So I've reached my all-time low of 148 again... I'm about to hit uncharted territory. I'm trying to decide if I should shoot for the full 100 and go all the way to 141, but part of me is kinda ready to go back to maintenance mode too cause I'm kind of tired of "dieting". What would y'all do?
Of course the number is arbitrary. That'd be mostly just so I could say I lost 100lbs, lol. but I miss being able to eat 2000 calories. That made life so much easier.
Knowing myself, I would probably be inclined to aim for the 100lbs, but in actuality I think the wise thing to do is to listen to your body. If it's tired, there's a reason for it and I think honouring these signals from our bodies is vital. If you take a break now, there's no reason you can't hop on the bandwagon again when you're ready to. Why risk burn out?
Either way, congratulations on your amazing progress!!!
Location: Anchorage AK in the summer, Lawrence KS and travel in the winter
Posts: 222
S/C/G: High 285+ 256/ticker/160ish
Height: 5'6"
I agree with the others. 100 is an arbitrary number. If you are healthy, look and feel good, stop and go to maintenance. In the end at goal I will have lost over 100 pounds from my all time high but if I need to stop short I will. If it's about being able to say you lost 100#, go ahead, the truth is close enough to round up IMO. Congratulations!
Congratulations! I know the OCD part of my likes the even "100 pounds". But you have accomplished something that is fracking HARD, losing over 90 pounds, and by focusing on that rounder number I feel like you're selling your own accomplishment short.
You indicate you would like to be able to eat a little bit more. If the next 7 pounds aren't important to you, for your own needs, then I would say you're done.
When we are fat, that becomes our whole identity. Then when we start losing weight, it takes up so much of energy and takes so long that dieting becomes our new identity. It is very, very hard to step on the scale one morning and realize "I'm DONE! I've reached my goal and I'm done dieting!" Because then we have to find a new way to identify ourselves. And we're so used to the idea that we have to constantly be trying to lose, that we become afraid to give ourselves permission to stop losing.
I'd say flip to maintaining for a set amount of time (1 month? 3?) and than re-evaluate what you want to do then. you may decide you like it exactly where you are or you may decide to go for that even 100 or further
Congrats on your success! Yep...I'd be wanting to hit that 100 pound loss just to say I did it! However I also agree to do what feels good to you. If you are wanting to go into maintenance, then I say do so. You can always go for dropping those few more pounds later if you feel like it.
I totally agree with HelloNurse's comment about the OCD inside that wants to round it out to an even 100 If I understood correctly, then you have accomplished a 93 pound loss? That is incredible. If your body is tired, then I agree giving yourself a little time off from dieting may be a good way to listen to your body. Whatever works for you and makes you happy is what counts
Hitting 100 was so huge for me... but that may have been because I needed an "amazing number" because when 100 pounds is less than half of what you need to lose you cling to little goals.
You look amazing. You clearly feel amazing. Why make yourself miserable for 7 pounds? 93 is still a huge number!
I'm stuck at 99 lost from my ticker weight (something like 120 from my high, but whatever) and that last pound is eluding me - so I totally get what you're saying! But like you, I prefer maintenance and am a tired of dieting, so I keep vascillating on whether or not to go for that last pound and a few more, for a cushion.
For me, the solution is to go hard at it for a solid week, and then maintain. Then a week, and maintain again. I can focus my energy for a week's block, but beyond that and I'm getting diet fatigue. So cycling my calories between maintenance and deficit is more doable.
I should add, that same cycle above is what I do to maintain, except I go day to day instead of week to week, adjusting to deficit or maintenance depending on the scale. I'm truly an awful loser, so making it maintenance (with a bit more duration and oomph) is easier on my brain when I'm hitting the wall. I was excellent on plan for three months and lost nine pounds, which was both encouraging and painfully slow, all at once. I just lose like a snail these days and hunger is a constant issue, thanks to nursing. So because losing takes so much effort, I just had to figure out a system by which I could lose, without losing my mind. I'm still giving it until October before really declaring I'm 'done', but I can't continue going hard core at it like I have been (I'm sliding into major off plan territory too frequently, which is a sign to ease up).
Last edited by Arctic Mama; 08-27-2013 at 04:43 PM.
Uncharted territory
