Ready to maintain but ...

Hi!

I see that this forum is not very active but my concerns goes in here so feel free to post if you can help me.

I lost 70 pounds and reached what I think is a normal weight for me. Maybe will try to lose 5 more but I'm pretty much at my goal weight.

I started 3 years ago at 185 and I'm now at around 115. I'm 5' 0.5" which puts me at a BMI of 22 which is healthy.

I need to start thinking about maintaining. I don't know where it comes from but I'm afraid to up my calories. I don't want to gain the weight I manage to lose. I'm so happy with my body now. I think I'm sexy, that I look great, I'm not afraid to be in underwear around my boyfriend, I like dressing up nice when I go out, etc.

I'm afraid of gaining. I'm so used to eat low calories. It's really easy for me to eat what I eat. I have perfect control of myself. There could be tons of junk and "bad" foods around me and it won't affect me one bit. I would never think about eating it. That's because I'm in this for such a long time.

Each day that I think about adding a bit more calories, like 50 more, I think about but Saturday I'll go out, I'll be able to eat a bit more so I'll wait for Saturday. Then Saturday comes and I'm not eating more. I'm so reasonable! Every day I push back the "I need to had a bit more calories". Like when I prepare my lunch for work, I had a bit more tomatoes and had a yogurt for dessert, which is 35 calories only. But I end up not eating them thinking that I will tomorrow.

Like yesterday, I went to the restaurant and I ate 300 more that what I eat normally. Today I woke up and weighted 1 more pounds. Now I know it's just water retention (restaurant put so much salt in their things) because I didn't eat 3500 more calories then maintenance! But Today I made a light lunch and planned a very light dinner to make up for it and will be glad to see the scale down tomorrow morning. 

Someone had similar experience and was able to get out of this cycle and maintain their weight?

I need help!

increase your calories by 100 each week until you eventually reach your maintenance and stop losing.

:)

I'm exactly where you are right now. My body finally looks and feels like I've always wanted it to. I know I don't need to lose anymore, but the thought of gaining even one pound freaks me out! I've gone a couple of days at a time without logging my calories when I was out of town and away from a computer, but I always kept a running total in my head. I have yet to be able to let my eat meter get within 500 calories of my burn meter, even though I know I should.

I'm not sure how we're going to go from the lose mentality to the maintain mentality. I'm sure others have done it successfully... 

 

I'm pretty sure too other have done it. I'm just not there yet. I can't eat more.

If I try to not log, I'll keep a count in my head and probably will eat less ebcause my count might be higher than what I think.

It's frustrating!

Knowing that I'm right there were I want but can't maintain it yet. Right now I think to lose 5 more pounds to be at 110 so when Christmas Parties arrive, I can eat a bit more and if I gain 5 pounds (which is hard to think that I will) I know that I look ok at 115 and I'll fit my clothes again! Is it crazy?

It's like I continue to get a deficit in case I eat more so I have a "bank" of saved space. It's hard to describe and even ahrder since english is my second langage but I'm pretty sure someone understand a little but what I'm saying :P

Hi amoria00.

Congratulations on the weight loss.  You have done an awesome !

Here's the problem with not going to maintenance when its time:

If you don't, you'll keep losing weight.

I supposedly went to my maintenance calories, and wound up losing 10 lbs more than I expected to. Now I'm at the point where I can't eat much less than the burn meter says or I will keep losing weight. Essentially, I'm now more afraid of eating too little than eating too much.

dm84, I agree with you.  You are so right.  I can agree.  I have lost yet another two pounds since "maintaining" and totally unitentional.  You have to start maintaining and get that mindset to maintain a good and healthy weight, before it sort of spirals out of control.  Thanks for the post. 

Again, congratulations amoria00 and jansherman !