From Hungry Girl
| Some say maintaining weight loss is harder than losing it in the first place, but it doesn’t have to be! Here are five go-to tips you can start using today… |
| 1. Re-evaluate your daily calorie budget. As your body weight drops, you need fewer calories to maintain your weight. So that daily calorie goal might need some tweaking. It’ll help you determine how many calories you need in order to lose, maintain, or gain weight. So helpful! |
| 2. Keep what worked. If you followed a weight-loss plan in order to reach your ideal weight, you probably have a good idea of what helped you hit that goal. Don’t throw out the good habits just because the weight-loss part is over! Incorporate the meals, snacks, and behaviors that made you feel great and satisfied. Whether it’s having frequent mini meals, packing giant salads for lunch, or always carrying smart on-the-go snacks, what worked for weight loss will work for weight maintenance. |
| 3. Embrace the 80/20 rule. Here’s the thing: If you try to live your entire life by a set of rigid dietary rules, you run the risk of burning out and giving up. Instead, just pick and choose your treats wisely. Make healthy choices the majority of the time, but loosen the reins every once in a while! This philosophy also makes it easier to recover from food splurges… Just get back on track; don’t beat yourself up! |
| 4. Be your own accountability buddy. You’re only hurting yourself if you stop paying attention to the scale or pretend your pants aren’t getting tighter. We’re not saying you have to weigh yourself daily, but it’s a good idea to hop on the scale and check in once a month or so. And while you don’t have to track every calorie, keep a loose log of your food intake so you know what you’re getting into… and what’s getting into you! |
| 5. Don’t stop rewarding yourself. It can be hard to find the motivation to stick to a smart-eating plan when you don’t have the encouragement of a shrinking number on the scale. But even if you’re not purchasing pants in a new size, that doesn’t mean you can’t give yourself little rewards for maintaining your health. Hit the gym three times in one week? Treat yourself to a brand-new workout tank! |
