Moonlights' (temporary) Maintenance

[Supersmileyme]

That's great, thanks my dear.

 

[shrinki]

Interesting.. I need to up my cals as have been eating about 1300-1500 a day and my maintenance is over 2000! I guess I'm still stuck in the mindset that less cals = more loss.

I know what you mean on the BMI front. When I was at school I was always skinny! Even age 16 and I weighed about 10.5 stone and was a small size 12 (sometimes 10). I am now (sob) 14 stone 9 or something and a size 16 jeans/18 top cause of horrible massive matron boobs so I guess it stands to reason that if I get to 11 stone I will be a size 12 again like when I was 20. (I'm now 40 - 41 in march).

I am finally realising that the scale is the enemy and it's how your clothes fit that counts... I wish I could chuck the bloOdy thing out but just can't bring myself to do it!
Jx

 

[moonlights]

Well it's just my personal experience, I have to say. I do know other people on other forums who say they need to keep their cals low or they don't lose. It's just always been the reverse for me. I do try most of the time to stay a couple of hundred cals under my maintenance but I don't stress if I go over now and then. To me it's more important to stay on plan and eat higher calorie than go off it and eat lower. I've certainly never gained through overeating on this diet. But what's true for me may not be true for everyone.

 

[shrinki]

Well it's just my personal experience, I have to say. I do know other people on other forums who say they need to keep their cals low or they don't lose. It's just always been the reverse for me. I do try most of the time to stay a couple of hundred cals under my maintenance but I don't stress if I go over now and then. To me it's more important to stay on plan and eat higher calorie than go off it and eat lower. I've certainly never gained through overeating on this diet. But what's true for me may not be true for everyone.

Well I still have 40 pounds to go so now is not the time to reduce calories I guess!!!

 

[moonlights]

<3

Not v coherent tonight. Tired.

Food today:

400g pork belly and spring onion

1/2 avocado with cream cheese

10g 70% dark choc and mug of hot alpro with dash of cream

1459 cals though the pork belly is a hard one to accurately count for.

 

[Busybusy]

Hi I'm with you on the sleep front - hope you can get a good pattern over the weekend. Yesterday's menu looked lovely x.

 

[Scrumbles]

I guess I'm happy! That picture may be upside down but should say 10st 10lbs.

Well done, ML - that's fantastic! Knew you'd get there!

I gained a full stone over my 3 weeks off at Xmas!!!!!! And it's taken me 3 weeks to recover from instead of the usual 1-2 - maybe because I'm now a bit closer to goal than I was during the last break I took in August.

It always amazes me how different we all are. I have no idea what I'd have to do to gain a stone in 3 weeks, but I sure didn't manage it this Xmas, even though I felt like I was hammering the carbs something rotten! (I think I have to finally accept that I am not particularly carb-sensitive, which isn't really what I wanted to discover since it leaves me with as many questions as ever, and no real answers as to why I'm like I am )

I don't feel bad about January being a technical write off though, really. I had my break and I recovered from it.

And you know what? That's the most important and positive thing about it in my view. Whether we like it or not, life happens. Sometimes we will find ourselves eating in less than satisfactory ways, and it's how you deal with it that matters. You've shown yourself several times that you can take deliberate, guilt-free breaks and get back on plan at will, and I think that will stand you in good stead going forward.

Things will likely go slower from now on. I will be having two meals off plan - one on feb 9th and one on march 9th, both for very big birthdays for people I've let down before last year when I didn't want to come off plan. So they'll slow me. But I'll deal with it.

IMO, things should really go slower now you're getting within range of your healthy BMI. Perhaps you're getting to the stage where you should be spreading your wings a bit and testing your tolerances, otherwise you might find yourself at target without a true picture of what maintenance will be for you?

Its been a tough old January as people who read this will know, but I'm glad I stuck with it even when it was so hard to do and so tempting to throw in the towel. Keep on keeping on, lads.

So proud of you for hanging in there, m'dear. Your focus has been incredible in spite of all you have to contend with.

As it says in your sig, we have to choose our hard. In the end we have to want the weight loss more than we want that sandwich, or those crisps, or that slice of cake or that bottle of wine. That's the price we pay to get to where we want to be, and it's the price we'll have to keep paying to stay there.

Keep on keeping on, indeed. We can do this.xxx

 

[moonlights]

IMO, things should really go slower now you're getting within range of your healthy BMI. Perhaps you're getting to the stage where you should be spreading your wings a bit and testing your tolerances, otherwise you might find yourself at target without a true picture of what maintenance will be for you?
.

As it says in your sig, we have to choose our hard. In the end we have to want the weight loss more than we want that sandwich, or those crisps, or that slice of cake or that bottle of wine. That's the price we pay to get to where we want to be, and it's the price we'll have to keep paying to stay there.

Keep on keeping on, indeed. We can do this.xxx

Thank you scrumblington xx

I have been thinking about testing tolerances etc and have decided not to do it until I hit my target - i.e. until I'm just under BMI 25 - since that's more of a clinical goal weight for me and I know I'll be able to relax more once I've got there but I really want to lose another 7lb or so below it to give me a buffer zone - but I'm not bothered about how slowly I lose that extra 7 - it seems like a good time to try tolerance testing then.

That's provided I ever get to a healthy bmi of course - and I really do want to. I am going to take it a little easier, as shown by the willingness to go to these off plan birthday dinners when all last year I cancelled anything that might have been carby. But I don't want my focus to wander too much, if that makes sense.

Maintaining will be the hard part, I'm such an all or nothing person.

 

[YukCeleriac31]

Hey ML! Well done on shedding that stone in just a few weeks! Scrumbles says she can't imagine what she would eat to gain that over the holiday...I can't imagine what I would have to NOT eat to lose a stone in the time you have! Bloody brilliant!xx

 

[moonlights]

Well I suspect about 9lbs of it was water weight, at least 9lbs. I got down to 11st 1 very quickly then hovered there a while.

I've gained between 10lbs and a stone all 3 times I've come off plan, whether that's for 2 weeks, 3 weeks or a month, so 9lbs seems to be my water weight capacity, I'd say. I didn't even go especially crazy over Xmas so I'd be very surprised if the 5lbs were all fat and not wheat bloating or some such. Maintenance is definitely going to be a tricky issue when/if I get there, because I'm going to want occasional days off without a 9lb gain.

As for what to not eat - I've eaten like a horse as my calorie chart shows. Just kept it very clean and green (for owl rung 1).

Feeling incredibly unwell today, don't know what's wrong but can barely stand up.

Food was:

3 hb eggs with butter and mayo

Cheese crisps and fried mushrooms

Flax porridge with cream

 

[stubbsey]

Well done indeed ML its great to be back on track isnt it. I was very lucky xmas n new year with not gaining, but it did mean a good few weeks without any loss while i got back. Now lost 6lbs since and dropped sizes so all good.

i got a letter saying that things have changed and they no longer offer abdominoplasty on nhs, i dont know if that is different in other areas but not in my postcode anyway.... Sigh better start saving!

 

[ladyfelsham]

Morning hun

Hope you slept better last night? xxx

 

[moonlights]

Hey Stubbsey

They've never offered it on the nhs as such, it's an extenuating circumstances issue where you may be able to get it if you are caused physical or mental problems by the excess. I suffer both and my GP & the surgeon I consulted with both say my case warrants full nhs coverage but I have been turned down on application - now into appeals. I'm not going to get into another long discussion of it as I honestly feel suicidal over it at times but not sure what to do atm. it is certainly getting harder and harder to get on nhs - and it was never easy - but it's completely out of my reach privately. I don't want to spend my life alone because I'm too disgusted by my body to let anyone touch me and I don't think I should have to.

Hey Susie - got a bit of sleep after about 5am. I'm just not in a sleeping phase right now.

My blood pressure is being a little bu**er right now. I'm always hypotensive but I've barely been able to stand upright for 5 minutes for the last couple of days. Am upping my salt like crazy to see if it will help - dont really want to go to the docs over it but It would be nice to feel clear headed again.

Going to do my menu for today even though I haven't eaten all of it yet:

Toasted Mim with butter and marmite

Roast chicken, broccoli, courgette, celeriac

Cheese crisps, scrambled egg, mushrooms

 

[stubbsey]

i actually got accepted when i lost lots of weight before, i was referred to a plastics guy in Maidstone General, he said he was willing to do it because i had done so well and he felt it should be rewarded, but he added i had to lose another 10lb before he would do it, he said he could push it through finance but there was a chance it would be denied but he didnt think it would be a problem... the stupid thing is if i had lost that 10lb it would be in the past... instead i put on 7 stone!.. now there is no longer a plastics in mgh and the department at medway flatly refused it... plus there is now a different government and different budget constraints.. i do feel stupid tho

 

[YukCeleriac31]

Hey Moonlight, how was your day? I just came over to give you a big kiss for that almond cupcake recipe you have me all those months ago X I absolutely adore it, I think I could eat them every day!

B xx

 

[ladyfelsham]

Mmmm they are luverly

 

[moonlights]

Yes lovely although I must admit I lose best when I'm at the point where I don't want treats anymore - whether that's losing better because I'm more ketone adapted by that stage or whether it has anything to do with the food itself I don't know. But when I'm in the Atkins zone dessert type foods become rare as I just don't need them,

Food today:

Sesame 5 spice chicken (1 breast)

2 egg mayo

Steak, scallops and spring onion

 

[sammy1]

Morning, catching up on the diaries. I agree with you on loosing better when eating more.....but even though I know it I still cut back when weight loss stalls.

 

[moonlights]

V v v tired, no sleep and a stressy morning.

Went to marks and sparks and filled a basket with all the food I felt like eating - sandwiches, choc, crisps.

Then put the basket on the floor and went and bought prawns and venison. Sigh. Sorry, shelf stackers.

 

[ladyfelsham]

Oh boy I've done that many a time!

That's why I like online shopping - I put bad stuff in the virtual trolley, then go through it and clean it out before i check out