How I maintained my weight after losing so much weight for a long period of time?

Now & Then....

Hey guys,

I must say that this post is well overdue now and I wanted to create this article in view of helping and encouraging you all on this journey especially those that are maintaining their weight, and for those that have mastered this technique feel free to share.

I have to admit it as many will not admit, that losing weight alone is the hardest and most daunting thing to do, you really have to be in the right space, have that right frame of mind to want to achieve that weight loss goal that you want to achieve.  Believe me, it took me a long time to get my mind into gear in order to take that big step.  I had to really be honest with myself when it came to losing the weight, I had to tell myself If I wanted to live longer to see my kids grow up, I had to tell myself if I was doing this for me or to make others happy, and explained the reason why I wanted to lose my weight.

You see your mindset has to be different, you really have to want to lose the weight because it is an achievement that you want to accomplish for yourself and not for others.  I chose to lose my weight because I wanted to have a healthy lifestyle and not one that meant that I would develop multiple complications along the way If I chose to remain overweight. I want my healthy lifestyle to have a great impact on my kid's lifestyle so I knew I had to make a change quite quickly.You see you only get one chance in life and it is up to you to chose what? And How? to live that life, no one can make that decision for you.

Having made that right decision and having a clear mindset and being very consistent and determined to achieve my ultimate goal, believe me, it was all worth the hustle and the hard graft because it has paid off.  So, just to be real with you all, the journey does not stop there, just because you have achieved your target, do remember that the weight can creep up on like a rash if you are not eating the right types of food and being mindful of the amount you are consuming on a daily basis, remember everything in moderation and that is really true.

So let me give you an insight into what I do to maintain my weight and to keep the weight off for such a long time.

As my body is so used to having fewer amounts of food I only ever eat two meals a day but when I do feel a bit peckish I would reach for a fruit or a yoghurt with a sprinkle of granola and strawberries as my healthy snack until I am really hungry.  The key thing about keeping the weight off is to establish if you are really hungry or just thirsty, it can be mistaken believe me I have learnt that lesson.  I would suggest listening to what your body needs so If I reached for a fruit, my body would tell me that it isn't food that I need and so I would reach for some water and I would feel much better.  The question is how in tune are you with your body?

Here is what my meal plan looks like for the week:

Sneak Peek into my eating life....

Breakfast-  I have one slice of wholemeal bread with one boiled egg I eat around 10:30 am or 11 am.  When I get up around 7 am I make a cup of green tea and that will keep me until I feel really hungry.

Lunch - I have had a late lunch so I will not feel hungry, however, around 2 or 3 I would reach for a yoghurt or a fruit to keep me until I am really hungry for food.

Dinner- I have dinner around 5-6 pm I would have roasted or boiled chicken with a spoon full of rice or couscous with salad, I have small portions and more portion of the salad.  I eat fewer carbs in the evening and try to eat more of the veg or salad in the evening. That would be all I have and I would feel full from that.

Example 2

Breakfast - 1 Slice of wholemeal bread, two back bacon rashes thin slices or turkey bacon, mushrooms and grilled tomatoes.

Lunch: Not hungry as breakfast has kept me full so I would have water or a hot green tea this would last me until 4 pm so I would have some blueberries just a few until I start to prepare dinner.

Dinner: Spaghetti bolognese made from scratch and I would have a small portion of that with more salad and that would be me for the evening.  

The key thing for me is not to eat after 8 pm


I won't snack frequently and I have my treat days once a week on Saturday and that would be one treat and not several treats, so I would treat myself to a strawberry milkshake medium from McDonald's but I never seem to finish it because it is so filling or have 3 chicken strips from McDonald's as my treat, of late I do not like to have sweet things because they seem to taste over sweet to me. I do not have any sugar in my teas or cereal at all, I do not spread any butter on my bread and I try to keep my foods simple with less added ingredients.  Boring.. I know but my tolerance for too much spicy foods is not great for my stomach it must do a lot with age because I use to love spicy foods.


I do incorporate exercise on a daily basis, I do twenty minutes of toning and strength workout, and I always make sure to drink at least 2 litres of water a day.


Just a quick note if I chose to have a McDonald's meal I make sure not to eat dinner in the evening,  I usually get full eating a meal at McDonald's, I do pick a meal that does not consist of too many calories like chicken nuggets 280 calories and a milkshake 380 total is 660 calories or 3 chicken strips 303 on its own and I would feel good for the rest of the day and just have a yoghurt in the evening with green tea. so that would be my evening meal if I was out and I chose to have that for my lunch which is pretty much an occasion thing, I am not saying that you have to do this do what works for me.

If I have a sandwich from Marks & Spencer I opt for one with fewer calories and keep the fat content to 5% and not more and have a healthy juice to keep me full throughout the day if I am out and about which is most of the time.

It is very important to have a target of how much calories you chose to consume on a daily basis, so if I want out for a meal with a friend or a celebration I aim to have less than 1000 calories so I do my research way beforehand to get an idea of the meals that I can have to help keep to my target consumption, but on a general day to day I aim to consume 800 calories and I am happy with that knowing that I can treat myself for all my hard work on a Saturday and still able to lose or to maintain my weight.

I have an article here about How I lost a Stone in Two Weeks

I hope this has been an eye-opener for you and do be honest with yourself at all times, you are only cheating yourself otherwise.  Never chose to lose weight for anyone but yourself, and remember that being consistent and disciplined is key to success. Food is not your enemy if you chose to make it that way, it can be beneficial for you if eaten the right way.