Anyone lost by eating maintenance for ideal weight?

I have done the "create a 500 calorie deficit daily" route and it leaves me FAMISHED and ready to eat my own young. What ends up happening is I do well for a few days and then I can't take it and I binge like mad. So, I am trying a sane method this time. I have 25 lbs to lose to get to 110 (I'm a 5'0 female- lucky me). I have kept my calorie count anywhere from 1400 to 1700 and I am lightly active to moderately active. If I continue along this line I should reach my goal weight in a year or so. Anyone else trying this method? I'm not hungry or cranky and I feel like I could do this for a very long time- as opposed to the 1,100 calorie nonsense the CC calculator spit out.

BTW, I think the burn meter calculator runs kind of low compared to other sights like fitday and sparkpeople.

What calculator gave you 1100 as a calorie target?  The one here won't give you less than 1200.  But anyway, what you're doing now seems very reasonable.  My stats aren't much different than yours right now, though I don't know your age and my goal weight is a bit higher (I'm 5'1").  I've been eating 1600 calories a day over the past 7 months, and I've lost about 20 pounds, and I've got 20 more to go.  I try to work out at least an hour a day to keep my burn rate over 2000 calories a day, though given how slow the weight has come off, I'm pretty sure I don't actually burn that much, but so long as it comes off, I don't care how fast I get to my goal, so long as I get there.

I did it - lost 50 pounds and have kept it off, but it did take me a long time.  (see my profile for details.)  I still want to lose 25 pounds to get to a normal BMI, but right now I'm maintaining.  Almost all my weight was lost this way - lose and then maintain for a while.  I am looking for permanent weight loss and better health, and have no time limit goals. 

Your current maintenance is between 1730-1950.

That means if you eat your maintenance at 110 (about 1600 calories on lightly active) your deficit is 130-350. Taking the average of a deficit of 270 per day,  That means it will take you about 325 days to get to your goal. So yes, it seems more than possible that you will lose weight in a year by eating the maintenance calories at your goal, as this will create a deficit. Another way of looking at it is to say 25 pound times 3500 calories= 87500 calories divide by 365 days = 240 calories deficit per day. Whether you do this with diet or exercise is up to you.

Its been said that the slower you lose the weight, the more likely it is to stay off, so this sound like a good plan provided you are not discouraged by slow movement on the scale.

I got to my goal weight of 125 and then went to maintenance calories and have a few (ok more then a few) cheat days here and there (maybe 2/3 a week) and have actually lost more and am floating around 122/123... and my cheat days are SERIOUS hahahaha im talkin 3,000 calories serious!!!

Original Post by vcanfield:

as opposed to the 1,100 calorie nonsense the CC calculator spit out.

The CC calculator will never recommend a calorie target below 1200.

I'd say keep doing what you are doing, and see if it works for you. All calculators are just estimates, so there's no certainty that one is more accurate than another. But fwiw, I've found fitday's daily expenditure calculator to overestimate.

hey. i'm 5 foot too. weigh 129 lbs. want to get to 100 lbs.

i find that keeping to 1200 really hard, most days reaching 1400. so i am trying to keep it varied, some days 1200, some 1500, and see what happens. but man it is slow going!!

perhaps for us more vertically challenged, the key is way more exercise to increase the deficit, rather than lowering our calories??

let me know how you get on, would love to know if you find a happy medium. so far, i haven't!!

XXX

I made a mistake. It did say 1,200. I was thinking about the 500 calories minus my daily expenditure, which would give me 1,100 calories- starvation to me.

I'm so happy to see there are others who have done this. My biggest fear is that it will not work because I have to go downto 1,300 to maintain (what a horrible idea- I'd rather be overweight.) But I think that is just my dieting mentality haunting me.

I despise the thought of going down to 1,200 and then going up to maintain. Being I have been between 131-135 for 3 years (I'm 43- at 40 it was like I gained 15 pounds over night) so slow weight loss is no big deal. If I am even at 120 in a year I will be thrilled and keep on chugging with my plan. I don't want to diet anymore- it makes me crazy and I'm just spinning my wheels.

Thanks for all the advice, it makes a world of difference and I will post from time to time w/ my success to encourage others w/ the sane, slow, weight loss plan.

Original Post by clairelaine:

I did it - lost 50 pounds and have kept it off, but it did take me a long time.  (see my profile for details.)  I still want to lose 25 pounds to get to a normal BMI, but right now I'm maintaining.  Almost all my weight was lost this way - lose and then maintain for a while.  I am looking for permanent weight loss and better health, and have no time limit goals. 

 I checked your profile. I'm glad it can be done. Like you, I have found dieting to be impossible to do for a long time.

Original Post by vejitarian:

Your current maintenance is between 1730-1950.

That means if you eat your maintenance at 110 (about 1600 calories on lightly active) your deficit is 130-350. Taking the average of a deficit of 270 per day,  That means it will take you about 325 days to get to your goal. So yes, it seems more than possible that you will lose weight in a year by eating the maintenance calories at your goal, as this will create a deficit. Another way of looking at it is to say 25 pound times 3500 calories= 87500 calories divide by 365 days = 240 calories deficit per day. Whether you do this with diet or exercise is up to you.

Its been said that the slower you lose the weight, the more likely it is to stay off, so this sound like a good plan provided you are not discouraged by slow movement on the scale.

Yea, that's what I thought, but it seems like everyone goes for that magic 500 calorie deficit. I hardly ever see anyone just going with the calories they need to maintain their ideal weight in order to lose. I guess it is two slow. But after 3 years of dieting and getting no where (due to off-diet madness messing up my on-diet sucess) I thought maybe I should just keep my calorie count at something that I am able to live with. A year at sloooow weight loss, but not feeling like I'm dieting beats 3 years of suffering and bingeing and staying the same weight. I just am afraid it won't work.

Original Post by amethystgirl:

Original Post by vcanfield:

as opposed to the 1,100 calorie nonsense the CC calculator spit out.

The CC calculator will never recommend a calorie target below 1200.

I'd say keep doing what you are doing, and see if it works for you. All calculators are just estimates, so there's no certainty that one is more accurate than another. But fwiw, I've found fitday's daily expenditure calculator to overestimate.

 it recommended 1150 for me. honest. (ETA: i uploaded a screen shot to my profile lol)

I eat 1250-1400.

Original Post by amethystgirl:

Original Post by vcanfield:

as opposed to the 1,100 calorie nonsense the CC calculator spit out.

The CC calculator will never recommend a calorie target below 1200.

I'd say keep doing what you are doing, and see if it works for you. All calculators are just estimates, so there's no certainty that one is more accurate than another. But fwiw, I've found fitday's daily expenditure calculator to overestimate.

 Yea, that was my mess up. It did say 1,200- I was thinking about the 500 calorie deficit subtracted from my daily expenditure. Now about the fitday calculator- how do you know its an overestimation?

That is my problem- I'm trying to decide my calorie balance, but the calculators give different numbers. How do I know which one to go with? Their estimates can be up to 200 or 300 calories a day difference- at my height that amount can make or break my weight loss? Ahhh!