Yes, I've seen it - lots of *great* info. I lurk around the Maintainers forum all the time - in fact, it's how I got started with 3FC - because of all the wonderful information they share. I'd like to belong there, someday...
No I haven't seen this post until now! What a load of information...GREAT INFORMATION. But do you think, even though we are NOT THERE YET, we have some good ideas? One of the things that I am learning is that my ideas may change. Before with weight loss it was very black and white...meaning...this is what I believe and this is how it is going to be...period end of sentence. Another way to explain what I mean by my ideas may change is...what works for me today may not work tomorrow. I can change my mind. I can do things differently. I can make a mistake and overeat, BUT I can get right back on the bus...I don't have to spiral out of control with food.
Sorry for the ramble. I hope this makes sense to someone!
Cathydoe, that makes sense. I think sometimes we are too rigid when it comes to weight loss and it's not livable. I too have learned that if I have a day where I eat off plan, I can restart the next day again. And my thinking can change as I learn more about myself, what works for me and what doesn't.
Is anyone upset by what they've read in that thread? Surprised? Taken aback? Discouraged?
Not in this thread, no but there are parts of the Maintainers' section that have depressed me. I know that we all agree with each other that we aren't dieting that we have changed our lifestyle but the reality of that can be seen very starkly in the maintainers' section, in a way that had never really occurred to me before.
I'm excellent at dieting; I've lost hundreds of pounds. The maintainers have made it clear to me that if I don't want to have to do it again, I'm never going to be able to drop the ball, that I can't go back to mindless eating and/or binging...ever and for me that's been a very sobering realisation.
It's logical that if I eat too much that I'll regain, it's not the maintainers' fault that that will happen, not regaining is within my control and all of the tools I need are very clearly laid out by them but to be honest it wasn't the news that I was looking for.
Trudiha, I don't think you're alone in that. I can remember thinking that if I could just see 125 on the scale ... it'd all be over and I could go back to normal. Illogical yes ... but I think a huge number of us kinda sorta thought/wished it'd be so.
I do find it encouraging that the maintainers are all happy that they do and/or have to do, whatever it is that they do. I'm not sure that sentence makes sense ...
I'll second wanting to binge on crap and not gain weight. I go through phases where I just want to eat chips and not worry about the sodium, fat and general junk-iness of it all. Then I have weeks where I don't miss having junk and even when it is in the house, I stop after a serving or a X calories worth of a serving. I definitely would have binged earlier. I think the ever-evolving journey that Cathy and Susan mentioned is mostly the reason for why I stop myself from binging or don't feel the need to eat chips. The other reason why I practice these behaviors is because I like the way I look and fit in my clothes. I LOVE going shopping and trying on clothes. Before, it was "oh man, I hope this fits" and if it did fit "I hope it sucks in my trouble spots." That's no way to shop! It's much more fun trying on smaller sizes or styles you wouldn't have worn in the past and seeing how nice they look on you. I think that keeps me going. It's certainly more satisfying than that extra handful of chips, eh?
Not in this thread, no but there are parts of the Maintainers' section that have depressed me. I know that we all agree with each other that we aren't dieting that we have changed our lifestyle but the reality of that can be seen very starkly in the maintainers' section, in a way that had never really occurred to me before.
I'm excellent at dieting; I've lost hundreds of pounds. The maintainers have made it clear to me that if I don't want to have to do it again, I'm never going to be able to drop the ball, that I can't go back to mindless eating and/or binging...ever and for me that's been a very sobering realisation.
It's logical that if I eat too much that I'll regain, it's not the maintainers' fault that that will happen, not regaining is within my control and all of the tools I need are very clearly laid out by them but to be honest it wasn't the news that I was looking for.
^^This
Quote:
Originally Posted by SusanB
Trudiha, I don't think you're alone in that. I can remember thinking that if I could just see 125 on the scale ... it'd all be over and I could go back to normal. Illogical yes ... but I think a huge number of us kinda sorta thought/wished it'd be so.
^^And this.
Although I've managed to lose lots of weight over the years, it's always found its way back. Most recently, I was 159 over the summer, and am now fighting my way down from 175. And that's despite LOTS of reading over at the Maintainer's forum.
It's not even as if I find my current programme all the arduous, I quite enjoy it and I feel better than I have in years. I don't even kid myself that I enjoyed my years of overeating; I ate with compulsion and ate until I was uncomfortably stuffed*; I think that it's the idea of any kind of permanent change that's making me feel the way I do.
Having said all of that, I'm going to stick around, keep reading the words of the experts and I hope, one day, to actually feel comfortable posting in that section.
The way I see maintenence is this: I have to live within my (calorie) budget, no differently than living within my fiscal budget. I can splurge on the occasional fancy outfit or vacation, but I know I have to pay it back. If I keep spending and spending, not watching the bottom line, I'll run my credit cards up to the max, get hopelessly in debt and spend months and years on a tight budget paying it all back.
I look at calories the same way - I have a maintenance calorie budget. I still lose control and binge sometimes. I'll take entire weeks "off" when I go on vacation and have whatever I want. But the difference is that I know I have to pay those calories back - either through increased exercise, or decreased eating or (usually) both for some period of time. The more I splurge, the longer to pay it back.
Everything else is just tactics - I track my calories so I know that I'm staying within budget (or not). I weigh to check the results. I eat healthy because that's the easiest way to STAY within budget (and I feel better when I eat that way anyway). I exercise because I love it, and because it gives me a bigger budget (and I feel better when I exercise).
Yes, I'd love to eat everything I want all of the time, but I would most certainly regain everything and more. I certainly don't want that, because I was unhappy and unhealthy when I was heavier. So I choose to live within my means - but the benefits are totally awesome! Cute clothes, great health, and in the best shape of my life. It's completely worth it.
Not meaning to hijack the thread -- but maintenance really isn't horrible. It has its struggles, but so does every phase of life.
Have you read this?
