From losing to maintaining: Tips for long-term weight loss success

If you have achieved your health and weight loss goal, congratulations!

We understand the challenges you’ve overcome to get to where you are now – all the tears, sweat, and determination. Everything you’ve done has paid off! But now, you face a new challenge: keeping the weight off.

Over the years, many mums have shared that after losing weight, they struggle to maintain it. Studies show that people who lose a significant amount of weight often regain it within 2 to 3 years, which can be frustrating and make mums wonder if they’ll ever be able to stop gaining weight.

Recognising that maintaining weight loss is just as important as losing it, we’ve created a dedicated program including workouts and meal plans in The Healthy Mummy app called Maintain. This program is designed to help mums keep the weight off and feel great for life. You can read more about the program below.

As someone who has lost weight, you understand that achieving weight loss requires a combination of changes to your food intake, eating habits, and exercise. These healthy changes bring a range of health benefits, including:

• Lowering cholesterol and blood sugar levels
• Reducing blood pressure
• Easing stress on bones and joints
• Relieving pressure on heart health
• Improving mental health and mood
• Reducing lifestyle diseases

Maintaining your weight loss provides continued health benefits over the course of your life. However, it takes effort and commitment, just like losing the initial weight. While the challenge of maintaining your weight may seem overwhelming, you can do it!

When it comes to maintaining your weight loss, the quote “Motivation got you here, but habit will keep you going” sums it up perfectly.

It primarily involves balancing your energy intake (kilojoules/calories) with the energy you burn. If you consume more energy than you use, you’ll regain weight. On the other hand, if you use more energy than you consume, you’ll continue to lose weight. Small imbalances over long periods of time can cause you to regain the weight you lost.

To help maintain your weight, think of it in terms of “energy in” (diet) and “energy out” (movement).

Take some time to reflect on your eating patterns:

• What do you eat?
• When do you eat?
• Why do you eat?

Recognise habits that can lead to weight gain, such as:

• Night eating: Snacking throughout the evening.
• Social eating: Eating in group settings with friends or family.
• Emotional eating: Eating in response to emotions (boredom, stress, anxiety).
• Distracted eating: Eating while doing something else (watching TV, working from home, using social media).

Once you’ve reached your desired weight, you might gradually add around 200 calories of healthy, low-fat food to your daily intake for one week to see if weight loss continues. If weight loss does persist, you can keep adding healthy foods to your daily diet until you find the right balance of calories to maintain your desired weight.

In The Healthy Mummy app our Maintain meal plans are 1600-1700 calories focusing on increasing protein and variety, these are slightly higher than our standard meal plans, it is important to note these are blanket plans, we always recommended you customise and ensure you are eating to your individual calorie needs.

If you are unsure you can check your individual calorie needs here.

It may take time and accurate record-keeping to understand how changes in food intake and exercise levels affect your weight. Figuring out your ideal calorie intake can be tricky, as it depends on factors like your age, sex, current weight, height, and activity level. We recommend seeking advice from an accredited dietitian or medical professional.

The other side of the energy equation is how many kilojoules (calories) you burn through movement. Not only does being active burn energy, but it also prevents muscle loss, helping to maintain a healthy metabolic rate.

You can track your weekly physical activity, much like keeping a food diary. Studies show that even non-strenuous activities, such as walking or taking the stairs, have a positive effect. Breaking activities into categories can help you understand your level of physical activity:

• Intentional activities: Yoga, pilates, walking, weight lifting, running, swimming, team sports.
• Unintentional activities: Taking the stairs, walking to the shops, gardening, standing at work.

To maintain weight loss, it’s recommended to engage in activity that burns 1,500 – 2,000 calories per week.

The Maintain workouts target your whole body and improve both balance and strength. Suitable for intermediate to advanced fitness levels, they incorporate cardio and strength training. Experts recommend 30-40 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity at least three to four times per week. This can boost your metabolism and help maintain your current weight or enable further weight loss.

Our Maintain program offers 10-minute workouts led by expert trainers, making it easier to fit one, two, or three workouts into your day. While optional, the workouts can incorporate kettlebells and light hand weights. Strength training 2-3 times per week can help build muscle, tone your body, and strengthen bones.

A temporary return to old habits doesn’t mean failure. It takes consistency and commitment to stay aware of your dietary choices and exercise enough to maintain your weight loss. If you feel like you’re starting to lean on old unhealthy habits, identifying the triggers or repetitive behaviour patterns can help.

Once you recognise what causes you to lose focus, you can develop alternative strategies to stay on course. Rather than turning to food or skipping exercise, create new behaviours to cope with challenges.

And remember to enjoy the journey! It gets easier each time you replace an old habit with a new, healthier one.

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