Congratulations! We both know how much willpower, work and commitment it takes to make it to this point, now the most important thing is to maintain that weight by using a combination of right diet and exercise and good mental attitude.

 Maintaining weight is very important because experience shows that most dieters regain a third of what they lost within the first year and two-thirds of it in the second year.  It’s important to understand what is needed here; it is really a matter of energy balance!  But know also that the hardest part is now over, because maintaining weight is actually easier, not harder, than losing it. 

 At this point it’s important that your lifestyle is balanced and you want to avoid all unnecessary stress that could cause old habits to surface again.  Success in gaining, losing, or maintaining weight is dependent upon a combination of factors; I always used to say that losing, gaining or maintaining weight is a result of the “freedom from the obsession and compulsion to eat,” not the other way around, but there is more to it.  You also need to establish some important new routines in your life, because the main thing is to keep exercising and burn calories each day.  This is your magic formula from now on:”best approach is to ensure that one’s physical activity level is high enough to balance the number of calories consumed”.

 You know those weight charts? I bet you do, where your weight ranges are shown in the chart and people of the same height may have equal amounts of body fat but different amounts of muscle and bone…  Don’t look at them too much now, go after your own gut feeling and your good friend; the mirror! There are also many weight loss groups and organizations if you feel you need support, remember that this is an intimate personal and difficult struggle, but it’s not one that anyone needs to go through alone.  In this modern world weight loss has become an essential objective for several people, but only a few are succeeding in their task.  You have gone through that already, but know that for many, weight gain or regain is embarrassing, and seeking help is delayed.  If you join a group and your situation is monitored weekly, the purpose of this assessment is to provide an evaluation and recommendations for maintaining a healthy weight based on your individual needs.

 We are all different, groups can be helpful but they are not for everyone.

 One of my students recently said; “I’ve struggled with weight issues for most of my life, and aside from the occasional slice of molten chocolate cake, I finally have it under control.  Now I basically follow a group point system and strive to keep my dry carb intake to a minimum”. 

 For her it’s ok to do it alone, but she is using a weight chart every week.

 Health

 I think everybody agrees nowadays that the key to losing weight is to burn more calories than are consumed, either by increasing physical activity or consuming fewer calories – or preferably both.  Health professionals judge a low-calorie sweetener to be of benefit for weight control. 

 What are the dangers at this point when you are in a situation where the main battle is won, but you look for safe and healthy ways to maintain your situation?

 Usually they are psychological issues. How balanced we are emotionally and how we can see ourselves in a new positive light. It’s very important to be aware of the potential purposes of anger, how anger impacts health, and learn assertive methods of dealing with anger.  Health and fitness experts all know this and the most recent research related to emotional and physical health has found that there are pitfalls and the old feelings might come back from time to time. Feelings of unworthiness fear of rejection, bad self image etc.

 These feelings can be triggers – for bad habits again – so it’s very important to stay alert, that is why I always recommend some kind of group or/and family and friend support.

 Now that you have come this far, make it even better! You probably see now that anything is possible, you only need a positive attitude and you are ready to recreate yourself.

 Visit also my blog where I give every week new tips and strategies for all kinds of weight loss situations.

 Good luck and stay fit!

First some rules: use less fat and sugar and when preparing food always use vegetable oil.  Minimize all products which contain fat cheese.  For bread, eat only rye bread.  Make all your portions smaller.  Avoid juices and soft drinks; drink only water and fatless milk.  Eat in intervals of three to four hours between meals and eat small portions. Eat lots of vegetables, fruits and berries.  Don’t eat pasta or rise and allow yourself only one feast-meal per week.  Exercise up to five times in a week, an hour or an hour and a half at the time.

This means that it’s very important to avoid all industrial vegetable fats and carbonates.  Instead use butter and other good oils like olive oil.  If you eat cheese, I recommend non -fat cottage cheese.  Potato which is starch should be left out of your diet altogether.

Also leave out all white breads, donuts and cakes. Switch macaronis and pasta to rye and oat pasta, because they contain more fiber. I recommend counting calories in the beginning, because some weight loss programs have too low calorie-content recommendations, and this is dangerous in the long run. Count your normal calorie consumption and try to eat 500 calories less per day.

Here’s a great tip for any weight loser; drink 2 liters water per day and you will be amazed how the feeling of hunger will go away by only drinking water.  You will find that after one week your weight is going down and you don’t have a feeling of hunger.  It is always healthy to drink lots of water, so there’s nothing risky in this method, water will also purify your whole system.

Recognize all calorie bombs even before you eat them!  Losing weight is not about eating less, it is about eating wisely and be knowledgeable about what you put in your mouth. To be able to lose weight intelligently you need to eat enough, otherwise you might lose it from wrong places.

Following the above recommendations will make you lose weight – guaranteed. 

But you need to be strict and persistent with your diet.  If you try to lose weight too fast, it can be dangerous to your health, you don’t want to lose your muscle material when you diet.  I recommend using a good program that is proven to be healthy and consult only people who have experience in this field.  Remember that your diet should consist of enough vegetables, fibers, water and proteins.  When following a proven program, your weight will go down because your adipose tissues are going to be reduced. There are some effective programs on the market that promise fast results but losing muscle and all water from your body is not permanent weight loss, it is yo-yo weight loss, because you will gain it back in few weeks. Go the healthy way and you will be able to lose weight and maintain the results.

Let’s concentrate first on eating; there is a reason why we eat – the main reason should be only hunger, but there can be also emotional reasons for eating. It is very important to face any emotional eating issues. This may be as simple as identifying alternative activities or as intensive as seeking professional help. Feeling depressed, negative self image, negative response from other people can trigger eating-protection-system which leads to weight gain. You just got to get over this habit, because it will render all your other efforts useless.

If you try to follow a super strict diet and have an “all or nothing” attitude, it will turn to “nothing” in 99% of time. I have always taught my students to be patient and love themselves. Being too hard on oneself is going result in an explosion sooner or later and all that was lost is gained very fast. If you try a diet that rely on one type of food or cut out entire food groups, it’s simply going to be too hard to stick to and also very unhealthy in the long run. Ask anyone who tried the green tea diet or similar programs.

 There is an old proverb: “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. This is so true, and therefore whatever you do, don’t skip your breakfast! A balanced good breakfast will get your metabolism going and help you from getting too hungry and overeating through the day.

Don’t try to cut down too many calories in the beginning; your body needs to adjust slowly to new changes. Reduce your calorie intake is the key to weight loss, but if you try to cut too many, you won’t lose weight at all thanks to the metabolism’s “starvation” mode. As I have said on my blog and my recommended programs and articles; count your normal daily calorie intake (before diet) and try to reduce it by 500 calories per day.

If you are very strong mentally, you can probably do whatever you like without support, but most of us need some sort of shoulder to lean on from time to time. This is especially true in weight loss. We need a friend to talk to about problems and we need them to support us in our efforts in life. We need to talk to someone about the dilemmas that losing weight brings us. If you think about it, one of your motives is how others look upon you. If you are alone on a deserted island, you would not care about weight loss so much would you? Of course there are other important reasons also, but don’t be alone, talk to people and find someone who listens to you and preferably has gone through the same struggle before.

Keep a food diary and write down what and how much you used to eat and how much you eat now. Make a habit of writing down everything what you have eaten during the day; you will be surprised how much this will affect your overall mission.

People tend to set unrealistic goals for themselves and then they feel bad when they fail meet them. If your body is used to certain amount of sugar a day, don’t cut it all off immediately. Cut it to half first and in one week or two weeks cut it to half again. This way you let your body time to adjust to changes and everything feels more natural and easy. You have to have a goal; you want to lose a certain amount of weight, but don’t try to be too hard on yourself.

Exercise is recommended for every dieter, but if you are not used to exercise, you have to start slow here also. Start simple and increase slowly for best results.

Have one feast meal per week! Eating is also important; it gives us feeling of well being and happiness. So even if you are on a diet, enjoy one feast meal per week for your overall balance. 

Focus & Dedication
The weight loss program requires your focus and dedication. So you need to be physically and mentally prepared. It is highly advised that you visit your doctor for a check-up before embarking on any weight loss program.

It is important that when starting on any weight loss program, you should be positive enough to work for the results. Do not get impatient easily. Long-term weight loss effects are assured as long as one sticks to the weight loss plan at hand.

Stretch, stretch and stretch!
Before exercising and working out the muscles, a little stretching is needed to avoid any injury or soreness.

It is also not advisable for anyone to try too hard. Everything should be done in moderation. Find the level of exercise and training that suits you. It should be enough for you to be comfortable but not too convenient that it will not be much of a challenge.

The First Week
The first day of the weight loss program involves a long and steady walk in a little over twenty minutes. After the walk, follow it up with a good stretch. In less than an hour, you have taken that first step to a weight loss program that could work to your advantage.

By the second day, it is good to focus on an upper body workout. This maintains your strength to be able to go through the whole weight loss program for the week.

On the third day, go for a brisk walk or jog for ten minutes. For beginners, a lower body workout should be done in the evening.

On the fourth day, a good rest and good stretch is in order. This lag time should be used wisely though to sort out any negatives in your mindset.

The fifth day starts with a good 10-minute walk. Exercise the lower body in four sessions of workouts, follow this up with another 10-minute walk, and another four sessions of lower body workout.

The sixth day should be spent on a low impact exercise such as swimming. Always try something new if you get bored easily.

The last day of the week is a time to solicit the support of the people you care about. Spend time with them or get them to be with you in your long walk. Again, follow up your walk with a light upper body workout.

This is just the beginning. If by this first week you are able to stick to the weight loss program, you have a great chance to boost your weight loss and stay with the plan until you achieve the desired result.

Patience is a virtue. The same way it took your body time to gain all that weight, think about it as the time your body will have to exert just to get rid of it.