Ramblings on Maintenance - Part 1

[lisaf]

I thought I would share with everyone some of my rambling thoughts with respect to maintenance...not only for those who are on, or approaching it, but also for those out there who may still have a while to go, but are curious about the experience.

- maintenance isn't a sudden thing. You don't just wake up one morning, hop on the scale (or input your measurements into a calculator for bf%) and go "Hey, cool, I get to start maintenance today!" Just as losing the weight is a process (and as much a mental one as physical), so too is shifting into maintenance. For me, the process of thinking about maintenance began about 10 lbs before I hit goal. I knew I was going to get there, and my mind started to automatically begin the think through how it was going to be.

- Maintenance isn't a big change from now. Here's the truth - its still hard slogging sometimes. And in some ways its harder. When you are losing and put on a few pounds, you just think to yourself..."yup, but its part of a downward trend"...now you think "uh-oh...is this a problem...a trend...what am I doing...why am I gaining again"

- Maintenance diets still require tweaking - at least mine does. I still get addicted to certain food...legal but lethal I like to call them. Why? Because anything inexcess is going to pack on weight. Emotional overeating is still a struggle. I'm trying to replace it with yoga ... with varying rates of success.

- You continue to apply everything you've learned, everyday. I learned to plan meals, set goals, and cook in whole new ways. I learned how to develop strategies to deal with social situations and nay-sayers. It never ends...but I don't have to work as hard at it anymore.

So that's it for Part 1...I have no idea if there will be a part 2...have to go do more thinking now.

Take care!

Lisa

[razzle]

lisa, thanks for this post! As I slow my loss (and raise my pounds goal), I can see ahead...and realize that "there" really isn't much different than "here" anyway. Your post helps confirm that. One does not end a way of life, eh? It just goes on and on.

[lisaf]

Exactly!

Glad you enjoyed it raz!

Lisa

[trisharau]

Thanks Lisa, your post is very informative. I am very close to my original goal now and I am thinking a lot about maintenance. I have actually in my head shifted my goal a few kilos lower as I still can grab a handfulof fat on my belly :(

I exercise 6 times a week including weights on alternate days so I have built up muscle. I suspect that now I need to change my goal to Body Fat %. That will be a true indicator of how lean I am.

[lisaf]

Hi Trisha - absolutely...I'm going to be doing the BF% thing in the fall myself!

[gwilson38]

Its interesting aswell that once U hit maintainence U need to focus on a new goal. I had been maintinaing my weight for 7 months and I decided to quit smoking, my new goal. That is going awesome however I have put on about 8 pounds. Now of course because I added resistance traing a couple weeks after I quit smoking some of that is muscle and I know the rest will come off in time. Maintainence is a journey as is life.

[lisaf]

7 months is amazing! Congratulations! I agree about setting new goals...I make mine fitness related now...there's always another muscle to grow!

Lisa

[gwilson38]

I am doing extremely well and have been asked by a fitness club to get certified as an instructor for land and water. Both managers have seen my progress and because I have fibromyalgia, think I would be a great instructor! I will look into it in the fall.

[lisaf]

Congratulations - you're going to be fabulous at it...I just know! Good luck!

Lisa

[trisharau]

Hey great news on giving up smoking AND staying that way. Both your health and pocket will be so much better off! :D

Terrific news too on your new future career. I do hope it all goes well for you. :)

I have info here (which I haven't looked at yet because of study) that I recieved in the past week on training to be a personal trainer. I have wanted to do that for years. It may just happen yet ;)

Well I reached my goal today but the mirror says I need to lose more (tummy area). :eek: I worked out the range for my ideal body weight from PP and I am in range but could go lower. That is what I will do. I worked out my body fat percentages too and would still like to be lower than I am.

Trisha

[gwilson38]

Thanks for the vote of confidence! LOL When I weighed myself a couple weeks ago I was 140 so still at my goal. I wanted to wait until my 3 month non-smoking anniversary to change my stats BUT Im not sure I will weigh myself then. A better judge is of course how your clothes fit and not what the scale says. Now, if I had been thinking I wouldve waited 3 months to change my exercise [adding weights] routine but then again maybe my clothes wouldnt fit now! LOL. Trish I see U R 5'3" tall? To me 118 pounds is about as low as U would want to go. Dont get caught in the trap of looking in the mirror and thinking "gee if I could just lose a bit more here or there" I have to be careful myself. I would dearly love to have my BF figured out cause I have tried many tests that put me at 29% [way too high] or 20% [way to low]

[trisharau]

I agree it is more important to look at how clothes fit rather than the scale as an indicator of body fat lost.

Great news that you are doing weights. I too have been back doing weights for over 5 months now. I also do a bit of farmwork and that can build up muscle. :thup:

I did one of the internet tests (a friend thought it was one of the better ones) as all the other ones I had done were real low and I did not believe them. I think I still need to get it done manually but it is finding a personal trainer who is good at that as I have had widely differing percentages in the past from different people.

I also did the body fat % test in PP and I thought that too was way to low for me too. :confused: Like I can grab handfuls of fat around my tummy and I shouldn't be able to do that with a low BF level.

My waist is 29 inches and to me that is too big for someone my size (and most of the extra weight is on my tummy under my waist too) :eek: I am concerned about the health consequences of having an apple shape.

My mum died soon after her 58th birthday 15 years ago today :( and I do not want to follow her example. She had a heart attack and died at the entrance of a country hospital (she lived a few miles out of town).

Trisha

[lisaf]

Trisha - I'm really sorry about your mom...must have been very difficult for you.

All the weight training and exercise are a great way to keep health complications at bay. Weight gain around the middle is such a typical insulin resistant thing so low-carbing is a good choice for you too. That being said, you may be surprised to find your bf is really as low as it says...fat around the middle isn't the only measurement as you know. Also, its the fat that sits around your organs and can't be seen that's really dangerous and you probably don't have a lot of that.

Take care,

Lisa

[trisharau]

Thank you Lisa for your kind words. Yes it was hard when she died. I always thought she would live to her 80's or 90's at least. She died just two days before her first grandchild (my nephew) was born.

I too have been concerned that I could also be carrying fat around my major organs even though my supposed BF percentage is in a healthy range for my age.

Trisha

[gwilson38]

I am sorry also to hear about your mom Trish. U and I seem to have a lot in common. It is because my dad has adult diabetes and the fact that 1 1/2 yrs ago in a 2 week period my mom had 2 heart attacks and a stroke, that I knew I needed to make major lifestyle changes. [BTW both my parents are still alive and doing ok] Also I have that spare tire around my middle. Oh I can dress up and look great but I dearly wish my waist was about 2 inches smaller. Lisa is right tho. Just because U and I have a thicker waist doesnt mean we have a much higher over all BF. I dont see that we have a much great risk for health concerns either. We are all built different and I think if we eat well, exercise not smoke [ LOL I can say that now since I quit] then thats all we can do to stay in good health.

[trisharau]

Hi gwilson (sorry I don't know your first name),

I am sorry to hear that your parents have had some health problems. Hopefully they will pick up lots from your WOE.

I posted this on another site last night:
I did a before and after Waist to hip ratio measure today when I needed a break from all the heroin trials and overdoses (study for today). I was suprised to see it hasn't changed much. Now it is .84 and before weight loss it was .88. The PP book says 0.8 or less shows a hip and leg pattern for fat distribution and greater than 0.8 is the abdominal pattern. Unfortunately I still come in the latter category. (for any one interested in working this out it is on P136-139). So you can see why I want to lose more body fat.

Wa'll commented that he though I had come down a lot in the ratio. I still would like a smaller wsist and to get it below .8 at least ratio wise.

So both our challenges now are to reduce waist sizes. Exercise and continued LC of course I imagine is the way. I wonder if Pilates would help as that strengthens core muscles?!

Trisha

[trisharau]

Hi, has any one who has been on maintenance for 6 weeks or more found this to be the case? I am rather sceptical!

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fat Migration
I read in an old book, "The Woman Doctor's Diet for Women"

quote: "However, the subcutaneous fat in a female is genetically programed (ice cream cone shaped and pear shaped) to be of a certain thickness, which means that if you lose too much from one area, your body will take fat from another available area. This is called redistribution; the process of moving the fat is called migration. I like to tell my patients that you lose from the head down, but redistribute from the feet up. You can never tell immediately after stopping a diet ( though we on Atkins plan on never stopping) what the final form of your body will be, because this migration of fat takes about six weeks longer. You can't see the migration and redistribution while you are still losing steadily, because layer after layer of fat is being eliminated too quickly for the process to be discernible. You will notice it only after you have slowed down or stopped losing altogether. Your face, arms, neck, and breasts usually appear to get thinner first, thinner than your lower extremities because up above there is less fat to lose. Then you will see your waist, hips, and stomach, and finally your legs decrease in size (I got everything else, but my stomach and hips are the ones holding out on me.). Women who are 10 pounds away from their ideal weight will come into my office demanding to know, "When will I lose these?" (pointing to their chubby legs).
"Last", I reply. And not just last, but last of all. If you get your weight down and hold it down for a few months, you will see an interesting change in your figure begin to take place up to six weeks after you've stopped dieting (again it's a WOL not a diet for weight loss alone): those unsightly legs will get thinner and your face will become rounder. But you must tolerate a thin drawn face while you are achieving a total slim look. You face will take on a proper amount of subcutaneous fat after you've finished losing.
Many women let their faces be their guide when they diet, but you can see from what I have told you that that is not a good indicator. However, in the older female it might be well to stop short of pencil slimness, in order to preserve some additional subcutaneous fat in her face to prevent wrinkles."
There it is (with my asides )
Elihnig

[lisaf]

Well...I agree that I lost weight on my upper body a lot faster...but as for changes after maintenance...hard to tell because the weight training throws in a curve ball I think. I think the ONLY true statement for me is that women hold on to weight on the hips and thighs. Oh and my back...can't seem to lose the back fat LOL!

Lisa

[tamarian]

Originally posted by trisharau
Wa'll commented that he though I had come down a lot in the ratio. I still would like a smaller wsist and to get it below .8 at least ratio wise.

I simply crunched the numbers :) going from 0.88 to 0.84 puts you at half way towards 0.8

Wa'il

[gwilson38]

Hey Trish sorry my name is Gale...yup just like the wind..lol I have to agree with Lisa about the weight training. My body is doing some weird things..lol history--- stopped smoking March 21. Starting resistance training about April 10th. As of late, the scale says I am up about 8 pounds yet my clothes all fit approximately the same. Now here is the strange thing. my calves are bigger [good thing for me] my butt is bigger [good thing] my chest is bigger [is ok] my back is slightly more toned, I have way more definition in my arms. I have much more curve to my waist YET my waist is an inch bigger! I will keep working at it because I do feel great. Oh ya my appetite is huge aswell.

[trisharau]

Hi Everyone,

Lisa in regards to the quote I can't comment yet as I am still in weight loss mode. I have found with me though that losing weight around my hips and legs happened easily as with the rest of my body really. Jusy proportionally I had more around my waist and tummy region to begin with I now still have more their now.

Wa'l, Yes I am keen to get below the .8 mark on the waist to hip ratio. I would have been there in my teens, twenties and early thirties. Having children in my mid to late thirties changed the ratio significantly! Ha! That is also when my sweet tooth became uncontrollable.

Gale, I have been back doing weights since the beginning of the year and I definitely have muscles that I can see on arms and legs. If I was doing machine work at the gym (I am doing free weights at home) my butt would be firmer too!

It is interesting your comment about the waist meaurements increasing since doing weights. I hadn't thought of that happening. Are you doing a lot of abdomenal exercises?

I find exercise a good natural appetite suppressant for me.

Trisha

[gwilson38]

Im not doing any more Ab work than I used to I just switched from doing cardio, toning 4-5 days a week to cardio, toning 3 days a week and resistance training 3 days a week. I have just read in this forum that one explanation for me gaining inches and not losing at this stage is because it takes awhile for your muscles to start burning off the fat. I have definitely developed more muscle but maybe I havent gotten rid of much of the fat that is covering them up yet. I should know in the next 6 weeks I would think.

[trisharau]

I do my abdomenal exercises the days I do my weights which is three times a week. When I used to go to the gym years ago I did abs 5-6 times a week. I read somewhere (it may have been BFL) that it is important to have a day's rest which is what I do these days. Do any of you know how important this is? I am sure I was slimmer around the midriff doing the exercises every day!

Gale I will be interested to hear if you do find the weight does start coming off in a few weeks.

I would love to do Pilates to strengthen my core muscles but the only class down here clashes with me picking up the children from the school bus.

[EllieEats]

Commenting on first post here.....
Well said Lisa!!
I'm coming up on 4 months of maintenance next week..... and you are right, it's still hard work sometimes! You have to watch everything that goes in the mouth (just like before) and you have the good days and the days when you can't resist a little cheat (just like before)
At first 2 pounds up on the scale blows your mind but gradually you learn to live with the 3 to 4 pound fluctuation.
A high carb day is immediately followed by 2 or 3 lo carb days... you just continue to tweak and learn what works for you!

Congrats and best of luck to all the LCers!! :thup:

Ellie :wave: