Triathalon is a great goal, Jenny. Inspired by this conversation I've been thinking about how I'm going to keep my momentum moving into maintenence. I'd love to be able to do a triathalon one day, but I am pretty much at fitness level 0 right now. Exercise and I have never been friends, I've tried classes, videos, Wii Fit, everything (along with every diet). But I think if 2014 was "the year of the diet" 2015 is going to be "the year of fitness." I'll start out with a 5 k, then a 10 k, maybe move on to swimming and biking and maybe 2016 will be the "year of the triathalon." :)

Did my daily unofficial WI this morning (I track in MFP to see how my body fluctuates) and it showed 165.8! Can't count it until official WI on Tuesday, but getting so close to joining you guys on this board, I'm so excited!

Hi all,

I am feeling disappointed with myself. I allowed a student to really get under my skin and am engaged in a power struggle. Something I never do. He does things to throw off the whole class regularly, I have tried a bunch of different behavior strategies and none of them are working. My frustration just built up because his behavior is impacting the entire class momentum and learning. I am trying to shore up the ship, by contacting his parents, talking to last years teachers, but I regret losing my cool. I have been spending the morning reading and looking for information to help. I do not think that the behavior is personal, the student had 40+ referrals last year. I need to come up with a solution that helps him, allows my other students to learn and allows for my sanity. Thanks for listening about school, trying to relieve the stress without my fav. crutch sugar.

Mars, think the six month (new couch) and one year maintenance reward might be a trip to Europe. As for hot tea, I love Earl Grey or any kind of cinnamon tea. I am always cold! The cinnamon tea warms me up quick. I really like Torani brown sugar/cinnamon sugar free syrup in it.

Jenny, I like your non food reward idea for your exercise days. I agree it is important to retrain our brains about feeling rewarded by food. I am going to order Refuse to Regain, I really appreciate your comments from it.

Rosie, maintenance is full of refocusing and finding out what works. Love that you are turning to exercise to strengthen your mind and body.

Eve, did you find a new coat? I am searching for one too. I found a cute sporty jacket but am struggling to find a dress coat.

Hope, welcome back.

Liana, how were the new solo night shifts?

Hawaii, just want you to know that I appreciate you.

Hi! I feel weird posting here! BUT I am about to make the journey into maintenance, and thought maybe if anyone had any helpful hints or tips that would be awesome!
I don't know how long I'll be in maintenance but Im in a long term stall, and I think that taking a well planned break from P1 will be the best for my body, but I don't want to be like all the stories where people said they didnt phase off properly, and it was a huge mistake....
Any thoughts?

:welcome3: Deana509! Anyone is welcome to lurk & post here. It's mainly a spot to talk about our plans and challenges as maintainers, and our NSV's (because we still have those, lol). You have lost a lot of weight, Congratulations!! Some here have lost well over 100 lbs by doing it straight through, 100% no cheats, no breaks, and others have had to take maintenance breaks when they had medical issues due to 'very low calorie' diets (IP is one of a few). Both ways have been successful though, so it is up to you and your doc but just a question - is your stall really a stall, NO weight or inches lost for several weeks in a row, or is it just a slowdown as your body gets reconfigured and set for another 'batch' of weight and inch loss?
Success in losing weight AND keeping it off is really about retraining our brain to appreciate food in a different way - as a way to nourish our bodies and not a way to deal with emotions, be they good (celebration) or bad (stress or depression). So you can be successful no matter which way you chose as long as you focus on how you eat EVEN in maintenance.
Best wishes in whatever you decide!
Some of the other gals here who have had success with a larger amount of weight loss may be able to help guide you more than I could, but hugs & welcome anyhow :D.

Liana

Hey Mars! Thanks for the feedback! It helps to know that I'm not alone! And it may take me a year to figure out the number I want to be but will keep at it.
Slip: you are so sweet!

Welcome Deana! This is a great forum to help in P4 and also the maintainers menus, what they are eating to help give you an idea of what that involves. Phasing off is important, I continued to lose through all phases and my body adjusted better to reintroducing carbs. You'll do great!

Congrads on the loss Pishposh! And exercise is a great way to help maintain and make a person feel better in every way! I'm hooked on the 'high' I feel afterwards! Some days thats what gets me going when I don't feel like doing it.

I reached my 100lb loss in May, and continued to lose another 10 lbs. Since about the end of May, I have stopped losing lbs, but I am pretty sure I've lost inches, but I am bad about doing measurements (I do the online version with Rite4life, so I don't get to go to a clinic every week)... I am pretty positive I have lost inches since June (since I can get into a size smaller at least on the bottom), but my weight has stayed mostly around 225, with fluctuating about 5 lbs in either direction. I am pretty sure it will end soon, but I have slight concerns that it might be health related, especially since the whole reason I started was because of a near death experience due to health problems.
I just moved (Which that could be a contributing factor, due to stress of a new job, and a new location) and so I havent been able to get a new doctor out in this area, so I thought it might be best to go to maintenance until I can actually get a doctor out in this area.

I have lost this post 3 times:devil:

Pishposh- congrats on new position and weightloss. I like your plan to focus next year on the exercise. I look forward to hearing how you do. Pi found running with a great group of people made the whole running thing better. Remember "what doesn't challenge you doesn't change your".

Mars- In "refuse to regain" the said that more people were successful climbing Mount Everest than keeping significant weightloss off. Pow, they stressed this was without tools like regular weigh ins, food plan, plan to get added lbs off ect.

Hawaii - good for you for getting in your run. Some days are so much harder for so many reasons. I carry water on my rubs that seem to help.

Slipfree- I like the trip to Europe after a successful year on maintance. :hug: being a teacher is so hard. You have to deal with so much more than teaching. Hope your school has some support.

Welcome Deanna- way to go losing over 100lbs! I agree with the other comments, phase off as per the protocal if that is what you decide. It sounD's like you are still losing inches so maybe not a true stall? Maybe consider adding exercise to see if that changes anything.


I had a good 16km run this morning and thankfully it didn't rain.
Hope everyone had a great Saturday

Deana, hard question, have you been following the protocol 100% during the stall? You need to do what you are comfortable with, but I have read of many people who stopped and had a much harder time restarting. Just my two cents.

Admittedly, I have had a lot of 90% days after the first month of my stall, mostly because I just got extremely frustrated, and was extremely stressed with the move and the new job, but I tried not to make excuses for myself... but honestly nothing extreme, no fun days where I went out of control or anything....

Especially since I don't have internet, and I moved an hour away from everyone I knew, I lost most if not all of the support I had been receiving through my college friends and family. That's not an excuse, but it made things very difficult. Im honestly eating better now than I was in college because I have to buy my own groceries, and have no extra money to eat out now, and have to make my lunches to take to work, I have just slacked at the whole measuring thing, and always getting my supplements in, eating all 3 packets, etc.

I hear you on the stopping and restarting thing, but I have to do something different... I'm not at all unhappy with where I am at, I've lost a heck of a lot of lbs and inches, including over 10 dress/pant sizes. I have a goal of being under 200 lbs, which is 25 more pounds, but I am just extremely frustrated with myself, both for not being 100% all the time, and for the fact that I am not losing.

Maybe I just need to talk it out... Haha, Thanks for listening to my rant, even if its not necessarily on the right board... You all are great, and maybe some of you have been where I am. I appreciate all the words of encouragement and advice.

Deana, we have all been where you are right now. If you really need something different, how about Phase 2 for a while? One of the Oct. Newbies lost all of her weight on it.

I am glad that you feel good about where you are right now. You have done an amazing job on this program. You are right at the beginning of your career and life, so I am glad that you are feeling confident. I also know that moving an hour away from friends and family is hard. (I did it to take my first teaching job) I also ended up gaining weight because I turned to food to deal with the loneliness and stress.

What concerns me is your health. You have shared the health crisis that brought you to IP. You have a shot right now at an even healthier life than you are living right now. I guess I am passionate about this because I wish someone had been forthright with me when I was in my 20s. It might have helped me avoid 10 years of high blood pressure, a broken bone in my foot and lots of years of comparing myself to others.

Slipfree, Have you made any progress with that student? I am hoping your school has a behavior system or time out room or counseling to help you! I know how one student can stop others from learning.

I have been way too busy. Work is busy. My daughter is here for a visit. I am heading back to Hawaii in a week to help my mom.

Hugs to everyone. I will catch up later.

Deanna..my weight loss stalled also at the end. I did lose on P2. I recommend following the steps into maintenance!

Morning maintainers,

Maille, hope things slow down for you this week and have a great time in Hawaii. How long are you there for?

The weather has turned here and it has gotten a little chiller in the mornings. I'm have to leave extra time now to fight with the kids about sweaters and vests:D. My daughter, clearly doubting her mother, has to check for herself and returns with "it is seriously cold outside!"

Off to the gym, then chiropractor for sore foot and IT band and time for new orthotics. My husband asked how much the running costs, I said "free" but it is becoming expensive. Thankful for benefits. Going to Florida this weekend for a friends wedding and she has a DICKS sporting store near here which I heard is good. Any other recommendations for running equipment?

Have a great day

Morning All, :wave:

pishposh, I'm with you re 'Year of Fitness"--that sounds like a great roadmap....starting slow and working up to a triathlon. Good luck on your WI tomorrow (though luck has nothing at all to do with it)!

Safe trip, Maile!

Slipfree, hope you had a restful weekend, and an easier week awaits you.

Jenny, have you tried a foam roller for IT Band? It can help a lot. Also, just sharing my experience with IT (and plantar fasciitis)...if anyone tells you that your legs are different lengths, make sure that they measure them--they actually need to take an xray and measure the bone length because we often hold our pelvis in an uneven way that makes the leg length appear to be different. Building up the height of one orthotic based on mistaken diagnosis can create a whole new set of problems.

Deana, Welcome! You have done an amazing job and look fabulous! Losing your social support is very difficult both in general and specifically with weight loss. Sounds like you have done fantastic at holding the line. I look forward to hearing your updates as you adjust to your new life. :hug:

I need to get off a few more pounds but am phasing off to maintenance mode. I am at a point where I lack energy and then have tremendous difficulty sticking to any healthy WOE. If the last few pounds don't come off in P2, I'll tackle them in Nov. Being on P1 through the holidays might be a good safety net for me :) :devil:

Hope everyone has a great week.

Hi Gals!!!!

Boy, I missed everyone this weekend! I unplugged myself from the internet to focus on my family this weekend. I had an interesting weekend, and learned a few lessons! My hubby usually works on Sat mornings, which means I have a pretty set schedule with the kids (including eating). Well, he surprised me by not having to work on Sat, so I made an impromptu decision that I would move my fun day from Sat to Sunday so we could easily eat out for lunch.

Bah....not a great idea to change my plans. VERY long story short, I had a carb-heavy (but not calorie heavy) lunch and then had a change of heart about continuing my free day on Saturday instead of Sunday and went back to a normal P4 day. So my calories were fine on Saturday, but my macros were off....then I did a free day on Sunday because I learned that I REALLY did not want to do a P1 day on a family day.

Well, I'm back to doing a happy P1 on Monday....and now really know that I need to think smartly about my strategies to set myself up for success! Personally, I have been doing a lot of reading lately about the metabolic consequences on calorie-restricted diets, and I really believe that a lot of the struggles maintainers have are due to this metabolic slow-down in combination to a return to prior eating habits.

It's fascinating to think that, due to my body mass loss and calorie restriction, the calories that I USED to eat daily would be metabolized slower now (and thus led to a quicker gain) should I go back to it. Not that I intend to go back to my old WOE....but I want to be sentient of finding a liveable way in maintenance for myself. I believe one of those keys is nursing my metabolism back to health.

I am interested in the science behind the free day as a way to give the metabolism (and leptin levels) a boost. I have read conflicting science on this phenomenon and am interested in what others think. I will continue to do a free day for the mental health part of it no matter...but I am interested in the science part also.

I will also seek to increase my metabolism through exercise (by building muscle mass and cardio burning extra calories) AND I want to be careful not to be too restrictive with my calories (which I find I tend to do, especially after a P1 day). My goal is to stay near 1550 calories daily and them maybe even increase more as the metabolic calculaters say I should be able to maintain weight at something more like 1700-1800 calories with a healthy metabolism.

Bah....just mumbling I guess. Anyone else get a little brain-obsessed with this stuff?