any people maintaining who have previoulsy tried and failed?

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hello everyone,

I am almost at my goal weight (8 pounds to go) but my friends and family told me to lose it slower than the weight i've already lost (26 pounds) so i upped my calories a little and stopped doing as much cardio.
This led to not really counting calories and no exercise. Its been a week now.
Havent weighed yet but know i'm not going to like what i see.
Do you have any tips as your getting to the end to not fall back into your old ways?

Thanks, any advice or solidarity is appreciated!

Replies

  • lilchino4af
    lilchino4af Posts: 1,292 Member
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    When I was within 2 weeks of meeting my goal weight, I upped by cals by 200 for 4 days, then another 150-200 for 4 more days, etc until I was at my maintenance weight. I kept working out the same and tracking calories. The whole reason behind slowing increasing your daily cal intake for maintenance is to get your body accustomed to eating more. Otherwise if you were to immediateliy switch to maintenance cals you could temporarily gain weight from the extra cals while your body got used to the new routine and some people could get discouraged when that happens. Just keep tracking and exercising and you'll do ok. I'd stopped tracking for a couple months and the weight slowly crept back on so now I've got 5 lbs to lose to get me back to my goal range. Guess that showed me, huh? :wink:
  • femmerides
    femmerides Posts: 843 Member
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    maintaining is awesome but you have to do it right. yes, up your caloric intake, but have those extra calories still be healthy. logging what you eat is still important when you maintain. exercising is really important too. you just have to look at maintaining the same way you look at losing. you're doing it to be healthier so why ruin your health with poor eating?
  • mzenzer
    mzenzer Posts: 503 Member
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    I'm in the exact same spot now, except that I really haven't scaled back on my working out a lot. It's not so much weight I'd rather not lose any more, but I'm at 13% body fat and I'd like to be 10-11%. My diet hasn't been as strict, and one of the things I've done was quit logging calories here. Not saying to do that, I just did. I gained maybe 3 pounds in the past month, and am doing more strength training now than cardio and I'd actually like to gain weight but it ain't happening really. As for my diet, I have just been eating when hungry, not stuffing myself when I do eat, and for the most part eat healthy and sensible. It is a different mindset when you don't have a specific goal to reach, but basically all I do is continually remind myself that it's a lifestyle now not a diet or means to lose weight. If I do indulge, like I will be tomorrow, then I just make sure I'm aware that I need to follow up with a couple good days of nothing but clean eating and maybe increased exercise. It's definitely a different way of thinking from dieting to lose a lot of weight.
  • Raf702
    Raf702 Posts: 196 Member
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    I just stare at the mirror and look at my mid section and problematic areas. And continue to tell myself I need to work on it. That prevents me from falling back down. It can be hard to stay motivated when you've hit a plateau or when progress has slowed down. BUT, I guarantee you that if you maintain a calorie deficit regardless of exercise. You WILL lose your desired weight. At this point, just monitor your calorie consumption even if you don't exercise at all. Counting your calories is best way of reaching optimal weight/fat loss. Good luck, and stay motivated!
  • bethdris
    bethdris Posts: 1,090 Member
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    I am still tweaking my maintaince here on MFP...Today was the first day I ate all my "goal" cals..but really off set it with burning almost 1400 cals..anyway....Im tryin to see what works for me, but still losing SLOWLY. I still log daily, it helps keep me in check.

    When I did weight watcher I lost 60 pounds in 5 months and stopped going, and really had no idea how to maintain, so of course I gained some of it back.
  • cowlover22
    cowlover22 Posts: 309 Member
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    This isnt something you do just to lose weight..it is a new way of living. Yes you dont have to watch your calories as much but you should try to eat healthy and in moderation. Do this and you shouldnt have a a problem. Otherwise if you go back to your old ways you will just start to yo~yo
  • emmadrama
    emmadrama Posts: 53 Member
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    thanks for the support everyone.
    just hearing from you all motivates me again. looking in the mirror at prob areas is an excellent one!
    Thank you