Experiment of One - Current

A fellow Forum Member  wrote:
 

"My calorie count needs to stay at 1200 to lose
and it has been averaging 1500.
So for now the only thing I know to try is cutting back to 2 meals a day.
This may be an every other day thing...we'll see.

At any rate I am now 12 lbs. over the top BMI for normal weight range
and have gained 8 lbs. over the summer. This can't go on."
 

What is described here is a common occurrence for those of us with older bodies who have lost and are working to maintain weight-loss. People who track their food... even during "bad" times ... can actually SEE this happening. Actually SEEING it is rather unusual, because most people in this position "give-up" and don't track, begin eating more, and regain all of their lost weight.

I am working on this same issue right now. It is very difficult to continually eat a calorie average low enough
to maintain weight-loss. I find that ..for me.. doing EXTRA exercise burns very little calories. and makes me very hungry so I wind up eating more than I've burned.

  For the past 4 weeks, I've been running another experiment with an Alternate Day Eating type of plan. My plan is more of a zig-zag, calorie cycling plan rather than one of Intermittent Fasting because I'm still eating all throughout every day... only I'm having smaller portion, lower-calorie meals totaling about half the calories on alternate days.

Success for me would be to average losing 1/4 to 1/2 lb weekly,  and get back into the blue area of my Weight Maintenance Range, (and this year I raised my maintenance range to make it run 5 lbs higher).

Due to water-weight-swings etc. it is impossible to judge weight-loss success in such a plan except over quite a lengthy time period. My stabilized weight is running about 3 lbs less than it was 4 weeks ago, but most of that drop came in the first week, and it is too soon to see whether this plan will cause weight-loss. It is also too soon to tell whether or not such a plan will be sustainable for me.