting and leads to burn out. This is the year I find the way that works for me to maintain without having to re-lose regains. It just keeps you on a perpetual diet.

kdbulger · January 2020

I'm a similar boat - lost 46 lbs and have put back on 20 recently.
Factors for me were eating like I was still exercising a lot - but in reality I was dealing with illnesses and injuries so activity was greatly reduced.

The key now for me getting back on track is to shut down the feelings/judgment component of both the re-gain and the 'deprivation'/I don't want to feelings. I will just plod away without bothering to feel those not-helpful feelings. Discipline with the involvement of my emotions. It has worked before and it's working again.

The_Pheonyx_921 · January 2020

As I read through the feedback and comments which were all very supportive and great advice... the thing that I would like to suggest is have Grace & Forgiveness toward yourself. We can all be our own worse critics in our thoughts, actions and verbal abuse of ourselves. How we judge ourselves when we look at our bodies in the mirror when we get out the shower or when we look at a group picture and see us vs the rest of our friends in the picture. Weight loss like many things in life start with the mental perception of ourselves and the goals we want to achieve. I would say learn to find the things you love, like and are beautiful about YOU even if they have nothing to do with your weight loss journey and build your self-esteem on those and watch how your perception and value change for your feelings about you. As human beings we are motivated by what we value... so if you find things about yourself no matter how small to value you'll want to invest more in you with love, health and wellness.

kdbulger · January 2020

The_Pheonyx_921 wrote: »

I would say learn to find the things you love, like and are beautiful about YOU even if they have nothing to do with your weight loss journey and build your self-esteem on those and watch how your perception and value change for your feelings about you. As human beings we are motivated by what we value... so if you find things about yourself no matter how small to value you'll want to invest more in you with love, health and wellness.

This gets a standing ovation from me. Really everything you said does, but I didn't want a huge quote block.
Self-compassion and self-love has been the number one thing that has moved me to be successful. It takes a LOT of work to deprogram the critical voice in our heads but it can be done - think of how you would treat your own child with unconditional love, healthy food, exercise, and fresh air - then apply that to yourself.

kenyonhaff · January 2020

Another way to think of your situation is "what did I learn / what did I do / how did I think when I was losing weight that I'm not doing now? How do I do that (or something similar) again?" Rather than a success/failure approach.

Every time you attempt a change, you hopefully can get some insight over what works, what sorta works, and what doesn't work for you. And stuff that's particular to you. It can be hard. It takes some insight and getting over potential feelings like shame, body image issues, self-doubt, etc. It also eliminates the black-and-white either your succeeded or failed approach...it's just feedback.

As for " I can't work out because someone is living with me" that might be true...but I have a husband and a kid and I almost work out exclusively at home. Since I live in a cold climate outdoor workouts aren't the norm for me this time a year. And I do it, and I don't spend a lot of $$$ doing so either. It can be done.

Biggiwig69 · January 2020

My motivation is my age. I am 50 and wanna fight the signs of aging, losing muscle mass, getting fatter etc. I wanna stay attractive as long as I can and be able to fit into nice clothes. At the end it is, how strong is your will to look attractive, be healthy etc.

How do you all get back on track and stay on track

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