I’m closing in on my goal weight: about 5lb to go. I’m wondering what to adjust so that I maintain rather than keep losing; I’ve been OMAD for just over a year and have lost >50lb. I’m considering an abdominoplasty (I’ve got a post-partum flap of skin where the kids used to live), so it’s crucial I don’t gain the weight again.
What did you find worked for you?
after a year of omad and losing 78lbs, i was 3 lbs away from my GW and decided two meals a day would be okay.
nope, that turned into uncontrollable snacking before i knew it, and two years later i was 14lbs above my SW. now i’ve finally gotten back to IF.
going to two meals a day definitely did NOT work.
Exercise, stay vigilant, continue to fast as needed? The sad fact is that overweight people have a messed up metabolism even when they lose all the extra fat, and that makes it hard to maintain. Someone who lost fat is going to have a slower metabolism than another person at the same weight and height who was never fat to begin with. Fasting helps prevent a greater slowdown (compared to regular old calorie counting) but there will still be an effect on your metabolism. That’s why there are so many people who regain once they relax.
You have to lose three or four more pounds than your goal weight to stay at your goal weight, because once you relax and go into maintenance mode (same eating structure but now you can have bread), you’re going to put back on the water weight from the beginning.
Then, eventually you have to decide what’s next. Just still IF, back to normal eating, somewhere in between.
Sounds like, from the other comments that you know you have to stay on top of the situation and weigh in and be cognizant of calories.
Do you count your calories? I count along with IF and my chronometer shows me my maintenance calories vs my deficit (roughly, of course) so I just plan on upping my calories to maintenance and strength training until I die basically. I’m about 8lbs away from my goal. I’ve lost 110ish and need to build muscle again because (like you) there’s some skin that doesn’t currently look amazing lol.