Chapter 12

Once You Lose Weight, Keep it Off

Once you achieve your weight loss goal, you can’t stop the diet or you will gain back the weight you lost! The changes in diet and exercise you make need to be life-long changes. Of course, you will be following a weight maintenance diet rather than a weight loss diet. You will be able to eat more calories since at this point you will need only to burn as many calories as you consume. (When you want to lose weight, as opposed to maintain weight, you need to burn more calories than you consume.)
You will see it’s not at all hard to do.
Everyone will have days when they “slip up” and fail to stick to the diet. That’s OK. When that happens, don’t dwell on it, just go back on the diet the next day.
As you begin to lose weight, you will notice you start feeling better about your body. Your self-esteem will improve. This is in turn will make it easier to stick to the diet and keep a low weight over the long-term.

Get Support From your Family, Friends, and Doctor

Encouragement to lose weight and to stick to your diet from your family and friends will make your sticking with the diet much easier. Your family and friends can help you!
If you have health problems or are obese (BMI greater than 30) talk with your doctor. He or she can help you with the diet and help you stick to it! He or she can make sure your diet is going safely.