{"id":3754,"date":"2014-05-01T19:34:52","date_gmt":"2014-05-01T19:34:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/blog\/8-ways-to-maintain-weight-loss\/"},"modified":"2025-06-09T16:42:17","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T16:42:17","slug":"8-ways-to-maintain-weight-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/blog\/8-ways-to-maintain-weight-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Ways to Maintain Weight Loss"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If you have a love\/hate relationship with the bathroom scale, you\u2019re about to get some great\u2014and free\u2014therapy. Robert Reames, Gold\u2019s Gym Fitness Institute expert and author of Make Over Your Metabolism<\/em>, has helped his personal clients and guests on The Dr. Phil Show<\/em> drop pounds and keep them off, and he\u2019s here to give you his top eight pieces of advice on keeping your waistline in check.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Be Realistic<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople who lose an incredible amount of weight on a TV show rarely keep it off,\u201d Reames says. \u201cThat\u2019s why you don\u2019t see a lot of follow-ups on the participants.\u201d The problem is that those dieters have reached those goals in an unrealistic setting. You have to accept certain constrictions on your time and how disciplined you\u2019re willing to be in the long term. So when you decide what exact weight you want to maintain, do it honestly. \u201cTo configure that number, think about when you were at your personal best,\u201d Reames explains. Think about what you had to do\u2014the gym time, the meal preparation\u2014and honestly assess what you could and couldn\u2019t do. \u201cCreate it visually: What do you realistically have to do to get there? Are you willing to do 80% of that? 50%?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Get your Rest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGood sleep is essential to keeping weight off,\u201d Reames says. \u201cYou can be eating great and working out, but if you aren\u2019t sleeping well, that tiredness catches up with you.\u201d Your workouts can become sluggish, and sleep deprivation causes hunger, which brings on an urge to snack throughout the day and choose high-calorie dishes. He recommends at least eight hours of sleep a night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Know your Triggers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We all know that certain things have an immediate effect on our emotions. A post from @dailypuppy on Instagram might make you instantly chirpy, while an e-mail from passive-aggressive Andy over in cubicle 240 is sure to set you off. \u201cKnowing the good triggers can often help you manage the bad ones in a healthy way,\u201d Reames explains. So if you know a bad meeting with a boss usually sends you to the nearest bar after work, try to snap out of it with a good trigger\u2014such as the afterglow from a good yoga class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Keep your \u201cEye of the tiger\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Just like the song says\u2014went the distance, now I\u2019m not gonna stop\u2014you have to remember how you got to this weight and let that motivate you. \u201cThis is why I suggest journaling,\u201d Reames says. \u201cNothing long\u2014just small notes on your smartphone to discuss how you\u2019re feeling, so when you\u2019re struggling, you can look back at when you were highly motivated.\u201d Use modern technology to its full advantage, too, and keep encouraging photos at the ready. \u201cI have a photo of me as a heavy kid,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Ditch the old clothes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThose pants that no longer fit? Donate them or alter them,\u201d Reames says. \u201cKeeping them around just gives you an exit route.\u201d Make sure to bring this mind-set to anything else that doesn\u2019t fit in your new life. Maybe football on Sunday always meant a six-pack of beer and potato chips. Swap those out for one beer and a veggie platter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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6. Don\u2019t skip the weights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Cardio might help you shed pounds fast, but to stay in shape\u2014especially as you age\u2014you need to do total-body strength training. \u201cThe amount of muscle you have dictates your metabolism,\u201d Reames says. If you don\u2019t know where to start, grab a session with a Gold\u2019s Gym personal trainer and get a tutorial on machines and free weights. Many gyms offer one free session with your membership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Protect your new ecosystem<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To get where you are now, you probably made some healthy choices, such as scheduling your gym time or making fruit your go-to snack. \u201cYou created an environment of success and that is integral to your health,\u201d Reames explains. And within that you have to allow for a cheat day and a little personal forgiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo one is on track all the time, but as long as you stay on track most of the time, then you\u2019re doing well,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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8. Make a weekly date with the bathroom scale<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s right. Time to get friendly with your former enemy. \u201cWeigh in weekly,\u201d he advises. \u201cIt\u2019s easy to get out of check, so use it as a self-assessment.\u201d If the scale doesn\u2019t serve up the number you were hoping for, don\u2019t get mad\u2014get even. Use it as motivator for that week. Maybe you do an extra workout class, or make plans for a big weekend bike ride. Remember: Your scale never meant to hurt your feelings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reames strongly suggests that you read up on the latest health and fitness studies from these sources (some of which he follows on Twitter):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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STAY UPDATED ON HEALTH NEWS<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mayo Clinic (@MayoClinic<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvard Health Letter<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tufts Nutrition (@TuftsNutrition<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Council on Exercise<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Centers for Disease Control (@cdcgov<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<p>Head\u2019s up yo-yo dieters! Gold\u2019s Gym Fitness Institute expert Robert Reames is here to help you lose weight for the long term.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":6896,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_post_subtitle":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[88,92,155],"class_list":["post-3754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-healthy-habits","tag-overall-health","tag-weight-loss"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3754"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3754\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9820,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3754\/revisions\/9820"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6896"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.goldsgym.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}