I found this interesting...and yes I weigh myself every day

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_relea...l-dwa100606.php
Daily weighing and quick action keeps pounds off
New study teaches successful weight losers to STOP regain
Providence, RI -- Most successful dieters regain the weight they lost. But new research shows that stepping on a scale every day, then cutting calories and boosting exercise if the numbers run too high, can significantly help dieters maintain weight loss. The study, conducted by researchers at The Miriam Hospital and Brown Medical School, reports results of the first program designed specifically for weight loss maintenance. The study appears in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Unlike other obesity studies, which focus on how to lose weight, the clinical trial called STOP Regain tested a method that taught participants how to keep those pounds from coming back - regardless of what method they used to lose the weight in the first place.

Led by Rena R.Wing, PhD, Director of the Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center at The Miriam Hospital and Professor of Psychiatry and Human Behavior at Brown Medical School, the study taught successful dieters a technique called "self-regulation." With the goal of maintaining their weight within five pounds, participants were taught to weigh themselves daily and to use the information from the scale to determine if they needed to adjust their diet or exercise routine.

The intervention worked: Significantly fewer participants regained five or more pounds during the 18 month long program. The program was most successful when delivered in face-to-face meetings, although the Internet also proved a viable delivery system to help participants maintain their weight loss.

"If you want to keep lost pounds off, daily weighing is critical," Wing said. "But stepping on the scale isn't enough. You have to use that information to change your behavior, whether that means eating less or walking more. Paying attention to weight – and taking quick action if it creeps up – seems to be the secret to success."

To read the whole article click on the link above.

I'm not surprised to read that, and it seems that the successful maintainers on this board weigh daily and take immediate action. I didn't make it to goal on my previous attempts at low carb, and I know that the first thing to go was accountability. I went off plan and immediately went into denial and stopped weighing myself.

This is very interesting and actually, makes sense to me. During weight loss phase, maybe it's good to weigh only once/week. Since you have crazy fluctuations. Once you get to goal, weigh daily.

I note that they were given a "fat book." I don't know what that is but I assume it was insinuated that fat is the problem.

Yup!! This is exactly how I do it....most of the time!!

Sounds right on target. It just makess so much sense because once i start to gain weight I tooo go into denial and lose the scales and before you know it I'm up 55 pounds (wow)! Although I don't want to obsess over the scales they are very important for maintenance.

yep. twice before I have lost over a hundred pounds (and a few times 50 or 60 losses)

EACH TIME I regained it was because I stopped weighing. I had kept my bigger clothing, too, so there was no problem ignoring it.
this time, EVERYTHING is going with the exception of one of my biggest pairs of pants. DH is cringing watching all the money go out to Goodwill, but I just CAN'T gain again.

I read the Dr Phil book, and he was very clear that you have to get rid of the clothes. I did, and it WAS hard, but it does take away that safety net.
I have heard bunches of people say they regained the weight (50,60,90,110...) and did not notice- or didn't pay attention. I think this study addresses that.
Others say they regained because they went off and then couln'd get back on, or started slipping into high carb eating. It is still pretty scary to me.

I refuse to gain that nasty weight back! I got rid of the clothes all along the way while I was losing -- every time something got too big, off to the Goodwill.

I weigh every day -- even though I fight the thought that this might add to my obsessive/compulsive tendencies. Too bad if it does. This is what I have to do to keep the weight off. Otherwise, there's too much room to let the pounds creep up and then I know it would be harder to get rid of it again.

The other thing, that seems so obvious yet many, many people fail to do it -- Once you know what works for you, don't go off the plan just because you've reached goal weight. Why is it that people will low-carb until they've lost the pounds and then think they can go back to sugar cereal/white bread/pasta/ice cream/fries on a daily basis like they ate when they put the weight on in the first darned place?

I'm the same way.
Weigh daily, take certain measures when it creeps up.

I got rid of my bigger clothes as soon as they got to big.

Corrine, I think you said it all. You can't go back to eating high carbs on a regular basis once the weight comes off. It's still important to stick with the plan. Do what works for the rest of our lives.

I weigh in (almost) every day, and I give myself a 5lb limit (because, lets face it, we all have times like christmas or brthdays etc where we eat off plan a little). If I go over that 5lbs above my baseline of 185 then I quickly do something about it. This works perfectly for me and has enabled me to maintain my weight for the past 5 months!

I've given this topic a lot of thought. What I have seen is that most people who get to goal and have stayed at 20 carbs a day aka Induction, have trouble over the long haul in maintenance. It takes a certain type of person to be able to live at that level of carbs for their entire life. Not many can do that.

IMO and IME, for those on Atkins, OWL is where people need to go before they hit their goal or are even close to it. This will allow them to train their body and their metabolism to handle higher levels of carbs...which lets be honest, makes our food choices much more varied.

I know...many of you will say that you are very happy with your carbs at 20 grams a day....but there are more who can't live long term at that level.

Here's another thought...I wonder about those of you who do IF...will you do IF for the rest of your life? Or will you want to start eating meals and snacks a few times a day again? Your body has become used to handling food on the IF cycles...if you change that, what hapens? IF is certainly not for everyone!! I know that I would not feel happy or satisifed dong it.

While I do not eat bread/pasta/sugar and all the other crap that I used to eat all the time, I will have them as a treat once in a while.

I seem to be able to maintain my weight staying between 50-60g. I could never do 20g indefinitely. I exercise twice a day on average, which I think really helps. And if I know I am going to splurge on carbs in one sitting then I limit my carb intake that day. Even so I expect my splurge the other night to show up on the scale any minute.

2 drinks of Kahlua and Milk
Kahlua shot- 17g of carbs= 34g carbs
Milk 1/2 cup- 11.3g of carbs= 22.6 carbs
Total 56.6 carbs

In cases like this I go to 20 carbs a day for a while to get back on track.

I will ALWAYS keep up with the IF. My doctor explained how wonderful it is for a body (not to continually digest foods), and I always did before I had a weight problem.
My boss who is 81 and works 10 hours a day and is as fit as a fiddle (just amazingly gorgeous, too) only ever eats one meal a day.

So, yes. IF is going to be the easiest part of maintenance.

That's great pennick!
Personally, I can't do the IF thing.
I do however, know that I can live with low carb.
30 - 40 gms most days, some days more, other days less.
I know I will do this the rest of my life.

I guess this interesting interaction of thoughts goes to prove that not everything is suited to everyone.

I am actually quite in awe of people who are able to fast (starve?) for most of the day - to me that seems simply hellish and something I could never achieve, not even hope to. But it works for those people, so who am I to argue! <shrug>

I too could not sustain the 20g's a day carb thing. I did it for about 16 months and then found a plan where I could make a trade off; I traded the ability to eat more fat, for the ability to eat more fruit and veg, and this works perfectly for me However, I know folk who have been on atkins for 10 years or more, and great for them - how wonderful to find a plan you can stick with for life!

And actually that brings me back full circle to where this discussion began....for me, a major part of keeping the weight off is daily weighing, but another large part of it is STICKING TO THE PLAN and ENJOYING life!!