biggestloser105
New member
I'm getting anxious about losing the weight but failing to keep it off. I am wondering what those who have kept the weight off think helped them keep it off, unlike most people who lose and regain.
Have you lost and kept it off? What is your secret?
- Thread starter biggestloser105
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yummimummi
New member
I am still losing my weight so its hard to comment long term. I just thought I would give you the advice that I was given. That is that every now and then, give yourself a break. Relax a bit, eat more freely, for a couple of weeks and let your body recover and maintain at that weight. Then hit it hard again until your next goal and then do the same. The theory is that your body will then consider that 'maintainence' period, your highest weight. Apparently this reduces your chances of going higher than that weight too easily. This was told to me by a frined who did this and has kept the 7 stone she lost off for over 13 years. This is the long term goal that I am looking for too. I find the 'rest' month the hardest. I just finished mine and gained less than 2lbs despite eating chocolate cake and exercising less. back on the wagon now.
Jeanette401
New member
The thing that helped most was that from the beginning I realized that I had to plan for maintenance. At the time I started I was actually doing Atkins, and they specifically tell you that you don't just get to eat whatever you want once you lost the weight.
Also, I continue to weight myself - if I've been a little too free with my eating, I can catch it early and react. I also have some rules about what to do if my pants start feeling tight, etc.
Most importantly to me, I don't freak out if I gain a few pounds. I don't view it as a failure, just as a sign that I need to show some restraint for a while - and I draw on the confidence I found from losing weight to begin with to pull me through.
I won't lie and say it's perfect. In a dream world, I'd weigh probably 25 lbs less than I do right now (and none of the fat loss would be from my boobs
) and have another 10 lbs of muscle. I do have times where I'm stressed and my weight creeps up. On the other hand I can still wear the same clothes I bought myself 6 years ago. I just remember that it's a process and that ultimately I decide.
One other thing is that I'm still open to improvement. Low carb was hard to maintain for a number of reasons, so I experimented with different alternatives, knowing that worst case if I gained weight, I had a back-up plan to lose it again. Hopefully as the years go by I'll find more tweaks to make things easier to make up for my aging metabolism
Also, I continue to weight myself - if I've been a little too free with my eating, I can catch it early and react. I also have some rules about what to do if my pants start feeling tight, etc.
Most importantly to me, I don't freak out if I gain a few pounds. I don't view it as a failure, just as a sign that I need to show some restraint for a while - and I draw on the confidence I found from losing weight to begin with to pull me through.
I won't lie and say it's perfect. In a dream world, I'd weigh probably 25 lbs less than I do right now (and none of the fat loss would be from my boobs
) and have another 10 lbs of muscle. I do have times where I'm stressed and my weight creeps up. On the other hand I can still wear the same clothes I bought myself 6 years ago. I just remember that it's a process and that ultimately I decide. One other thing is that I'm still open to improvement. Low carb was hard to maintain for a number of reasons, so I experimented with different alternatives, knowing that worst case if I gained weight, I had a back-up plan to lose it again. Hopefully as the years go by I'll find more tweaks to make things easier to make up for my aging metabolism
Yup, everyone else has already said it! When you start to lose weight, make changes which are sustainable. Theres no point saying 'I will never eat chocolate/bread/carbs again" if you know your just biding your time till your a dress size X and feel its OK to eat 'normally' again. You need to eat as if your going to eat that way for the rest of your life- only smaller portions.
So in esscence, eat whatever you want, just watch the portions. If you can get used to smaller portions whilst keeping things in your calorie allowance, your going to be fine in the long term.
Weighing foods comes in very useful, you may think you only need to do this for the first two weeks or so but portion sizes can slowly creep up until your eating what you used to be eating when you were unhappy with your weight, so try to keep things limited and check in with your portions by weighing them every now and then to make crystal clear what sizes you need to stick to.
So in esscence, eat whatever you want, just watch the portions. If you can get used to smaller portions whilst keeping things in your calorie allowance, your going to be fine in the long term.
Weighing foods comes in very useful, you may think you only need to do this for the first two weeks or so but portion sizes can slowly creep up until your eating what you used to be eating when you were unhappy with your weight, so try to keep things limited and check in with your portions by weighing them every now and then to make crystal clear what sizes you need to stick to.
biggestloser105
New member
I don't think I can do this. I really was a food addict, I could never stop at a small piece of desert I had to eat the whole thing and then get more. That's why I'm so scared.
I think the only reason I wasn't obese all my life is that as a child/teenager I didn't have the money to buy myself all the food I wanted, and my parents fed us healthy food.
I am afraid of even touching the stuff because I think if I start eating it I won't be able to stop.
yummimummi
New member
Have you tried any hypnotherapy tapes? I downloaded th ePaul McKenna ones. Its a bit weird but has helped I think.
Jeanette401
New member
I can certainly understand this fear - and it is something of a risk. Some people may really have to watch out for the domino effect. One thing I did to change some of this behavior was to move away from the idea of a 'cheat day' and think of more ways to add dessert in a way that meshed with my goals.
For example, when I was on Atkins if I ended up having a high carb item I'd sometimes use it as an excuse to say "Oh, this will just be my cheat day",and then I'd go looking for all of the foods I wanted to eat, but had been avoiding.
Now what I do is if I go have a dessert treat I put limits. Either I'll say "Ok, I can have one bite of each dessert" (Assuming there aren't 30 desserts available) OR I make sure I log exactly what I ate and try to minimize the effects by eating the rest of my meals with low calories, high protein and high fiber. Or if I hit my protein & fiber goals for the day, but was still 400 calories under my goal I might say "What the hell, I can have ONE piece of cake tonight since I've eaten really well today!"
The point being that since I put the boundaries up front, it's easier for me to say "Ok, I had my bite of cake, now I'm done." Of course, I also try to make it easier for myself. For example, I'll take the brownie to my office before I take a bite out of it. And hopefully wait to try it until the rest are mostly gone so I can't go back for seconds... thirds... *ahem*
BUT - the good news is that even though sometimes I'm not successful, and I do eat more than I intend to, as long as it's not a habit, it's something that can be worked with. No matter how many times over the last 7 years my will power has failed, no matter how many little lapses I've had... I still have not come anywhere close to my starting weight, and I'm pretty confident that I have the power to ensure that I will not way 220 lbs ever again.
You may want to do a test - tell yourself "This weekend I'm going to have a cup cake." Buy one cupcake and see if you can control the urge not to eat everything in the house. If you can, great! You've learned something and can rest easier. If you do go on a rampage - then you've learned something, but it's still not the end of the world. You just take a deep breath, pick yourself up, and get back on track and still be able to accomplish your goals.
Harold14370
New member
I'm still a few pounds overweight, but I've kept under the obesity line for more than a year, so I guess I qualify. What I find is that I have to keep counting the calories, recording what I eat in a spreadsheet every day. This is something I will need to do indefinitely. If I slack off, I start cheating and putting the pounds back on.
You CAN do this- the more you practice it, the easier it gets. It seems like hell and impossible for the first 2 weeks then it gets easier. Don't concerntrate on feeling scared, its a waste of time. Just go for it, what have you got to lose by trying to stick at it? just take each day as it comes, one by one.