How do you maintain weight loss?

Post Reply New Topic

Been fat my whole life. Ballooned up to 322 lbs over the past few years. I went down to 294 this year. I eat much healthier (mostly veggies, fruit, nuts/beans), cap my calories at 2000 and I exercise more. I want to lose much more weight. My biggest concern is maintaining. The majority of people who lose a lot of weight really fast end up gaining it back.

That's why I want to go slowly. I can't handle perfectionism (otherwise, I go the other extreme and binge). I still eat fat and carbs, but in moderation. I want to go to 260 this year and maintain it. Then go to 230, the next year and maintain it. I can lose weight twice as fast as that, but I know that the body doesn't react well to catastrophic changes and metabolism slows.

I also know that relapse is due to psychological reasons. The main 3 reasons I've noticed is stress at work, a painful breakup and loneliness. So I'm trying to work on myself on the inside as well.

Do you have any advice for maintaining?

I've watched a lot of exercise shows and it's really just a balance of exercise and calories. I find if I stop exercising, I gain weight. Also, as you get older it is harder to lose weight. Lately, I've cut out alcohol and have done strenuous exercise for 4-5 days a week (I'm on Insanity 30 now), try to eat healthy with protein shakes and bars - lots of protein and minimal carbs. I've lost about 2 lbs a week. I just added an hour of weight lifting once a week. I don't always stay on a good diet at work (I work 2 days a week on weekends) because of stress, but I'll eat peanut butter, a healthy choice meal, oatmeal, stuff like that . I need to drink more water.

Keep up with the exercise and weight lifting and follow a healthy diet (adding or subtracting calories depending on what your weight is doing). You have to see it as a way of life and not "dieting and losing weight". I was watching this one workout video and this trainer said not to focus on the scale which I find to be true because my clothes will be loose, but I haven't lost actual weight - I've gained muscle.

Yes, building muscle definitely would help to maintain. Burning calories in your sleep sounds nice. I've had phases of weight lifting 6 days a week and I've had phases of not exercising for weeks on end. I think I might take up lifting again, once or twice a week, like you're doing. It's sustainable. For the average person who isn't a fitness nut, life does get in the way.

The loss of metabolism through aging is quite minimal. I would think it's more so the lifestyle of an older person that gets slower. Sports and such are less available after college. Being 20 and wanting to get laid is more conducive to staying fit than being 35 and in a stable relationship with someone who loves you for who you are. I think generally, it's harder for an adult to get out and do things because society is more isolated than ever. Young people have school to bind them together, but it's much easier after college to get into a routine of working and then just staying home all day. After I left college, I gained weight for that very reason.

Um, how'd we get from weight lifting to getting laid? I guess I missed that one. Are you saying that if I find my Hunny, I'll lose more weight? My mind just went to a different place.

Wait! I get what you're saying, but I don't have a Hunny yet so I want to be in shape when I do AND stay in shape. I don't believe one should let themself go just because they are in a comfortable relationship. I also believe one should exercise for their health and not just to lose weight.

I'm not at all saying that those factors are definitive. But rather young people tend to be more feral and older people tend to emphasize settling down. And like I said, it's not just the getting laid thing. I also talked about how our society encourages young people to stay active, yet is isolating older people inside of their houses.

Hi. I haven't been on this site in quite awhile. Anyways, I was told that I had pre-diabetes/hypoglycemia and to limit my carbs, so I did. I don't measure or anything. I just try to avoid certain foods like potatos and pasta and the like. I'll eat bread, but not a whole lot. I'm always hearing that it's not so much the fat, but the carbs that are the issue with losing weight. I do get naughty on weekends, but that's it. In 2 months I went from 280 to 255lbs. I don't exercise much, though since I don't have a car I do have to walk to get groceries and I purposely don't get more than what I need for a day or so, so I have a reason to get anything. I would exercise even more, but I have fibromyalgia and am struggling with it, since I'm not properly medicated.

I totally disagree. For those people out there who believe you cannot become a hermit and still stay fit, that's a bunch of mumbo jumbo! I do some of the most strenuous exercise routines all at home using DVD workouts, bands, weights, mats, push-up bars and my own body weight. Insanity, p90x, T25, Turbofire - those kind of workouts you will never get in a gym. A person doesn't need all of those fancy machines. I think gyms are meat market pickup joints. I get all my protein bars and shakes delivered from Amazon. Beachbody.com has coaches to talk to (if I want one) and diets to follow. What I'm saying is just because a person gets older and becomes a "Kermit the Hermit" doesn't mean they can't do exercise at home. That's all.

I'm back to the loss again.
When I did maintain I
A. Identified emotional eating
B. Did cardio and weight lifting( low weight-frequent reps)
C. Went to O. A. Meetings
D. Stopped most sugars while
Stopping all sweet desserts
E. Continued no alcohol use
F. Didn't eat any food put out at work

What put my weight back on
A. Ate extra food put out at work
B. Are sweets
C. Continued no alcohol
D. Cut down on exercise while adding food/calorie

Now
A. No cookies- just added no graham cracker which I have been binging on.
B. Yoga Flow & Hatha (weight bearing exercise)
& spinning/indoor cycling
C. Continued no alcohol
D. Watching eating extra like while reading and in bed before sleep
E. Celebrate Recovery meetings

For weight loss exercise is the best helper. My mom is about 85 KG's. And she lose her weight by doing exercise.

To maintain weight loss you need to think of exercise and diet as a lifestyle as opposed to something temporary. Otherwise you'll just slowly gain the fat back. Different programmes and diets can help you get started, but in the end it's up to you to maintain your body through consistent effort.

You have the basis set already: go slow, keep your mental health stable, and dont aim for a perfect number.

Don't forget that it is still perfectly acceptable to indulge every now and then.
There are days where "screw the healthy lifestyle" is just the mood you are in, and this is ok (if it doesnt happen too often).
Sure, take a slice of birthday cake at work, but choose the smallest one.
Go and buy that bar of chocolate, but break it in two and have 2 days instead of one.

Stay in the middle of too strict and toounhealthy. But the overall quota maintaining or losing weight

Lost 2 pounds since my last post.

Some can do the take the smallest piece of cake or cookie
Some say don't deprive yourself.

If I take the first, I have learned I will be back for seconds on sugary stuff.
I'm only speaking for me.

Exercise both cardio and strength are also what I found works.
I started by walking one house past my mailbox.

I agree it is a lifestyle.
In our country U. S. A. there are food pushers as well as drug ones.

I started exercising first without dieting to get into a routine. I was never really an active person, and I've always been fat. During and after college I was really depressed and had a lot of anxiety. I ate like crap and didn't exercise. I had a 4XB shirt size at one point.

I started dieting about five and half months ago. Overall I've lost about seventy pounds. I'm now down to a 3X shirt size. In a couple months I should be able to comfortably wear a 2X.

But even before dieting, the exercise has helped tremendously. Much of my depression went away and I had more energy.

I read somewhere food or was it sugar was the most used self medication used for depression.
And
Exercise was the least used.

Diet and exercise won't make all depression go away.
I believe it can help.