Maintaining Time is Over

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-07-2003
Maintaining Time is Over
3
Fri, 04-20-2007 - 5:28am

Hello ladies,

I have been absent for a while, trading my time online for time spent editing. I am not done, but wanted to pop by.

I have tried a little experiment. I, in a manner of speaking went off my "diet", which means that I ate over 1500 calories a day or rather did not geek out if I did for about a month. I still recorded the calories, but I did not negate from foods such as chocolate or crisps. So why did I do this you ask? Well I wanted to make sure that the weight I have lost will not come back on if for instance I eat 1800 calories a day; I needed to find out what my maintenance level and if indeed I would need to stick to 1500 calories for the rest of my life. I was also not working out as much; bike rides and walking are common for me, however I was not going to the gym. This is where the whole eating less without working out argument occurs. I did not lose anything nor did I gain. But I am sure that if I was working out regularly I would have seen a loss.

I also noticed that my fat percentage did not change either (I measure that as well).
For the most part I stayed between 1500-1800 a day and I did so eating whatever I wanted, within reason. I have to admit, I have been scared that I will yo yo, but keep thinking that indeed this is a life style for me now. In fact, I have also started to record my calories after I have eaten, and have found that I now naturally eat below 1500 calories a day and am content. Thus, my portions and how often I eat is a habit that is not dictated by the fitday, although I still love it!

Well now the experiment is over and I am back to the gym and refusing chocolate biscuits with my coffee. :) Gotta admit, I was feeling a bit unhealthy for a while, bloated and well just tired; so I prefer life without the crisps and chocolate bunnies. :) I have ten pounds to go, although I think another 15 might be good. :)

I still don't know what specific calorie count I should be eating because it really does vary, but I do think that the RDA 2000 is pretty close to it.

Anyone else try this?

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-04-2003
Fri, 04-20-2007 - 10:49am

To be honest, I'm usually quite lax about watching my calories, so I suppose I can say I've tried not watching what I eat. LOL


I think that is a great way to go about finding a healthy maitenance plan! It seems to have worked quite well for you, and it is surprising how quickly our bodies adapt to eating a more healthy diet - feeling bloated and lethargic. I suppose our bodies ARE trying to tell us something! LOL


It sounds like you are doing a wonderful job of finding what does and doesn't work for you!


iVillage Member
Registered: 11-12-2001
Fri, 04-20-2007 - 2:44pm

I haven't purposely tried to do anything like this as I'm STILL trying to lose, but I do know that I need to be more consistent in keeping track of and watching my calories.



iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Mon, 04-30-2007 - 4:34pm

That's great news monetsf!


I've been rather lax myself for the past couple of weeks......but have to say that I'm usually pretty typical about the 1500-1800 a day too. I know for me to lose a couple more pounds I really have to pump up the exercise section!!

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