Will I keep my weight off?

Question

Sounds like the answer is obvious, doesn't it?

I was 305 pounds, and am now 220. But I've started 'midnight snacks', usually at 3 a.m. I'm ravenous at that time. I try not to eat fattening foods, and (usually) manage to skip breakfast.

But I'm scared stiff of gaining the weight back. I'm afraid to get on a scale for fear that it will confirm my fears.

I'm a guy and realize that I'm power-sniveling. Girls usually have more practice and strategies for weight control.

Any suggestions?

Ted

cgiddings · Accepted Answer

Skipping breakfast is a big no no. I try to at least get a banana in before I head out the door.

Exercise is also paramount. See a trainer of fitness instructor and make sure you know what your anaerobic threshold is. That's the point at which your body begins using oxygen less efficiently and begins consuming beneficial nutrients instead of fat.

Once you know your AT you can concentrate on working out as close to, but still under that point so you burn the most fat.

Don't forget that muscle requires more nutrients to upkeep. If you build muscle you may gain some weight, but you'll burn more calories simply existing during the day.

Also talk to a dietician to ensure you're eating an appropriate collection of foods for YOU. Dieticians are certified just like doctors, "nutritionists" are not. A healthy diet combined with exercise is the only way to lose and keep those pounds off.

You should remove all the negative 'snack' foods in your house. By doing this you'll guarantee you won't binge on negative foods. By all means have an ice cream or candy bar now and then, but keep them sparce and you'll be fine.

When you go out to eat, have them box half the meal right away. This leaves you an extra meal later on with what is probably an appropriate portion size for you to consume. Ask for dressings and such "on the side." Doing so usually causes the restaurant to give you less of those fatty extras.

If you have roommates, let them know of your goals. If they're decent people they'll do what's reasonable to help you reach them. If they fail to cooperate some willpower may be needed on your part.

Late night snacks can be deadly to your weight loss needs. However, it sounds like you're snacking on light foods without a lot of calories. At least you're not reaching for the Dr. Pepper or the Oreos.

In closing, concentrate on creating a daily caloric surplus. Think of having a caloie budget for the day. You have X number of calories in your budget. Excersize earns you more calories and eating spends those calories. The more calories you have left at the end of the day, the higher probability you'll lose or maintain your weight.

This is a simplistic example of course. Other factors like healthy diet and such come into play, but it gets the idea across.

Good Luck!

WeaponZero · Accepted Answer

One of the hardest things for anyone who is trying to lose weight to understand is that losing weight requires LIFESTYLE CHANGES. The practices you fall into when you do whatever it is that caused you to lose the weight (great job BTW) are things you're supposed to keep following for the rest of your life otherwise yes, it is inevitable that you will gain weight back.

On the subject of breakfast: You should NEVER miss breakfast as it is the most important meal of the day. I know I sound like a stupid afterschool kids special on health but its the truth, because eating a hearty, satisfying breakfast is one of the MOST IMPORTANT things you can do to keep cravings under control throughout the day. I have found that when I skip breakfast completely or have too small of a breakfast I tend to overeat at lunch and dinner time and snack throughout the day, but when I eat a breakfast that leaves me feeling full and satisfied, I find it easy to go the day without snacking and I eat light lunches and dinners.

Kismett · Accepted Answer

Ok, well my boyfriends a personal trainer so I'll just tell you his thoughts on it. What you're supposed to do to maintain healthy eating is to cut your eating into 6 small meals during the day, every 2 hours have lean meat, in a sandwich or just by itself, throw apples and bananas in for a snack if you get too hungry. Never any huge meals. Try and buy only healthy food when you go out for groceries, beans, whole wheat bread, rice dream beats milk any day (tastes better too), tuna, low fat mayo if you ever use it, oatmeal, eggs. All of that is good just basically watch calories, and how much fat is in each thing you eat. You need to lose more calories during the day than you take in (you naturally lose calories by just sitting around or doing whatever during the day). Try and do some walking or running each day to help you out and speed up the weight loss. Swimming does wonders for weight loss as well, best cardio you can do, beats running, skipping, all of it. Also I'd say don't eat past 10, have your last meal at around 8 or 9 and cut it off. Drink 8 cups of water during each day, bring water bottles or whatever you need to keep drinking. That'll help losing weight as well. Good luck.

kmhco · Accepted Answer

Congrats on the weight loss. First thing you should fix--as many have already pointed out--is you should start eating breakfast. Skipping breakfast is the worst thing you can do if you are trying to loose weight/maintain a healthy weight. Try not to be afraid of the scale--after all it is just a number. Remember that if you check your weight regularly (once a week or more) you will be able to notice if you start to gain the weight back. That way you can "nip it in the bud" before you can get back to your original weight. I tend to get hungry at night, but I just go back to sleep and wait until breakfast to eat (usually I am not as hungry in the morning). I'm not sure if that is healthy or anything, but it works for me. How many meals are you eating each day? You should have a minimum of 3 meals but 5 is a good number to aim for as well. If you eat well during the day, I don't see why you should be starving at night. The most important thing is how your body feels, not what a number on the scale is.

lauren912 · Answer

you have to believe that you are not dieting but making a lifestyle change because by dieting you will just feel deprived and eventually lead to food binges

i also like to write down in a book of wht I ate all day so I can see if I'm getting off track with healthy eating habits, by writing it down you have to take responsibilty for what you ate and you can see patterns that are developing and stop it. (its from weight watchers)

obviously eat breakfast doesn't have to be as soon as you wake up it can b like an hr after. best things are fruit, yogurt, oatmeal

and you shud try to wear jeans or pants with belts so you can tell if things are fitting tighter than usual, and if you don't like the scale tht much try recording waste/chest/hips measurements

and the most important thing is exercise find something that you love like swimming/running/biking/martial arts/hockey etc and join a club/.team. I find by joing a team where I have a specific time to go I will go to it because I know people will acknowlege if I'm there or not, its a bit of a motivation that helps keep me active. good luck!

the-love-guru · Answer

First things first, it's ALL in the mindset! If you have a positive and healthy attitude, you'll do what it takes to keep the weight off. And secondly, GREAT JOB! That's a significant amount of weight.

I too struggle with the midnight munchies... it's terrible! The key is to eat a low fat, high protein snack. It will make you feel fuller for a longer period of time. But if you're like me, I crave carbs (sourdough bread- ALL day long). I like fiber supplements or mixes. Put a serving in a tall glass of water and drink. It turns semi-solid (making you feel full, it's healthy for you, and adds bulk to your bm's). also, try lowfat/ fat free yogurt. That's filling too.

Don't use the scale often. I go by how my pants fit. I'm muscular, so my pants will be baggy, but the scale says I've only lost 1 1/2 pounds. Don't let it get you down!

You can do it, just keep motivational pictures and sayings in clear sight. Make meals fun by trying new recipes with lots of different spices and colors. Make food something that you savor, not the enemy. Also ,NEVER skip breakfast. Doing so will lower your metabolism and lead to weight gain. Try egg white omelettes, peanut butter toast on whole wheat bread, or original oatmeal. It'll keep you fuller longer.

Best of luck!

CaptainFrost · Answer

Dude, do not skip breakfast

they call it the most important meal of the day for a reason.

You get your energy for the day with this meal.

skipping it will make you een more hungry throughout the day, making you eat more at

meal time and want snack more.

kudos on losing so much weight, its an achievement but don't let it go to waste.

when you do snack there are plenty of good tasting low fat things such as fruits and vegetables.

carrots, celery and homous are taste and good for you.

apple mango and pinapple strips are better than any candy bar and won't cause diabetes.

You have to cut out any foods that are considered 'junk' completely

we are so use to cookies , potato chips, chocolate bars that it has become normal to have them all the time in our society. These manufactured products are not natural and not good for you.

General exercise will also help burn calories. 1one 20 minute jog per day can help keep the weight down.

Weight training can help too. Building muscle increases the rate at which calories are burned off as well as make you look more fit and attractive.

Anonymous · Answer

www.weightwatchers.com

Go to weight watchers it helped me lose around 90lbs. but keep it up and go to the meetings even when you have lost the weight or else you could regain the weight. Support is so important when losing weight. It worked for me and it can work for you!

there are "Men Only" classes if you don't want to go to regular classes but no-one will pass any remarks off you in the normal class. everyone is in the same situation as you. they want to lose weight and that's that. there's no judgment, you're weighed in private in a corner of the room so only you and the leader know your weight. its €10 per week (maybe that's $12 I honestly don't know sorry because I'm in the usa) but once you lose the weight you stop paying as long as you stick to within 5lbs of your goal weight.

You can still have your "treats" in moderation so there is no need to snack at night anymore either!

there are some great recipes and forums on the website to get you started. if you type in where you live, it'll give you a list of meetings near you. you can do it online but I found I needed the weekly weigh-ins to stay on track and on target to my goal weight. You've already lost a lot of weight so you have a lot of determination and willpower. You clearly can do something once you've put your mind to it so check out weight watchers now to keep the weight off for good.

and no I don't work for weight watchers just in case I sound like a pr person lol! this has been my experience of losing weight with them.

helllllointernet · Answer

Don't skip breakfast!

Sometimes when I get cravings to eat late at night, I'm not actually hungry, I'm just bored. I always have lots of bottled water on hand and little individual packets of crystal light mix. I mix up a bottle of crystal light and that usually makes any cravings go away. The activity (making the drink) and then being able to sip the drink while I use the computer/tv/phone/whatever usually kills my boredom as well.

My dad told me about this idea, and he's lost about 20 pounds using it in combination with watching what he eats.

timberlake · Answer

first off, don't skip breakfast. it's real important to get your breakfast in. as far as snacking goes, make sure the most accessible things to eat are healthy. get the junk out of your house if you have to. I buy packs of apple slices and 80 calorie yogurts and I also have cubes of grilled chicken breast *lean stuff* and leave them in a small bowl for midnight snacking urges, that way I don't feel too guilty. I mean, I think it's kinda hard to not snack, but I don't snack as much at night because I usually follow through with my meals and snacks during the day, so I can go to bed and stay there.

besides, if you feel bad about snack, spend an extra 15 minutes in the gym or take a longer walk/jog/run. that's what I do :)

strotter4 · Answer

if you're going to skip a meal... make it dinner.. breakfast should be huge... as you burn calories throughout the day... and very few while you sleep... but, I don't recommend skipping meals at all... eating properly helps boost metabolism and properly means right food groups 3 times a day... breakfast lunch and dinner... and you have to maintain a workout... cardio three four times a week will maintain... usually... but if you want to cut more weight and tone up you'll have to do more than that... much more... you've got to want it... and gaining weight is a mental thing... if you don't want it to happen... don't let it... it's your body... take control of it

pk123 · Answer

The point about not skipping breakfast has been mentioned...

One thing to ask yourself is why you are keeping late or inconsistent hours of sleep. These themselves correlate with weight gain. If you can get into an early to bed early to rise pattern, it will help your health overall.

The next thing is to figure out whether your hunger is just hunger or is more particularly psychological. Have large amounts of low calorie food such as carrots or celery on hand for late night snacking; refuse yourself anything but those and water. See if these are cravings, munching when bored, etc.

You must be honest at all times. Get on the scale. You owe it to yourself for all the progress you have made.

KhloeMaddison · Answer

you eat late at night because you skip breakfast in the morning. people who eat breakfast in the morning weigh less and its a jump start on your metabolism. eat five small healthy meals a day. also, eat things such as egg whites and chicken, lean protein. it keeps you full and helps burn calories.

akaroy · Answer

Ted,

I'm a dude too and in very good shape as you can see from my profile picture. The trick to keeping the weight off is not a mystery. You need to change your eating habits. Start by having breakfast, then every 2-3 hours eat another small meal. Cook your own food and break it up into individual portions. Appetizer size. I eat around 6-8 meals a day. The constant consumption speeds up metabolism. Also your body gets use to being fed and doesn't harbor fat. Keep in mind that any starch is a carbohydrate and turns into sugar in your body. Your body will always burn sugar first before fat. Lastly, eating a small meal every 2-3 hours keeps me full enough so I don't snack.

Go to the gym. Get on some cardio equipment and don't eat anything before you go. This way there will be no sugar in your system and your body will burn the fat. Start slow and just walk on a slight incline on the treadmill. Do it for 30-40 minutes 3-4 times a week.

Anonymous · Answer

Don't eat late at night. Unless you have weird schedule where you are up and active at night and sleep during the day, all those calories you ingest will be stored as fat while you sleep. So if you keep that up you may gain weight.

Skipping breakfast is not a good thing. That can lower your metabolism for the rest of the day and make you more likely to eat badly later in the day. Breakfast is the most important meal, even if you only have juice and oatmeal it's better than nothing.

Don't be afraid of gaining the weight. Step on the scale because it gives you a track of where you're headed. Even if you've gained weight you can always lose it. You've lost 85 pounds - pat yourself on the back you did a great job! Say you gain 5 or 10 pounds, yes that's disappointing but nothing compared to what you've lost so you can always lose it again. Plus looking at the scale can make you more aware of your weight so all of a sudden 30 pounds won't creep up on you.

prismatic · Answer

Run. Go for runs. Go for walks. Exercise. Wake up, EAT A HEALTHY BREAKFAST. Maybe fruit or cereal idk, and than take a walk. a long walk. take two everyday.

its not the food you eat, but HOW MUCH YOU EAT and HOW MUCH YOU EXERCISE. trust me.

PORTIONS AND EXERCISE are key on weight control. Whenever you feel bad about your weight, do sit ups! Or go for a walk. These are the most beneficial things you can do.

Reeses-pieces777 · Answer

and www.nutritionhouse.com are a few helpful sites for weight loss. best of luck. I'm trying to lose 10 pounds myself so I know how hard it can be to lose weight.

spartan_lady117 · Answer

DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST! that is the most important meal, not only does it get your mind awake it stimulates and gets your metabolism going, and snacking is not a bad thing. its a great thing to keep your metabolism running and burning faster, just  DO NOT eat cereal as a midnight snack, that is the worse thing to eat at that time.

nermalinda · Answer

I personally think it's just fine to eat at night. If you're getting really hungry, it means your blood sugar is going down and your body needs food. Try eating something high protein before bed, like some chicken, with some healthy fat like olive oil, and that should keep your blood sugar stable through the nite. If you do get hungry, then have a huge salad or a giant plate of vegetables. No one ever got fat from eating too much broccoli :)

pearl1979 · Answer

Watch the fat intake-If its a healthy midnight snack its cool. Its ok to eat junk in moderation. Eat raw vegetables  through out the day. Protein shakes are good to drink b4 eating a meal helps curb ur appetite.

Bombshell13 · Answer

DO NOT SKIP BREAKFAST. It's fine to eat late at night if you are really hungry not just bored snacking. Try having protein or slimfast shakes on hand, they're low calorie and will keep you full for four or five hours.

dollface100 · Answer

firstly...eat breakfast...its the most important meal of the day and if you eat a nutritious enough breakfast it will stop you from snacking...eat a low fat whole wheat cereal with skimmed milk, with maybe a piece of fruit or a yoghurt. if you're eating low fat nutritious foods and exercising enough...even walking for 30 mins to an hour a day you will keep the weight off...the midnight snacking will not happen if you're eating the right foods and sleeping properly.

Hope this helps

The-Dude-Next-Door · Answer

eat as much as you want, but eat fat free foods. Eat vegetables. Eat a lot of fiber. Celery actually has a negative calorie value. It takes more energy to digest it than what you get back from it.

valo712 · Answer

yes join a gym and work out if not ride a bike go do a trail skateboard surf  go run have lots of sex  ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm just work out and don't eat at night drink water instead

Bam_dice · Answer

do workout and take hydrocut and take creatine. You will lose a lot and gain muscle. that sh*t is unreally :)

koolgirl345 · Answer

It's okay to snack at midnight just eat something healthy and low in calories & sugar :)

Anonymous · Answer

Green tea helps to control cravings. No sugar of course. I don't eat after 5 p.m. and believe me I am starving at 10, so I drink jasmine tea or japanese matcha. Try it, it works miracles.

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