New maintainers - March 18

[JuliaL]

This thread is for those of us who are new to maintenance and trying to cope with the challenges.

Hi everyone. I've been in maintenance since November of 03, so for about 3.5 months. I quit smoking in January and gained 8 lbs., but have lost 3 of those. I go back and forth between wanting to lose another 5 and just wanting to firm up and stay at the same weight.

I have a question for those of you who exercise regularly - did you gain weight? I always thought that you had to do a LOT of strenuous exercise before you would gain weight from building muscle, but I wonder if that's not part of the reason I'm not losing. Since starting The Firm about a month ago I've gone from a size 6 to a size 4 even though I weigh more than I did before starting The Firm. Anyone?

[JONAH'S GRANNY]

Thanks Julia. I think this is just what some of us have needed. Lets keep it going everyone. From reading the posts on the main board about maintenance it appears we are all thinking the same thing when you get right down to the bottom line. KEEP IT CLEAN AND EXERCISE. Thanks again. Ann

[JONAH'S GRANNY]

I purchased the Firm Videos last week. Just got to get started on them. I have heard nothing but good about them.

[Loretta V]

Hi Julia and congrats on the weight loss and the smoking cessation. Great job of doing both and then getting that weight off again after quitting the cigs.

I think you are right about the exercise. I have been maintaining for a while now but soon after I reached goal I started to add jogging in with my regular walk. Slowly my weight came back up but I had also added some low carb baked items with almond and oat flour to my diet. I have been eliminating foods but seem to be stabelizing out at about 2 pounds over my goal no matter what.

Is it the jogging? Maybe, I sure would like to tell my self that.
Any one else with similar experinece? Good subject Julia.

[JuliaL]

You will love them. If you're not used to exercising regularly just start slowly with them, but you'll get strong quickly. What I like about The Firm is that it moves along and doesn't get boring. Before you know it you'll have done 55 minutes of exercise!

[THINNER-2003]

Okay, confession time for this new "maintainer" who isn't maintaining anymore... I have a lot to lose now!
I was maintaining pretty good right after reaching goal, but hadn't even really got in the swing of things at maintaining before I cheated some during vacations during the holidays- didn't really gain much though. I just wavered between 114/115lbs to 118.2lbs or so... still under original goal so no worries (to me).
But then I quit smoking on Jan 5th and all heck broke loose. I totally went off plan almost every day- and kept making excuses to eat the WORST things possible.. each day saying I'd get back on track but then not, and going totally off plan the rest of the day once I cheated. I kept telling myself that "atleast I wasn't smoking".

Well, it's been over 2 months now and the excuses have got to stop. I wish I was like Julia and only gained 8lbs. This is hard for me to admit.... but I have gained almost 30lbs. It was slow enough that it snuck past me and I wasn't even weighing to notice. I just finally weighed when I started noticing my pants weren't fitting as comfortable...

I measured last night and compared to my measurements from when I started-and also when I was at goal. I am gaining all the extra fat in mostly my thigh areas- with a little in the tummy/butt but mostly in the thighs. I suppose this is how it snuck up on me- I have not gained hardly any inches (.25 inch here or there at most) anywhere else but the thigh and tummy area... my thighs now at 144lbs are almost as big in inches as they were when I first measured after my first week at 180+lbs!!!! ACK.... apparently I'm not going to gain weight "evenly" when I gain weight.

It's enough to almost make me want to smoke again- but I honestly do not have any desire to do so. I'm amazed at how easy it was for me to quit smoking after 16 some odd years of smoking.... but ofcourse it was easy, I just replaced smoking with eating "comfort" high carby foods!

I have tried replacing it with SF gum- but I tend to get headaches and achey jaw from chewing gum- plus I kept accidentally biting my inside cheeks/lips and they would turn into canker sores.... really bad. So chewing gum wasn't an option- so I'd go back to eating high carb junk food.

It has to stop NOW though. I have tried a few times to get back on track and it would last a few days and I'd lose great (probably because when I'm eating off plan I tend to not drink as much water either- so when I go back to drinking the right amount I take off lbs really quickly... water weight... I tend to retain fluids easily) but then I'd have another cheat. I haven't been able to get back in the groove of being able to resist things- like I did before even if they were in the house or when eating out/etc.

Okay, so now that I have confessed, I have to go back to losing the weight I've gained- but I'll keep reading your maintenance thread so maybe when I get back to maintenance again, I can do it right. Atleast next time I won't have to quit smoking and fight that- I've already quit.

[JuliaL]

((((((Shelly))))))) I was wondering about you and your smoking cessation! First of all, congratulations on quitting!! I know how hard it is, and you need to pat yourself on the back for that.

Now you just have to get back on plan and stick to it. You know you can do it, you've done it before. And if you can quit smoking you can do anything! Just don't smoke - it will not make you lose that weight you've gained. It's unfortunate that weight gain tends to happen to people who quit smoking, but it's just a fact. I know from experience that starting to smoke again will not make you lose that weight, though. It didn't work for me. And besides, that extra 30 lbs. is not nearly as unhealthy for you as cigarettes.

Why don't you go back and re-read DANDR? Or maybe you should pick up a copy of Protein Power or South Beach. Just start re-learning the whole concept of low carb (even though you already know it). Reading one of these books will help reinforce the principals behind why it works so well. Also, come here and post and read often. And come on over to the Quitters and Losers Challenge too!

You can do it!

Julia

[JONAH'S GRANNY]

Shelley, I noticed you had not been posting much and I wondered where in the world you were. I always have the fear when posters disappear they are not sticking with this WOE. I'm so sorry you have gained some of the weight back - you and I lost our weight all at about the same time and I always enjoyed your posts. You helped this little ole lady a lot. You, like Julia, have been mighty brave quitting smoking too. Just don't start back. You can lose this weight again - we all know you know how to do it. I know Julia will be a lot of help and support for you. She has struggled with it but done such a fantastic job. We are all so proud of her. Maintenance is so hard and I know that if I start cheating I'll not stop. I'm having a hard enough time with the sugar free candy. That is my biggest weakness. Anyway, good luck. We know you can do it. Ann

[THINNER-2003]

Thank you both! You are both so dear to me.... not sure if you knew that or not.

Julia is so awesome.... she quit smoking and only gained a little weight and then lost it again! I'm so jealous. LOL But I have only myself to blame... I know that. I guess I just have the type of personality that I can work on a million things at once when it comes to everything but MYSELF... when it comes to myself all that time is left for is for me to work/concentrate on one thing at a time. First it was weightloss, then quitting smoking, now I have to get back on the weightloss train of thought.

Julia- thanks for the reassurances. I guess I'm kinda worried that although I did it before- it might be quite different now that I'm not smoking. Like maybe the smoking helped me lose so great before. I dunno.... I worry I won't be able to do it again. Not just because of the smoking issue- but because I've seen others that lost great- but once they gained and tried to lose again they didn't seem to have an easy time of it at all the 2nd time around.

I am just going to keep reminding myself of all the things that have happened to me since I went offplan. Not just the weight gain and inches gained back... not to mention being very unproportioned now that I've gained it all back in mostly my thigh areas.... but also the chocolate causing me to have a little acne again (which had cleared up completely since the first month of starting Atkins) and my insomnia is back.... to the point of not getting much sleep, and even trying things like Tylenol PM's/etc to try to get a few hours sleep. All those things were cleared up when I started Atkins- and have gone bad again since I started eating the high carbs again.
Oh, not to mention my wedding set that I sized down 4 times when I lost- no longer fits. And my watch that I sized down 5 times had to have 2 links put back so I could wear it. I swear my fingers and wrist don't look any bigger- but apparently they are. All these things are annoyances that I'm going to keep reminding myself of to keep myself on track. I'm just going to take it one day at a time... and not one cheat because apparently I can't do that anymore!
Long time ago before I quit smoking and while losing weight/while at goal too- I could have a cheat meal or snack and not let it get me completely off plan. Apparently I can't do that anymore- now if I eat one tiny morsel of something I shouldn't, I decide the whole day is shot and go off plan the rest of the day... and the next day.... and keep thinking I'll get back on plan tomorrow. Tomorrow never came for 2 months now! No more excuses and no more cheats for me.... I'm back on the saddle again. Including not only no cheats, but making sure I drink enough water, putting my foods in fitday again (something I also stopped doing months ago), and taking my vitamins everyday too.

Y'all keep me in line, 'kay? LOL

[JuliaL]

Girl, every time you want to cheat you take a look at those progress pics! You can do it!

Julia

[Jewels]

I finally got back from out of town and see you started this new thread for us Julia. I offered but glad someone took the riens and did it.

Julia, first of all, congratulations on quitting smoking.

Shelly, it must be hard to get back into it again but you've taken the first step and come here. We will help you and before you know it, the weight will be back off again. Congrats to you too for quitting smoking. Best thing you ever did for yourself. (besides losing weight)

J.Granny, glad you joined us too. You are soooo tiny, I can't believe it. I've thought about trying the Firm tapes but you have to buy a set, don't you?

I changed my sig. to reflect the new goal I want. I was down to 116 at one point but was back up to 119 right after the first of the year. Managed to get off 1 1/2 lbs the past few days.

Many struggle with maintaining and have even seen documents about it. I wish now I would've kept the stats to share here. Will have to do some searching. This is going to be a big help to all who maintain. Thanks again Julia

[BarbCO]

Excellent post for those maintaining. I reached goal at the end of Dec. 2003 and have struggled with up and down 5 - 10 pounds since then.

I did get the Firm tapes and step stools last summer and it made a BIG difference. My size really went down. I had a difficult time keeping up with the tapes (tripped over my own feet) and had to slow down.

Shelly, those progress pictures are great!! Post them some place where you can be reminded of how well you did and where you came from!!

I don't have the smoking problem, just over indulging in what I feel I should NOW be able to eat and then the weight creeps up.

Thanks for sharing, Julia, Ann, Loreta, Shelly and Julie.

Livin' and lovin' the low carb life style !! Barb

[jvryden]

Hi! Thanks Julia for starting this thread!

I've been maintaining since just mid-January. Its going okay so far, I think I have a handle on what I can and can't get away with eating. We'll see how I do this weekend though since my BIL is getting married on Saturday and tonight we are having a carb-laden bbq rehearsal dinner. My MIL and FIL and DH are Atkids too, so it will be a land mine for us all. I'm at least bringing a Beachgirls cheesecake, so dessert will be great. I'll eat a big salad before I go too.

I started exercising in January when I was one pound from goal and I initially lost two pounds and then quickly gained them back...even though my eating habits weren't changing. From my understanding of it though, when we exercise, we get little tears in our muscle, and then we retain water in those tears while they are repairing and building up, so we see the gain on the scale. I'm fine with a little muscle weight build-up too. I gotta get rid of the flab before swimsuit season. I would so like to finally be toned.

[TVernon]

I have struggled over and over with the idea of "what I should be able to eat now". It turns out that maintenance for me is a strict low carb diet. I have now accepted that and find I feel better than ever and know I can eat this way the rest of my life.

Today I am starting my March Fat Fast. I FF for 4 days and go to modified FF on the 5th day. 6th day, I add in 200 more calories and more protein while still eating 5 times per day, then I add in 100 calories per day until I'm at about 1700-1800 calories. Then I maintain the loss for the rest of the month and do it again. I lose about 2# per month this way and get to practice maintaining it. My goal is 136 but the truth is, I used to weigh about 132 so I am going to do the FF each month until July and see where I end up.

I always gain weight with weight training and I have gained about 5# in lean body mass since 1996 (according to my records!) that is part of why I am not sure what my goal weight should be now. But I am 5'2", large frame, muscular so I never have fit any of the weight charts my whole life long, I am always heavier. When my muscles are sore from upping the weights or increasing intensity, I usually gain for a few days.

Thanks for starting this check in, I know it is what I need to finally reach goal and stay there. No more up and down.

[JuliaL]

Theresa - thanks for sharing. You've been doing strength training exercises a lot longer than me. I'm still puzzling over how they're affecting my body. I only started The Firm in maintenance, so it was frustrating to see my weight go up. Sometimes I am actually higher in the a.m. than in the p.m., which is really strange, but it's always after a weight training session the night before.

[JuliaL]

Theresa - thanks for sharing. You've been doing strength training exercises a lot longer than me. I'm still puzzling over how they're affecting my body. I only started The Firm in maintenance, so it was frustrating to see my weight go up. Sometimes I am actually higher in the a.m. than in the p.m., which is really strange, but it's always after a weight training session the night before.

[Jewels]

Hi gang, I started a new thread for today. Hope that was ok.

From what I know about building muscle, you get small little tear's in the muscle and thats why you need to wait a day in between muscles being used. Water goes to those muscles to help repair them. Hence maybe a little temporary weight gain.

[JuliaL]

Just FYI, y'all - I think this is the new thread that Jewels started, even though she's a little off on the date

Maintainer's challenge March 10th

[Jewels]

Thanks Julia!! A slip of the finger. So where is everybody today??

[SuSUN]

CONGRATULATIONS TO THOSE WHO QUIT SMOKING!

Just a little tip for the oral satisfaction when you quit smoking. Choose a crunchy food, say celery sticks with cream cheese or peanut butter, or a sour cream dip, raw cauliflower and brocolli and the odd treat of a baby carrot. Drinking lots of water help the mouth adjust to the withdrawal.

It is all about making the Healthy Choice in your selection of foods that replace the smoking behaviour, thats why crunchy is best. If you smoked a pack a day, you raise your hand to your mouth 250 times a day, so you have to replace this behaviour with something healthy, e.g. celery sticks etc..

Nicotine hits the brain in 7 seconds and when you are looking for that quick hit, those high carbs hit the spot but damage your weight loss efforts.

DON'T GIVE UP THE GROUND YOU HAVE ALREADY MADE! EXCELLENT ON BOTH COUNTS REACHING GOAL AND QUITTING SMOKING!



SuSUN ( I give 3 Smoking Cessation Groups a week, info IMHO)

[THINNER-2003]

Thanks Susan... I think that's what I need to do. Unfortunately I don't like raw veggies (ie: crunchy) at all... celery I can't stand even cooked in food LOL- so that's probably why I have the "issues"- eating soft lowcarb food just isn't satisfying that "crunch" need that could replace the cigs I guess. Weird thing is that I honestly do not want to smoke, I do not ever feel the urge even when I'm around a friend of mine that smokes. But if I think about it- when I feel like eating something that's a full blown cheat (like cheetos or something like that)- it's PROBABLY when I would usually grab a cig- it's usually late in the evening after the kids have stressed me out to the max before going to bed (them, not me) LOL I do know I used to smoke the majority late at night once they were asleep... so it's a habit I think. I'm not even wanting to smoke- but my body is wanting to do that "habit" of smoking.
Chewing gum isn't working because of the problems it ends up causing with my mouth.... and I'd probably be okay if I did what you suggested, but for the fact I'd gag. I love veggies more than meat, but not raw ones. Weird aren't I? But I'll try some raw broccoli with ranch dressing and see if that helps. I already drink tons of water (and nothing but water)...