Hi All--

I'm obviously not at the maintenance point yet, but I've been eating this way for about 7 months and I'm feeling the need for a bit of long-haul wisdom. I'm in OWL and trying to move up the carb ladder, and finding that as my weight loss slows and gets uneven, my motivation is flagging a bit. And then there's the fact that I'm in a stall--I weighed 200 for many years, so it's probably a bit of a plateau for me. And then there's the long, dreary, Northwest winter...

So, how did you maintain your motivation for the long haul? Did you just have faith in the plan? How closely did you track your food "experiments" during OWL? What kinds of things were you able to do for yourself (mental pep talks, menu changes, menu non-changes, buying clothes, not buying clothes, etc) to keep moving forward?

Thanks!

Hi! I fully understand your position, since I'm in the PNW, too, and also have been in a long stall. Personally, mental pep talks never work for me, for weight loss or anything else. But you may be different. I just try different ideas that I find on this site. Most recently, I tried doing a dairy-free Induction, and I did lose a little more weight. But then I stalled again. I think the best thing I could do for myself at this point is to get off my behind and start to exercise again. I was doing well, but then I had to do a lot of heavy yard work in preparation for the rainy season, so I called that my exercise. Sadly, I didn't return to my regular routine after I finished the yard work.

The best motivator I found was to buy myself a special gift for every 10 lbs I lost. I'm losing so slowly these days, that I think I would reward myself for every 5 pounds lost!

I don't know that I've been of any help to you, but just know you aren't alone. There are others of us facing the same difficulties.

ETA: Sorry. I didn't realize this was the Pre-Maintenance forum.

Hi!

Just to give you a bit of time perspective....it took me 9 months to lose 75 lbs and break 200. It took me a total of 20 months to get to my goal weight. I've been below my goal weight for the past 2 years now.

I made promises to myself when I started :
1- logged my food daily into my journal here.
2- I broke through 2 stalls by reducing my total intake, cut out cheese and nuts for a few days.
3- weighed daily and made food choices based on what the scale told me.
4- learned to cook and stopped eating out or ordering in so much
5- I lost the best when I did not eat any grains at all.
6- I ate a lot of veggies with my protein, still do!

I realize that I did not do Atkins and that SBD is different....but once I made the decision to get this done, there was no stopping me. I was constantly figuring out what was stopping my weight loss and eliminating it then adding it back, kinda like carb cycling.

I stopped seeing it as diet...it is the way I will eat for the rest of my life. Once I got that< i started to find a wide range of foods that fit the parameters of my plan so that I would not get bored. I also did allow myself to have an old favorite food while I was losing, about once a month. So I ate a bagel once every few weeks and still do...it helps to not say "I'll never eat that again" but say" I can have that once in a while as a treat."

Post some of your menus and I'm sure that you'll get more feedback on your stall.

What I did was stay pretty much on induction level carbs the whole time until I reached my goal. I did eat nuts quite often.
It seemed that everytime I tried moving up the ladder, I would stop losing and get discouraged.
I never cheated when actively losing. I just wanted the weight off.
I never measured or weighed my foods.
I only used fitday a few times just to get an idea of what my percentages were.
When I did reach my goal, I have done things a little different.
If I want something off plan, I eat it. Not daily or even weekly but just once in a while.
I still stay pretty much to induction level carbs.
I weigh daily.
I have a weight that I don't like going over. When I get close to that, time to cut back.
I know I didn't do it exactly by the book but what I did worked for me.
Everyone has to find their own way in maintenance. One they can live with so they don't gain all the weight back.
Start a journal. It helped me stay accountable for everything I eat.
Good luck to you.
Congrats on the weight you have lost so far. You have done a great job!