Pollylock1's Journal, 06 May 21

Hi Pollylock.. Would love to know the answer too. We have the same goals although I am quite a bit older. What I have found is that I basically just fluctuates between 72 and 73, but I try and stick to 1500-1600 kcal during the week and usually go higher on the weekends, keeping moderate activity levels for at least 6 days a week. Not sure what that means and if it is helpful, but for now I am sort of just observing... Too scared to really up my intake. Took me 6 months to lose 22kg. Thanks for all your posts. Learning so much.  

Hi Pollock, my advice would be if you’re upping calories to find your maintenance start weighing yourself daily but only logging your weekly average as your true weight. Secondly, you could either choose to up it in small amounts like 50 Cals at a time for at least 2-3 weeks and then another 50 and so on or choose 1 or 2 days a week that you’re more active and eat 150 Cals more than you usually do on those 2 days. Also, how you track is important. A kitchen scale and weighing your food raw before cooking them is ideal because the calories are all from raw weight unless it states on the app otherwise but it’s not always accurate. Another noteworthy thought to consider. The higher your calorie intake gets the cleaner your food needs to be. Yes, energy in vs energy out is an obviously true fact BUT if you calorie consumption is low there is only so much room for unhealthy foods. The moment you increased your calories the chances of eating “junk” rises which in turn raises inflammation markers in your body and therefore upping the scale numbers. Nutrient dense, high quality calories are key. Our bodies burn these Cals at different rates and absorbed very differently allowing our metabolism to stay strong. I personally track the added sugars in my meals. If I can keep to the RDI of 25g a day then my food choices are always healthy and I still get to allocate those sugars to something I actually enjoy like a small chocolate or 2 but then I keep my foods without added sugars. Added sugars are not considered naturally occurring such as in dairy or fruit but rather the hidden sugars in drinks, baked goods even bread and especially condiments. Hope this helps 🌿🌼 

@ Polly. My goal initially was weightloss = an aversion to being fat. And I’m still a bit away from my scale goal, but I’m sensing a slight shift towards fat loss, getting a bit stronger. So possibly it’s becoming a mental shift away from the number on the scale. It’s too soon for me to say, but it’s fun watching myself respond to a long plateau and an improving fitness level. I’m remaining open to all possibilities 

You can try this link https://youtu.be/RDhM-ATlsJA Hope it helps 😊 

Thank you guys for your experiences, advice and insights. I really appreciate it. I’ve been processing what you’ve said and the idea of paying closer attention to macro and micro nutrients make sense to me at this stage. Eating cleaner is important - I just need to find balance. Once I reach 74kgs I’ll make the call about whether to lower my goal to 70kgs. I’m slowly working out food and mindfulness. Thank you again everyone! ❤️