Mental wellbeing in maintenance: staying confident after weight loss

Reaching the maintenance phase, when focus shifts from losing weight to keeping it off, is a major achievement. But as with any major goal reached, it can come with unexpected emotional and motivational challenges.

In this phase, you’ll need to make some mindset adjustments to prioritise consistency over perfection and to stay resilient when setbacks happen.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through the range of emotions people typically experience during maintenance, what challenges you’re likely to face, and how to get back on track when slip-ups happen.

Key points:

• Changes in how you feel when you reach the maintenance phase are normal and natural.
• During maintenance, progress is steadier, more stable and tends to be mental and emotional rather than physical.
• Maintaining structure and balance, being kind to yourself and staying consistent with daily healthy habits are key to maintenance success.

Adjusting emotionally after weight loss

It’s normal to assume you’ll feel nothing but happiness when you reach your target weight, but that isn’t always the reality. It’s very common to feel a slump after achieving a major long-term goal.

You might catch yourself thinking “what now?” or worrying about regaining weight and undoing your progress. These feelings are normal and completely valid.

Reaching maintenance is a huge achievement that likely took months or even years of effort. You’ve made one of the most powerful changes possible by improving your health.

When you first set your goal, you probably focused on reaching it, not what would happen next. The fact that you’re here proves you are capable and in control.

Maintenance is not about standing still. It’s about protecting the progress you worked so hard to achieve. This stage is a chance to reflect, reset your focus, and move forward with intention.

You may also need time to adjust to life in a healthier body. Changes in self-image are normal and can take time to feel comfortable with.

“Reaching your goal weight is a huge achievement, but what really matters is the habits you’ve built along the way. Gradual weight loss gives you the time to create routines around food, movement and mindset that actually fit your life. Those habits are what keep the weight off long term. Maintenance isn’t about starting something new, it’s about continuing the healthy behaviours that got you here.”

Niya Mansuri, myBMI Obesity Expert

Managing setbacks without spiralling

Setbacks are inevitable on the path to any goal. It’s how you deal with them that matters.

It’s not uncommon to regain a bit of weight during the maintenance phase. This can happen for a few reasons, including:

• appetite returning as your body and metabolism have had longer to adjust to the medication dose
• hormonal changes
• water retention
• stress levels

The crucial thing to focus on is not letting a bad day turn into a bad week.

If you’re expecting setbacks and know they are a natural part of your weight loss journey, it will be easier to rally, stay motivated, and refocus.

Pause, take a breath and move on by trying the steps below.

Reflecting calmly on the reasons you had a slip-up

Was it stress? Boredom? Lack of time or options to get your hands on some nutritious food, or to squeeze in that workout?

Notice what’s happening in your day (external triggers) and inside your mind (internal triggers) when slip-ups happen. Is there a pattern?

You may find that there are things you can avoid to help you stay on track.

Resetting your routine:

Don’t be upset with yourself for needing to re-focus: it’s natural and normal. Concentrate on what you can do to regain momentum.

That might be writing a shopping list of healthy foods to buy, journaling, or preparing your sleep environment for a restful night.

Let yourself feel good about this reset, and keep going!

Seeking support early:

You’re far more likely to stick to a routine, stay motivated, and feel inspired if you have a supportive network around you.

This could be other people on a weight loss journey, a face-to-face support group, a mental health professional, an online community, or friends and family who can remind you of how far you’ve come during moments of self-doubt or frustration.

The important thing is having people to share both your challenges and your successes with.

Building a resilient maintenance mindset

Mindset is everything during maintenance. The good news is, you’ve been building that mindset since your first weight loss medication consultation, so you know you have what it takes to stay the course now.

You’ve already done the hard part, but now that you’ve reached the major milestone that is the maintenance phase, you can shift your mindset slightly to focus on the long-term.

The emphasis should be on consistency, not perfection. The maintenance phase is about calm, control and stability.

To support that stability, try introducing ‘anchor habits’ to keep you grounded, like:

• journaling your habits, thoughts and feelings, ideally at the same time every day
• planning your routine, such as meals and workouts
• practicing techniques to manage stress like mindfulness meditation, deep breathing exercises, yoga, or talking therapies
• turning off your devices an hour or two before bed

Understanding weight fluctuations during maintenance

By now, you should be aware that weight loss is not a sprint, it’s a marathon. And like any long journey, it is not a straight line.

Maintenance is not about maintaining the exact same bodyweight forever.

Maintenance is about keeping yourself as close to your goal weight as possible without fixating on it to the point of stress.

It’s completely normal for people’s weight to fluctuate by a few kilos or pounds. This could be due to water retention, hormone shifts, stress, or appetite changes.

Short-term fluctuation vs gradual weight regain

Before worrying that you’ve gained a kilo or a few pounds since yesterday, try focusing on your weight across a longer time span. A long-term trend is more useful to track weight than daily changes.

If you still weigh close to what you did when you entered the maintenance phase, you’ll know your mindset is delivering results.

You should also be checking in with yourself and listening to your body to note all the ways you feel better that may not be visible. You may be noticing improvements in your:

• energy levels
• sleep
• mood
• confidence
• daily routine
• general wellbeing 

If you find yourself gaining more than a few kilos and struggling to get back to your goal weight, talk to your prescriber. They are always on hand to help make sure you’re maintaining your weight safely and effectively.

Staying motivated beyond your goal weight

Staying motivated once you’ve reached your goal weight can be tricky. It’s common to experience a dip in motivation when you finally reach a goal you’ve worked towards for a long time.

That’s why it’s important to reframe your mindset from thinking primarily about numbers on a scale to a broader, more comprehensive picture of your health and quality of life.

Try setting new non-weight focused goals, for example:

• Fitness and exercise goals, like your first 5k or hike.
• Consistency-based goals, like one week of eating less sugar, regular weekly workouts or a month of daily meditation and journaling practice.
• Daily mini-targets like eating eight portions of fruit and veg a day or walking the dog for 15 minutes.
• Maintenance milestones, whether that’s three months, six months, or a year in the maintenance phase.

Make sure to set some time aside each day to thank yourself for all your hard work and reflect on your achievements, large or small.

Frequently asked questions

Why do I feel anxious even though I have reached my goal?

You may be experiencing ‘happiness anxiety’, or ‘success anxiety’. Psychologists describe this as a feeling of worry that your current happy state will not last. Remind yourself that you’re in charge and you’re able to maintain the success you’ve built for yourself.

Is it normal to regain a few pounds in maintenance?

Yes it is. Most people’s weight fluctuates anywhere from two to five pounds (one to two and a half kilos). This might be due to more muscle mass, water weight, hormone changes, or other factors like stress.

How do I stay motivated without a target weight?

The best way to motivate yourself without a target weight is by focusing on non-scale-based wins like improved energy, more restful sleep, a better sense of wellbeing and improved mood and outlook.

What should I do if I start slipping back into old habits?

If you find you have a slip-up, the first and most important thing is to forgive yourself and re-focus on the future. Reset by recommitting to your routine, focusing on exercise, good sleep, eating healthily, and drinking lots of water.

Sources

• The Behavioral Neuroscience of Motivation: An Overview of Concepts, Measures, and Translational Applications. (2016) Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences [Accessed 7 February 2026]
• Maintenance of lost weight and long-term management of obesity. (2018) Science Direct [Accessed 7 February 2026]
• Motivated for near impossibility: How task type and reward modulate task enjoyment and the striatal activation for extremely difficult task. (2022) Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience [Accessed 7 February 2026]