How have you maintained weight loss?

[dustyflipflop]

I lost a a good amount of weight last year in lockdown. It was through a combination of calorie counting and 45 min workouts 3 times a week when I had all the time in the world for it. The weight melted off.

I stopped last Sept and over the past year steadily gained nearly a stone back
The calorie counting is unsustainable and I don't want to go back to it as I know I will have to change what I do to maintain the loss. I'd rather start as I mean to go on.

I'm not overweight but I know if I leave it much longer I will start creeping that way and it's a long way back.

I have a big sweet tooth and get very tempted with the contents of the cupboard around 4-5pm. I never really know what to cook but I have 2 small DCs and a DH and it needs to be pretty family friendly as I don't have time to cook separate meals.

If you have successfully kept weight off over a long period of time without having to exercise 3-5x a week what did you/ do you do that works?

Slimming world really worked for me, i maintained for 2 years after losing nearly 2 stone. Fell pregnant and gained a stone then lost most of it again and have maintained.

With slimming world i done it religiously for around 5 months then when i hit my target weight i relaxed at the weekend meaning i easily maintained fluctuating only by a pound or so either way x

To be honest if you stop the exercise and also go back to eating as you did before then weight gain is inevitable. Weighing myself every morning is a key way to keep a sharp eye on things, it’s far easier to shift a pound or two than a stone.

Decide on how much exercise you can commit to. Get a series of meal plans that can be adapted for the whole family, commit to your 5-7 portions of fruit and veg a day. Boring but it’s all true.

Would a drink of something like Options hot chocolate fix your sweet cravings at 5? It worked for me though I bloody hate the stuff now!

I am still looking to lose a little more but have been maintaining for a while now. Same as you I was calorie counting and running 3/4 times a week. If I stop the running I would have to eat even less so I have kept the exercise, this gives me the leeway to add a few more treats in and maintain the weight loss. I still weigh myself regularly so I could tackle any weight gain quickly. I didn’t see it as a diet but more a change which I will need to keep if I don’t want to go back to my previous weight.
It sounds like you have stopped exercising and started eating treats which is not going to work. As pp said, it’s now about finding the balance of how much exercise allows you to eat happily and sticking to it. I eat the same meals as my family but to use tonight as an example, we are having spag Bol with garlic bread, I will have a slightly smaller portion of spag bol and have it with a side of veg, I don’t eat the bread anyway as I’m coeliac but I just make sure I have lots of veg I like with each meal to keep it balanced

I don’t think it’s possible without exercise or heavily restricted calorie intake per day.

@IceCreamAndCandyfloss

I don’t think it’s possible without exercise or heavily restricted calorie intake per day.

At all? Even with a good diet and cutting down on sugar/snacking?

@Wejustdontknow

I am still looking to lose a little more but have been maintaining for a while now. Same as you I was calorie counting and running 3/4 times a week. If I stop the running I would have to eat even less so I have kept the exercise, this gives me the leeway to add a few more treats in and maintain the weight loss. I still weigh myself regularly so I could tackle any weight gain quickly. I didn’t see it as a diet but more a change which I will need to keep if I don’t want to go back to my previous weight. It sounds like you have stopped exercising and started eating treats which is not going to work. As pp said, it’s now about finding the balance of how much exercise allows you to eat happily and sticking to it. I eat the same meals as my family but to use tonight as an example, we are having spag Bol with garlic bread, I will have a slightly smaller portion of spag bol and have it with a side of veg, I don’t eat the bread anyway as I’m coeliac but I just make sure I have lots of veg I like with each meal to keep it balanced

I think portion isn't an issue. To be honest I was semi watchful of what I ate for a while after stopping exercising until it all slipped a couple of months ago. We lost our dog at the beginning of the year as well and it made me not even want to go for walks anymore.

We have a new puppy and I hope to start some longer walks once DCs are back at school/nursery come September but I know it needs to come with some diet changes somehow as well...

It will of affected your metabolism, the lack of calories and exercise combined, so suddenly when you cut out the exercise and stop watching the calories, your weight will and does creep back on quite suddenly, if you didn’t gradually up the calories then it’s almost inevitable.

Are you wanting to shift the almost stone you’ve gained or are you happy to maintain this current weight? I’d have a google at what your maintenance amount is for your height/weight. Remember you’ve got to eat 3000+ calories OVER your recommended amount to gain 1lb, so it will definetly be the fact you’ve messed up your metabolism.

Whole foods, plant-based diet (aka McDougall Diet, Starch Solution, Lean witb Plants, Forks Over Knives, caloric density and a few others) is really simple and requires no calorie counting. I get the 5pm snackies too, and it has really helped my energy levels to stay steady, and I don't feel hungry. If you eat low calorie density foods, you can eat a lot more. I.e. vegetables, starchy carbohydrates, legumes, whole grains and fruit. I did low carb before, and it just didn't work long term. Now, I do two 30 minute strength workouts a week and the rest of the time I just walk 10-12K steps a day.

I maintain my weight by sticking to 1200 calories a day, mainly protein and very little in the way of carbs. No sugar or processed crap and 6 sessions of exercise a week - mainly cardio, weights and Pilates with swimming twice a week as well.

It's hard work but maintains a steady weight

Intermittent fasting (16-8 during the week) and more activity.
Eating better, eating less and drinking less.
I reckon with the dog I walk around 60km each week, it's two hour long walks or jogs each day, so that's a high baseline of activity, coupled with additional swimming & rowing 2 or 3 times a week.
As we get older it gets harder to lose weight and keep it off, so there isn't really a sustainable alternative to eating less and moving more.

I lost 2 stone last year and have kept it off this year by calorie counting in and out on Fitbit.

I actually eat more calories than before (around 2k) including some of the more unhealthy snacks - but I also get at least 20k steps and exercise every day.

For me that's because the exercise and building muscles was even more beneficial for me than losing the weight.

I guess really it has to be about changing your way of living permanently, not just dieting and then stopping and starting again?

Intermittent fasting and whole foods has really helped me.

I find if I stop eating crap I no longer want it! I also think if you can start walking again it'll make a huge difference.

I only have a stone to lose but am down 9lbs since I started in June. This holiday I'm just planning on maintaining and will try and shift the last few pounds in September. I've found my set point of weight has definitely moved down and when I ate more crap when away it shifted back again quickly. I think power walking and being mindful of what I eat has been the change

If you have lost weight by calorie counting and being more active the only way to maintain your weight is to work out how many calories you need on a maintenance plan. You also need to take into account if you are less active.

BBC Good Food website has a calculator that you can use, it's usually around 500 calories more a day to maintain your weight. Weighing yourself everyday helps as it allows you to take action quickly before gaining a large amount.

Unfortunately as other PPs have said, it's a very basic calculation, calories in, calories out.

I'm afraid I have to monitor calories and will do for the rest of my life. Exercise is also good for you in general - I wouldn't recommend anyone not exercise, it's so important for your long term health.

Intermittent fasting. I have been the same weight for around three years now.
I got Uber thin on keto but found it boring.
I do go to the gym 3x a week. I use weights but don’t do crazy cardio as I find that dull.

Another one who does intermittent fasting here! I do 16/8 and have kept my weight stable since losing a stone 18 months ago.

I didn't stop doing the things that made me lose the weight.

I was half shocked, half heartened to read that just one extra biscuit a day over your calorie needs ie. 90 calories adds up to a stone of extra weight over the year.

I was shocked because it's so little, but heartened because it shows that you can gain weight so easily without even realising - it's not some kind of moral failing. I think I will probably have to think about it and be mindful always, since it is so easy to eat/drink just a tiny bit too much if I don't think about it.

You need to do a reverse diet, that will stop you needing to be in such a deficit to maintain/etc. On top of that I would say keep up the regular exercise, preferably cardio like running or HIIT but something you can sustain and enjoy, great for mental and physical health.

To explain a reverse diet: essentially incrementally increase your calories, so an extra 50-100 per day and increase this week by week. You will need to calorie count and weigh in the period but it's a short-term thing and will help in the long run. Might not work for everyone but something to look into.

Weigh myself almost every day. Don't have any treats in the cupboard- I do treat myself but don't keep any treats in stock. Don't strictly calorie count but do think about what I'm eating and avoid eating empty calories and high calorie foods on a regular basis.

I keep my carbs very low & hardly eat any sugar.

How often do you weigh yourself OP? The reason I ask is that for most of my life I avoided scales like the plague, but over 2 1/2 years ago I did Weight Watchers and lost 10kg. I’ve more or less maintained it (within a kilo or two) by faithfully weighing myself every single Thursday without fail (and never in between). Before I even take a sip of coffee I get up, use the loo, strip completely naked and step on the scale. If I’ve gained any weight it won’t be much on the prior week and it’s much easier to make small adjustments to stop the next gain.

If you have small DCs you’re less likely to be menopausal but I’ve found since hitting that no amount of exercise makes any difference - it’s all diet. Exercise has many other benefits, which is why I’m trying to get back into it, but for me weight control sadly isn’t one of them.

When I managed to maintain my target weight pre children I controlled my diet during the week, either cc or weight watchers etc then ate what I wanted at the weekend and that seemed to work.

Could you batch cook once a month so you have healthy meals during the week there ready ?

I’m the same as you and it’s rubbish but calorie counting is the only way. Luckily you should have the knowledge now of roughly how many calories your eating so it doesn’t need to be as strict and you should know roughly what a portion is so weighing it isn’t as important.