Hello maintainers,

I'm not amongst you yet although I hope to be someday! I have about 15 lbs. to goal and I've been struggling with adjusting my calories down. So I just thought I'd ask, how low did you have to go - or were you willing to go - to keep your healthy weight loss going for those last 10-15 lbs.?

TIA!

You mean, calorie-wise? I had a big plateau at 140 (when my goal was 135) and it made me crazy. I went down to 1200 (about 1200-1400 a day) and increased the intensity of my cardio. I lasted about a month before accepting 140 as my final weight, revising my goal and begininning maintenance (of course, over the next 9 months I ended up losing another 10 lbs to finally settle around 130, but that's a longer story).

The short story - it was hard for me to eat only 1200 calories a day, I was really hungry and unhappy and I couldn't stick with it. I looked really great at 140 and had a great summer buying a bunch of cute size 10 clothes (a few in size 8). I was really really happy with my newly slender body that summer and was content at 140.

I dropped my calories back down to 1200 (which is actually the calorie level I started at, but for a while I was losing at up to 1400 a day). To do this, I also cut back on the amount of cardio I was doing. I was doing an hour of cardio on Tues and Thurs and I cut that back to 30 min. I kept the rest of my exercise the same (strength training with a personal trainer on Mon, Wed, and Fri; swimming for an hour on Sat, and running 6 miles on Sun.) It worked and I have to say that I felt great. I did have to be really careful about what I ate but cutting back on the cardio really helped, and I got down to 112 lbs.

Then I gained some weight back due to several business trips, vacations, and the holidays, so in January I dropped back to 1200 again. I'm down to around 115 lbs right now and have decided not to try to get down to 112 lbs again. Right now I'm trying to work my way up to a maintenance calorie level; this week I'm at 1400 calories, next week I'll try 1500.

But I know I can manage on 1200 calories for an extended period because I've done it several times over the past couple of years. I have a bunch of super low calorie lunch and dinner recipes (270 calories or less for lunch, 300 calories or less for dinner) and I pull them all out when I'm on 1200 calories a day so that I can still have enough snacks to get me through the day. So if my weight creeps up past my red line (currently 118 lbs), I'll be dropping my calories back down to 1200. The first couple weeks at 1200 are the toughest, then I adjust and it gets easier.

Hi 3Beans and to Maintainers!

I kept my calories at 1200 - 1300 for the last half of my weight loss (about six months). Even so, the rate of loss slowed down a lot at the end and I only lost seven pounds in each of the last two months. I didn't change my exercise since I was already doing an hour of cardio a day and lifting weights five days a week.

There still are many times that I drop back to 1200 calories in maintenance; maintenance is a giant weight rollercoaster for me of being up a few pounds and having to lose a few pounds. It's much harder to create a calorie deficit now that I'm smaller, so low calories are a necessity for weight loss for me at this weight and age.

The only way I can manage hunger on 1200 calories is by eating frequent, small, protein-based meals. 200 calories can get me through 2 - 3 hours if I make very good choices. I also need to be cautious with starchy carbs because they make me want to eat more starchy carbs. So I typically eat a serving of oatmeal/day and the rest of my carbs are fruits and veggies. There's definitely no room for diet junk food in my plan when my calories go low! It's got to be 1200 calories packed with as much nutrition as possible.

1300. And it was sort of painful.

I am currently playing with upping my goal weight, actually, to 165 (and not just because it is where I am currently sitting!)...mostly because I have to eat painfully low amounts of food to maintain it and I'm not quite sure it is worth it. And because I really don't know if I want to DO another 6 months at 1300 just to drop 3 lbs.

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm just visiting for now though.

I'm definitely hearing some of my concerns in your replies. I was actually doing pretty fine and dandy at 1500-1600 plus one higher calorie day of about 2000-2300. I was hungry sometimes, but that hunger would be satisfied the next time I ate. I space out my meals and snacks, all my meals and at least one snack include a protein, and I eat lots of fluffy high fiber foods. My only empty calories are two ginger snaps with my tea in the evening (50 cals). That's my ritual and I need to keep it! I don't eat any fast food or 100 calorie packs or stuff like that. No trans fats, no HFCS.

That was working just fine until I hit 152-153. I tried to cut calories to 1400 at that point (and keep my higher calorie day), and I can't seem to stick to that. It makes me hungry to distraction and I have to eat more. This week I upped to 1500 but caved again yesterday, I think because I'm just in this on/off pattern now.

I already exercise 5x weekly for at least an hour, a mix of cardio, pilates, and lower body strength without weights. I can't do upper body strength training or anything with weights right now. I'm in physical therapy for a neck and shoulder issue. I'm trying to up the intensity of my cardio meanwhile by adding bigger lower body moves like jumping and covering more distance in floor aerobics and adding an extra riser in step class. Should I instead try to cut back on cardio, like Barbara?

I'm really starting to wonder if this is just the end of the road for me. With my exercise level I could eat over 1800, which would definitely be enough to satisfy me for the long term, and maintain my current weight. I'm still in the overweight range (just barely) but I'm really pretty fit. I might get my body fat % and overall fitness assessed at the gym and focus on that for a while instead.

In my heart, I know I'd like to lose another 10-15 lbs. But I just don't know if I can cut calories further!

Thanks for reading all this!

Although I "say" I'm around 1200 per day, in reality it is closer to 1400 per day. I have to admit, I'm not a weigher/measurer--I eyeball everything, so I know it's not accurate. However, if I buy something new, I do weigh the first serving so I can keep a fairly accurate "eyeball" measurement for the future!

I lost weight best between 1400-1600 with one "cheat meal" per week. I just kept up the same thing until I hit my goal, even though at the end the rate of loss really slowed down (.5 lb/week or less). I had started out eating 1200-1400 for a long time, and when I hit a plateau eating 200 cals more and drinking huge quantities of water seemed to get me going again.

Hmmm.... what about doing without that higher calorie day? I could see where that just may cause a stall. If you elminate that, bring it down to level with your other days, the 1500 or so, that just might do the trick. I definitely think it's worth a shot to try that for a few weeks.

Another thing that I didn't mention that did absolutely help in terms of weight/fat loss is that when I dropped the cardio I was doing, I also began running intervals for 1/2 my cardio on Tues and Thurs (sprint for 1 min, recover for 1 min). I also began including 20 min of intervals when I swim on Saturdays and now I run intervals on Sunday if I can't do my six-mile run (which I can't right now because I'm recovering from a knee injury). The intervals have made a big difference for me. Almost as soon as I started doing them, my SO commented that he could see my abs (and he never comments on stuff like that).

I agree with Robin that the problem might not be eating 1500 calories a day but the high-calorie day you have in there. I'm about your height and I started at the weight you are at now. When I was doing the level of exercise you are doing, I was able to consistently lose 1 lb per week at 1400 calories a day until I got down to 125 lbs. Dropping to 1200 calories has only been necessary to get down to the very low end of my BMI range. Even at 1200 calories, if I have a week with a high calorie day in there, I don't lose that week.

So my top suggestions would be to lose the high calorie days, or at least limit them, and to try adding some intervals to your cardio workout.

I lost most of my weight in the 1500-1600 range, but I did dip to 1400 towards the end (not constantly though.)

We moved (from CA to WA) right around the time I hit my goal of 155 and I ended up weighing over 160 by the time we arrived in WA. I started logging in my food again and lost 10 lbs in the 1600-1800 range (my maintenance calories are 2000.)

I think everyone's body is different and sometimes it can be frustrating finding out what works for you. BTW, I think focusing on bf% is a great idea! Who cares what the scale says if you have a body you love!

I keep thinking about your post and I also want to say that I think it is worth figuring out your body fat %. You can actually do it yourself. Here are a couple of websites that will compute your body fat % based on your measurements and your weight: BBLex and FreeDieting. Both of these websites are pretty consistent with what my trainer calculates my body fat to be using the caliper method. This would give you an idea of how realistic further weight loss is for you. Here is a great article that explains body fat %: Understanding Your Body Fat Percentage.

My sister dropped from a size 10 to a size 4 without lowering her calories at all, just by exercising. It took her a year and she didn't lose any weight, but she looks fantastic. So I do think a valid strategy for you might be to keep your calories where you are at, focus on exercise, see if you can reduce your body fat %, and not worry about what the scale says.

Self magazine ran an article a couple months ago titled "Find Your Happy Weight" which is a weight that you feel good about but that also fits the lifestyle you have. They even have a calculator that will estimate it for you, taking into account factors like how much you want to exercise and treats (it's pretty rudimentary though--for me personally, I am not happy at what their calculator thinks my "happy weight" should be).

Eep...I was afraid someone was going to suggest that.

I don't know. I live with my bf in a small apartment with a small kitchen with no dishwasher. A break from food prep and cleanup and a change of scenery each week, whether a restaurant meal just the two of us or a social gathering, is an essential aspect of our quality of life. I'd like to try eliminating the high calorie day, but I'm not sure how to deal with this. I keep my choices pretty reasonable on those occasions but I estimate that I consume 800-1000 calories anyway, and I'm not the kind of person who can starve all day in anticipation of the feast. Any advice?

Barbara: The online body fat % analyses don't work that well for me because I carry a disproportionate amount of my fat on my stomach. (I'm 5'4" 152 lbs. and still wear a size 14 just because of my waistline!). But my gym does offer a fitness assessment with the five point calipers test and I'm planning to avail myself of that soon.

everyone!

Well yeah, elminating that high day is what immediately struck me.

I don't really know what to tell you. Just how badly do you want to lose those last 10-15lbs? I don't have to tell you this, since you've lost a bunch of weight, you already know that preparing your meals at home is the best way to control the calorie count and get the most for those calories.

Perhaps if you still feel the need to dine out you can choose even lower calorie items then you've been consuming. A salad with dressing on the side? A piece of baked fish? Steamed veggies? No dessert or some fruit or maybe you could share a sorbet with your BF?

It would be a shame for you to come so far and then not make it to your desired target weight because of eating out, wouldn't it? But of course only you can decide that. I wish you continued success.

I ate out at least 1 day a week while I was losing weight and still managed to hit my calorie counts for the day without overly restricting the rest of the day. I just insisted on restaurants where I knew I could order something healthy and I was an obnoxious special order pain in the ***. I love eating in restaurants so giving it up wasn't an option!