How to Maintain your weight loss
Here are my top weight Maintenance Mantras.
Counting Calories
First of all, I know that I cannot eat like how I used to eat when I was 30 kgs heavier. That doesnt mean that I don’t enjoy food. O yes, I do but I am very mindful of what goes into my mouth. I count every calorie. I know you must be thinking it as a lot of work…..well actually yes…but then nothing in life is easy!!! Once you are used to it, maybe it will get easier. not maybe….it will definitely get easier. There are days I go really over my calorie budget…especially during holidays and party times, but I make sure Iam sensible the next day. Yes, I do a lot of calorie zigzaging…it works for me. calorie zigzaging means if I go 1000 calories over my maintenance calories today, I make sure I cut down 500 calories from my maintenance the next two days and we are even!!!!
Weight gets added on a lot faster than it falls off. Always remember that. So if on a day you havent burnt off calories by exercising, try to eat less than your maintenance calories. ( you can check your maintenance calories online by feeding in your height weight and gender) There are a lot of calorie counting apps online which are really really helpful. Their database is huge with all kinds of Indian foods and if its not there you can always fill in your recipe and get the calories per serving.
Exercise
People keep asking.. Do you still exercise? Of course I do!!!! I need to workout coz there are no short cuts. I love good food but Iam active too. I make sure I do more than 10000 steps a Day. Yes I walk a lot. I do exercise daily. Most of the days its inside my home in front of the tv
Eat only when hungry
People say never to skip breakfast but that doesn’t work for me. 98% of the time I skip breakfast. My body works differently. The days I eat breakfast, I feel stuffed and lethargic. Iam not saying its a good idea to skip breakfast.NO… each individual is different. What works for me might not work for you. I know my body. You should listen to your body. It will tell you when it is hungry and weak and eat accordingly. Never eat when you are not hungry just because it is lunch time/dinner time etc.
Make friends who are Health conscious
Another important thing is you should make friends who are health conscious. Doesn’t mean that I hangout with only people who count calories…O no!!! All my health conscious friends are outside the state or country. But still we keep in touch regularly. We talk food, calories, workouts, recipes and update each other on our daily calorie burn etc. This is really a motivating factor. So the days I feel lazy, I see my friend Sumy has burnt 300 calories, makes me wanna do something.
Have a max weight for the scale
I weigh myself daily. You will never weigh the exact same kg every single day. I allow myself a 5 kg bracket (+ or- 5 kg from my desirable weight) If it goes above that, its is enough incentive for me to get back on track. I cut down calories and step up my exercise.
Be Consistent and Never stop trying.
So you lost all the weight and you reached your goal weight. Does this mean you can go back to your old eating habits. Never. Does it mean that you can stop exercising? Nope. This is a journey and it is never over. you cant go on and off diets. This is a lifestyle. So eat what you will eat for the rest of your life, but practice moderation. Do some physical activity that you love and that you would do for the rest of your life. whatever you do, be consistent and even if u mess up during holidays…It is okay. you can always get back on track and keep moving forward.
For many, weight maintenance is harder than weight loss. That’s because once you see the result, you lose focus and end up eating the way you used to. Think of how happy you were when you crossed the finish line. Teach yourself that what you did in order to get your weight down is what you have to keep doing for the rest of your life but with a lot of treats thrown in.
