breebliss: losing weight is actually the easy part and as we do, there are instant rewards - we see the numbers go down, the clothes fit better (or we get new ones in new sizes), admiring comments come from friends/relatives/strangers, we can do so many more activities with less weight on our joints, etc....
Problem with maintenance is its lack of constant rewards. It is steady state, no changes, dull when you come right down to it. :/
Quite a few start to add back old ways of dealing with stress, or rewarding ourselves with food, or celebrating with food, and of course if we continue with those old habits, our old bodies return, lol.
BUT, we do know that this way of eating does work to lose weight and as for maintenance.... we are all different and likely need to find a sustainable way of dealing with emotions, good and bad (the brain is a huge trigger for food issues)
and a personalized food plan that still works for us. Some go Keto (under 50g carb) or continue with Low Carb High Fat, some continue with the separation of carbs and fats at separate meals 3:1 as in classic IP Maintenance Phase 4, some prefer and do well at just calorie counting/measuring portions properly. It takes a bit of experimentation to find YOUR best plan, after you've been in P4 long enough that you understand and can implement the concepts.
Successful maintenance long term really depends on getting to know ourselves, body
and mind. It's easier said than done
Your turn will come
Liana
