Help! How do I handle the "extras" on maintenance?

I just recently went on maintenance this week after losing 18 pounds. I've been doing well until today, when a series of events led to me not doing my planned workout and also eating extra while ravenous (flat tire--dinner three hours late).

So my question is...how do you determine how to eat while maintaining? When I was losing weight, I ate very healthily because I tend to like big portions. Healthy things, you can eat good sized portions for a low-cal exchange. Now I have the tendency to think, OK now I'm maintaining, I can afford to have three pieces of potato chips with my meal or drink a cup of lemonade whereas before I never would have done that.

 

Then again, I don't want to live my life acting like I can't eat most things around me. Up until dinner, I felt like the little mini-treats were alright. But how do you transition from eating low-cal, very healthy to fitting in those treats? Do you still do a splurge treat when you're maintaining? Thanks for any input you offer!

I hope this isn't inappropriate, as I'm not maintaining yet.  But I have incorporated those treats all throughout my weight loss for this reason.  I just make sure I have room in my calorie count. 

After a binge I'd make sure you don't feel badly about it and know that it was a binge, not a failure or a setback or you future.  My 8 year old asks for sweets in the morning and I say, "it's not a treat if you're eating it all the time". 

Look at it that way and you can keep eating healthy and having an occasional treat. 

I'd suggest that you carry on planning your days as you did for weight-loss but include a few of the not-so-healthy or higher calorie foods into the mix at the same time.  Because you're maintaining you have a lot more calories to play with.  However, you can't indulge yourself 100% or you'll end up right back where you started in half the time it took to lose it.   Sadly, that's why most people regain their lost weight within 18 months.

Plan ahead rather than simply calorie-counting after the event.  It may feel rather contrived at first but it's a training exercise.  You need to keep the discipline up for about 6 months so that the new eating habits are firmly cemented.

Just keep top of mind that there are no bad foods, only bad diets.  Aim for 80-90% healthy and 10-20% not-so-healthy and that's not a bad mix.

Oh gosh i know how you feel, i started trying to maintain a week ago and tonight my family want to go out to dinner.

I’ve looked at the menu and although there are better or worse options there is nothing i can eat that won’t take me over maintenance. I could go for the salad and only go over slightly but my tummy is screaming for pizza but looking at the nutritional info on the pizza if i eat that im looking at going massively over maintenance. (1600cals alone.. Eeeek)

Part of me wants to go for the pizza because i really don’t want to live my life not eating the “fun” foods in life, and if it was a really rare trip out i might go for it and sod the consequences just that once.

Unfortunately this is a battle I have at least once a week and every week i have a day or two i slip over so i need to find a long term game plan, i managed it while i dieted because i knew in my head that it was  short term suffering so i’d suffer the salad, ordering it without all the “fun toppings”, but now I’m maintaining i feel like i want to enjoy food again i want in the first time for months to remember what starters and desserts taste like.

i don’t want to be scared of every calorie but at the same time i don’t want to risk gaining, and when salads have a heavy 600cal price tag it’s hard not to worry and i question if i can really “live” like this.

I've been maintaining for a little over six months and the way I've done it is by continuing to plan very healthy meals and snacks.  Occasionally I'll have a day where I eat a few hundred calories over maintenance, sometimes those are treat days where we have a special dinner and sometimes it's just because I'm extra hungry on those days.  Mostly, though I use the same tools as I did when losing the weight, counting calories, keeping up with a good exercise schedule and eating the most healthful foods possible - especially the veggies!  Honestly I've gotten to the point where having the less-healthy treats like chips or sugary stuff isn't very appealing any more.

Original Post by leiela:

Oh gosh i know how you feel, i started trying to maintain a week ago and tonight my family want to go out to dinner.

I’ve looked at the menu and although there are better or worse options there is nothing i can eat that won’t take me over maintenance. I could go for the salad and only go over slightly but my tummy is screaming for pizza but looking at the nutritional info on the pizza if i eat that im looking at going massively over maintenance. (1600cals alone.. Eeeek)

Part of me wants to go for the pizza because i really don’t want to live my life not eating the “fun” foods in life, and if it was a really rare trip out i might go for it and sod the consequences just that once.

Unfortunately this is a battle I have at least once a week and every week i have a day or two i slip over so i need to find a long term game plan, i managed it while i dieted because i knew in my head that it was  short term suffering so i’d suffer the salad, ordering it without all the “fun toppings”, but now I’m maintaining i feel like i want to enjoy food again i want in the first time for months to remember what starters and desserts taste like.

i don’t want to be scared of every calorie but at the same time i don’t want to risk gaining, and when salads have a heavy 600cal price tag it’s hard not to worry and i question if i can really “live” like this.

 when you go out for pizza, ask for a huge plain salad with just veggies and bring your own dressing (in a little tupperware so its not so obvious lol i know it can be embarrassing) That way you fill up on the salad and maybe cant even eat a whole slice... depending on the size of it lol *pictures manhattan pizza w its 36" round pizzas* lol

I always make room for little treats... one a day! Today i had a coffee drink... not starbucks, made at home, but still a treat. Yesterday i had part of a blizzard (the rest is in the freezer for another day, maybe tomorrow). I just make sure i enjoy it slowly so i get maximum pleasure from it.... mmmm coffee drink... (btw its 1/2c milk, 1/2c coffee, and 2T hersheys low sugar syrup, over ice, blend or not lol)

Another thing you could try is just exercising a little more that splurge day, or the day after.  If you have a few hundred extra calories, then burn them off by doing a longer workout, or a more intense one!  I generally try to do that, because I hate saying no allthe time to the pizza, brownies, cake, chips, you name it!  So I burn it off, I've also surpassed all of my exercise goals by doing this, I can run faster, and farther than I ever thought I would... so eat up!  I do try to eat healthy the overwhelming majority of the time, so please don't think I'm encouraging unhealthy eating patterns... but for most of us life is going to stick tempting foods under our noses from time to time... and we have options!

Thank you for all your feedback! I've pretty much decided to go back to my previous way of eating, with a little more room for pre-logged treats (one a day). I realized last night that I can reach maitenance on the same healthy foods just by adding some almonds, nuts, beans, or a glass or two of milk. I don't have to add an extra portion of something or something unhealthy to get all those extra calories. I feel for the poster who wrote about not being able to eat "fun" foods like pizza, so that is still an issue to handle. For pizza though, if you only eat a slice, it's not even that bad. Also, if you take out the cheese and go for just toppings, it isn't too bad either. I'm worried a bit about how I am goign to eat once I get married (next May). We might not have a lot of money to always buy healthy, and I have no idea how to raise a health conscious family, especially since my future husband doesn't always eat healthily. But that's a worry for then, not now. For now, you've helped lots. Thanks!

Well i went out i had pizza had starters and had desert and im now 1000 cals over maintenence .... ARSE!!