Am taking two weeks off to just relax it and get away from the scale. I also have decided to allow myself a bit more food. I don't accept to lose any weight but hope not to put on as my exercise will remain the same about two hours a day ? Do you think it can be a good thing ?

Well Sam..here's the problem with this. You are rewarding yourself by staying off the scale and eating more. I think this is a big problem we all have. Making food a good/bad thing. Yes...I know that most of us think of food as forbidden fruit. But we need to think of it as just food and not give it the power we do by making how and what we eat, the indicator of whether or not we are 'good' or 'bad'.

I see it all the time...I was good this week, or I was bad this week and we always know the reference is how we ate and what the scale shows.

How about instead of giving yourself permission to eat more, you just go ahead and do it...if you are hungry. And if you are not, don't eat more. I know that I am trying so hard to not make this all about the food. Not easy as I am a foodaholic but I'm trying. If I graze one day, I try not to beat myself up over it. If I know I haven't eaten mindlessly, I feel that I did well from a food perspective only. I don't try to make a big deal over it and work on making sure the day does not change based on how I'm eating.

This may not be the response you were expecting or hoping for but I really do believe that for most of us, food is so wrapped up in our emotional selves that it's hard to treat it in an ambivilent way. It's one of the reasons why I see a professional every week. I need to talk about my emotional stuff rather than transfer it to how and what I eat.

I'm understanding I will likely never be blasé about food but I'm trying to work on giving up all the control it has over me.

Well Sam..here's the problem with this. You are rewarding yourself by staying off the scale and eating more. I think this is a big problem we all have. Making food a good/bad thing. Yes...I know that most of us think of food as forbidden fruit. But we need to think of it as just food and not give it the power we do by making how and what we eat, the indicator of whether or not we are 'good' or 'bad'.I see it all the time...I was good this week, or I was bad this week and we always know the reference is how we ate and what the scale shows.How about instead of giving yourself permission to eat more, you just go ahead and do it...if you are hungry. And if you are not, don't eat more. I know that I am trying so hard to not make this all about the food. Not easy as I am a foodaholic but I'm trying. If I graze one day, I try not to beat myself up over it. If I know I haven't eaten mindlessly, I feel that I did well from a food perspective only. I don't try to make a big deal over it and work on making sure the day does not change based on how I'm eating.This may not be the response you were expecting or hoping for but I really do believe that for most of us, food is so wrapped up in our emotional selves that it's hard to treat it in an ambivilent way. It's one of the reasons why I see a professional every week. I need to talk about my emotional stuff rather than transfer it to how and what I eat.I'm understanding I will likely never be blasé about food but I'm trying to work on giving up all the control it has over me.

I do agree with you but in the back of my mind I feel that if increase my food intake it will boost my heart rate and thus lose more weight afterwards.

I do agree with you but in the back of my mind I feel that if increase my food intake it will boost my heart rate and thus lose more weight afterwards.

My experience has been that eating more, NEVER, EVER, EVER caused me to lose more weight.

Boosting my heart rate by cycling, running caused me to lose more.

Why not make an appointment with your NUT to go over your plan and talk about your goals. Maybe your NIT has some ideas for how to reach your goals in a healthy way.

I would agree with the others in that eating more does not result in weight loss, especially if you are taking a vacation from the scale. The times in life I have gained are the times I stopped weighing myself. If we're being honest, are you sick of dieting and sick of not seeing the number change so you want a little vacation from the entire process and convincing yourself eating more and not getting on the scale is the way to feel better, if not physically, then emotionally? I can understand that, but a spade is a spade. If you want to lose weight, my experience has been to keep at it every single day, otherwise it is very easy to slip back into old habits. It looks like you've already lost a lot of weight, so you're doing well. If you feel like you need more calories, it doesn't hurt to try that, but weigh yourself everyday so you can see if it's causing weight gain. This way in 2 weeks you'll either know you can eat more food and be fine or you'll know you can't, but you won't get on the scale and hate life because suddenly you gained 10 pounds that now you need to lose all over again.

I totally understand about needing a mental break from the effort it takes to stay on track. I also try not make my life about food, but I find it exhausting to stick to my "new" way of living. Old habits die hard, and I'm used to eating what I want, when I want, and in any quantity I want. I can't imagine ever not fighting that battle. Having to fight my natural tendency wears me out some days, and other times, not so much. That's why they say it's hard work.

Once in a while, I take a little break - for a day or two. But I still track everything I put in my mouth and stay on the scale. The break I'm giving myself is to allow a little grazing, and eat whatever I want, and just know that it's temporary. Then I don't like the way I feel physically, and am happy to go back to the restricted, careful eating plan that is now my life. I guess this my new way - always track, mostly make good choices, and allow myself some flexibility when I need it.

So I understand what you mean and what you are suggesting, but it is a slippery slope. I worry about two weeks - I'd be off the rails if I did that. What about a meal or day or special event?

Sounds like a slippery slope. I would just keep working your program.

My very recent experience with "relaxing" for four days has robbed me of the ease I previously felt walking away from foods that hold no nutritional value. For 10 weeks I was able to look at sweets and think, "that looks good but I don't feel like I have to have it" and walking away. I know I'm a newbie in comparison but I really thought I was in better control already. I thought a few bites of dessert and breads over four days would be no big deal. It took me two days beyond those four days to realize I was craving and thinking about sweets for the first time since surgery. I personally wish I hadn't even gone there.

Well Sam..here's the problem with this. You are rewarding yourself by staying off the scale and eating more. I think this is a big problem we all have. Making food a good/bad thing. Yes...I know that most of us think of food as forbidden fruit. But we need to think of it as just food and not give it the power we do by making how and what we eat, the indicator of whether or not we are 'good' or 'bad'.I see it all the time...I was good this week, or I was bad this week and we always know the reference is how we ate and what the scale shows.How about instead of giving yourself permission to eat more, you just go ahead and do it...if you are hungry. And if you are not, don't eat more. I know that I am trying so hard to not make this all about the food. Not easy as I am a foodaholic but I'm trying. If I graze one day, I try not to beat myself up over it. If I know I haven't eaten mindlessly, I feel that I did well from a food perspective only. I don't try to make a big deal over it and work on making sure the day does not change based on how I'm eating.This may not be the response you were expecting or hoping for but I really do believe that for most of us, food is so wrapped up in our emotional selves that it's hard to treat it in an ambivilent way. It's one of the reasons why I see a professional every week. I need to talk about my emotional stuff rather than transfer it to how and what I eat.I'm understanding I will likely never be blasé about food but I'm trying to work on giving up all the control it has over me.

I do agree with you but in the back of my mind I feel that if increase my food intake it will boost my heart rate and thus lose more weight afterwards.

Really????

Call me crazy, but I am old fashion I quess....Eat more = GAIN weight, Eat LESS = Loose weight. At Least that is how it worked for me....and on top of eating less, exercise more to burn away stored fat.

Years ago I was whining to one of my Dr.'s about my inability to loose weight......he asked me if I wanted to know the universal "Secret" to loosing weight....STOP EATING SO MUCH!

Of course, that was my problem, I could not stop...so WLS was a last resort that "cured" me of that....I eat what I want, when I want....just that I don't want to eat very often and there are foods I will never eat again.

I know this might seem crazy to a lot of people but through experience sometimes you need to change what your body is use to in order to kickstart your weight loss engine. When the body stays on the same routine daily it needs to be tricked into losing when you first started weight loss where your heart rate was quicker and you burned more calaries.

"Experience" and justifying bad choices and behaviors got me to 264 pounds.

I know this might seem crazy to a lot of people but through experience sometimes you need to change what your body is use to in order to kickstart your weight loss engine. When the body stays on the same routine daily it needs to be tricked into losing when you first started weight loss where your heart rate was quicker and you burned more calaries.

If this is what you truly believe then why not work with your NUT and an exercise professional to come up with a plan for adding variety into your food plan and workout rather than just winging it for a couple of weeks.

For me, yo-yo dieting wrecked my metabolism and your plan sounds like typical yo-yo dieting.

Whatever you do, make sure you get in all your Protein and fluids.

Thanks all for the great advice. It's strange as I havnt been able to increase my daily calaries as strangely just not interested in lots of food these days.

How many calories are you taking in now. If your caloric intake is too few, then boosting it by just a little will kick start your weight loss again. Fir example, if you are eating only 700 calories a day, then boosting it to 800-1000 would bring your body out of the survival mode. But if your caloric intake is on track, then the opposite will happen.

It does sound a bit like you are trying to justify going off track. Perhaps it's time to revisit what you are eating. You may need to increase your calories just a bit or switch up to find more filling foods. I''m all for stepping away from the scale, but I would continue to monitor my food. I only weigh myself once a month but I still maintain a food log. At 9 mths out most days are in the 800 -875 range, but there are occasions where I go up as much as 1,000 calories. However I know that for me, eating in the 1,000 range on a daily basis is not a good idea until I hit maintenance.

Weight loss happens in the kitchen, not the gym. You cannot exercise away a bad diet. I worked out 3 - 5 days a week for years and was over 400lbs. I was a flexible 400lbs, but the weight loss only bounced between a 35 -50lbs loss and regain.