Gain weight faster the 2nd time around?

This has probably been asked before, but here goes.  When we've lost the weight and reached our goal, does weight come back faster than it did before?  It seems like I got up to my maximum weight over the years, but I wonder if our bodies regain the weight quicker after we've gone through weight loss.  It took me 6 months to lose 30 pounds but I wonder if it would only take me half that time to regain it and then some.  Anyone been there?  I don't plan on going crazy but it seems like if I deviate even a little from counting calories, it comes back on very quickly.  I may never be on maintenance!

It depends how you lose the weight, I think.  I did the stupid thing in the past of a meal replacement diet, lost weight quite quickly and regained it even quicker.  So 'starving' is out.

This time, I've lost weight quite slowly by paying attention to healthy eating, portion-control and exercise.  Not eating special foods, not cutting back drastically, not excessive exercise.  I've also made sure I have occasional days with extra food in order to keep my metabolism perky.  The last  one is particularly important.  Consume lower calories for any length of time, your body learns to maintain on less food and any extra turns quickly to fat.  That might be where you are now if you find you gain weight easily.

To maintain I've simply increased the amount I eat slightly from 1500 a day to 1900-2100, depending on how active and how hungry I am.   You can't afford to eat with gay abandon if you have tendency to gain weight.  :-) I have gained a few kilos in the last 3 years but try to keep on top of it and adjust rather than letting things get out of hand again.

Thank you for your input.  Your suggestions are exactly what I was looking for.  I lost the weight slowly but steadily by using the food logs right here on this site.  It was great!  I also realize I need to allow myself a "range" and not expect to stay at one certain weight everyday.  The great thing about CC is that we all know it works and whenever we need to get back on track to lose a few, we know what to do.  I guess I was just worried about adding any calories and gaining it all back.  Thanks, again for your comments.

great insight for those of us that are still coming down the scale.

I am eating @ 1700 cals/day...sometimes up to 2000 but learning not to go beyond that. Active and becoming more active as my outdoor activity picks up.

It's amazing how much control we can have w/weight loss and maint! Who woulda thunk it?

you all have a great day!

You certainly can gain it back faster than before -- I did.  I was gaining 10 pounds a year for about 5 years.  I went on Atkins and lost 30.  (About half way to my goal weight).  I went off Atkins and gained 13 pounds a year for the next 3 years.  This time I'm doing it right, at what seems excrutiatingly slow pace (average 2-3 pounds a month) but it's NEVER coming back.

Yes, I do think you gain back faster, if all you did was diet. However if you incorporated exercise, even if you stopped exercising, it is possible to stabilize for quite awhile and weight creeps up a lot slower.

In my past and current experience, exercise is critical to maintanence. I've gone through periods when I can't exercise due to back problems. My weight would be fine for a long, long while (YEARS)... even though my body might start changing shape as I lost muscle tone and fitness. Then bam... you hit a certain point where the weight starts piling back on if you don't do something about it!