The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[Sylvia]

Since there seem to be a few of us rapidly approaching this new and scary phase in our journeys, I thought it was time to make this section of the board more active. I thought I would start things off with a few thoughts about maintenance and ideas I have for making it work.

First, I think most of us have successfully lost sometimes significant amounts of weight in the past. What none of us has successfully done before is kept that weight off. To me, this means that maintenance is where the rubber hits the road. The weight loss phase is hard but as we have pointed out so often, it is temporary and relatively fast. Maintenance is forever and requires us to develop and use skills we have never mastered before now.

Here are some things I'm thinking about as I am now within a few weeks of my goal:

First - and I have not confessed this to you before now - I joined Weight Watchers a few weeks ago. I did this for a couple of reasons. First, I have lost count of the number of times I've done WW in my life. I have even been relatively successful but have never made it all the way to my goal weight. I am getting to WW goal (even if I'm cheating by not doing it on WW). Second, I needed to join while I still has weight to lose so that I could become a lifetime member which will give me some accountability but I will not have to pay anymore. Finally and most importantly, I don't feel like I can move from transition to no plan. I need some structure as I figure out how much of what I can eat without gaining weight. WW gives me a mechanism I already know and am comfortable with to do that.

Second, I spoke to a friend of a friend who is a dietician. She had a couple of suggestions. The first one was to get a resting metabolism rate done. She said I should wait until I am out of ketosis for at least 2 weeks to get a reasonably accurate reading. This will give me a good idea of exactly how many calories a day I can eat and will also allow me to figure out how many calories I burn in a given activity. I am lucky that I can get this done at the health center where I work but they are easily available at many health clubs, etc.

She also stressed being part of some sort of program focused on maintenance. Whether it's WW, OA or something else, it is really important to get support and advice going forward.

FInally, she mentioned a software program called Balancelog. Once you have your RMR, you plug it in and it calculates and tracks everything you do and eat. It also breaks down the components of what you are eating and helps you track protein, carbs, sodium, etc. as well as calories. Also helps you to better connect the incoming with the outgoing to allow you to make better food/exercise tradeoffs. A coworker uses it and swears by it.

I have been thinking about these things a lot. I still want to lose a few more pounds but what I want more is to maintain my weight loss for the rest of my life. Having this forum to be accountable to will also help me in that effort.

It would be great if others who are on or approaching maintenance would start sharing experiences and thoughts here. I think this would be helpful not only to maintainers or near-maintainers, but also to those in the weight loss phase who are starting to think about these things. Keeping it in a separate string will allow those who want to focus solely on weight loss for now to do that.

Looking forward to everyone's thoughts and ideas!

Sylvia

[Carrie]

Hiya Sylvia,

Well, obviously I'm not anywhere near my goal weight yet - but I think about maintenance a bit - wondering what I'm gonna do when I get there.

I think you're being as smart about this as you possibly can. You've thought about it, you've got a plan in place. You will find through trial and error what works for you and what doesn't.

I'm inpressed by the thoroughness of your preparations. Mine have only gotten as far as thinking 'Ok, I'm gonna eat right, and not let myself gain more than 5 pounds without switching right back into diet mode."

You're a successful loser, and you're well on your way to being a successful maintainer.

Congrats girl, you should be proud.
Carrie

[explorthis]

Maintenance is forever and requires us to develop and use skills we have never mastered before now.

Still interesting to me. I have NEVER had, nor even looked at an option for this maintenance thing. Now I WISH I had. Remember, when I began this trek, Nancy’s board had oh about 2-1/2 members. I have had to devise my own skills and dust off antiquated methods, while learning and devising new ones. You’re lucky, you have ALL of this experience, though basically not discussed till now. Understand, this is my opinion – I am a former fat guy, who’s philosophy is” once fat, always fat. I may not be a physically fat guy, but my brain still wants to treat me like I am, meaning I want to eat all the time. I think all of us will be in the same boat. My Mom (most of you remember her – still a thin 135ish) and I still regularly compare notes, and she is of the same thoughts I am.

I know there are hundreds, if not thousands of books, and health clubs that will help you devise methods and plans for this exact purpose “DEVELOPMENT” I think the development part is quite easy per say, however OUR problem is not developing it, but mastering and maintaining it. It is not easy, but not impossible. It’s been about 10 months for me of maintenance, and for the most part, I have stayed on the “yellow brick road”

I deviate some, but I can successfully get back on. Good news for all of us is that Medifast is NOT going away, and is readily available for us to go back to in time of crisis. I do suggest you have a supply of Medifast on hand at all times, especially during your first months on maintenance, for this exact reason. I still have plenty, and regularly zip open a package. There has been over a hundred times, where I have had (or chosen) to go back on Medifast to lose some unwanted pounds. This is an option I never had (or never opted to have) in the past. Yes, I was on Optifast before, but I was just a kid, and was not smart enough to realize what I had done. Now I KNOW the weight will not stay off, with out a little assistance from the body. Remember that darn brain is REAL strong.

track protein, carbs, sodium, etc. as well as calories
This will give me a good idea of exactly how many calories a day I can eat and will also allow me to figure out how many calories I burn in a given activity

Someone on this board, maybe Jeanette (where is she anyway?) or the fearless well educated, overly methodical, exercise-ette, none other than train conductor Nellie told me to keep a journal. B-O-R-I-N-G! Well guess what, it is worth it. Your caloric-food intake is just like your bank account. Anyone overdrawn? Bet we all have been, until this program rolled along. All the reading, and pyramids tell me I can easily have 1800+ calories, 170gm+ carbs, 50-60gm of fat, 25gm fiber, 2400gm sodium, and 45gm of sugar daily. Well, since I am pretty sedentary, other than some walking everyday, I can have about 1200-1500 a day, and yes my body has become accustomed to this. I did not believe it, that without the “daily allotment” prescribed by the FDA, that I would not continue to lose weight. WRONG. Your body does compensate, and gets used to storing, and using what you give it. My average of 1200-1500 a day (if I am faithful) keeps me right on track. I want more, I want to eat lots more, but I am not willing to get off of my duff and exercise more (add more funds to the account) to allow more calories. For now, fact is fact. Mike is lazy. The journal, of which I am about 50% faithful to keeping, lets me know where I have been, and where I am going, and how much is remaining that day for a withdrawal. I can, and do plan. Last week B/day dinner, yes I had red meat! I planned Friday, and most of the day Saturday, ate very small, so I did not become overdrawn. I keep this for almost everything I eat, so towards the end of the day, I know what’s left in the bank. My big meal is Dinner. This is the family time, something I like to bank for, something I enjoy (I like being a Dad – can you tell?) and I prepare for it. Prepare early, get your journal down to a science, the format anyway.

Here is a day in the life of my journal, to show you what I do. It’s a random entry (and yes, it had alcohol, which I use sparingly)


What Serving Cals Fat Consumed Cals Fat
Coffee Mate 1 Tblsp 20 1 4 80 4
Coffee 1.5 Cups 15 0 1 15 0
Medifast 1 Packet 100 1 1 100 1
Pita Chips 14 130 4 0.8 100 3
Apple 1 60 0.1 1 60 0.1
Peach 1 50 0.5 1 50 0.5
Strawberries 4oz 26 0 3x4oz 78 0
S/F Jello 1/2 cup 5 0 1/2 cup 5 0
Leaf Lettuce 1/2cup 4 0 3-4 cups 30 0
Poppy Dressing 2 Tblsp 130 10 4 240 20
Chineese Noodle 1/2 Cup 130 5 1 260 10
Durkee Onion 2 Tblsp 45 3.5 2 45 3.5
Crutons 8 30 1 16 60 2
Rum/DC 1 serve 60 1 1 60 0

Total for the day: 1183 calories and 44.1 fat grams

I basically watch the calories and fat, cause I use so little sugar, I am never overdrawn. I am always over my sodium allowance, so forget the sodium (you do your own thing)

I still want to deviate, I am sure as there is sunlight, that I will fight with this battle long after a few years has passed by. It is ok though. I “weigh” (pun intended) the difference of how I feel now, against the old pre-Medifast Mike, and this battle is far better than the old way. I just might find myself in my senior years, fighting the brain saying no to a ¼’er pounder, which by the way I have not had once since at least 9/8/03 when I began. I have actually had ½ of a McD’s cheeseburger about 6 months ago my teen gave me, and it was NOT that good!!!

Most of you probably remember I was not a sweet’s sort of guy. Donuts, candy, sugar, were never my weakness (except ice cream – which incidentally I rarely have, lest a b/day party occurs) Mine as yours is, was the bread, pasta, rice, taters, and carbs. Yikes!! Well, truth be told, as you do NOT have these, your drive diminishes more. Don’t get me wrong, I still want a bagel, or a hunk of cheese bread, and I do! BUT – within reason, and full control.

Cravings subside, if you LEARN to give them a chance. Eating 5 servings of fruit, or veggies will give you the same full satisfied feeling as a quick useless burger, but it is not as appealing. The instant gratification of a 2,000 calorie chili fry or a double-double (for you Californians) sounds way better than apples and oranges. But 15 minutes later, after the short craving has passed, you sit there and think, hmmm I am full REALLY. It really works, however it will not work unless you let it. We have to, I mean HAVE to learn this. We have to be stronger than the brain.

I still eat “off the cuff” Occasionally having a large bread item, or even last night I had about a serving and ½ of full fat potato salad. That’s ok, as long as you LEARN control.

Thoughts…

[Nancy]

Sylvia,

You bring up some excellent points and even better suggestions.

It is absolutely necessary for foodies to be accountable to someone or to something for life long weight maintenance. My November 2003 Newsletter and subsequent writings attest to that. I would also concur with your suggestion to join WW or OA for accountability and personally, I believe WW is a better choice because they offer a planned approach. It has been a number of years since I have attended an OA meeting and I had to try a number of different groups before I found one that I felt matched my personality and needs. That may be necessary for any group that you consider joining – shop around to find something that fits your needs and your personality.

The nice thing about MakeMeThinner is that we are open 24/7 - that is, we are available most of the time! Sorry about the very recent server problems we experienced! With MakeMeThinner, one doesn’t have to make another stop after work or on their lunch hour! WW does provide the weekly weigh in and it keeps you honest!

People who record their food are more successful than those who do not. Get and keep a food journal – it will help you to determine what foods are better for you to eat and which are best to avoid for long term maintenance. I record my weight daily, examine my food journal and also record my daily exercise and activities to be sure that I am balancing the grub in with my activity levels.

The first few weeks and perhaps months of maintenance become a balancing program – balancing exercise with proper food choices. Low calorie diets lower one’s metabolism and adding exercise will help to return your metabolism to a higher level.

Read everything you can about nutrition and become an expert. I read and re-read Thin for Life by Anne M. Fletcher. Geneen Roth’s books were helpful to me during weight loss : When Food is Love, Why Weight, and Breaking Free From Emotional Eating. Although it is new and has helped some of my acquaintances, I have not yet read her newest book, Feeding the Hungry Heart.


Faithfully Fit by Claire Cloninger and Laura Barr proved to be an excellent book for me. Terry and I started a Why Weight? Care group (it was a small group – that got smaller as we lost weight!) at our church when Pastor and I were on our weight loss journey and we used this book for support and encouragement.

Although the authors designed the forty two lessons to be used one lesson per day, we used them one lesson per week. It kept me focused on Christ and not grub! It helped me greatly to say the daily affirmations.

Many of us who struggle with weight have LOUSY self-talk! This little booklet helps us to get our mind off of our bellies and on to Him.

Even though I know that I belong to Jesus, that He paid the price for us – we are blood-bought and ever so valuable to Him! – I STILL think poorly of myself due to the fact that I am out of control with food. I needed to be filled by Christ and not grub!

Perhaps you have a friend or two in your neighborhood or at work that would enjoy getting together with you weekly or even a couple of times each week to share your weight loss successes and with whom you can be accountable. It helps me immensely to have someone with whom I can share and pray. You may want to consider Faithfully Fit to help guide you in your discussions.

There are so many other books that have helped me to change my thinking and to establish new habits, among them are Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson and Kenneth Blanchard; Repacking Your Bags, How to Live with a New Sense of Purpose by Richard J. Leider and David A. Shapiro and The Power of Focus by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Les Hewitt. I LOVE these last two books – mine are tattered and dog-eared and hopefully, I am beginning to live them out in my daily life!

There are numerous other books, magazine articles and seminars that have helped me to form and maintain new habits. For me, I have found it is not only important but necessary to pray, to dialog and to journal about my feelings and emotions rather than to stuff them or to stuff my face!

Sylvia thanks for the suggested link for food analysis. I will scope it out. Here’s one I use http://www.Fitday.com.

You are headed in the right direction and you are changing your thinking as well as your waistline – this is necessary for life-long health and fitness. For me, Medifast is for life!

[Sylvia]

Thanks both Nancy and Mike for your thoughts and tips. This week is a challenge - I am at a big seminar and there is food EVERYWHERE! I've been busy turning down dinner invitations and watching people eat really good looking food.

I'm not going to lie and say I haven't wanted any of it. I haven't had any though. My biggest sin was having both a salad and asparagus with my fish at dinner tonight - oops - I forgot - I did have just one sip of wine to taste it.

The interesting thing is that there have been a few things I would have liked to taste, but all in all, I haven't wanted to stuff myself. So last night a couple of colleagues went out and completely gorged at a Chicago steak house. I went to the gym and rode the bike and then did pilates in my room. Got up this morning and hit the gym again and felt great. Met up with my colleagues to hear about how they were still stuffed from dinner the previous night. Had no desire to go there.

Anyway, Mike - I have a hard time believing you only can eat 1200-1500 calories. When I calculate my RMR informally, I get somewhere around 2100 as a moderately active 39 year old woman. I was talking to a colleague - a man in his 50's who is also moderately active. His RMR is in the 2300 range. Yours should absolutely be at least in that range! Once I get out of ketosis, I will have mine done "officially" and will let you know what it is.

I also agree with both of you about making MF part of my life moving forward. I need to figure out how to do it. I really want to make adjustments almost daily - so instead of gaining 5 pounds and needing to go back on the full fast for a week, I'd rather substitute a shake for lunch if I'm up a pound or 2 until I'm back at my goal. I suspect this will be trial and error for a while.

I'm also worried that once I finish transition I will want to eat everything in sight. Interesting, it's not the high fat or even high carb thngs I crave it's things like cereal with fruit or granola fruit and yogurt. These are good for you but not if you consume them ALL at the same time!

I also thing journaling is the most tedious thing around but I agree it is key! I need to get into that habit just as soon as I transition.

More Later....

[Nancy]

Syl ~

Wow! You did a great job in the midst of all that food! The asparagus and salad didn't hurt you now, did it? You will lose a few pounds during transition and it includes salad and veggies at the same meal!

I average 1500 calories a day. Remember, I have screwed up my metabolism from all the years of gorging, dieting and meal skipping...

Here's how I do it:

Eat breakfast every day: MF oatmeal or MF Women's Health shake.

Drink lots and lots of H20.

Exercise is a must.

Regularly monitor my weight (I weigh daily)

Don't over eat two days in a row (unless I have waited 2 years to go on an exotic vacation and I plan to get back on the program when I return)

Be accountable.

Record my weight, my exercise and my feelings in a private journal.

"cause it's all about control and I've got lots of it." Janet Jackson

Sheesh! Who'dda thunk I'd use her song lyrics for an example, huh? That's what weight loss and weight maintenance is all about: WHO is in control?

xxxooo Control Freak

[explorthis]

I have a hard time believing you only can eat 1200-1500 calories

Sylvia, so do I. Nellie posted somewhere that your body becomes accustomed to what you give it, and learns. I did not believe it, but being a 100# loser; I can and will NEVER not know what goes into my stomach, such that still almost to the minute, I keep track in the journal. I am not 100% perfect, but I know what I am eating, and it tally’s between 1200-1500 a day, r-a-r-e-l-y am I over, and I keep right at my current weight, which I have for about 10-1/2 months. I am still 9.5 pounds over my original loss weight (was 223.4, and this am just under 233.

Active? Define active - I walk 1.6 miles every day at work M-F, 10 in the am I walk .8 and 3pm another .8. In the evening 5-6 nights a week, my tween and I walk 2.1 “brisk” miles, something we look forward to. Weekends consist of a carwash or 2, and a hefty yard work session.

That’s it. I don’t get it either. But maybe like Nancy, I have screwed up my metabolism so much by playing the yo-yo game, it just will not change, because though I think daily about rigorous exercise, it just ain’t gonna happen. I feel GOOD. I LOOK good. What more can I ask for?

-Mike

[Nancy]

Age is a factor. Women have a higher body fat content than do men; as we age, our fat mass increases and our muscle mass decreases. It is really important to make exercise a part of one’s daily habit. Just like we brush our teeth and spray our pits, we must form the habit of exercise and making healthy food choices every day. If we exercise more, we can eat more.

Weight maintenance is the result of a proper balance of calories taken in and the amount of calories we expend. It may take a while for each individual to figure out exactly how many calories they can consume without gaining weight because we do have different metabolic levels. Some people’s body systems are more efficient at balancing insulin than others. Once of the reasons we are trying to train you to eat every three hours is so that your blood sugar level remains more consistent. Weight management depends upon that or the body begins to store energy (fat).

When a person has been on the weight loss phase for a while - I was on it for 7 months, almost all of the time I was on the complete meal replacement plan, it takes a considerable amount of time for the body's metabolic level to return to its 'normal' state.

For his plan, Mike was on the complete meal replacement program (with shakes only). His body may just now be returning to it's pre-weight loss functioning levels.

People who pork out after having been on a very low calorie diet risk rebounding weight gain and messing with their systems.I keep harping about this: drink your water, go all the way to your goal, drink your water, follow transition properly, add exercise to help to increase your metabolism, drink your water, monitor your weight frequently, eat every three hours, drink your water, be accountable.

If you eat the way you used to eat before Medifast and do not make new permanent HEALTHY eating habits - FLAB happens.

[DutchChoc]

Thanks, Sylvia, for coming here & turning the light on because YES, we are coming along and there are going to be more of us here soon!

I enjoyed reading the ideas and I'm absorbing it, or else I'm just veggin'. Not sure which. There's already an abundance of helpfulness here from what all of you posted.

Yes, Nancy, the November 2003 article on transition was great and I've been acquainting myself with the long & the short methods. First, I thought, LONG for sure -- now I think SHORT, and today, I was thinking the wrong stuff, lol, how 'bout all of transition in one day! So, unfortunately, I'm already all over the road and I haven't even left the garage yet.

I often think of what seems to be different patterns of overweightness and wonder about the outcomes of each. I compare the people who stayed overweight fairly continually to the people like I who have been fairly constantly "some" overweight but who repeatedly tried beating away the flab and sometimes barely, sometimes grandly, succeeded. Consequently, the conclusion I think I have is that those who might not be as familiar with the hazzards (and apparent generalized likelihood) of regaining might be better off than those who have known the heartbreak of never being able to keep it off. Some people, I think, go pretty far learning what to eat and how much to eat; others, I think, know intellectually all of that AND how to lose it AND how to exercise but still get caught in cycles of stuffing and recrimination. I guess some or many of these are the "emotional overeaters", of which I am most certainly one. And my other favorite club is the foodie club.

Well now I want to stay with the SLIM club because, YES, it does feel good to have confidence and no reason to "hate" oneself. Whether it makes sense or not, I feel more on par with others as a more self-satisfied person.

So, I'm interested and willing to learn things that have more bearing on my well-being than on my palate. I know that will be severely tempted with the first bites. I'm reminded of the nail polish to discourage fingernail biting and can envision a culinary use for it, lol!!

Thanks for the thoughts and suggestions and for starting up this subject.