Wow! It’s hard to believe, but it’s been almost a year since Jennifer and Suzanne gave us a little corner of 3FC for the Maintainers Forum. We started from scratch last November, lost everything in the Great January Crash, and have come together over this past year into a wonderful group of people who are either working hard to get to goal or living every day to stay there. I couldn’t be more proud of all of you and what we’ve created here!

I hope you all realize that we’re building something here that’s unique in the world of Internet diet sites: a place dedicated to supporting and encouraging maintainers - people who have already lost weight and now are focused on keeping it off for the rest of their lives. As you all well know, the world of diet support seems to end as soon as we reach goal. And we’re left with that panicked “what now?” feeling! We’ve all become experts at dieting; now’s the time we need to shift gears and become experts at maintaining. And that’s what the 3FC Maintainers Forum is all about. This is OUR home – and we can fix it up in any way that suits our needs.

Soooo … I want to ask all of YOU what you would like to see the Maintainers Forum become in its second year. What would help YOU in your weight loss maintenance? I’ve been kicking around a few ideas – let me know what you think of them and please add your own.

How about?

• book discussions - starting with the revised edition of Thin For Life (Anne Fletcher) in January
• a weekly chat thread to share everyday news, challenges, and ideas
• a weekly exercise thread
• a recipe thread
• a menu thread - post what you're eating for accountability and to share ideas
• a library of articles and recommended reading - I started it but there isn't much out there about maintenance!!
• our Maintenance Manual - a 'sticky' thread that pulls all our thoughts and ideas about maintenance into one place

Don't be afraid to add your ideas or tell me that mine stink.

Good ideas, Meg And very timely for me, since in 1 week I'll be at my THIRD anniversary of being a maintainer! and still learning and working at it.

I think we already have a lot of great ideas, thread and posts here. One of the things I'd like to see is a sticky of some of the more thought provoking posts. There are some great ones that spark debate, further thought, then meander into short posts on peanut butter abuse Of course neither of us ever do that. If we could pull some of those posts together into a cohesive "Essays of Maintenance" thread that is read only, I think it would be a great spot for new maintainers, or those of us who temporarily lose our way to get an overview of the many pathways, obstacles, and mental ladders we need to stay on track.

There also is a TON of good info on other forums on this board and must be a lot more folks posting on other forums who have never stuck their virtual heads in here. Can we get more people involved? An invitational thread on each of the other forums?

Mel

Pookie -- I don't know whether to laugh or cry or hug you after reading your post!

You, my dear, are a ray of sunshine wherever you go. You (and everyone else) will always be welcome here. We're the LAST group of people who would ever say "beat it, fatso!". I may look a little different on the outside now but Pookie, you and I - and everyone here - are sisters under the surface, where it counts.

I definitely like the "best of" posts thread idea - it'll make it a lot easier to find favorite posts from the past! - and the book discussion idea - and the Manual too. Which I guess would almost be the same as the best of posts - maybe ideas condensed? (or something like that).

I'm not a cook, so the Recipes thread wouldn't appeal to me personally, but others I'm sure would think differently - and I'm not one for participating in a weekly exercise/menu thread because I do the same thing all the time pretty much - but again that's just me!

but I REALLY like the reading circle idea the best.

POOKIE!!!!!!

Man oh man...I got enough of that "you're not in our league" crapola during my childhood and 20's - I'd NEVER do that to anyone. And I'm certain that the fear of 'everyone will look at me and laugh' is what keeps a good many people out of gyms (especially co-ed ones), thinking that they're filled with gorgeous models in the latest Spandex fashions. I gotta tell ya - if MY gym is any indication, the model types are VERY few and far between, and the women that come in to work out with FULL MAKEUP on (in the early morning, yet!) ...well, they probably stand more of a shot at being snickered at than someone who has pounds to lose that comes in to BETTER THEMSELVES.

Jeez, 15 years ago I would've LOVED to have found a group like this. (of course we didn't have the Internet back then...) As Anne Fletcher (author of Thin For Life) would no doubt say, you can always learn from the masters!

I am relatively new to this website, and have found my favorite places to read are the library section, and this maintainers area. Although I am not technically a maintainer at goal, I have kept off over 35 pounds for 4-5 years or so. It was over 60 at one time (still not at goal), but last year I was dealt a quadruple life-whammy and resorted to old ways of comforting myself, but thankfully not out and out bingeing, just generic overeating of fatty, sugary things, etc.

At the time I was still losing and what I was unprepared for was the total abandoning of that quest and the 'simply not caring' that overtook me for a year and a half when I regained about 25? pounds. It still is of concern to me that that non-caring mind-frame was so easy to get back into. I had established a pound-gained ceiling but paid no attention to it. I dont want that to happen again. I had even stopped weighing myself. Fortunately I realized I simply could not go on eating like that or I would just keep gaining so I started to eliminate some foods which were causing trouble, and slowly have gotten back into losing mode.

What is interesting is that this time its different somehow. I am eating wonderfully healthy satisfying foods, dont allow myself to ever get really hungry, am at peace in my life, and am losing slowly. Without thinking about wl, I have even been getting rid of larger sizes of clothes, and buying smaller sizes at the local thrift store (at 5cents each on the sale rack) just for the fun of it because I just know 'it' will happen. I know its just a matter of time before I will be able to fit into them.

I will say I absolutely hate (detest, am revolted by) having to re-lose these particular pounds that I had already struggled to get off 2-3 years ago. And I had sworn I would never go over 200 again in my life. And I did.

As to suggestions re the maintainers section, I absoltuely love Thin for Life and have read the old version several times. I would love to do a re-read of the new one with you wonderful maintainers and get your take on things. I also agree there is not very much out there about successful losers.

There is one book I have read called Full Lives by Lindsey Hall (I think). I had to order it. Its not so much about weight loss, but rather women who have overcome dealing with their eating disorders. I had hoped there would be more stories dealing with losing weight, but there were more women with bulimia and anorexia than plumps. If you can find it at a library near you, you might wish to check it out. There are at least two women in it, Geneen Roth and (Hirschmann and Munter) who have subsequently written their own books about eating disorders/compulsive overeating. One of Geneen Roth's books, When Food is Love, was a best seller a number of years ago and might be worth a glance too.

Jan
h250/s214/c205/g?170?

Megster what a good idea, as usual...I was certainly hoping I could give some input, so I thought and I thought, and I got a light bulb moment (dang, we need a lightbulb smilie!)...

This morning I was leafing through an old diary where I had written out a "Contract" with myself last January. I think some of us had posted them at the LWL forum at the start of the year... When I reviewed mine I was quite pleased that I had done very well on it... I'm not sure if this is something for the Maintaining forum or LWL, but I thought I'd throw it out there....

Then the other thing I thought of was, like Mel said "an invitational thread on each of the other forums" to "formaly" invite others over here to post and share... Like our little GymHamster aka Pookie thought that she wasn't welcome. Silly Girl!! BTW, Pookie I'm not at goal either so don't worry your little head...

I like all of the ideas that have been suggested--would especially enjoy recipes, exercise log and a daily check-in for accountability.

The best thing about this group is the supportive, welcoming, encouraging tone from everyone. It makes all the difference. I feel blessed that I found this site. Thank you, Meg, for your wonderful work.

I also love the idea of pulling together a thread of "best of" posts. It would be great to have a quick reference to some of the most thought provoking and FAQ's we encounter during this phase. I also like the idea of a welcome post in other forums. I have noticed that a lot of people don't realize that it is okay to post where ever they please. I, personally, have not encountered a forum on 3fc that excludes anyone. I wonder if there are some that do? Either way, I want people to know that we welcome everyone, and that this forum can be a wonderful asset to those wondering, "what comes next?".

Beverly

I love this forum! I've been lurking here for a while because I love the insight and wisdom that you all offer. I think that the additions to the forum that meg suggested sounds awesome.

Thin for Life is such an excellent book. I wish that there were more books out there for maintainers.