To all those that have lost weight, regained the weight, whatever:

What would you do differently? Inquiring minds want to know!

not regain!

But i don't have a handle on how to not do that. I'm hoping i figure it out in the next 50 pounds or so. Last time I went for a beach week with friends, gained 5-10 and just gave up. I know i can't say I'm never going to go on a vacation or never going to go off plan... so I've got to get a handle on how to get back on plan once I go off.... How to not lose my mojo. I'm really working on this part now so maybe i have a clue later....

Not regain

A few mistakes:

1. Didn't accept the weight where I leveled off so failed to get into a maintenance mindset, but thought of myself as "failing to lose"
2. Didn't ask for help when after almost 2 years of maintenance I started to really go off the rails (if memory serves the first thing I ate that was seriously "off plan" in 3 years was a SHEET CAKE. Yes, the entire thing.)
3. Didn't find a fun way to exercise but got kind of burnt out on running.

I would stop letting weight loss be so complicated.

- Eat a variation of protein for breakfast

- Eat a fruit snack

- Eat a big Lunch

- Eat greek yog for snack

- Eat a slightly smaller dinner

- Have an evening snack under 100 calories

- Walk more than you did before

Don't stop weighing yourself daily. I know a lot of people think weighing yourself is just discouraging, but for me it's keeping things real. The times I've gained weight back are the times I didn't have a scale in the house for whatever reason.
A good balance beam doctor's office scale is something I wish I would have bought and kept right from the start.

Definitely checking your weight is a must. Perhaps not daily but weekly is a must. Keep trying on the nice and easy clothes that do not have to "hide your fat".

What I would have done differently is to keep doing what I did before instead of testing new methods to loose weight.

I gained back all of the 80 lbs that I lost. But on the bright side, I did quit drinking and as a sober person, I have more energy now. Maybe this go round will stick?

So much good advice here-
I suppose the most important thing I have to say kind of piggybacks on what KrissieM says about weighing yourself daily: Don't lie to yourself. I can't say that often enough, or loud enough. If you *do* wind up eating an entire sheet cake, there is a reason. Get to the bottom of it NOW.

I wish I had gotten outside help, instead of turning to my old demons. I maintained for two years, and got pregnant for the third time....and I let that de-rail me. If I had gotten a nutritionist, and tried to be reasonable, I'd be in a much better position. Then my dad died, and that was hard too....and I've always been a comfort eater. Now here I am, having gained back all the weight I lost. I've finally re-joined today, I am back to daily weighing (for me too, something I shouldn't have stopped doing), and am counting calories. I miss how I felt when I had lost the weight, and need to just keep moving instead of kicking myself constantly for being back here. Onwards and *ahem* downwards!! haha

I am new here, but I lost 105 lbs about 3 years ago, I have gained about 80 of those lbs back. I am so mad at myself. This time around here are the things I would do differently:

1. When I lost the weight, I was mostly doing a raw food diet. I really don't want to do a raw food diet indefinitely (as shown by the regained weight). So this time around I will eat the way I want to eat indefinitely by using the IIFYM approach (If it fits your macros).

2. I would make cooking a priority. When I starting eating cooked foods, I started out cooking, but then I started to grab convenience foods and takeout. This time around I want to learn tasty recipes that fit my macros. I want meal prep so that I always have the meals I want already ready so I don't go for takeout.

3. I want to include weight training to minimize flabby/loose skin.

Good luck to everyone restarting the journey.

Karen
260/260/120 - Starting Today!

Hi Karen. Welcome to 3FatChicks. You have listed some very good ideas. I especially agree on losing weight following the plan you want to live on indefinitely. If you lose on a "diet plan," it's harder to maintain once you go back to your preferred way of eating.

Cooking at home and preparing meals ahead is good, too.

Good luck to you!!

Thanks Carol for the warm welcome!

Karen
260/260/120

I would not be so extream and in a hurry to lose the weight.
Took me 9 months to lose the 40 pounds of baby weight. Then found out that a family reunion was going to take place in about two months and wanted to get as small as I could. I dropped another 20 pounds by practically starving myself. The weight wasn't coming off as fast as it was when I was bigger. (at 280 the weight comes off at 3-4 pounds a week..at 225...not so much) The day after the reunion I did a figurative table flip on my weight loss and gained it all back plus 10 more within 2 years.

Now I know that the smaller I get, the smaller the weekly weight loss and that's perfectly normal and healthy.