Hello everyone! Okay a little history about me. I am 27 years old and have 3 kids that I stay home with. I have struggled with me weight ever since having children and continue to still struggle even though I am close to me goal. I had recently been calorie cycling and having great success with it and then one day I just thought I can do this without writing things down I know what I am doing and pow 5 pounds later here I am. I feel really discourged but excited to be getting back to counting because I know the results will follow. I did so good when I counted and wrote everything down. I don't even want to guess what my intake has been daily for the last few weeks but the brakes are on and I am jumping back in the drivers seat. I did not lose 70 lbs and literally sweat my rear off to gain it back. So my question is how long have you all been counting and do you plan to do it the rest of your lives? I know I can do this and I can't wait to post in the before and after post and be proud.

Tina, I've been counting since June 1, 2001 and imagine I will for the rest of my life. Which doesn't bother me a bit!

Calorie counting was one of my 'tools for success' when I was losing weight, so it doesn't make sense to abandon it now that I'm maintaining.

Congratulations on losing the 70 pounds!

Counting? Since I was about 12. Successfully counting? A little over 7 months
I plan to maintain a relationship with counting once I reach my goal, only because I have learned in my journeys from 120 to 220 to 263 back to 160 up to 227 and now back down to 163 (all in about 15 years) that once I start thinking I "know" how much I've eaten in a given day, the better my chances I am going to gain weight back.

I no longer carefully count or use Fitday, but I did for 2 years. I eat a LOT of the same foods everyday (cycle through 10-15 favorites) and I know that when I eat what I plan, I am in my calorie ballpark for the day. I do an "estimate" for the day in my head, I'm pretty good at it based on my 2 year history of careful counting.

My big things are:

• Planning - still grocery shop once a week, still make healthy dinners/lunches, pack healthy snacks everday
• Portion sizes - I still measure pasta/rice, still order the small non fat latte at Starbucks
• I still completely avoid my "never" foods - fast food, soda, packaged baked goods
• I still limit my "sometime" foods - full fat cheese, fried foods, home made baked goods, alcohol
• Still concentrate on nutritionally powerful foods while avoiding nutritionally vacant foods, eating mainly whole foods

Hi Tina!

BIG congrats on that 70 pounds GONE! Wow! That is definitely something to be proud of!

I don't count calories constantly and total everything up each day because I get lazy and bored with doing that. What I DO do is keep calorie count books handy so that I can make better choices when I go out to eat. I'm also doing much better with portion control these days and religiously eat half of what I get at restaurants and then box up the rest to have for lunch or to share with my family.

My friend lost 80 pounds by using a dessert plate at dinner instead of a regular-size plate! I am finding that helpful, too.

I like to check out calorie choices and try to memorize them so that I can eyball totals as I go.

I weigh myself every morning so that I can police myself. My weight gain of 100 pounds over the last twenty-five years came about mainly because I let the pounds creep up and I wasn't weighing myself often enough.

Don't worry about your small weight gain. That will come off. You KNOW how good you feel and look minus the weight. You won't put it back on. This is just a small bump in the road. No biggie!

Congrats again on your weight loss!

Cheryl

Tina, you're great to "nip it in the bud" and get back to what you know works without feeling terribly guilty. I'm kind of in the same boat with a slight gain right after the Thanksgiving holiday (which I attribute to having a huge houseful of guests for several weeks--not overeating on the holiday!!). I think that I'll need to go back to recording everything again until I get a handle on the situation. I know that I am too close to goal to let it slip away now.
Good luck to you, and congrats on the 70 pounds lost!!

I've been counting calories since November 7 of last year and I've lost about 30 pounds. I hate to do math in my head, so I expect that I'll continue logging my food for many years to come. I have said that once I hit 80, all bets are off and I'm eating whatever the heck I want!

Like Glory, however, I do tend to eat a lot of the same things over and over. Even when I am trying something new, I make sure that breakfast isn't more than 300 calories, lunch is 300 to 400 calories and dinner is 300 to 450 calories. At 1400-1500 calories per day, this leaves me plenty of room for snacks, which tend to be around 50-200 calories. This means that I don't always have to write everything down right away. Eventually it all gets logged, but sometimes, esp. on weekends when I am running around, I don't get around to it until late in the day (usually around PM snack time, when I'm trying to figure out exactly how much I can eat). So long as I stay within my guidelines for various meals, I know I'll come in okay for the day even if I don't immediately write everything down.

And, if I do get to the point where I don't write everything down, there are some practices that I do expect continue, including:

• Breakfast of around 200-300 calories, lunch around 300-400 calories, dinner around 300-450 calories.
• Plan all meals and snacks for the week in advance, when I do my grocery shopping.
• Eat lots of salads.
• Eat lean meats and low fat foods.
• Bulk up recipes with veggies.
• Limit high calorie desserts/foods to special occasions.
• Cook most of my own food, eat out rarely.
• Never drink beverages with calories (unless they also have alcohol I'm waiting for the day when they come up with a 0 calorie alcohol!).

I did things kind of backwards! I didn't start counting calories until I got to maintenance. I find that I've learned a lot from calorie counting. I find it interesting, and I have a better understanding of the effects that what I put in my mouth have on weight. I find that successful maintenance takes more vigilance than losing did for me.

Tina, it's awesome of the 70 pound loss. I wouldn't fret over the 5 pounds. Get back on plan and stick to it! At least you know what works for you!!

Wow you have done amazing. I used to count calories when I was a teenager and only about 20 pounds owerweight, the problem was I didn't count high enough so it didn't work, I ddin't stick to it so, duh it didn't work.

But now I've been counting calories since September 4, 2006 and I suppose I will be the rest of my born days. I am in this for life. I have lost over 60 pounds so far, I still have a looong way to go, but as far as I'm concerned nothing works like good old-fashioned calorie counting. I do make those high quality calories, but it really is a no brainer. I also tend to eat the same things over and over with some variation. I don't write things down but I keep it in my head. Breakfast no more then 225 calories, lunch no more then 300 calories, snacks no more then 150 calories and dinner no more then 400-500 calories. It's amazing all the food you can really eat for those calories when you really try.

And BluetoBlue's breakdown of her practices are identical to mine, with just a slight variation on how we breakdown our calories throughout the day.

Thank you all so much for you comments and advice. I do know this for sure when I count calories and write my food down I feel in control and right know I don't feel in control. I know it is time to go back to what worked and I know works but the thing is getting back to doing it. I feel so dragged down already by life and the holiday season that the thought of counting everything that goes into my mouth seems overwhelming. I have to do it though and I will start it today and hopefully at the end of the week I will have a good report for all of you. Thanks again though for all the support.

I guess I would say I am a sporadic calorie counter. When I feel like I am getting off track I log and track my calories, but if I feel I am doing okay I don't. Portions are key to me and my digital food scale is my best friend. It is amazing what I thought a serving of pasta, chicken, or even green beans used to be. When I am not counting I go by the number of portions and it is easier to keep count. 2 fruit, 5 veggies (minimum), 2 servings of dairy, 2-3 servings of whole grains, and 8 oz. of protein a day.

Tina, you have done so fabulously losing 70 pounds! Given all the hard work that I know went into losing those 70 pounds, I have no doubt that you can get back into it and lose these five pounds you're worried about now.

I'm sure everyone here has been where you are now. I've definitely had weeks where I fell off the wagon and gained a few pounds back and it was a real struggle to get back onto my plan. Just take it one day and one meal at a time and keep telling yourself that if you lost those pounds once, you can lose 'em again. I know it can seem overwhelming at first, but once you get back into your calorie counting rountine you know it will get easier.

Welcome!

First of all.. major agreement with everyone, congratulations on doing so well!

I first started counting calories in August, 2005, and worked at it for about three months, during which I lost 25 lbs.. and then stopped. Not only did I not lose weight, but I gained it all back... plus 10. Now Im also back to what worked for me... and I do plan on doing it for the rest of my life, because I know what works for me!

Generally, I like to stay between 1400-1600 calories a day.. when I (finally!) lose my weight, I am planning on upping it just a little, to 1600-1800 a day. I usually eat the same thing for breakfast (1 cup cereal, 1/2 cup 2% milk, and 2 lean turkey breakfast sausages), and my lunches are easy.. I have a couple light recipes that I love, so on the weekend I get paid I buy enough to double or triple the recipe, cook it, and freeze it... then when I need a meal, I just grab one out of the freezer and heat it up! (I go through usually 2 a day.. hence, why I have to make so much!) I usually eat some nuts or some sort of snack during the day, and that also allows me to have room to work with for dinner.

I don't remember what show it was, but I remember years and years ago watching a talk show with a "diet expert" on that talked about this. The topic was what to do after you've lost weight to make sure it stays off.
Just like you, I've got 3 kids I stay at home with, and I'm losing my enormous pregnancy gain for the last time.

The guy on the show said that the most important thing to do was set a limit for yourself, depending on how much you usually fluctuate, of between 5 and 10 pounds, that would be an alarm. If for any reason that alarm goes off, it's time to get back on plan.
You can't let little fluctuations affect your mindset TOO much though-the types of foods you were eating, sodium, etc- water retention is most likely the culprit for any quick gain. Guilt and discouragement can't help any of us-having a "gameplan" will.
But it sounds to me as if you are not only aware of that danger, but determined not to let it happen. So just go at it like you have before, you already know you can do it! What's 5 pounds when you know you've lost 70? It won't take long, and it's actually a good thing that it's important to you.
I don't plan on counting calories forever. I don't actually write down and calculate anymore-I guess after doing it for the first couple of months I just know what I can and can't get away with. I know that I will never again be able to EAT like I did when I was making myself overweight, and that I have always got to be aware of my food issues to avoid falling back in. I use the scale as a gauge so that I can relax about food day to day. For me, having to have such a regimented relationship with food, and having to think about it as an issue all the time, and worry about limits constantly, etc., only makes it harder. My ultimate goal is to have a normal, healthy relationship with food and weight, and not having to obsess over every little thing I eat or don't.