Anyone struggle with Maintenance Fat vs. Carb meals?
 

Howdy, IP Maintainer partners! How has everyone been? I've been on maintenance for just over 2 months now and keeping in my 4 pound range. But I haven't been following the carbs one meal, fat the next, method. I never could get the hang of it. I'm doing more of a balanced, portion controlled, weight watchers type of thing, and exercising 6 days a week. I made it through week 6 of P90X today!!! woohoo!!! I was pretty proud since this time last year I was 100 pounds heavier and a slug! And at 55 I never thought I'd be doing strenuous exercise!! But, I digress......

Just wanted to know how others were maintaining and if the carb vs fat meals was easy for them and how they did it, or were most doing something closer to what I'm doing!

Thanks,
Ken :flame:

Ken: That is great about 2 months within your range. I am not exactly following the fat carbs either. I have carbs and fats for breakfast, then olive oil either in salad dressing or stir fried or roasted veges for dinner and lunch. For dinner I might add parmesean cheese or feta, which I think are counted as fats.

Determined: I live in a rural town also which could be why I have turned to cooking ethnic foods as we don't have many. Yes, that is quite true, these new recipes take time and preparation. I cook large quantities of veges..2 lbs of green beans for only 2 people. That helps. I agree you can get tired of eating the same thing over and over. Hope your weekend is going well.

LoriKay: I have done the one bite on sweets..Like one bite of mango chutney.

Hi, Ken - I genetally do follow the fat/carb separation rule, but not always. Portion control is definitely important. For example, I will often not eat all of a large piece of meat at dinner if it's too much, but I am careful to cut it down to size before I put it on my plate because I know once I start eating I am likely to eat the whole thing... (The dog likes this approach too!)

I track everything on MFP and quickly got a good idea of where I need to be calorie-wise to maintain.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday all! I will be munching on celery and hummus. How about the rest of you?

I never come to this thread as I'm nowhere near "maintaining" yet, but there you all are! I was wondering where some people I hadn't seen in awhile are! That's inspiring to me to see that you're not "gone" but "maintaining" -- I may check in once in awhile just to see what life is like post P1. I didn't phase off properly, and the weight came on quickly, so now I'm nervous about the "after"...

have a good one all! And thanks for the motivation you're giving me, just by being here ;)

As you know, having that 'one' bite of chocolate was the beginning of my downfall. Am slowly getting it under control, but once I am 'chocolate free' again, I know I'll have to completely leave it alone for quite a long time before trying again. I've been OK with other sweets/carbs. No super bowl party for us, but VIP wants 'snacky' type stuff. Tonight is my 'free' meal, so am making a couple of mexican dishes along with some veggies, and he can have his other stuff with it.

I too get tired of the same things all the time, so try to switch it up fairly often. With that said, I do cook/prep enough veggies/entrees for 2 or 3 meals at a time, so I don't have to stress about what to take for lunches. Sometimes I'll freeze a portion as well, for a couple weeks down the road.

Maile - I am in awe of your ongoing success, and very happy for you! Know what you mean about tolerating veggies & salads. Growing up, the only veggies I ever had were corn, carrots and potatoes. Salads were rare. As an adult I have expanded my horizons and eat a lot of different ones, but they were always 'boring'. Now, I have learned to really enjoy veggies & salads, and look forward to having them twice a day.

I didn't know what 'sprouted grains' were either, so thanks for explaining. Unlike you, I am missing sandwiches at lunch, but have gotten used to lettuce wraps instead.

My experience was similar. Learning about what to eat when, and how to combine things is exactly what I needed.

Hi Ken! I've been on maintenance a little over a month now, and still trying to figure out how to add fat at lunch time on a regular basis without adding carbs. I never was one to use salad dressings on salad, so that eliminates the easiest method. Suppers are easy enough to get the carbs in (potatoes, pasta, beans, grains). Now that I'm exercising several times a week, I may end up doing something similar to what you're doing...

Following the protocol is so important IP43...be patient and diligent and you will get here soon!

Maile,
You have done so well maintaining. While I'm not there yet, I really love learning from you, and all of the others here as well.

Cindy,
Here's an excerpt from Dr Tran's first book. While its not the newest book, it might still be helpful. These are his words about what to eat for lunch while in maintenance:

Lunch
Lunch is often eaten outside the home. Since most workplace restaurants
allow you to choose your dishes, you’ll be able to follow
your stabilization diet.
- You can eat crudites if you wish, although they’re not mandatory.
- Basic meal: meat or fish, preferably lean meat and no
sauce.
- Side dish: vegetables; fats are tolerated because they can’t
be avoided. Besides, fats are virtually unavoidable in crudites, vegetables, meat and fish.
- A dairy product: cheese to accompany your salad, cottage
cheese, yogurt.
Foods not permitted: simple or complex carbohydrates. You’ll have
to say good-dye to starchy foods, pasta, rice and potatoes. It’s virtually
impossible to find fat-free starchy foods unless you prepare
them at home. Remember these figures: 100 grams of plain potatoes
contains 80 calories, while the same amount of fries contains a
whopping 400!
Bread is also banished, as are all sweet-tasting foods: fruit, dessert
pastries and cream desserts.
In summary, lunch consists of a starter, a meat or fish dish with
vegetables, and yogurt or cheese.
In the Afternoon
Some people still long for their childhood snacks, and we all sometimes
get that empty feeling when the late afternoon rolls around.
Theoretically, after you’ve gone on the protein diet and lessened
demands on your pancreas, you don’t really need a snack because
you won’t be hypoglycemic on a regular basis. But if you want a
snack, choose one of the following:
- a fruit;
- some yogurt;
- a whole-grain muffin with a small piece of dark chocolate.
Make the most of your afternoon snack. Chocolate is allowed
because it won’t make you gain weight.
Don’t overdo it, though. Your afternoon snack is not supposed to
look like a child’s snack!

Thank you Chloe. That is helpful.

Greeniris- I think a small piece of cheese - an ounce or so - would be an acceptable fat for lunch. Should be an easy way to get it in. I sometimes have a bit of smoked Gouda - my favorite!

Ugh...ladies....it's been a long 3-day weekend. No workouts, and bad eating. Warning...this is a whiny, me, me, me rant...

All of a sudden, I can't even look at chicken (even the thought of it, especially raw, turns my stomach!). And even worse, I had to dump my cauliflower purée and a spinach smoothie this week because suddenly I can't stand the texture and look (I already knew the spinach/coffee color was an ugly color, but never bothered me before!).

I am meeting up with my "occasional" Mon running group tomorrow for a 5-mile run and making it "required" like my Tue&Thur group and going back to square one and refigure out veggie recipes that I can eat and enjoy. Mashed cauliflower and spinach smoothies were my mainstays and I LOVED them last week!

Liz, I remember my food likes and dislikes changing so much when I was pregnant! Maybe some roasted veggies will work for you. I'm sure you'll find the balance you need to keep you and baby healthy!!

Liz pregnant hormones do a number, hang in.
thank you for posting this. Love it.

I am in p2, started getting too many fevers at night. After my costa rica trip will lose the last few.

Thanks you're always so generous with your compliments! :) Don't shoot me lol...but I'm not doing much if anything the last 3 months. I eat 150-200 less then usual because I'm not excersising so I'm very neurotic about what goes in my mouth. I know I was more relaxed about the 'amounts' (total calorie counts) when I was running.

I was hard core running there for a while and didn't listen to my body when it hurt. I thought it was muscular pain "just keep going and work through it" and it turned into bursitis in both hips so I'm working on healing that. I only do yoga now and that's only once a week, wish it was more. My hips are getting better but not 'perfect', I'm off to physio today actually. The cortisone shot didn't really help but some prescription salve (anti-inflammatory gel that usually used for arthritis) made it significantly better.

SO much better in fact, THAT!

I went cross country skiing this past weekend (doc approved as long as I didn't go over board)!!!! I was on the provincial team when I was in junior high. So I pulled out my junior high racing suit (because I can wear it again! LMAO) and strapped on my skis! WOOHOO!!! It feel WONDERFUL to get to the top of a hill, close my eyes and breath in deep as I went down a hill. I don't remember loving it (that much) when I was in junior high...but I SO love it now. It makes me feel alive (that sound corny I know but it's true!). And it's SO much easier at this weight...amazing difference....I had quite the 'exercise high' yesterday.

Check out the colours from this 1988-89 suit, had a friend say it looked like an avalanche took out a skittles factory! AHAHHAHA

Oh, Liz, sorry about the change in tastes! But, would you please post your new recipes? :)

Oh Liz - how frustrating! Hang in there, it will get better, and oh so worth it in the end!

Ishbel - I know what you mean by 'feeling alive'! I wish I could find something that made me feel like that again. Most recently it happened when I skydived a few years ago! What an absolute RUSH!!!!!

Lizzy - thanks for the suggestion! I too love smoked Gouda! I've had a bit of guacamole on my salads, or just diced avocado (sp?) a few times.

Had my first PT app't today - wow does my knee hurt now - it didn't before the app't. And all he did was check my range of motion and the strength in it, then iced it good and used the ultrasound wand on it for a bit. The good news is that I can continue using the elliptical &/or stationary bike for my cardio.

Well, back to work. Have a good afternoon!

Greeniris: I am glad you can at least keep exercising with that knee. Physical Therapy can be very painful. You are certainly braver than I, by skydiving. What fun. Yes, lving salads and vegetables has helped alot.

Lizr: That is too bad about the changing tastes of you favorite foods. Zuchinni is pretty mild.

Ishbel: Cute suit..Fitting your junior high uniform is an accomplishment. I weigh a little less than I did in high school. I only had a racing swimsuit for a uniform.

Lizzy63: Smoked gouda is amazing as is smoked gruyere.

Sonya: Ihope you get rid of your fevers before Costa Rica. What was causing them?

Chloe: Thanks for the support. I hope you reach maintenance soon. I also appreciate you posting the info on the IP program. I have all of my papers stashed away.

LoriKay: I am different from others here. I really am addicted to sugar and have to stay away from it. I might have one bite very rarely.