The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[elle4nelly]

Dutch will be able to maintain such a low weight by being diligent with her exercise program. It's called 60-90 minutes of cardio 4-5 times a week and MOST IMPORTANT WEIGHT TRAINING at least 3 times a week. Increase your lean body mass and you'll be able to burn more calories than the next person at the same weight. THAT"S IT!!
A very low calorie diet such as this DOES lower your metabolic rate when you're on it for a while. Thus the rapid weight gain if you don't transition properly. As you start to come off..increase your exercise and DO NOT FORGET WEIGHT TRAINING. That's the most important aspect of maintaining the weight loss. You have to increase the lean body mass. Otherwise you risk a re-gain or Yo-yo ing....and worst ...living on very low calorie intake for the rest of your life!

Nelly

[Sylvia]

So Nelly,

Maybe you can help me understand this better. I am getting very concerned about maintaining now that I'm closing in on my goal.

I am planning to do transition, but how does that help me not regain weight? I thought it's purpose was more to get the digestive system back on track.

Also, I hear you on the exercise and am really glad I'm making it a habit NOW. But I've also read that for the first 2-3 months after concluding the weight loss phase, you have to eat 1200-1500 calories a day until your metabolism increases to normal. A low carb diet is also suggested during this time.

So, this might sound stupid, but how will I know when my metabolism is back to normal and what can I do (other than regular exercise) to help it get there more quickly?

If there's a resource on this board I'm missing on this topic, please direct me but I don't think we've covered this kind of thing much that I recall...

[elle4nelly]

Medifast has a transitional program that's well done. Nancy correct me if I'm wrong but Full faster will have to add first veggies back, then meats, then low glycemic index fruits, and etc... little by little until you've brought back most food groups in. If you do that your weight will stabilise better. That's what I read on Take Shape once. Mike and Nancy can correct me here.

But the exercise part IS necessary. Point blank! Your metabolism will never go back to burning off the proper amount of calories for your weight until YOU recapture the lean body mass loss during dieting. Any diets comes with lean body mass loss. While dieting on Medifast it is hard to do more than a certain amount of exercising. As a matter of fact overtraining on a low calorie diet can have the reverse effect of stalling you period because it signals your body that you are starving. I don't want to be flabby when done. So I am stubburn and I notice that I'll go in the gym and lift hard for 45 minutes. On my weight training days, I kid you not...my metabolism get so reved up that I am litteraly feeling HUNGRY all day!!!!!!!! I can't make it with 5 shakes. I end up having to add a little bit of Fish or chicken that day. And when I don't ..the scale sometimes drop 3lbs overnight. BUT the few days after my body refuses to let go of another lb. Weight Training increases your metabolism. That's a fact. Cardio will too but not at the same rate. YOU DO need cardio though because it burns off more calories and thus it will greatly help maintain loss or help decrease weight.
Anyway..back to the issue... when you reach your goal..or near it increase both your cardio and weight training.
And yes......... As you burn the fat and replace it by MUSCLE..you will weight more ( a few lbs) BUT YOU WILL BE SMALLER. Because muscle weighs more but is more compact than fat!!!!!

If you have a 5'5" woman and man of comparable size. The man will be most likely heavier. They have more lean body mass than we do thus burn off faster than we do and lose weight faster than we do. It's all about the lean body mass.
And finally....women often are under the WRONG impression that they will look like ARNOLD if they weight train. NO YOU WON"T AND CANNOT!!!!!!!!!
Female body builder take MALE HORMONES. And don't forget that weight training also increases your bone density.

I did atkins before and all those low carb diets....these are not for me! They are a great way of living for Americans who eat way too much carbs and don't burn much because of lack of exercising. I rather transition into a moderate carb/moderate fat/high protein diet. For me, since I intend to exercise more than the 3x 30 min a week deal, I will need adequate carb intake. Good carb like brown rice, whole wheat pita and whole grain cereal. If I wasn't going to be VERY active. I'd stick to a low carb diet even though Low carb diets are way too de=hydrating for me. That's why the scale can go up 5lbs of weight gain over an apple ????? that's because It takes 2 grams of water to metabolise 1 gram of carb. So when you decrease your carb you lose a lot of water on top of FAT of course. So as soon as you eat something sweet on Atkins..the next day you're up several lbs. The water's back!

Any way..sorry for the boring long post....
Bottom line is combine cardio and weight training by working out 5 days a week when you reach your goal and you'll not only maintain but you'll be able to eat a little more than a non active person.


Nelly

[Sylvia]

Well, I'm totally with you on the exercise. I'm not really a refined carb person anyway - I actually like whole wheat, brown rice, etc., so that shouldn't be a problem and of course I will follow the MF transition plan.

I'm just concerned about how much I should really eat - I mean, let's face it - I haven't exactly been eating like a normal person for many years so I'm not sure I know how much of what I will be able to eat without gaining. I think I need a method to account for what I'm eating and tweak it until I'm "breaking even".

[RavenKat]

You can look up a BMR (basal metabolic rate) calculator on the web - it'll ask for your height, weight, age and maybe activity level. The result is the amount of calories needed to live (for the combination you specified). You could use this as a general guide for when you are done with transition.
My results say 1517 when I put in my goal weight. It sounds like a HUGE amount right no - but after 500 calories, what doesn't?

Kat

[explorthis]

Interesting - here is mine:

The Metabolism Results Are:
2070.3 calories per day is your Basal Caloric Rate. This is:
no more then 69.011 grams of fat (30%) for your Basal Caloric Rate
77.637 grams of protein (15%) for your Basal Caloric Rate
284.67 grams of carbohydrate (55%) for your Basal Caloric Rate


Here was the clincher – news flash at the bottom of the screen: WOW....

Based on personal experience:
To lose weight, you must eat less calories then your Basal Caloric Rate.
To gain weight, you must eat more calories then your Active Caloric Rate.
To stay the same weight, eat no less then you’re Basal Caloric Rate and no more then you’re Active Caloric Rate.

[Guest]

I dig You Sylvia!

I'm going to PM you a link. This is a fabulous link. You get to plug in measurements from several body part + height and weight. And it gives you a pretty accurate " LEAN BODY MASS WEIGHT". That's you devoid of every inch of fat.

Once you know what your lean body mass is then you can accurately calculate the correct calorie intake based on that lean body mass by using the " Katch-mcardle Formula". Just type this on the net and you'll find taht formula pretty easily.

So once you reach your goal. You should find out exactly how much lean body mass you have left on your body after all the weight loss and then calculate with the Katch-Mcardle formula how much calories you need. That formula takes in account your activity level as well.
That would give you an idea of what you should eat to maintain your weight. BUT remember that you will not be able to eat that amount of calories immediately. You have to get there gradually.

I hope this will help you.

Nelly

[elle4nelly]

Don't forget the most important point here.

NO one is going to be able to eat those caloric requirement listed right off the bat a day after transitioning. You'd gain weight quickly. Your body ahs to be transitioned over slowly. And because you lose lean body mass on any diet, it would require physical activity to bring up your metabolism to those caloric values.

Enough of me preaching exercises as one of the KEY tool for reving up your metabolism and maintaining healthy weight.
My last word is exercise when you reach goal or yo yo on.
And by exercise I mean ..sweat like you mean it!


Nelly

[Sylvia]

Thanks Nelly and thanks also for the link. I have read a lot about people who have lost significant weight and kept it off. The one thing they all have in common is regular and consistent exercise. Those who haven't kept it off seem to typically say they started gaining when they stopped exercising. So daily exercise is definitely in my plans.

I'm just worried about the food part of the equation. I'd like to get to a place where I can just eat normally, exercise regularly, and not gain weight, but something tells me I will always have to be on top of this...

[elle4nelly]

By the way Katz???

Off this subject for a minute...but ...1517 calories is nothing!!
I remember being horrified before starting Medifast when I attempted to lose weight the 1200 calories way. I got a calorie counter and discovered that a bagel from Cosi, Au bon Pain or any of these downtown places packed 500 to 600 calories!!!!!!!!!!!! hello????????????

I was soooooooo horrified. And 100 g of carbs. Imagine now adding light cream cheese and a skim milk cappuccino. By the time you get a sandwich for lunch. You've spent close to that 1500 calories.

This is CRAZY!!! I think the food industry is happy to get people FAT ..they probably have stocks in the diet industry. Make them fat and then drive them crazy with weight loss gidgets. Why would a bagel be 500 calories?? You're better off with a donut which is 250 calories or so!!

Then McDonald is soooooooo proud of their " White Meat Strips"...yeah okay??? At over 600 calories for that crap.... when the nutrition label on a bag of chicken strips bought in a grocery store goes like this 4 oz is 120 calories , 27 g of protein and 1 g of fat.

So why are the strips at McDonald 600 calories???
I think Sylvia...that YES...you will have to watch what you eat forever..I know I will!!!!!! They won't trap me anymore! I was a fool for these foodmakers. Not anymore!

Nelly

[DutchChoc]

Hi, everybody! I'm so glad to have a discussion about survival going on in my midst and thanks to each and every one of you for input and ideas.

Lois, I respect you for asking the question and for having considered the whole thing. No reason to hold back any thoughts here as it seems to me we all have good intentions and care about one another. Being able to be honest is good for our recoveries and for managing the emotional components of life.

I'd respond in these ways based upon the evolution and progression of my "fat life", without too much trivia interjected, hopefully. My "MO" is to range in the 150 - 170 range, rarely breaking below 150, and usually being able to commit to a diet when approaching the high end. I usually succeed very modestly before falling apart and eating whatever the heck I want until such time as I get worried again... worried enough to take another smack at things/my behavior. Each time, I feel certain that I have become a greater percentage fat -- and many studies seem to back my sense of that. So, this time, while I'm able to do so much better than usual, I really want to push the envelope and get as far as possible from that trainwreck that is my usual diet experience. In another analogy, this is like my convertible in mid-life, hoping to be able to have something either "again" or for the first time that I wanted but couldn't ever have, SEEMINGLY!!

I, too, think I'm somewhat reluctant to pat myself on the back and be glad I've done this well, and take true pleasure in the miracle that just this achievement has brought. I think this is probably the longest I've ever even been in the 130s in my life, and I'm thrilled about that, though I don't say it enough or even think it enough. This is a really good time for me, as weird as that it to contemplate. Are we real, as Mike says? Are we euphoric!!? That's what's good about this place -- we ARE!!

I think we can all be more perfect than we might think; some others would say that we already ARE more perfect than we think. I don't know which is the better perspective. I know that I've probably never thought I was "the best I could be". I'm not sure that I'll recognize it if I see it, either, but I'm still feeling like striving. Maybe it's the rapid (well, HUH??, in my recent experience) sense of things improving that keeps me hooked into thinking there are more "better" ways to be still coming -- so I want to keep going. I really don't know how this will end, but all of you will know as it changes for me.

Glad you're with me on this goal-approach, Sylvia. And Nelly will help us, too. There'll be others soon and we'll ALL be figuring it out and finding the right way(s). I'm pretty excited about the group we have, ALL OF US.

Re today, pretty good. Tomorrow is no work, yeah@!!! I can say that being in the presence of people with food might be increasingly hard for me, at least lately. I'm thinking more about "eating that" -- and I know that what I'm looking at is not transition food. It's like, frankly, body is putting up a greater fight about being fed. Which reminds me, Nelly, you're darn right about being hungry all day because I find that SO TRUE -- it's like the shakes have little to them sometimes, like eating soup, in a few minutes, one can be hungry all over again. I'm not unforgiving at times like that and I do have shakes more frequently.

Anyway, this is a great experience. I'm hoping to be down another pound tomorrow -- just a hair's width away from only 5 pounds to go. FWIW, I think the 5 pounds to go is actually secondary to having replaced 5 pounds of remaining flab with firmer tissue.

Oh yeah -- AND, get this, at Thanksgiving I will be needing my swimsuit in the presence of many of my critics (SO's family, once more) and I want nothing to feel bad about myself for. I must not backslide, so moving slowly ahead is fine with me as it takes up time -- and leaves less "time" for a loose caboose!! Take care, everybody.

[Lois]

Hey, DC

Glad to hear from YOU I appreciate what you've said, and I hope you know I'm behind you 100%. I think these issues are SO deeply personal for all of us, and I know I've got LOADS of baggage when it comes to being able to look in the mirror and actually SEE MY BODY AS IT IS, instead of some crazy projection (whether thinner or fatter) from years....even DECADES...ago!!! At any rate, I think that hearing from other, more objective sources often helps me in the process....but in the end, the choice is yours alone, and the reasons are yours alone.

Keep up the GREAT WORK.

love and hugs,

Lois

[DutchChoc]

Thanks, Lois. Most of us probably do have issues with being objective about ourselves here. After overeating or being sorry for what I eat/ate, I usually see myself as deteriorated in the mirror, like I've literally knocked myself down a peg and usually many pegs. When I don't like myself, like that, I then either think it's a fine opportunity to keep eating, almost as the means of achieving a sleepy stupor, or I just feel sad and desperate to feel OK again. I don't recall a time when I ever put myself on a fast like this or "decided" I wouldn't eat. I'm sure in the worst of time I'd be quite rebellious of getting back on the wagon.

Well, today is a good day. Used a steam vac I've had since last Christmas w/o ever using and found that it's wonderful... so now I can enjoy the rest of the day with work behind me. Might wander to the mall to look, but sometimes that seems overwhelming and I don't know if I want to get frustrated. Maybe I should just put myself to the test and "do it" and see if there's any fun involved. I rarely get to go by myself and look at what catches my eye.

Will check in later. MMMmmmmmm these shakes are good!

[Sylvia]

DC,

Definitely go to the mall! Just noticed you live in Northern VA. I moved from Manassas about a year and a half ago.

So what you should really do is take a beautiful drive out to Leesburg and go to the outlets there - some excellent stores and good prices to stock up on skinny clothes.

All I need is just a hint of an excuse to go shopping - can you tell?

S

[sudaoning]

oh abosolutely go to the mall dutch!

and this from someone who hates shopping!
i hate wandering through endless rows of garments, none of which fit my oversized body, and all of which are a blow to my self esteem.

on the other hand.........
i LOVE trying new things on my New body, being pleasantly surprised at the number of choices available!

Go and treat yourself to something nice!
You Have Earned IT!!!