Breaks in a diet to do maintenence?

[Zoseph]

This is something I started wondering about recently. I lost about 10 pounds this summer and then stopped losing for about 3 months, and recently started losing again. I didn't do this on purpose - I basically just stopped trying as hard as I had been. During these three months I didn't gain any weight though, which is great. I learned what food and how much I could have in order to not gain weight, even if it wasn't on purpose.

I'm wondering if anyone has tried some kind of intermittent dieting to learn how to eat and maintain at their new (though temporary) weight, and how it's worked? It seems like after dropping 100 lbs (as an example) it would be hard to go right into maintaining mode, but if you had taken breaks throughout your diet to make sure you were able to maintain, it would be easier when you reach your goal. I can see where problems would arise but I'd also like to know if anyone has done this and found benefits too.

[caramelkitty]

Hey

Congrats on your weight loss so far.

I happen to do this too. At first it happened accidentally. I had stopped working out for a month and wasn't really watching what I ate. But I maintained my weight.

Then when I started working out again, the weight flew off.

So I decided to do this everytime I hit a hardcore plateau or a milestone.

I take a little break every once in a while and when I get back on it, I lose it off right away. Be it water weight, or whatever, it feels great!

I haven't reached my goal yet, but I know that when I get there, I will definitely be able to keep it off.

[Zoseph]

Thanks for the reply! It's good to know that there's someone else out there that this works for. I'm going to continue with it and see how things go.

[flashfacts]

I did scheduled 2 week breaks after every month of dieting for my first 65lbs, and then did maintenance for a few months, lost 10 more lbs, and did maintenance for another month or so and I'm now I'm back at it again.

I liked the break during the first 65lbs because it help everything not seem so overwhelming, and I think its taught me a some things about maintenance. I think my transition into longer maintenance was in part about getting used to my new body. I found that I spent some time celebrating how far I had come, but after a while I was ready to take stock of where I was and acknowledge my desire to go further.

That said, I don't think breaks are for everyone, it depends a lot on your relationship with food.