GOAL ZONE Maintenance chat

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  • debbiewsharpe
    debbiewsharpe Posts: 491 Member
    @eggfreak
    very intermittent, definitely not regular. I eat something around 8-9 at night and don't eat again until around 10 in the am or often until 12 for lunch. Guess that is a semi fast.
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Has it really been so long since we posted in here? We need more people on maintenance to keep it up :blush:

    We have a new person joining in for March, though :smiley: Welcome to maintenance @CurvyCalorie ! Even if you later decide to go back to the regular team and revise your goal weight downwards a bit, it is good to stay at this initial goal for a bit and allow yourself to make the adjustment and see how it goes. Feel free to share your hacks, questions, or any kind of thoughts any time.
  • CurvyCalorie
    CurvyCalorie Posts: 266 Member
    Good morning everyone! It's SO nice to be here!!! :) I hit my goal at 150.0 woot woot! My goal is to stay between 147 and 152 Monday's are my weigh in day.

    Its hard for me to post ( I have to boot someone off a computer) haha Anywhoooo....its great to be here! <3
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Good morning everyone! It's SO nice to be here!!! :) I hit my goal at 150.0 woot woot! My goal is to stay between 147 and 152 Monday's are my weigh in day.

    Its hard for me to post ( I have to boot someone off a computer) haha Anywhoooo....its great to be here! <3

    Welcome aboard! Want some bigger boots? My taller half has some size 12 men's that he does not wear anymore :smiley:
  • eggfreak
    eggfreak Posts: 687 Member
    Hello! I have struggled with maintenance...see? But I feel I'm getting back on track.
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  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Wonderful! And thanks for posting here - the thread has been sleeping for a while. We need more people to hit maintenance and stay with us!

    I have been enjoying one of the GOOD things about maintenance lately. You know how your body loved staying at a particular weight and would not budge even when you were doing everything right? It was used to being there. It liked being there, and did a lot of mysterious things to make sure it did. Well, once you are at your maintenance zone for quite a long time, the same thing will happen. Even when you eat more, it will stay there. Within reason, of course! But I am finding I can eat more now than I could when I first hit this zone. I hung around 120 easily for a year or 2, and when I moved to 114-115, it was hard to keep it there. Now it seems easy, even though I am eating a bit more than what it took to get here. It took about 6 months for that to happen, so be patient if you're just getting there!
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    Hi everyone, my name is Theresa. I put on twenty pounds over the past two years. Like a lot of people, one of my New Year’s Resolutions was to lose the weight.

    I trialed Noom for two weeks. Learned about logging, and how weight naturally fluctuates. Began exercising and drinking seltzer (two things I’ve avoided). After the trial ended, I joined MFP and found an incredibly supportive community (especially within the Downsizers & UAC).

    I just hit my goal on Saturday. This is my first week on maintenance (adjusted my calories using The Diet Fix calculator- MFP had it a bit higher). I’m looking forward to getting to know you and help support you.
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Welcome @TheresaM787 !

    I am always glad when F2F members stay on after reaching the long-awaited goal weight. The work of maintaining is not that different from losing, but it does gradually get easier. I hope you find interesting and useful info here on this thread - and I'm sure you'll have some to offer as well! Fire away with any questions or ideas you'd like to discuss here. Stick with Downsizers for weekly weigh-ins but you'll be in the Goal Zone section of the spreadsheet starting next month and can bring any maintenance-oriented discussions here. Great job!
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    Thank you @jugar . 🥳
    I agree, that’s exactly how I feel about maintenance. It’s pretty much the same structure- track everything and exercise (except I have an extra 215 calories).
    Over the past few weeks, I’ve been preparing for maintenance. I’ve been listening to the Half Size Me podcasts- specifically the ones pertaining to maintenance. They are very helpful.
    Thank you again Jugar. Have a great Tuesday!!
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    @debbiewsharpe

    Thank you! Congratulations to you for both hitting your goal and maintaining. Thank you. That’s great advice.
  • eggfreak
    eggfreak Posts: 687 Member
    I aim to be back on maintenance in the next couple of months. I didn't do so well with my first go at maintenance, yo yo-ed myself right out of my top range. Working on it right now and I feel good.
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    edited April 2021
    @eggfreak
    Glad you’re back! You can do this 🎉
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
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    Just think about that donut yoyo. Laugh your head off and run in the other direction!
  • Bluetail6
    Bluetail6 Posts: 2,984 Member
    Hello All:

    My name is Lee. I'm on the Downsizers team. I am w/in 15 lbs., or less of goal. If it is ok, I would like to hang out here. I given a lot of thought to how I want to maintain, and don't have a timeline to reach it. I am quite proactive, so I don't want to wait till I get to goal to start planning. Thanks😊
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    @Bluetail6
    Welcome!! That’s so exciting 🎉🎉🎉
    Oh my goodness, I did the same thing! Started listening podcasts about maintenance to give me suggestions, researched about maintenance calories 😆
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Bluetail6 wrote: »
    Hello All:

    My name is Lee. I'm on the Downsizers team. I am w/in 15 lbs., or less of goal. If it is ok, I would like to hang out here. I given a lot of thought to how I want to maintain, and don't have a timeline to reach it. I am quite proactive, so I don't want to wait till I get to goal to start planning. Thanks😊

    You are certainly welcome! Good for you to prepare for maintenance. Go right back to the beginning of this chat and read through the posts - there is a lot of information, many questions, and you'll see who is (or was) on maintenance in F2F. We are not many, and some people do not post, but we won't let that get in the way! For me, maintenance is almost the same as it was while losing. I stuck with the final amount of calories that got me there, kept similar exercise patterns, and just allowed a plateau to go on forever. If I stop tracking altogether I often gain, but generally I am looser than while losing now that I have been at this same weight range for a long time. At first I had to be more careful, and every time I tried to simply stop tracking, etc., I had to go back. it is good to take breaks from time to time, but for me a permanent break is not a good idea!
  • debbiewsharpe
    debbiewsharpe Posts: 491 Member
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  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    You've got that right @debbiewsharpe !

    I had to laugh this week. I think I have been keeping fats a bit too low even though I have to be careful because of a basic inability to digest them well (thanks, mom). So yesterday, I ate two big helpings of ice cream and this morning had lost almost a pound! Mind you, I also went on a rather strenuous hike and ended up with no lunch, so that might have helped too :blush:

    At goal, the effect of a no-exercise vs a good-exercise day are immediately obvious in the next morning's weigh-in. Does anyone else find that?
  • debbiewsharpe
    debbiewsharpe Posts: 491 Member
    edited May 2021
    @jugar
    My weight can vary by a pound or so but basically staying below my magic number. When I eat something
    high in sodium is when I see an increase.
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  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    @debbiewsharpe
    YES!!!! It's so true 🤣
  • debbiewsharpe
    debbiewsharpe Posts: 491 Member
    I am 1.8 pounds below my magic number but may be over it tomorrow. I play with the same few pounds up and down. At least I am not doing the yo yo with 10-20 pounds. I have held pretty steady since about 2015. I give ALL the credit to walking 10,000 steps a day , drinking more water and watching my magic number closely.
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  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    That’s really impressive- staying steady for six years! 👏👏👏. I’ve only been at it a month. I find pre-tracking my food, getting in daily exercise and seltzer are keeping me on track. I’ve been trying to get 10,000 steps in, listening to We Only Look Thin podcasts during walks and while getting housework done helps keep me motivated. Staying home is much easier for me to control my food. As the world continues to reopen. It’s becoming more difficult to stay within my calorie budget.
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    @TheresaM787
    You'll get it! It takes some time for the body to become totally used to the new place and not always trying to get back up to where it used to be "normal". You are doing all the right things. It's true that it is easier when we're at home and in control, but the right choices do get to feel more ordinary after a while. I've been maintaining for almost 9 years now, and it is smoother and smoother. Hang in there!
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    Wow, you have been in maintenance for nine years? That's an impressive feat and it's also really encouraging.
  • debbiewsharpe
    debbiewsharpe Posts: 491 Member
    very slightly above my magic number but lots of school end of year treats from admin and teachers. Hope to resist this coming week and cut back a bit this weekend.
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  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    @debbiewsharpe
    Oh, yes all of the EOY treats are hard to resist. Before I started on this path, I was one of those people who would continually bring in baked goodies to share with the teachers. I never once thought that I may be sabotaging someone's day.
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    @debbiewsharpe
    Oh, yes all of the EOY treats are hard to resist. Before I started on this path, I was one of those people who would continually bring in baked goodies to share with the teachers. I never once thought that I may be sabotaging someone's day.

    I always laughed at the rather evil grin on my childrens' 1st grade teacher when she would pass out sugary treats as they left school on Friday afternoons. She thought it was hilarious to get them all hopped up and ready to drive their parents crazy!
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Hello fellow and aspiring maintainers!

    I have just spend the last week and a half re-calibrating, yet again. I am always amazed (every single time) that this is necessary! Shouldn't we be capable of permanent change with no struggles and all perfection? :lol:

    It feels good every time, too. When slipping back into more than the occasional "treat" and letting triggerish foods become daily events, when eating things with no off switch, it feels pretty crappy, right? Even though it is hard to stop. But getting re-calibrated, back on track, feels good, luckily.

    May the happy re-calibrations be with you.
  • TheresaM787
    TheresaM787 Posts: 751 Member
    You know what's strange, I thought (I don't know why) when I reached my goal weight that I wouldn't NEED to diet anymore. Maintenance has been almost the same as eating within a deficit, except I get to have some extra calories. Still exercising, still tracking, still meal planning. I completely understand what you said though, it feels good (luckily).