Here's how tracking with MyNetDiary helps you maintain weight loss

Katherine Isacks, MPS, RDN Registered Dietitian

Congratulations! You've met your weight-loss goal (hooray!), it's time to learn how to maintain your hard-earned weight loss. Here's how MyNetDiary can help you stay on track with your commitments and prevent sliding back into old habits.

How do I use MyNetDiary to maintain weight loss?

MyNetDiary takes the guesswork out of figuring how many calories you need each day to maintain your weight loss. The app adjusts the Food Calorie Budget when your weight goes up or down. Tap "My Weight Plan" (from Dashboard) to adjust your plan. See screenshot below.

For instance, suppose my goal is to stay at 140 pounds, yet I gain two pounds over the holidays. Then my Daily Food Calorie Budget goes down a little bit, and my Weekly Rate changes from "Maintain Weight" to "Lose 0.04 lb" per week. My Target Date for this weight correction is one year from the date of my Current Weight entry. See screenshot below.

MyNetDiary calculates the adjustment to the Weekly Rate automatically when your Current Weight entry goes up or down if you have AutoPilot ON or if you update your Current Weight. Make sure to update your weight weekly for the app to make accurate adjustments.

Is MyNetDiary overestimating my calorie needs for weight maintenance?

It is possible that after weight loss, the app's Daily Food Calorie Budget overestimates your calories for weight maintenance. Although MyNetDiary uses evidence-based energy equations from the Institute of Medicine Dietary Reference Intakes (DRI), the equations may be overestimating your daily calorie needs. The DRI is one of many scientific predictive equations. None of these equations is perfect, nor do they consider such impactful factors as body composition, genetics, history of weight changes, or medications.

If you suspect that the calorie budget is too high for you, just manually lower the Daily Food Calorie Budget by about 200-500 calories. See if that nudges you back into weight maintenance over the next few weeks.

As you continue to log during weight maintenance, you will discover the actual average calories you need to maintain over the long term.

Do I have to be in perfect calorie balance every day to maintain weight loss?

No, but your average intake should match your average calories burned over time. It takes a calorie deficit of 3500 calories to lose one pound of body weight or a surplus of 3500 calories to gain one pound.

The average calorie intake and calories burned over time are what affect body weight. Therefore, daily goals are useful because they help us stay on track.

Calorie Cycling helps you maintain weight after losing it

Calorie Cycling (available with Premium membership) is a handy feature if your goal is weight maintenance. It allows you to plan for specific high-and low-calorie days of the week without worrying about the details of daily calorie adjustment. Use it for birthdays, special occasions, etc.

For example, if I always go out to brunch at my favorite cafe on Saturdays, I can set my Saturday calorie goal 500 calories higher that day. Then MyNetDiary adjusts my calorie intake goals for the remaining days of the week. See screenshot below.

Ideally, use the Calorie Cycling feature at the start of the week. For instance, if you have two expected high-intake days over a weekend, set the desired calorie intake for those two days. Then MyNetDiary will distribute the remainder of the calories to keep you on track for meeting your weight goal.

How often should I weigh-in?

Weigh yourself at least once a week to catch and correct creeping weight gain early on. By updating your Current Weight weekly, MyNetDiary can calculate your Daily Food Calorie Budget accurately, as it will go up and down as your weight changes. If you prefer to weigh yourself more frequently, then do so. Weight readings are useful, helping you monitor if you are creeping toward weight regain or staying level.

How often do I have to log my food now that I am in maintenance mode?

For best results, continue logging the same number of days for weight maintenance as you did for weight loss. Paying attention to habits is very important for preventing weight regain. Continuing to log your food and drink helps you keep tabs on what you are eating, so you don't fall back into old habits.

Many people make the critical error thinking weight-control activities are over once they reach their goal weight. However, weight loss is only the first phase of achieving a healthier weight. The next challenge is to continue all of those behaviors that contributed to your weight-loss success!

If you have difficulty finding the time to log your foods and exercise, consider that a red flag for weight regain. The highest risk for weight regain is right after losing weight and during the first two years of weight maintenance.

If you can maintain weight loss for at least two years, then the likelihood of maintaining it for up to ten years is much greater. In other words, weight maintenance gets more manageable as time passes.

Did you know you are more likely to keep the weight off permanently, if you commit to monitoring weight maintenance as diligently as you did for weight loss? Think of calorie monitoring as a habit-similar to how you make time for brushing your teeth, showering, and shaving. It is that important!

Online support can help you maintain weight after losing it

Feel like you're lacking backup from family and friends who don't realize what it takes to maintain weight over the long haul? Research shows that online support can fill in those gaps.

MyNetDiary offers online assistance through our community forum. Accessible from iOS or the web app, it is a safe place to share successes or ask questions. Also, the MyNetDiary community offers the ability to create new or join existing groups of like-minded individuals who are working hard to keep the weight off.

Congratulate yourself on meeting your weight-loss goal! Hopefully, you have shifted your thinking to understanding that a healthy diet and physical activity are necessary ways of life instead of optional considerations.

To continue weight-loss maintenance, you will need to maintain those behaviors. That is, weight-loss maintenance is an active process that we remain engaged in, so we successfully keep the weight off . . . forever. You can do this!