MUTE

MUTE

I'm only 16, so I kind of feel weird giving you advice since you're older. But, I just started maintaining my weight too, so I'll tell what's been working for me.

Each week add about 100-200 cal more. You normally eat 1200 cal, so go a week on 1300-1400. Then the Next week go up to 1400-1500. If you go slowly, you won't gain back the weight.

Keep exercising. It's good for your body and keeps your muscles strong so you won't get flabby. But eat something after your workout that will replenish what you just burned. Something with protein in it is good so your muscles can repair.

Don't worry if you gain a couple pounds the first couple days, it's probably just water weight and will go away when your body gets used to eating more. :) Just remember not to exceed your BMR.

Playergirl, I ended up adding in approx 100 to 200 calories a day each month.  It just worked out that was how often I could revisit my dietician.  It also worked out best for me as I can't compare week to week weighing for me as my monthly cycle varies so much.  I still only weigh myself once a month max at the same time each month.

The long and the short of it is, after doing this process for about 6 months I eventually found an amount of calories I could maintain on (2000 calories net per day or 2300 if I do an hour walk).  Meanwhile, I lost about another 10 pounds in working that out! 

Best of luck.

MUTE

MUTE

Hello playergirl... I think I may be in relitivelty the same situation as you....

I am an 18 yr old male and I am currently 5'7" and average about 145 lbs. Last year I was 215 pounds and lost a lot of weight by cutting fat ( i didnt really start counting caloires untill about 5 months ago). Now I am obsessed with counting caloires. Right now I am averaging anywhere from 1000 to 1500 calories a day and I am starting to worry. While eating this number I have maintained a constant weight for about a month (I think). So... if I am maintaining at this low, wouldnt that mean that if I ate any more that I would gain. I exercise everyday (usually run 2.5 to 3 miles, and bike for about 20 min). I cant seem to bring myself to eat more even though I am constantly thinking about food and am minorly obsessed with looking up calorie info and planning meals. I admit that for about 2 months now I have been extremely tired and my muscles feel weak. I am always hungry... even when I eat a meal that would have satisfied me and made me feel full back when I wasnt counting calories, I still feel extremly hungry and then I feel guilty and already start thinking about the next meal and how I can restrict my calories.

Now I know this may sound like a problem... but like I said, I have kept the same weight while living like this, and I dont want to gain any weight. So why do all these calculators tell me that if I slept all day I would need 1700 calories, yet I am maintaining weight with getting 1000-1500 and doing cardio everyday. Any advice or insight is appreciated!!!!

Hi metaylor,

Yup, anxiety.  I hate this part.  Losing is way easier.  There is a point where the body just naturally adjusts itself on maintaining a low calorie diet.  As that I am assuming that you are a healthy and active (from what you say) young man at a  healthy weight - congratulations !

You are not OCD in my opinion my planning meals and counting calories.  Gosh, you worked hard to drop the extra pounds.  It will take a while to fine tune your diet.

In speaking with a nutritionist, I was advised to add 100-200 calories a day and slowly continue doing that until I have stopped losing weight.  So, I decided to add 100 calories a month (it's a start for me).  This is going to take some time to tweak and fine tune to your body.

I am assuming that you really enjoy the workouts, so continue and tone your body.  If your aching and resenting, than you may want to cut back.  All of this is a personal choice.  Listen to your body.  Feed it well and healthy.  If you are hungry, eat - you are working off the calories in daily workouts.  I would start to slowly find the minimum calories that you are comfortable with.  Are you havng a well balanced diet ? You'll fill up your calories with healthy food, if there is something missing in your diet to keep it from being a well balanced diet.  Again, check your calories to make sure you are at or within the daily limit. If you went over a day, cut the calories over the next few days and/or workout a bit extra.  It will level itself out.

Do not fear. Do not worry.  You will find the happy medium and learn to live healthy and maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle.  You are 18, young and healthy !  You have done well losing the weight well and will do well !  It's a matter of having confidence in yourself and making healthy choices to fill your diet.  If you "indulge" it is not the end of the world.  You do have choices to correct the "indulgence" either by reducing your calories over a week or upping your workouts. (Empty calories will leave you feeling hungrier - i.e. a candy bar, potato chips).

Have confidence in yourself and try to increase your calories once a week. Keep track of your calories.  Keep weighing yourself.  Keep working out to your comfort level.  If you gain a pound, it is your body and meatblosim adjusting.  If you gain five pounds, as a man, I do not know how to advise on that.  Our bodies as men and women are very different.  Just being real and honest.*

Again, congratulations on losing the weight !  You had the confidence and knowledge to do that.  You have will have the confidence and knowledge on maintaing. : )

*If you have BC/BS (or any insurance) see if the insurance company will advise you of speaking with a nutritionist (at no charge to you) to help you work out your diet and proper nutritional needs.  These are just my ideas and opinions. It truely is trial and error.

Okay, I have been thinking and I beleive the primary reason we all get anxious about maintaining is because we have been focued on losing weight for such a long time, that it has become a "habit".  We watch every calorie, workout diligently for the "prize" - the prize beng weight loss. For every pound we lose we a excited and happy looking forward to losing the next pound and thenext pound.

So, we made it to our goal.  Be certain that it is your goal for weight.  Once you have made that goal, start a new habit of cheering that you have made your goal.  Cheer on that you have maintained that foal weight for a week, then a month and so forth and so on.  Make it more challenging when adding back the calories !  Like 100 calories added back a day, along with some physical activity.  After a week, you see that you were able to lose yet another pound.  Okay, now keep adding the calories back, 100 per day, per week, month (whatever you feel comforatble doing) until you step on the scale and realize, I can maintain my weight !  Cheer !  This time in maintaining, the goal and prize is that I can keep a healthy weight !

So, relax.  Chill out.  Anxiety isn't going to make this happy period in our lives any happier.  We have accomplished what others are still working at and look how far we've come.  Look at what we have learned, what we have changed and that we are truly happy.  Accept it, accept yourself and move forward with confidence and the spirit you came into this journey with !

Playergirl,

Thank you so much for the positive advice!!!! I will definately try to increase my caloires this week and then we will see how it goes from there. It is going to be hard, especially of some pounds come back... but from what you have said and from other posts I have been reading, it is just a matter of a week or two and the weight will come back off. Hopefully it actually works like this!! Thanks again!!

I wouldn't exercise 7 days a week. That could very easily lead to injury. Take at least 1 day a week off.

Hey Guys! I  took the week off and I come back all proud of the advice you are giving to eachother. This is perfect. The motivation you gave playergirl is what we like to see more of in these forums!

You all have made it to maintenance, and this is exactly how you should feel. Happy and healthy. A drive to continue your healthy lifestyle. :) Thanks for making my day.

metaylor2:  please, check back in.  I want to make sure you're fine and if getting frustrated, have a place to "vent".  Keep in touch.

Thank you x17start17x for a check in - much appreciated. Sometimes we just have to work things out on our own.  If you have any other words to keep me / us going, please, I welcome it. Thanks again.

Hi,

Sorry to build off this post, but, I don't know how else to work it in off my original topic.

This question deals with maintaining and increasing calories.  I am pretty sure of how to eat healthy and how to add 100 calories a day.  (I don't think I'll ever be 100% certain of this - I am not an expert - just being real and honest).

Looking a bit long term and even premature at Halloween, Thanksgiving and the Holidays.  Is there anyway anybody continues to eat primarily healthy, but is able to add a "yummy" or a "goodie" or "treat" in moderation and not gain the weight back ?  What does "moderation" mean?  To me moderation  means a small amount and no frequency, like making it a daily ritual or habit.

Any advise, input, knowledge and sharing is greatly appreciated.  Thank you for your continued support in this forum.

Hi playergirl, its me again lol!!!

Ok I have been tracking my food and I am at about 1300 calories a day... (still where I was last time). I feel like I am eating a lot of food but little calories. Ususally I have oatmeal for breakfast, then a nice sized bowl of lettuce, a turkey sandwich, and some kind of soup for lunch, and then for dinner maybe another sandwich or a boca burger or something along with a bowl of lettuce, some fruit, and maybe a baked potato or soup. Now when I look at my plate I see a lot of stuff there, but the calories are so few. It ends up making me feel like I ate a lot, but I am never full. It is very frustrating. I can wolf down a whole tray worth of food and still be very hungry (even right afterwards!!!). I think I have trained my mind to eat the lowest calorie foods possible, so that is how I can eat a pretty good amount of food and still end up at about 1300 cals a day. Any suggestions of foods that are healthy and fill you up a lot.... and I mean a lot... im sick of feeling hungry lol!!! Thanks again for all the support youve shown!!!!

Hi metaylor2 ,

Glad to see you here and checking in !  Sounds like you're eating really well, as a dieter.  You are no longer a dieter.  You have made a remarkable acheivement and you are rightfully hungry.  First thing is to psychologically get over the food thing - I am not on a diet anymore.  I am at my healthy weight.  I know I can safely eat more food and not gain weight.  Use the calorie counter as a guide.  Have you been able to set it a maintaing yet ?  Do that first.  Set your mind into maintaining.

Have you taken up weights yet?  Just curious.  Protein and weights go hand in hand.  What kinds of proteins ?... well, you might take a ride over to GNC (or whatever health food store is  in your area) and pick up protein bars.  They are packed with calories, but good calories.  Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, do you have enough time to add 2 peices whole wheat toast with a 2 tbsp. of peanut butter with the oatmeal ?  After school snacks are great.  After a full day of school, have a granola bar.  Yummy.  Healthy enough.  Are you getting enough calcium ?  You can make your meals complete by adding milk, cheese (my 18 year old hates cheese overall, but is able to eat "string" cheese).  I did notice bread  in your meals but in a snadwhich, so whole wheat bread is a great addition to breakfast (which I suggested three or four sentences earlier).  Add more meat to your sandwich.  If you have been eating dry lettuce, guess what -  You can have salad dressing now !  Are you vegan ?  The reason I ask is because you have boca burgers.  Nothing wrong with that, but, you can have red meat, like 93/7 Ground Beef burger on a Roll (yes, you can have a roll) or have a Double Boca Burger on a Whole Grain Roll.  Have you had Pizza Night yet ? One night of pizza with a side salad and dressing (to make you feel healthier).  You have to treat yourself to something once a week that you have been missing since you had been on a diet.  A glass of whole milk with your meals (I didn't notcie you mention what you drink with your meals).

In no time at all, you will feel fuller and both your mind, body and soul will be happier and thankful  for it.  You aren't going to gain weight. You are a very active and healthy young man.  If you do pick up weights, research that.  I know in reading and my younder son that lift weights that you cannot lift weights every day because your musles need a day to repair itself.  So weight lifting is an every other day activity.  It builds muscle and muscle weighs more than fat, so the weight increase you would see on the scale is muscle, not fat. 

Bottom line I guess is make your meals complete. I made some suggestions above.  Add to your breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Add the snacks.  Add a night of what you have missed.  Mind of matter metaylor2.  You have the physical activity.  You are not on a diet anymore and you can eat !  Use the Calorie Counter as your guide now to make sure your getting at least the added 100 - 300 calories a day.  Pizza night may add a few extra calories - don't freak. You can do this metaylor2.  You can do this.  You have made a wonderul accomplishment. 

Any other questions you feel funny about asking here,  feel free to send me a message.  Please, check back in and let me know how it is going.

Have a fabulous day : )

You've just got to take things slowly. I'd start by cutting down the exercise to about 5 times a week. Working out seven times a week would make any person tired.

ker3409, thank you for your input.  The key word you used was to take things slowly. 

It was a difficult time processing weight gain.  It took years to gain the weight, so I knew I couldn't drop it over night.  I had to be patient in losing the weight. Sometimes, even wondering if the next pound would come off soon enough.  However, I did learn with patience, healthy eating and physical activity that I could lose the weight. 

Now, I have to be patient in getting up to maintaining.  Very frightening since my mind was programmed for losing. That programming took some fine tuning.  So, now I need to program my mind for maintaining. That will take time and fine tuning and patience.  Slow and steady !  Thanks.

Hey playergirl,

Just another quick question that I think would answer a lot of people's questions on the website....

I know you said you were doing about 1200 cals a day. Have you gotten to a point where you now know how many calories you need to maintain. According to some calculators I would need about 2500 cals a day!!!! That seems so huge (it seems like i didnt even eat that much when I was very overweight). I was just wondering what number you are at right now and how that is working out for you.

I also wanted to know on a scale of 1 to 10, how much better do you feel now that you have increased your calories and gotten back to healthier eating patterns. Haha, stupid question, but I just wanted to know if it makes a lot of difference (psychologically and physically).

Thanks again!!!!

Hi metaylor2,

Honestly, I do not have a clear cut calculation, just the best educated guess of where I should be to maintain.  The calculators are guides and cannot account for anyone's individual body.  The most important things to remember is to not stop your physical activity.  As long as you are eating 90% healthy and have phsical activty in your life, you are not going to gain.  On a scale of 1 -10, I am at about a 9.  Confidence and beleiving in yourself is everything. 

Now, are you drinking milk ?  : )  It does a body good !

metaylor2 this is something I theorized , hope it helps you find a theory.

.... I think I have maintenance figured out.  I think !  I started this on 1500 calories and lost weight then. Lowered it to 1200 calories because of my quack doctor.  Regardless, I lost weight.  The 1200 calories and exercise made it "easier" to lose weight, and a bit quicker.  Do I think I'll gain the weight back ?

I say "no".  90 - 95 % of my eating has been healthy (as it can be).  My theory is that I had been losing on 1500 calories when I started (while slow), so starting back in should be just fine. My breakfast, lunch and snacks are good foods.  That is 90 % of the battle. To eat with my family again (dinners) means I can have small portion of what they have, but make the meal more filling with vegatables and it will level out the "bad" food with the good veggie : )  I will work those chocolate chip cookies back into my life and work the kids back in as well.  It's just so comforting in the winter, the fire going, my son cooks up those break and bake cookies with hot cocoa and we play cards.  It will be good !  Look at what I can do.  I can do this too !!!!   Moderation is key element - moderation. 

Add in the fact that I will have some physical activity in my life, at least 3 x's a week (be it weights, my floor excercise, treadmill or even starting up DDR) there will always be something !  The day (s) my body can't do anything, I have weights I can do, so it's all good. The day (s ) I can't do a thing, I know that that is like a 1200 -1300 calorie day. 

It's all about finding a balance.  Now the courage, I need to find the courage to take this leap.  Perhaps a nudge or push.  It will come.

edit: Needed to add the word moderation.

Update

I am working my way up to 1300 calories, there are days I am above and days I am below.  I am doing treadmill daily or walking and some floor exercises that are an hour daily.  I do free weights every other day.  Pretty much what I have done is set my calorie limit to 1500  and maintenance.  That is my guide , so that I do not exceed.  Still eating healthy and I have daily activity. With that said, (smiling) I am down to 123.  That is incredible. From 160 to 123.  125 is my goal weight and one I can maintain.  I do notice that my weight varies day to day (more like a week out of the month). I do expect the scale to be both my friend and enemy, but helps balance and guide.  18 days into this and I am okay.  I am okay.  I did have my "indulgence" calorie last night.  My son made those cookies.  I was able to have two (the miniature cookies).  The earth didn't shatter and I am okay.  A week or month from now, who knows, but today I am okay.  I think the key is not to forget where I came from, keep up this healthy life with activity.  Everything in moderation.