How do I maintain weight after weight loss?

jdunn4230 · July 2020

Hi, I’ve lost 4 stone in lockdown by walking 20,000 steps a day and eating 1,200 calories. I’m happy with my weight now but how do I know how many calories I should be eating a day to maintain my weight? Thanks

sijomial · July 2020

A lot!!

With such an excessive deficit you are going to have to increase your calorie massively.
Setting your goal to "Maintain Current Weight" and with the highest activity level may well just be the start from which to make manual adjustments over an extended period.

It's going to take time so make sure you track your trend weight and ignore fluctuations.

jdunn4230 · July 2020

Thanks

MadisonMolly2017 · July 2020

I’ve found that over time, it becomes very apparent ie the balance between your exercise & your calories eaten. Just never give up. Each month, you will have more data to rely upon.

DO set a maintenance Range - not a single number.

Expect an uptick in weight as you carry more food in digestive track..

Finally, small changes yield results so decide on a number of calories to add, and then do that for a month, like a scientist, and see what your monthly change in wt was. Then adjust for another month & check.

Congratulations on a terrific accomplishment.

jdunn4230 · July 2020

Thanks 😊

gallicinvasion · July 2020

1. Find your maintenance calories by bumping up your calories considerably (see @sijomial’s post above), keeping an eye on your weight trend for at least 4 weeks, and recalculating your maintenance calories based on the 4 weeks of data.

2. Set up your way-of-eating so that you are ON AVERAGE hitting your daily maintenance calories. (Keeping an eye on the weekly average is very helpful for this; allows you to plan for over-days and under-days depending on your schedule and engagements).

3. Continue logging your food every day, and Logging your weight on a regular schedule so that you stay mindful and always have data upon which you can make tweaks.

4. Commit to a weight range as @MadisonMolly2017 says above, and decide on an intervention plan in case your average weight goes above the top of the range (maybe returning to a slight deficit of 250 cals per day?)

5. Use this time to really reflect on the foundational habits that allow you to stay at your desired weight and health level. Write down an easy-mode version of these habits that you can stick to EVEN when life throws you curveballs (illness, injury, death in the family, job loss, relocation, disaster, etc). These big life events are the main things that cause people to lose sight of their health. By building in a realistic easy-mode plan you can stick to even when times are tough, you will better protect yourself against that.

6. Be ready to be FLEXIBLE; keep an eye on what’s working and not working, and be ready to tweak habits and re-work your goals so that you can keep moving toward and within your health goals!

ottermotorcycle · July 2020

Most of the advice here is good, but I'd like to add - if you are eating 1200 calories a day currently, and that's not under the direct advice of a doctor because of a diagnosed condition, you've been starving yourself. Be very careful not to panic if the scale fluctuates while you return to a more sustainable eating pattern.

briscogun · July 2020

I entered maintenance in May and have been trying to figure out a lot of the same things, but what @gallicinvasion posted is pretty right on the money.

One thing I've been doing is keeping a spreadsheet with my daily weight and daily calories logged (I'm still logging every day, except my 10 day vacation I just had!). I use it to track my averages, not daily fluctuations. I use my weekly weight and calorie averages as a guide, as well as the month-to-month figures to see trends and whatnot. So if I'm losing week to week, I can adjust my calories or have that big dinner out that week, whatever. If I eat out too much and start creeping I can back down the next week and adjust. Basically, I'm kind of adjusting on the fly from week to week. It's honestly more art than it is science. It has taken me a few months though to really get out of the mindset that I'm NOT supposed to see the scale go down and to just hang in a certain range. You have to really give yourself that time to mentally and emotionally shift expectations.

I would also recommend that as you get close to your goal weight you start to shift into maintenance before you get there. Most folks still lose a bit for a while even in maintenance until they get a good grasp on their true calorie goal. I spent a good month trying to figure that out and still lost a few pounds in the process.

Good luck!

MadisonMolly2017 · July 2020

I use the same methods as @gallicinvasion & @briscogun - maintaining 70+lb loss 22 months.

I’d add that one insight I’ve had is that when my scale goes up, I can get anxious which shows up as vast confusion about how many calories / macros/ micros/type of diet etc THAT stress & fear has often led to more days of overeating.

The most recent time, I was convincing myself I should overhaul my diet based on some recommendations of my dr for an illness I have AND curb a weight gain...AND lose down to bottom of my maintenance range. TOO MUCH! Feelings of overwhelm.

SO I decided on 2 things to focus upon for the next 4 days.
200+ Daily deficit NOT including exercise calories
No sugar except for 2 foods I have eaten with great results in the past.

In August, I will add 1-2 changes every 3-4 days.

I feel that recognizing that Confusion Space & calmly telling it to knock it off makes me able to revert to my previous WOE more quickly.

And as a final note: I suck at dieting. I lost 78 lbs over 3-1/3 YEARS. I don’t like to be hungry. Throughout those years, multiple times a day, “I thought & said outloud...take your time because I AM Never Doing a big weight loss again. Period.” Remembering how much I detested dieting - and the reason I mention this - has been my Largest Motivator to get back on track ASAP.

joyneville253 · August 2020

Ive lost 137 lbs and to maintain u should reset ur mfp to maintenance put in ur height, weight ect.. U should def up ur calories some😘btw great job loossing 👏❤

meharmahshahid · August 2020

I wanted to ask how did you carry on eating 1200 calories without hitting a plateau, if you have any tips to share. Also, could you mention your height and weight? Thanks!!!! Just looking for advice!

freda666 · August 2020

ottermotorcycle wrote: »

Most of the advice here is good, but I'd like to add - if you are eating 1200 calories a day currently, and that's not under the direct advice of a doctor because of a diagnosed condition, you've been starving yourself. Be very careful not to panic if the scale fluctuates while you return to a more sustainable eating pattern.

The 1200 minimum figure is just to ensure you are eating enough food to get sufficient nutrients and has nothing to do with your deficit. So it is the minimum before exercise calories, not after.

Dootzy1 · August 2020

Interesting that the original poster seems to have removed their profile.

How do I maintain weight after weight loss?

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