Originally Posted by
Mithrandir
I think this may have been my downfall. In the April-June timeframe I reverted my diet back to what I'd been eating for the past two years. That diet worked great coming down from 470 to 360, but it kind of bottomed out at 360 and I was stuck there for a very long time. I was utterly baffled why it stopped working, but it makes sense. I've lost weight, now I need to eat even less.
Trying to maintain 200 pounds when I get there is going to SUCK!!!
Nope, beg to differ. Something click on your head, that new perspective will help a lot along the way.
Your approach is gradual, which is the one more likely to stay. By the time you reach goals further down the scale, you'll be more active, your metabolism will be a bit faster and you'll be able to perform a lot of things on less food, your energy level will get you involved in other activities so a lot of that "idle time" the brain was using thinking about only eating and sleeping would be taken over.
Gradual is the key, once you stop looking at it as "diets" and start embracing those changes as lifestyle choices, you won't be "maintaining" anything, or changing back to "the previous diet", and so forth.
One thing that comes to mind is the weight gain over the winter, perhaps that would be something to look at. Most everyone packs on pounds over the holidays (guilty as charged, something about low temperature makes me eat more, and being a chicken to cold temperature i get out less), however there might be ways to mitigate the weight swing somewhat so instead of the XX pounds of last winter, it's Xx pounds the coming winter.
You'll be faster on the bike earlier in the season ;-) ;-)
You're well on your way, not only for the weight shaved already but for the new perspective that "clicked" on your head.