How To Maintain Weight (After Reaching Goal)

Congratulations! You have made it to the magic number on the scale! You’ve worked really hard for it and you deserve those kuddos coming your way. You may be wondering about how to maintain that weight now. Read on. Some ways might seem second nature. Others might just surprise you!

After 3 decades of trying, I finally reached goal weight with the Noom Weight Loss Program. I was able to lose 50 pounds, and through the process, I learned a lot about myself. You can read about my experiences by reading my article, “Reaching Goal Weight After Years of Trying”. The whole idea with Noom is that this is not a diet, it’s a lifestyle change. You may have heard this one before, but it’s really not a cliche. They live and breathe this concept from Day 1 at Noom!

Continue To Set Goals In Maintenance

At Noom, we start the process of weight loss by defining “Your Big Picture”. It’s a goal setting process but we look at the whole “kit and kaboodle”. What will things look like when we get to goal weight? What will they look like beyond that? In life, there are always goals we can strive for-even in maintenance. We may reach our goal weight, but still have some struggling points along the way. We always have aspects of ourselves we can improve upon. Continuing to work at goals keeps our whole process alive. We are still living it daily by challenging ourselves. Keep your lifestyle front and center-continue to set goals. That is how to maintain weight.

Maintain A “Journey” Outlook

To look at your weight loss as something you will maintain for life you have to look at your life in maintenance as a continuing journey. There will be highs and lows, but things will even out. If you feel like getting to goal is the grand finale in your quest to lose weight, I hate to say it, but you will likely regain the weight and maybe more.

Have A Good Support System

Maintaining relationships with people who were (or are) on the same weight loss journey as you is invaluable. These people know how to maintain weight. These people understand your struggles and celebrate your successes. Much as you do for them. If you have a weight loss accountability buddy, keep them in your life. You can also join weight loss groups or people in maintenance groups who understand your circumstances in maintenance. Journey of Self Content’s Private Facebook Group, Rejuvenation Station is an example. Whether you are losing weight or on your health journey, you will always find people who are in the same circumstances and live the same struggles. Check us out! Keep these people in your loop and you will “keep on, keepin’ on”.

Keep Livin’ The Dream

I know that when you got to goal weight, you must have been doing something right. You probably stuck with it too because after awhile you liked it and it became second nature. So why change things up after maintenance? Maintaining your healthy eating habits and exercising just work hand-in-hand with a healthy lifestyle. If your mind is in a good place and if you mindful and self-aware of what is going on in your world why change it? You know the sayings. If the shoe fits wear it! If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I’m sure you have heard these things before. Your body has discovered its setpoint. Setpoint is the weight that your body is happy with. Setpoint could be less than what you set as your goal weight. It could be more. Trust your body in this case. It will tell you when it’s happy with all your efforts. Keep doing all the good and just enjoy the journey.

Remain Aware Of The Signs

Now, just because we reached our goal weight doesn’t mean that things and circumstances are going to be perfect from here on out. We aren’t living in a fairy tale. We will still have our ups and downs despite all the good we have done losing weight. Maintaining and practicing mindfulness is important. Meditating is an excellent way to build your mindfulness and awareness. When we are able to see the signs that things are going slightly adrift, we can pivot ourselves and make changes as they are needed. The ebbs and flows are a part of living. We have gained a healthy lifestyle and we know it’s worth hanging on to. Practice, practice, practice and you can make those slight pivots as necessary to get you back on track.

Give Priority To What’s Important

Be mindful of your priorities. Keep track of how much is required of you and your time. If you find yourself being spread too thin and your health is suffering because of it, take some time and revisit your schedule. The process of bullet journaling can bring all of your tasks to the forefront. It manages your tasks, makes you more productive, and makes you aware of just what is important and what is not. You find you can open up time to what is important and remove things from your life that are not. Consider bullet journaling for keeping your health planned as a priority.

In Closing

You may have read this article and wondered where all the talk was about what foods to eat, how much, and what about exercise anyway? The truth is, you have lost weight and achieved your goal weight. You know what to eat. You know you need to keep exercising. The hardest part of weight loss and maintenance is how to keep your mind engaged in it. How to handle the ups and downs that come with life and to manage your food in these circumstances.

Many of us are emotional eaters. The mind is a powerful thing and it has perhaps been winning the battle when it comes to giving into food cravings for many years in our lives, hasn’t it? Get your mind in the right place and what you already know about healthy eating and exercise will follow suit. Keep these above tips in mind and make them a part of your life. You can live healthy for life. Believe it!