Episode 27: Mastering Maintenance: The Final M in Weight Management

Send us a text

We've reached the final M in our 3M Weight Management Success series, focusing on maintenance, the critical but often overlooked element that holds everything together after establishing mindset and motivation.

• Starting is exciting, finishing is strong, but maintaining is wisdom
• Maintenance feels harder than starting because it requires intention rather than adrenaline
• The Plus One Theory helps reconnect with maintenance habits, make one intentional choice that nudges you back into alignment
• Weekend challenges require shifting from 100% perfection mentality to focusing on quickly returning to routine
• Surrounding yourself with supportive people who celebrate your consistency is crucial for maintenance success
• Consider a new order: mindset → maintenance → motivation, where sustainable motivation emerges after establishing consistent maintenance habits
• Practical Plus One maintenance strategies include visible habit tracking, prepping double portions, setting a daily 10-minute reset timer, and regularly reviewing your "why"
• Maintenance isn't about changing who you are—it's about remembering and improving the best parts of you

Join my crowdfunding campaign for my upcoming book "The Plus One Theory" at pamdwyer.com or pamdwyerspeaker.com, and sign up for my email list to stay updated.

As promised, here is two links to meal prep containers I use!  

Amazon

Bariatric Pal Store

Be a Guest on The Plus One Theory Podcast!

Are you someone who believes in the power of kindness, resilience, and intentional growth? Do you have a story about how small, meaningful steps have made a difference in your life or career?

I’d love to invite you to share your journey on The Plus One Theory Podcast!

This podcast is all about exploring how we can apply the Plus One Theory to create ripples of positivity and purpose in our personal and professional lives. I’m especially excited to feature guests who work in heart-centered careers—nurses, teachers, counselors, nonprofit leaders, caregivers, or anyone who dedicates their energy to helping others.

Your story could inspire listeners who are navigating their own challenges and looking for ways to take that next small step forward. Whether you’ve used kindness to overcome adversity, found strength in vulnerability, or applied intentional action to make an impact in your community, I want to hear from you!

Interested? Here’s How to Reach Out:

• Email me with a brief introduction about yourself and your story.
• Let me know how the Plus One Theory has played a role in your life or career.

Order "From the Piney Woods" 2nd Edition today!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:09):
Well, hello friends, welcome back to the Plus One
Theory Podcast.
I'm your host, pam Dwyer, andthis is the final episode in our
3M Weight Management SuccessSeries and, honestly, I think we
may have saved the mostimportant one for last.
We started with mindset,because it's the foundation of

(00:31):
everything we do really.
We moved into motivation, thefuel that keeps us going.
But this final M, well,maintenance, it's the glue that
holds it all together.
And let me be real, this one isoften skipped entirely.
I don't know why.
I guess because maintainingsomething is less exciting than

(00:53):
starting it.
But here's the truth Startingis amazing, finishing is strong,
but maintaining well, that'swisdom.
And a quick disclaimer here I'mnot a doctor or a mental health
professional.
I'm simply someone who's walkedthis journey, with a lot of
bumps along the way, and I'mhere to share what I've learned

(01:19):
and help you apply it to yourown life.
And today I'm going to answer afew listener questions and
share a few laughs right now.
So the first one is from Lisa.
Lisa from Dallas, and she asksPam why does maintenance feel
harder than starting?
That is a great question, lisa,because starting has adrenaline

(01:40):
, but maintenance, it requiresintention.
Think of it like a newrelationship Early on.
Everything's so exciting andwonderful, but maintaining that
connection takes commitment,effort and sometimes boring
stuff like calendars, check-insand hard conversations.
It's the same with health.

(02:01):
You meal prepped for threeweeks Yay, it's awesome.
But it's week number 12 now.
And now your inner voice islike you know, taco Tuesday
won't ruin everything.
Spoiler alert.
It's not about the tacos, it'sabout the pattern.
Let me give you a plus onemoment.
If you find yourself slipping,don't hit the start over button.

(02:26):
Just hit plus one oneintentional choice that nudges
you back into alignment.
So let's go back a little ways.
That nudges you back intoalignment.
So let's go back a little ways.
After my bariatric surgery, Ihad one goal to lose the weight
and never see it again.
And I did lose it.
I lost 100 pounds, but no oneprepared me for the voice in my

(02:49):
head that said you did it, pam.
It's time to coast, it's timeto celebrate.
What followed were those littlemoments, skipping supplements
here and there, saying yes tosugar, forgetting how hard it
was to get healthy, until Istarted feeling that tiredness
again, the tiredness I hadbefore the surgery.

(03:11):
That's when I remembered whatmy granny used to say to me.
She'd say, pamela, the road tohell is paved with good
intentions.
Sweetheart, maintenance doesn'tcare about your intentions, it
honors your habits.
I had to relearn discipline.
I had to meal prep even when Ididn't feel like it.

(03:33):
I had to befriend structure.
And for someone like me whoresisted it for well, my whole
life, that wasn't easy.
But I came back to the plus onetheory and asked myself what's
one thing I can do today to keepthe progress I have fought so
hard for yesterday, literallyjust taking one day at a time.

(03:57):
All right, let me give youanother question that came in
from Carlos.
Carlos, from San Antonio, he'semailed me a question.
Pam, I feel like I do greatMonday through Thursday and then
the weekend ruins me.
Am I just not disciplinedenough?
And if not, how do I do it?

(04:18):
Oh, my First of all, carlos,welcome to the club.
You're not undisciplined,you're human.
Weekend eating is a thing, buthere's a mindset shift.
Instead of aiming for 100%perfection, you know 100% or
nothing mentality.
That's the biggest trap.

(04:39):
Progress isn't ruined by oneindulgent meal, it's sustained
by how quickly we come back toroutine.
Give yourself a little grace.
Maintenance means closing thegap between slipping and
resetting.
All right, here's anotherquestion.
This one's from Dana.
Dana from Corpus Christi.

(04:59):
She asks how do you staymotivated when no one around you
cares about health?
Oh, that one hurts my heart.
Dana, that's a tough one, andit's real, though.
When your circle resents yourresilience or your progress,
it's like trying to run withankle weights.
But listen, you don't oweanyone your struggle.

(05:22):
You owe yourself your success.
Surround yourself with peoplewho clap and celebrate when you
stay consistent.
Not folks who offer you secondsand say, oh, just live a little
.
Not folks who offer you secondsand say, oh, just live a little
.
Let's stir the pot a bit, shallwe?
I mean, I do that every now andthen.

(05:45):
If you ask anyone, love to stirthat pot.
What if we got the 3M orderbackwards?
What if mindset comes first andthen maintenance, and only then
do we feel real sustainablemotivation?
Think about it.
You change your mindset, youbuild sustainable maintenance
habits, you start feeling better, stronger, clearer, and that

(06:06):
fuels your motivation.
You don't wait to be motivatedto prep your meals or go on that
walk.
You do it because your identityhas changed.
You're no longer someone trying, you're someone who maintains.
So let's get actionable.
Here are a few plus one ideasyou can apply starting now.

(06:30):
Number one keep a visible habittracker.
You know a journal.
You can keep it on your fridge,by your fridge, by your mirror
or around your phone or on yourphone.
There's so many cool digitalfood trackers out there, or
habit trackers.
Number two prep double portionswhen you cook, so tomorrow's

(06:53):
meal is done.
Okay, I mean, when I firststarted prepping my meals for
the week, I didn't do the fullweek, I just took one day at a
time or just loaded my leftoversinto a container that I could
just quickly grab the nextmorning on my way to work.
And a lot of times I would gettired of the same leftovers day

(07:16):
after day.
So then I would freeze myleftovers and make something new
for the next day and take thatwith me.
Plus, I didn't have enoughcontainers at first.
You know, to prep my full week.
I mean that takes a lot ofcontainers.
I'll put where I get all mycontainers down in my notes.

(07:39):
You guys should take a look anduse the link, all right.
Number three set a 10-minutereset timer each evening for
cleaning, planning or reflection.
And finally, number four reviewyour why Literally journal it?
Why do I care about this anyway?
Sometimes you'll be surprised.

(08:02):
Sometimes you don't even knowyour why.
You have to really think aboutit and dig deep and then journal
that, because the followingweek your why could change.
My why has never changed.
I would write my why for mybusinesses, my jobs, my

(08:23):
relationships, all the choices Iwas making, good or bad, and I
would write my why and it reallyhelps you heal.
So here's the takeaway today, myfriends you don't need to
change who you are.
You need to remember who youare.
You're capable, you're worthy.

(08:44):
You've already done the hardthings.
Now it's time to protect whatyou've built.
That's what maintenance reallyis.
Let's stop calling it change,okay.
It's not about changing you.
It's about improving the bestparts of you.
Maintenance is love in action.

(09:06):
All right, if this episode hithome for you, would you share it
with a friend who's who's inthe maintenance stage of
anything Of something?
Share this with them.
I think they'll find value init.
All right, I'm just going toremind you of my crowdfunding
campaign.
I'm in the process of trying toraise money for the publishing

(09:28):
of my book, my next book, theplus one theory, and so if you
go to my website, pamdwyercom,you can find the link, or
pamdwyerspe, speaker dot com,and you can find lots of links.
That's where I've been sendingeverybody to find all that I'm
doing and I think you would findvalue in it.

(09:49):
And don't forget to join myemail list, folks, please.
I'm constantly Well, notconstantly.
I send out probably two, maybethree emails a month just to
keep you updated on status ofthings.
But we'll be doing a lot of fun, fun things to bring awareness
of the plus one theory book.
So I know you don't want tomiss that.

(10:10):
All right, until next time,stay strong, stay grounded and
keep taking that next small step.
See you next week.