I lost 80 pounds doing just that, with workouts 5 days a week. The only "off limits" foods are anything involving cool whip (which is a HUGE trigger I've found) and mozzarella cheese sticks. Other than that, with calorie counting I've been able to eat pretty much the same things as before, in moderation. I won't eat a whole pizza, and don't eat it as often, but when I do I make it at home and eat fewer slices. I also allow dessert every night, even if it's a sugar free ice cream bar or pudding. Feeling deprived, for me, would've killed my efforts when they began.

wow, 80 pounds!? way to GO! also, hi neighbor! hehe

as i got closer to my goal i started to wonder... well, what next? like i've had failed attempts at "diets" for so long that once i changed the way i eat/live to feel better/lose weight/ etc i wouldn't know anything else! i'm looking forward to that point when i am just maintaining but at the same time i think it will be a little scray at first until i find that healthy balance...

I think it makes sense to feel a little lost when you reach goal. After all, you've been so goal driven for so long to get there. But I also think it's exciting to think about just picking new goals, and using all your new-found or well-practiced goal-reaching skills to get there. It could still be something health related (tweaking something in your diet, strength-training, take up yoga, whatever), or something entirely different. But the skills are definitely transferable. And I think having something new to work towards goes a long way to avoid boredom or emotional eating.

My current goals have to do with BF%, endurance and speed. Fitness goals can be very motivating!

Julie, you put this really, really well.

I agree...it's hard for me, at least, to stay motivated now that I've reached my goals. When I was still losing, I had that motivation to get up and get to the gym every morning. I'm having to find new motivation now, and I'm struggling...

Oh my, that was just me at some point! I had wanted to do things sensibly, and then, I can't even remember when, I veered off course without really realizing it; next thing I knew, I was starting to get bouts of binging more and more often (some of you here might remember me mentioning it last year; it wasn't pretty :/).

The thing is, I figured out, I will *never* be able to eat 100% clean for the rest of my life, unless I want to be miserable thinking about food/calories literally all day long... so I might as well try to get the best out of what I can do without too much sorrow. The good thing is that I 'unlocked' the veggies lover in me about two years ago, and it's made things easier: most of the time now, I'll prefer those healthy foods to junk, so it's not even such a biggie.

The only things I do is weigh the cereals/starch (just because it's easy to cook too much of it) and, when I'm tempted to eat something junky, to ask myself: "do I want it?" If the answer is "yes, actually I've been contemplating eating it for the past few days, and I really want that food", then I eat it. If the answer is "no, I only want it now because other people are eating it/it's under my nose/it's just because I'm hungry, not because I want that food specifically", then I don't eat it. Oddly enough, 95% of the time, it shuts off my desire for said junk food. The remaining 5%, I feel entitled to eat without guilt. And it feels good. ^^

I don't exactly plan for any "off-plan meal". They happen, but since I know I eat fairly reasonably most of the time, it all evens out in the end. Also, I tend to eat the same foods, which means I know how much of each I can eat before it becomes 'not reasonable', and I don't have to worry about calculations.

('Course, I realize that depending on people's standards, I'm probably nnot 'thin', but I don't really care. I quite like my current weight. In fact, the remaining fat bothers me way less than the extra hair due to that doggone new pill *grumbles*)

clarabr, I have been writing a diet Bible Study, which is based on moderation. Part of my research in writing it was to ask naturally thin people what they ate... None of them liked to admit it, but every single one of them said something along the lines of "I am a junk food junky," I asked a few of them to keep a diary for me of how much they ate, It was usually something like a handful of chips, eight bites of a tuna sandwich, a tootsie roll, etc. The point is they ate what they wanted.

As part of the same research I asked them, how often do you think about your weight? out of the twenty or so people I interviewed, only one of them said all the time. The others said rarely or not at all.

I think we make food a forbidden fruit, and that creates an unnatural desire for it. I have gone on to the maintainers forum, and they are all still obsessed about loosing weight and calories. I just don't want to do that for the rest of my life. I am tired... I have given it over to God, and He has given me peace. I don't count calories, and I try not to think about what I am eating or how much I weigh, and I have to keep buying smaller and smaller sizes of clothes.... Yeah! Peace at last!

Kelli, yeah, most naturally thin people I know are like that. I mean, they're not junk food junkies, but they eat whatever they want. But they've never been fat, so it's different for them.

Anyway, what I'm doing seems to be working, so I'll keep doing it.

That's the thing. The people who eat whatever they want, but have never been fat, just don't want the same things that I did. I wanted a real LOT. And gave into it.

I live with a naturally normal weight person, and it's true. She eats what she wants to eat, and doesn't eat what she doesn't want to eat--but the amounts she eats are seriously lower than what I tended to eat. When I've asked her why she didn't finish X food, she usually says something like "I just didn't want any more."

Kery, hi! It's good to see you!

Kelli, I'm with you on the "not wanting to do it for the rest of my life" in terms of the obsession with weight and calories. But as time goes on, I've found that I'm still not quite there yet when it comes to keeping my weight from slowly increasing. This indicates to me that I might have to pay attention always, even if I don't do the kind of rigorous tracking of weight that some do. Right now I'm trying to get back down again. I'm not a binge eater, but I am still subject to the dreaded "calorie creep."

I agree with the idea of letting a higher power guide a person, although for me that is not God. The problem comes about when I snatch back the helm because of desire... Oops... and think I can eat like the bad old days.

Jay

My son is like that. I don't know where it comes from. I really wish it were contagious.

Yes, my DH too, though some of it now is from having his digestion not working properly after his transplant. He was always skinny to normal weight though, and if he started gaining a little, he cut out candy bars. Boo!

Hi Kelli! You probably didn't realize it but you're posting in the Maintainers forum right now. So welcome!

We'd like to invite you to read through our threads and stickys. I think you'll realize that no, we're not "obsessed" with "loosing" weight and calories. Instead, we're focused on and dedicated to our health and well-being. For some of us, that means counting calories. For others, it's not necessary. No matter what methods we use to live a healthy lifestyle, it's of the highest priority for all of us.

It's a good idea to be cautious about throwing around negative and pejorative words like "obsessed", especially at a site like 3FC that's devoted to support, respect, and encouragement.

We are all different. I made foods forbidden and I finally lost my craving for them. Sugary foods, white carby foods, processed foods, baked goods - I can't handle them in moderation because when I eat one, I want two, three, four, five. I didn't even realize it happened to me until I stopped eating those foods. All of a sudden, my "out of control" feelings of binging stopped. I didn't realize I was a prisoner, until I freed myself.

It's great if foods don't affect you like that, but try to have a little sympathy for those of us who truly have a hard time eating a single cookie. When I eat a cookie, I want to stuff another cookie in my mouth while I'm still chewing the first cookie. I'm sure it's a biological imperative left over from my prehistoric ancestors who never walked away from a mammoth without cracking the bones and sucking the marrow - if there's food, especially high energy food - eat it, you may not get any more for awhile.

My mom is one of those naturally thin people you describe. Overall, she definitely eats very healthy (I would definitely NOT call her a junk food junky) but she does have a lot of really yummy snacky foods in the house. She can reach into the big Costco container of mixed nuts and eat...3 nuts. She can have 2 graham crackers. One piece of fudge. We're obviously wired differently. She is 5'4 and has weighed about 110 lbs her entire life (until post 60 when she gained a little weight she actually had to work to lose).

I have been maintaning for 4 years, I don't consider myself obsessed with food or counting calories. I consider myself a person who doesn't eat the Standard American Diet. The SAD is so convenient - fast food and convenience food and quick quick quick. I have to think about food a lot more, because what I eat involves more planning and work. If I get hungry in the afternoon, if I didn't plan a healthy snack and bring it with me, what are the options at 4:00 in the afternoon in my office? Vending machine (pretzles are probably the "Healthiest" things in there, overly processed and completely non nutritious as they are). Candy from a coworker's desk?

I am mindful, not obsessed.