I recently read a thread on another forum about about how we spend so much time, effort, planning, preparation, focus etc. on the weight loss process...but when it comes to maintenance we tend to have a more casual approach....as though once a certain degree of leanness is achieved our bodies are going to go "oh, I like this so much better I'll just stay this way" without requiring pretty much the same degree of effort and focus.
I know that has been true of my own behavior/thought process in the past...which is why this time around I spent as much time planning for maintaining as I did for losing...and I'm currently working at maintenance like it's a second job with benefits.
The problem I ran into is the lack of information about maintaining...There's some out there, but compared with the wealth of information available on just weight loss, it's pretty sparse. So, for those who are thinking about "the day after" I'm going to add my 2 cents from the other side of the fence............
I know part of successful weight loss is establishing new habits/behaviors/thought processes. And that's a large part of turning it from a "diet" to a lifestyle that carries over once the weight is lost. But, IMO, some of the habits etc. we establish that are successful for weight loss can be counter productive to long term maintenance.
I'm thinking (for obvious reasons) about how we handle holidays, vacations, etc. Because the same events that happen during weight loss are going to happen during maintaining. During weightloss we often chose to significantly increase our calories for the occasion and "jump back on the wagon" right after.
Here's the problem I see with that. During weightloss we are eating at a deficit, sometimes a large one, on a daily basis. So that day (or two) of excess is really just bringing our calories up to or slightly above maintenance. That can tend to work in our favor (our bodies use it as a "refeed" and we lose a little more weight), or it can have a neutral effect (we just don't lose any weight that week) or, worst case, we've really gone overboard and gain a pound or two which we lose fairly quickly when we return to our normal diet/exercise habits.
But when we are maintaining our weight, we are, by definition, consistently taking in the amount of calories we burn. So that little period of indulgence has only one direction to go - to accumulating a surplus which doesn't have to be repeated very often to quickly result in weight gain. And anyone who has ever lost weight only to have rebound weight gain knows just how "quick" that can be.
A really common reaction/thought process during weightloss seems to be "I'll run/walk/bike/whatever a little harder/longer" to burn off the excess. And yea, that generally does works during weight loss. But we forget that, by the time we are at our goal weight, we are usually already relatively fit, especially if we've been exercising pretty intensely all through the weight loss process and have continued to do so as we maintain. And, in our nice conditioned bodies, It's just no longer that easy to ramp up the intensity/duration required to "burn off" an extra 500-1000 calories.
So I'm making a suggestion. All I can say is it's worked so far for me - which doesn't mean it's going to work for everyone else in the world (obviously). When faced with food oriented holidays, celebrations, etc. pretend you are already at your goal weight and eating at maint. calories. and employ the same strategy.
Set a firm limit on many "extra" calories you will take in, don't depend solely on exercise to burn it off, think about the caloric adjustment you need to make a day or two before and a day or two after balance it out. And, plenty of times you may decide "it's not worth the effort" and find it's surprisingly easier to just stay within your caloric range and forego the "extra", other times it may be preferable to decide on a single, moderate surplus that realistically can be "burned off" the next day. Or you may find another strategy that works better for you. But, the bottom line is, realistically there does have to be some concrete "plan" in place that you can comfortably follow post weight loss
And yea, that's a pain in the butt cause we're not only talking about Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, Valentine's Day, Mother/Father's Day, 4th of July and Memorial Day...but all the anniversaries, birthdays, vacations, baby shower's, weddings, office parties, etc. in between - all stuff that makes up our "life style" ....and waiting until you are at your goal weight to figure it out might backfire.
I know that has been true of my own behavior/thought process in the past...which is why this time around I spent as much time planning for maintaining as I did for losing...and I'm currently working at maintenance like it's a second job with benefits.
The problem I ran into is the lack of information about maintaining...There's some out there, but compared with the wealth of information available on just weight loss, it's pretty sparse. So, for those who are thinking about "the day after" I'm going to add my 2 cents from the other side of the fence............I know part of successful weight loss is establishing new habits/behaviors/thought processes. And that's a large part of turning it from a "diet" to a lifestyle that carries over once the weight is lost. But, IMO, some of the habits etc. we establish that are successful for weight loss can be counter productive to long term maintenance.
I'm thinking (for obvious reasons) about how we handle holidays, vacations, etc. Because the same events that happen during weight loss are going to happen during maintaining. During weightloss we often chose to significantly increase our calories for the occasion and "jump back on the wagon" right after.
Here's the problem I see with that. During weightloss we are eating at a deficit, sometimes a large one, on a daily basis. So that day (or two) of excess is really just bringing our calories up to or slightly above maintenance. That can tend to work in our favor (our bodies use it as a "refeed" and we lose a little more weight), or it can have a neutral effect (we just don't lose any weight that week) or, worst case, we've really gone overboard and gain a pound or two which we lose fairly quickly when we return to our normal diet/exercise habits.
But when we are maintaining our weight, we are, by definition, consistently taking in the amount of calories we burn. So that little period of indulgence has only one direction to go - to accumulating a surplus which doesn't have to be repeated very often to quickly result in weight gain. And anyone who has ever lost weight only to have rebound weight gain knows just how "quick" that can be.
A really common reaction/thought process during weightloss seems to be "I'll run/walk/bike/whatever a little harder/longer" to burn off the excess. And yea, that generally does works during weight loss. But we forget that, by the time we are at our goal weight, we are usually already relatively fit, especially if we've been exercising pretty intensely all through the weight loss process and have continued to do so as we maintain. And, in our nice conditioned bodies, It's just no longer that easy to ramp up the intensity/duration required to "burn off" an extra 500-1000 calories.
So I'm making a suggestion. All I can say is it's worked so far for me - which doesn't mean it's going to work for everyone else in the world (obviously). When faced with food oriented holidays, celebrations, etc. pretend you are already at your goal weight and eating at maint. calories. and employ the same strategy.
Set a firm limit on many "extra" calories you will take in, don't depend solely on exercise to burn it off, think about the caloric adjustment you need to make a day or two before and a day or two after balance it out. And, plenty of times you may decide "it's not worth the effort" and find it's surprisingly easier to just stay within your caloric range and forego the "extra", other times it may be preferable to decide on a single, moderate surplus that realistically can be "burned off" the next day. Or you may find another strategy that works better for you. But, the bottom line is, realistically there does have to be some concrete "plan" in place that you can comfortably follow post weight loss
And yea, that's a pain in the butt cause we're not only talking about Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, Valentine's Day, Mother/Father's Day, 4th of July and Memorial Day...but all the anniversaries, birthdays, vacations, baby shower's, weddings, office parties, etc. in between - all stuff that makes up our "life style" ....and waiting until you are at your goal weight to figure it out might backfire.
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