Maintenance Weekly 3rd April 2006 - Balancing on Three Legs

[Mitra]

Weight control over the long haul is like a three-legged stool: one leg is carb intake, one leg is calorie intake, and one leg is calorie output. As long as all three legs are stable the stool will balance, but if one of them breaks, the stool will fall. So it is with the balance you'll find in maintenance. Even after you've advanced through to your carbohydrate maximum, your game plan must remain flexible.

Michael R Eades, MD & Mary Dan Eades, MD
Staying Power

This is a nice image to remind us that both our carb tolerance and calorie requirements are likely to reduce if our exercise/activity levels change. None of it is engraved on tablets of stone. There's not really a lot for me to say about this - I just liked the image, and found it a useful reminder.

If you like to do a weekly or monthly check in to help keep your maintenance on track, this is the place to do it.

Nothing's changed for me in the last month - which is good, but I'm afraid doesn't make for a very interesting report ;).

How are the rest of you getting on?

[Relief]

i do like that image too, and have found it to be very true as well. Once you have your metabolism under control via carb control, then the calorie equation can become very critical.

I am doing well. I went through 2 thyroid cycles as decribed last week and seem to have found a dosage that is stable...at least for now!;) Am down 1 pound from last report!!!!
I finally wrapped my head around needing to watch intake calories (again). I'm shooting for 1200;probably get closer to 1400;which is a good bit lower than the 1800 that i usually consume if I just go my merry way! I am truly sweet obsessed. if I stop paying attention I find myself making choices to eat sweet things at the expense of real food. All low carb of course, and made with nuts and good ingredients they are certainly more nutricious than real world counterparts but still--they come with heavy calorie pricetags and are not as nutrient dense as....oh say, a nice cut of steak:D

I wish I could figure out exactly what happens--inside one's head I mean-- when you make the switch from thinking about or talking about or saying you need to do something--be it eat differently or exercise or whatever--and actually doing it . I know there is a real switch that happens between the day ( or weeks!) I am thinking about needing to make a change and even SAYING I'm going to make a change and then the day I wake up and KNOW that I am going to do it. And from that moment, suddenly it isn't a struggle at all--where before it was just NOT happening. Various writers and philosophers have called it different names--making the decision--true commitment whatever but I know when it has really happened--it is almost like a click in my brain, and I will go from half hearted attempts to easy, this is just the way it is, no effort, right choices.
If you could really figure out how to help others find the click --whew, millions baby!!! Shoot, if I could figure out what makes the click happen in ME, I'd feel better.--it seems random when it happens and when it doesn't, but there are probably certain thought processes and steps that I'm going through to get there that I'm not conscious enough of to duplicate at will.
Anybody know how it works for them?

[Mitra]

I don't know how it works, but I know what you mean - I went through all of that stuff developing an exercise habit. The one thing I hung on to was to keep trying - to keep starting again no matter how many starts it took. But I don't know what made the difference in the end.

On the sweets question, that's one of the reasons I avoid artificial sweeteners - it's not that I think moderate quantities of them will do me any harm, but that they allow me to think I can eat things that I actually need to keep a tight lid on. As long as I use full carb sweeteners, I know I have to both keep the sweetness down and keep the portion size down. Even so, some things just aren't a good idea. I tried out a brownie recipe, that worked out about 6g carb per piece after a bit of tinkering. I know that's manageable, but when I tasted it, not only was it not the nirvana of my imagination, but it had that quality of making me want to keep having just a bit more. Bad news! I threw most of it out, and won't be making it again. I'm not really a NEAN-er, the foods I really do steer clear of are those more-ish ones. There are just some things I want to keep on eating, when sometimes, I don't even like them very much. The chocolate protein bar was one of those - I thought it tasted weirdly chemical, while my hand just kept going back for a bit more. That one ended up in the bin too. I'm not sure what it is that gives some foods that compulsive quality (though I know it's something manufacturers strive for).

[Shadow]

Gosh - I can so relate to what both of you are saying :p! Like Deborah, I tend to go for the lc sweets instead of more wholesome foods :o. And like Janet, I have a problem with wanting more of certain things, even if they're not that good to begin with :rolleyes:. Definitely something I need to work on :eek:!

Thanks, Janet, for the reminder about the 3-legged stool. I think that's the biggest reason I keep up my exercise schedule - because otherwise, I have to cut kcals and I just don't wanna go there ;).

[mcsblues]

Hey Janet, do you want to post that Staying Power quote in the Energy Balance thread? - because it is exactly what I am talking about (and seems to contradict at least part of what they were quoted saying in PPLP!:p) Anthony Colpo would say "of course!" http://www.oasisinet.com/forum/images/smiles/icon_lol.gif

I do limit AS - but I must admit I have been experimenting with erythritol - which has the merit/danger of looking/tasting/behaving just like caster sugar. Even though I am pretty much past the carving for the 'real thing' stage I do have to limit baked and dessert type things due to the extra calories they bring. But beyond that, I really need to be careful with real low carb foods such as cheese and cream and nuts - I am having a few weeks with very little of any of them (although I do make an exception for home made yoghurt).

The only carby things I still have an issue with are fruits - I am sort of toying with the idea of eating more paleo (only fruits in season) but even with what is in the garden, the fruit season is pretty long!

The secret with exercise I think is not to make it a chore. Yes I feel better when I have done some weights as I do after a long sail, a bush walk or a game of tennis - but I think just focusing on being more active generally will ensure that the rest will follow rather than attempting to force a particular schedule.

[Mitra]

Malcolm, I see you managed to cut and paste the quote yourself :).

I'll be away for a long weekend with my parents, and can't guarantee internet access - any volunteers to start a thread on Monday?

[banshee]

Mitra, I have a thought I've been cogitating on today that I think would be a good thread for next week. If no one else has stepped forward, I'll try to remember to post it on Monday. (Sunday if I remember to get on the computer...)

[Mitra]

That would be great. Thank you.