#but I’m trying to eat in a calorie deficit and most days it’s hard!!

[otamotone-dnp]

.

[ztarduzted]

So like the Illymation drama????

vile take I support illy like fully I don’t get the people who don’t rn

So like ok ok don’t get me wrong, illy isn’t like perfect 100% by any means but who is??? That one carrot and chocolate thing she said in her video could have been worded better but cmon, it’s really not that big of a deal, for the most part you out understand what she was saying. The video that TBYS posted wasn’t “criticism” the way that people are trying to say it was. People are trying to play it off as just a normal constructive criticism video, but if your “constructive criticism” includes like two whole minutes of making fun of someone’s appearance for no reason, I’m concerned. Illy’s response was a bit immature, but I understand where she’s coming from. She said not to send hate and to just take down that one video, not his whole platform, because it was damaging her reputation and mental health because TBYS never even tried to make a statement telling people not to harass illy and she got sent hate for it. People are blowing it way out of proportion saying she was trying to “deplatform him” when she just wanted one video taken down because it was causing her to be deplatformed, and she never even talked about it to her actual YouTube audience, just the small community on tumblr, then TBYS made two more hate filled videos and people just kept dog piling on her. If your gonna get mad at someone for “deplatforming” a known homophobe and transphobe, maybe practice what you preach. And alongside that, I know that some sources were shown in TBYS’s original videos, but there were no links in the descriptions, and absolutely nothing in any of the response videos I’ve seen. There was one video I saw just speculating that all of her doctors were dumb and lied to her, and TBYS also said that most doctors that specialize and make money from being good at nutrition were just wrong. Also, that one response video I mentioned tried to claim gym bros were better at health than licensed professionals???????? It just feels like this is all a massive, overblown hate campaign to a creator because of mistakes. There’s a difference between constructive criticism and just making fun of someone, and while some things that TBYS said were understandable, he made a point to straight up make fun of illy in the middle of his video, not even attempt to stop his fans from harassing illy, then when she replied (and barley received any backlash mind you), he blew up making more videos sending more and more hate and trying to ruin illy’s career. I know illy could have clarified that one point in her video and acted more maturely about the situation, but people are entirely overlooking the fact that TBYS was no where near “perfect” in this situation. (Also, final note, yes, you can absolutely be fat and healthy, saying otherwise is just wrong and makes no sense. Do your research before making half hour long videos making fun of someone)

I assume this drama will just die eventually and people will move on, but either way, I’m going to continue watching and supporting Illy no matter what. She’s a fantastic content creator, and when that video first came out (and there wasn’t some dude bro on the internet telling me it was bad) I absolutely loved at and had a great time watching it. It made me feel really good about myself (since I’ve been exercising daily and been working on myself a lot, but I’ve seen little to no weight loss despite eating healthy and going on a calorie deficit and working hard. It turns out I have something up with my thyroid, and along with that, part of it is just genetics.) I’d started feeling really bad and was trying to eat the bare minimum and it was making it harder to work out and I was feeling sick all the time. One day I was staying home because I felt sick, and I watched illy’s video. It’s not like one video is going to fix my relationship with food, but it has helped. I’m still not losing weight, but I’m getting stronger, feeling better, and eating healthier. Despite all this drama, illy’s videos have helped me feel more comfortable being myself and I will continue supporting her. And Illy, if you’re (somehow) seeing this, just know that there are some people that want to see you fail, but there are so so many more people that love you and your content.

[forcedtogrow]

Addressing Pre-T, Pre-transition Anons

I’m getting quite a few asks from pre-T guys about how much you can change your body pre-T, what exercises to do, how to fix body fat redistribution etc. and it has gotten to be a little too much so im making a blanket post regarding this topic. This post is MY VIEWS AND LIMITS. I am not trying to bully anyone, this is a kink blog for fun and I am not a teacher/doctor/counselor/therapist or parent. I am a fun big brother lmao.

1. There’s only so much you can change your body pre-T, and it’s totally dependent on your genetics and dedication to lifting/gaining muscle. Some guys are lucky and can easily pass without T by just working out, I wasn’t one of them but I’ve seen a handful of guys that did that before T. Even then, some of those guys needed T to get rid of an hourglass/pear shape.

2. You can’t spot lose body fat in hips/thighs/ass. You’d need to lose body fat everywhere, but pre-T your body is most likely to hold onto lower body fat because biology wants those fat reserves to make babies. It’s gross and dysphoria inducing but it’s true.

3. It’s worth it to work out pre-T, especially lifting, to create a solid base to work from. If you already have that you’ll grow so fast on T it’ll feel like magic. I won’t lie that it’s frustrating and awful, because I’ve been there and it feels like spinning the pedals on a bike without moving, but it does pay off.

4. Stay balanced with your diet and don’t force yourself into a crazy calorie deficit. It might not be the time to bulk if you feel like your body is reserving most energy as fat (could be your genetics or activity level), but maintaining a baseline that’s Not underweight is a good start.

5. I’m not in a place to tell you to bulk or cut, especially if I don’t know your height/weight/age/activity level. I am not a doctor or dietician and can only say what works for me and people I know.

6. Don’t just focus on one part of the body, do a full push/pull/legs routine at the very least. Like this: https://www.aston.ac.uk/sport/news/tips/fitness-exercise/push-pull-legs or this for a 6 day split: https://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/6-day-powerbuilding-split-meal-plan

You need to build full body strength, and more leg muscle can actually masculinize your body and make your hips more boxy.

7. If you can’t transition medically/socially for whatever reason your main focus should be getting out of that situation. This is going to sound harsh but I know many trans people who risked a lot, some trans femme friends that literally risked their lives, and you have to decide what’s important to you. I’m being real because you will only regret waiting—there is no replacement for transition, there is no joy like transition, there is no pain great enough to negate the many many benefits of transition.

I don’t want to get messages like “what if it’s illegal where I live!” That’s not what I’m talking about. It’s sucks, but you either transition or you don’t, and if you don’t that’s up to you, but I cannot assist with that decision. I gave up a lot to transition and waited several years to start hrt for reasons too personal to disclose. I ruined relationships with family among other things, so please do NOT ask me for advice on this because I will not be coddling/sweet. Being a man is hard and messy and a sacrifice.

8. I will tell you what I eat and give general advice of bulking/eating but I will not make a meal plan for you. Every body has different needs that only you and a dietitian can work through, I’m not a licensed professional and don’t want anyone to take what I eat as the only way to eat.

9. If you cannot transition because you are a minor stay off my blog. Sorry!!

[sk1nnyblowfien]

WL TIPS 🎀 (I’ve lost 13kg so far by doing this)

Calorie Deficit:

Burn more calories than you eat for example, i walk a lot and on my fitness app i have a target of burning 500 calories a day.

So on the days that i burn that amount i’ll eat around 300-350cals.

Low calorie, high volume food

Obviously only eating 200-400cals a day isn’t good but it works, so to make sure that you feel full even though you’re not consuming a lot of calories, you have to eat foods that are filling but low calorie. E.g fruits, yogurt, rice etc.

Half a watermelon is 150cals but so is a chocolate bar…. which one will fill you up more? WATERMELON because of the amount.

Liquid Fasts

Liquid fasting is hard at first but the more you do it the easier it gets. Personally i can’t fast without being able to have drinks because firstly i just really don’t like water and drinking too much of it makes me feel sick, it also doesn’t fill me up which is the whole point of fasting, when u feel hungry u chug water to fill u up, but that doesn’t work on me so instead of water fasting i replace water with monster. If you’re gonna do this only drink zero sugar monsters they are only 11-15cals a can, where as normal monsters are 200-300cals a can. Another alternative is diet coke it has 0 cals a can. Also aim to liquid fast once or twice a week maximum but no more than that or else it could trigger a binge.

How to prevent binging

I’m ngl when you start restricting your food intake in these ways you will binge along the way because it takes time for your stomach to get used to not eating as much. The ways that i prevent binging is to distract myself i’ll do things like go on a walk, watch a long film, look at thinspo, scroll on ed tumblr etc. but that won’t always work. If i’ve binged the first thing i do is go on a walk to try and burn as many calories as i can. If you have binged the night before don’t starve yourself the next day because you will most likely binge again, instead eat small portions of food and go on a walk and drink alot of water so you feel full and so that your stomach resets back to only needing small amounts of food to be full. Another thing to not do after a binge is weigh yourself because it will honestly make you feel like shit and it could make you give up or starve yourself and remember if u starve after a binge you’re very likely to binge again. So after a day or two after your binge do a liquid fast and weigh yourself in the morning.

How to accurately weigh yourself

If you want to weigh yourself the best time to do it is in the morning right after waking up but remember to pee first. Weigh yourself naked bcs clothes add weight.

Hair also adds weight so just tie it up with a thin hair band. Take off any bracelets, necklaces or rings you have on. Also make sure the scale is on a flat hard surface for best accuracy (don’t put it on carpets or rugs).

[skinimini80]

I’ve been out of control for like 3 weeks now so uh let me just tell yall my current situation.

Day before yesterday, restricted cals, woke up 115.8 next day.

(3.6 lbs gained in these past few weeks :( but not terrible.)

Yesterday, binge but didn’t purge a damn thing! Proud of that. Also proud I carefully tracked while binging.

I ate 3213 cals.

That’s 2013 extra cals if we are going off of a 1200 cal limit, though ideally I want my limit to be lower, rn I’m clearly just not ready for that.

So, today I’m just not okay with the idea of accepting more weight gain and setting the slate clear.

This has left me with three options that make me feel okay.

1. Liquid fast. I’d say fast but I do indulge in an energy drink or two per day. I also drink Gatorade for electrolytes. Obviously I go for sugar free stuff so it’s not high calorie by any means and I end up with a cal count below 100. This means I can quickly knock off 1100 cals in one day.

Pros: I feel safest when I’m not eating

I don’t waste money on food

It’s less destructive in terms of my health

Cons: can make me feel like I’m wasting my day staring at the clock

Makes me a little depressed

Difficult as I haven’t liquid fasted for more than 22 hours in months

Hard to focus on other tasks at first

Hard to sleep

2. Omad a meal that’s below 500 calories

Pros: i easily get rid of 700 cals

Gives me something to look forward to within the day

Helps me sleep

Saves money

Prevents me from entering the water weight drop trap where I stop eating and keeping food down entirely

Cons: difficult

Makes me feel depressed when I do eat something

Tempting to eat more than 500 cause I waited all day, aka could trigger a binge

3. B/p my day away

Pros: I drop water weight fast, good for morale

I have fun and the day passes quickly

Get sick of food

Definitely in a deficit if I don’t eat anything outside of b/p

Cons: fattest waste of money

Stresses me out beyond belief

Easy to justify a safe meal after to stop the shaking

DANGEROUS IN LONG AND SHORT TERM

Too much focus on the water weight drop

No way of knowing how many cals I actually end up in taking, making it so that I only feel comfortable fasting and purging for the foreseeable future, which is miserable

Toilet sucks in my apartment, terrified I’ll break it (I’ve had too many close calls) but I also do NOT want to deal with puke bags

Clean up sucks and if I don’t do it well enough I get bugs

Break my whopping two day streak

Have to weigh myself first, and see a probably higher than normal number (I didn’t weigh myself this morning)

Yeah so idk what I’ll end up doing, but I’m trying to fast rn. It’s so hard to exist like this lmao but I am DONE with this random little stint of weight gain. Idk if you can tell but this post is partially a way for me to distract myself from eating LOL.

Crazy how the purge list of cons is so massive and yet it’s the most tempting

If y’all can give me things to do like for fun or whatever feel free to comment

It’s only 12:37 pm, I’ve got a dayyyyy ahead of me.

[anabananawl]

I’ve lost the will to care about my health- here’s a list of things I’m doing to lose weight in 2024 (with pros and cons from research and person experience):

1. Caffeine (Long Black, and if you need laxative and are lactose intolerant: milk but no sugar). Caffeine is know for its stimulation on the nervous system. It sends direct signals to fat cells and breaks it down. Drinking with added syrups or sugars may cause you to gain weight. But, it does taste better with it. It can raise blood pressure, and therefore you need to consider pre-existing conditions. For example: I have POTS, and I’m not supposed to drink large amounts of caffeine or do too much strenuous activity, but I don’t drink it every day.

2. Cold compresses on areas you want to lose fat. Shivering is known to help induce weight loss- as it releases the hormone irisin from muscles and the hormone FGF21 from brown fat stores. It also can increase metabolism as it increases oxidation of both fat and carbohydrates. I usually add wearing loose clothing or shorts and turn on the aircon. Swimming in cold water may help too!! But, obviously don’t do it too much in one go as you may be prone to hypothermia or other conditions like colds.

3. Walking and online workouts. Like I said before, I can’t do too much strenuous activity as it makes me faint or puts my heart rate at an uncomfortable level- but, walking a lot helps me since it doesn’t need to be too hard. You can find online workouts that help target areas of unwanted fat (and you can usually do it from your bed)! It can be uncomfortable, so don’t overwork yourself.

4. N1cot1n3 products. I’m not promoting this to younger audiences- but, it’s not business on your age and what you do. This substance helps reduce appetite and therefore food intake. It is also said to increase resting metabolic rate and number of calories the body burns at rest. However, it isn’t good for your lungs, gums, or any other body parts. And, most products within this substance range have a small amount of calories themselves. Some people find that it clears up their skin, others find it doesn’t, and so on, so forth. However, OD is possible, especially in the beginning (throwing up, fainting, and other horrible things), but once I got over that, it’s been amazing (but very addictive).

5. Of course, the most well known way to lose weight is indulging in a calorie deficit. This can get to the point of being severe and would be bad for you (as you probably know)- and unless ending up in the hospital from not eating enough is on your 2024 bucket list, you have to do this in moderation (not super fun, I can tell you that). You can find inspiration pics on Tumblr, TikTok or Pinterest for calorie deficit diets (and I’m more than happy to post some on here as well), but use this one safely if you can. Or hide your symptoms if able- that is a personal choice.

6. This one goes hand in hand with 5. but, cutting out unnecessary fat, salt and sugar. Again, you can find inspiration for these types of meals online, but do it safely. Don’t do what Emily did on Devil Wears Prada, and only eat a cube of cheese when feeling faint- that may actually have you in the hospital being force fed. Following diet and healthy lifestyle videos (some are toxic, so beware) may help with motivation. I’m happy to try and find some for you and put it in comments. But, doing this can also help with skin, hair, and overall health. If you’ve seen people online who go a week without unnecessary sugar, you know what I’m talking about.

7. Okay, this one may be controversial (more than the others), but go off weight gaining medication. Of course, some people physically cannot go off those medications, and that’s okay- but if you have the choice, then go for it. Talk to a G.P about your concerns, and hopefully they can help you out. Again, this may be difficult, but it doesn’t hurt to try. I have been put on multiple medications in the past that made me gain mass amounts of weight, and they told me to just go on a diet and exercise (which of course didn’t work because the medication was so strong). I’m lucky enough to be at an age (no longer considered to be under “Gillick competence” in the medical world) and position in my life where I have the freedom to refuse those medications, but I understand that you may not. I’m not saying you should go off those medications without guidance, but I found that at one point, it was my only option as it had other side effects that threatened my life (and G.P wouldn’t let me go off).

All of these may be hard to accomplish due to money, living, and age restrictions. Practicing self control, and being more assertive (if able) with others can make a big difference. Of course, some families may not allow this, maybe due to cultural (or other) reasons, but as long as you’re safe (I don’t have much concern for myself anymore, but that’s personal preference), and able to live without a hospital. If you have other ideas, then let me know, but this is personal preference and what I found helps me. Good luck on your journey! You’re beautiful/handsome, and I wish you the very best.

[escape-rock-bottom]

Journal #26 - My Nemesis, Sugar (Discomfort Challenge Journal)

They add sugar to EVERYTHING. I’m definitely getting ahead of myself with the lack of context there but seriously. 95% of foods I see in stores have some form of added sugar. The ones that don’t and claim they’re sugar free have those nasty synthetic sugars instead (The ones that give you diarrhea or headaches. Those ones.) It’s pretty ridiculous, and I now completely understand why I gained weight eating what I thought were health foods. 

I have a bit of a history with weight and eating problems. It really started in childhood and spiraled into full on insanity once I was put on pills and started getting some crazy bad symptoms from my mental illnesses. I graduated high school at a weight of over 250 lbs at a measly 5’2” height (yes. I’m short. Bad Genetics. Moving on.)  and a really terrible habit of eating large portions of food alongside snacks.

Then, there was my lack of an actual balanced diet and hydration - No joke, most of my hydration came in the form of juice or soda. I rarely drank water. I didn't know how sick I felt thanks to the combination of antipsychotic side effects and dissociative issues. I was slowly and silently killing myself and I didn't bother to care.

It was when I almost hit 300 lbs and was almost incapable of walking without feeling horrible leg pain and unbearably winded from walking a few hundred feet that I made a hard decision: Lose the weight. I won’t get into the details of the weight loss journey itself since that is its own long story, but I did drop 150+ pounds over 3 years after stopping all my psych meds and having gastric surgery. 

I’ll tell you, it feels great to be able to move, run, and walk. All the things I struggled doing are just everyday occurrences I don’t think twice about. I have a whole other fitness journey ahead of me regarding bodybuilding and cardio health but I’m happy to have lost that weight. The sad thing is that I fell back into old habits (on a smaller scale) and ended up not regularly exercising and eating pretty terribly. There are plenty of things I can’t do, but the fact that I eat in a calorie deficit combined with choosing sugar-packed, non-nutritious foods to consume, I ended up skinny fat - little muscle, high body fat. I also ended up with a bad sugar addiction, constant nausea and headaches, fatigue, and some deficiencies.

Right around the time this challenge came up, I decided I’d try to exercise more and eat better. I honestly didn’t actually commit until the challenge began and I tossed all my sugary, salty vices in the garbage and set myself boundaries. 

I’m insane though. Just limiting how much added and natural sugars I eat to less than I normally eat wasn’t enough. I wanted to see how well I’d manage without eating ANYTHING with added sugars. I set a discomfort challenge to do just that. The only thing I learned from that is the above statement: Added sugars and artificial sweeteners are everywhere in store bought food.

Home cooked meals suffer this fate as well, since some of the recipes required ingredients with added sugars (that reeeeally don’t need to be there.) I couldn’t even eat ketchup! It’s really given me the awareness to actually analyze my decisions when choosing my foods. I learned where to look for “hidden” sugars and what foods are safe (Hint: Fresh food that you have to cook)

The way I felt was along the lines of frustrated at this fact, but I also had a bit of a mindset change: Going without sugar isn’t that bad, and I don’t feel any loss without it. I’m pretty sure I killed the intensity of my addiction due to the already 3 weeks long sugar restriction. I realized that reaching for sugary foods is both a habit and an addiction. It was annoying to not be able to eat certain things and having little selection to choose from that day aside from eggs, fruit, bread, and lasagna to name a few things.

If I truly want to finally move forward and leave my sugar addiction and poor food choices in the dust, I will have to rework my habits. So far, I’m finding these action to be the most helpful:

Throw out any junk food. Out of sight, out of mind. 

Have emergency snacks or meals on hand for when you crave junk foods. These will be healthier alternatives that offer a similar feeling as the real deal does

Hold yourself accountable. Have a visible daily food tracker. No need to track macros or calories, just write down exactly what you ate if you feel that level is excessive.

Plan out your meals for the day.

When heading to the grocery store, have a list in hand. It helps to set intention and keep your focus solely on the list. Try to be in and out in under 20-30 minutes. Not only will you not grab junk food, but you will save on impulse buys.

Inform others of your dietary choices. Decent people will respect that, supportive people will hold you accountable when given the task to do so.

I won’t lie, part of me still struggles with the shift, but it’s actually a lot nicer to restrict sugars. I’ve noticed a decrease in sluggishness and nausea and an increase in energy and focus. I still have a long way to go, but it’s a great first step to improving my health. 

Find what works for you. I’m not here to tell you to change your habits (eating and dieting is a touchy subject for some.) However, I just thought it’d be interesting to finally tell my story and my journey regardless. Maybe you’ll take something, and maybe you won’t. If you’re like me and need that extra push: Go empty that pantry of all that crap you shouldn’t touch, buy some healthy nutritious foods, and try and fail and try again until you find what works the best for you. 

[ny-3aets]

Alright, so I might lose some followers for this, but I don’t care. This is the blog where I get to be honest about my views, so I’m going to be honest about this, too:

“Fatphobia” isn’t fucking real.

Yeah, some people treat others like shit human beings because they jump to conclusions about their circumstances. I’m not denying that. It sucks. However, it doesn’t reach into the territory of some kind of epidemic of oppression because not only is being fat something objective, it’s also not something people are born with and it’s absolutely something that you can change.

”Diet culture“ is only as harmful as you allow it to be if you take everything given to you at face value and don’t do any of your own research or contact someone like a nutritionist or a personal trainer to figure out what specifications work for you. The reason there are hundreds of different diets is because there are hundreds of different people that wrote each of them, and for each of them that specific method works, and it may not work for you.

With that in mind, nothing’s gonna fucking work if you do not commit to it for months or even years. A diet isn’t something you do for a month or two like you’re an actor prepping for a movie and then you get to go back to whatever you were doing before. Maybe if you’re already at a moderate shape and it corresponds to the needs of a new sport you‘re pursuing, it might, but for overall change at a casual pace, this isn’t how it works. You pursue a diet as in, that is your diet now. That is what you eat, period.

Your unhealthy codependency on unhealthy foods because they’ve trained your brain into assuming that they are vital in bringing you comfort and joy is exactly that — unhealthy, codependent behavior. No diet is extreme for asking you to give up desserts or extremely calorie-rich foods — being able to do this means maturing enough to understand that food is just that — food. It’s an energy source, nothing more, nothing less. Whether or not you choose to still eat unhealthy food “every once in a while” is entirely your choice because it’s your body and you can choose what you do with it, but in potentially compromising a diet you‘ve selected, you have absolutely no place to say that a diet does or doesn’t work.

When you start pursuing any diet specifically in order to lose weight however, you need to be at a calorie deficit. This, once again, takes some independent research as well as arithmetic to understand how much of a calorie deficit is right for you, depending on how active your lifestyle is. This isn’t me taking the high ground and pretending to be something I’m not. This is just a fact.

Not all forms of exercise work for everyone. Either go into the gym and obsessively (although safely) try everything for a two-week period at a time, or do intense research, and, if you can afford it (and I’m positive that there are online ones that will offer their services for free or discounted prices from an in-person gym) hire a personal trainer. Hiring a trainer doesn’t negate your research, however — question everything she says, look it up at home, see if there are opinions of other trainers online (YouTube has an entire hub of these guys).

Yes, there are cases in which people have genetic disorders which make it nearly impossible for them to lose weight. Those are A) rare and B) vary in degree of hinderance, meaning in certain circumstances there will absolutely be tons of research right at your fingertips to find a way to maneuver around it.

Yes, the BMI rating is a joke, specifically for people with extreme amounts of muscle mass (as muscle is heavier than fat), but I think you know if you look like Dwayne Johnson or you can achieve some of the same shit as a Sumo wrestler or a Siberian grandma. Either way it’s a mostly arbitrary number, although it can be a rough guide of where you “should” be.

Yes, there are people out there that are fat by societal standards but are more than capable of achieving extreme physical feats. Most of the people competing in throwing events at the Olympics or Strongman events look very different from the hypertrophied Greek statues of bikini competitions. I don’t have to tell you that this requires an extreme amount of training and dedication (and perhaps a winning ticket of the genetic lottery), but if it’s something you achieve, more power to you; I don‘t care.

I am not calling fat people lazy. Anyone can be lazy.

I am not calling fat people selfish. Anyone can be selfish.

I am not calling fat people terrible or disgusting or worthless or whatever the fuck else you want to extract from this because I decided to look you in the eye and tell you that your excuses suck.

Whether or not you’re fat doesn’t determine your worth as a human being, however, being fat, 9/10 times is something you can control and something you can work with. Finding a way to lose weight safely and effectively is something that takes years and years of trial and error and the negative psychological effects of what you see online are no one’s problem except your own — take everything with a grain of salt and do your own research instead of pretending that the world is out to get you. If you feel that people’s posts promoting something that works for them just fine is somehow a personal attack on you, I think it’s time to evaluate your relationship with the online media sphere at large, methinks.

I’m not a personal trainer, I’m not a nutritionist, I’m not going to tell you what to do, I’m not gonna look up and evaluate every single diet plan and workout regimen known to man — I already did it for myself, I spent the sweat and tears on it for the last five years of my life, and I know what works for me. I cannot tell you what is going to work for you and I cannot tell you that losing weight is something you must do but I can tell you that there is something that will work for you, if you want to lose weight. You just aren’t looking hard enough.

While at the end of the day, I don’t care what people do because it’s not my place to control their actions or their words, but I do care when people fucking lie. When they regurgitate the same “diets don’t work!” over every insinuation that maybe there needs to be some kind of change in their food intake, when they so boldly say that they can’t lose weight, that they’ve tried everything, that diet culture is “toxic” because they can’t take the time to impersonally and carefully evaluate whatever is being peddled to them, or when I want a friend or a significant other to support me on a lifestyle that I’m pursuing and they throw me the: “Oh, but you’re so beautiful regardless!” because that shit doesn’t fuck help me, that shit doesn’t make me feel any better and is a worthless statement when I want to approach something objectively and it’s clear that there are set goals with visible obstacles to overcome.

Yes, yes you can lose weight and the people telling you that you can do not wish any kind of harm upon you.

Yeah, we‘re all gonna die in the end anyway, but I don’t want to get there absolutely winded after every staircase I’ve climbed.

[kahayaya]

Things I’ve Learned from Weight Loss 4/13/2022

Thought I’d share my thoughts on weight loss

1) First and foremost, what you eat way more important than exercise. Saying goes, you can’t lose weight no matter how hard you train if you have a bad diet.

2) Everyone has different metabolism. From my own experience I don’t have the best metabolism where I can just eat anything and maintain the same weight. My metabolism is both a good and bad thing. Bad thing is that I have to put in effort to lose weight. Good thing is that since I can gain weight, its easier to put on weight if I want more muscle growth. I know some friends who are resistance training but they have a difficult time trying to gain weight in order to gain main muscle. So I’m thankful in that regard.

3) Find ways to be active. I game a lot, so even the simple things like parking a bit farther for grocery shopping or taking the stairs instead of an elevator all add up in a day to be more active. I think also moving to SF, made it easier for me to reach that regard.

4) Following up with the above, cardio is not necessary for weight loss. Although I did cardio when I stared my weight loss, it is not the ultimate factor that made me lose weight. If anything, it would help me push for a more calorie deficit. I realize you would need an insane number of hours or intensity to really make a dent in calories used. Use cardio training only for a more fun experience or for a better heart. 

5) Resistance training is the superior for a body. After picking up lifting weights last year, I can say it made a huge difference. Although I am roughly the same weight, if not a bit less, my body looks muscular and a bit toned. The recomp of my body’s fat vs muscle does make a difference and the only thing really holding me back for looking better is my body fat %. 

6) Do weight loss for yourself. I would always think if i looked better people would like me more. I went through introspection for a year and realize no matter how I would look, the same feeling of worth to myself would be there within me. So I realized working on that with some reflection with myself has helped me. And I also realized going to the gym was a fun aspect with seeing my friends and doing it with reaching goals in terms of increases my volume of weight. So there if fulfilment for me when doing this weight loss.

7) Fad diets are not it. I realized during my keto diet, yeah I did lose the most amount of weight, but it was not a sustainable one to begin with. I think within a year, I had almost regained all that weight back. So now i focused on just  cutting calories slightly, where I am not mindlessly eating but more aware of what I eat. With this, I can enjoyable eat things and know where I stand if I want to lose weight. 

8) Piggy back off last point, find something to eat where you can see yourself eating for a while. Restriction diets where you can’t eat a certain food is not it. But if its for religious reasons or environmental. I tots get that. Personally I am neither so nothing is restricting me. So find something sustainable in life where you can comfortable eat and have a healthy diet.

I think those are the tips in mind I had for myself and advice I would give if people are trying to lose weight. Wanted to write this to remind me of the journey that got me here as I try to embark on another milestone for weight loss.

Cheers 

[worldwidebt7]

I... have no idea why I decided to write this— especially on this blog because... I don’t really consider this a personal blog...

I suppose I just needed to vent? Get my thoughts out and hope that someone listens? I love my husband but... it’s like talking to a wall when it comes to this topic 😅

So... what I’m talking about is poor body image and everything that comes with it.

And I guess this is the part where I place a trigger warning for— jeez— just, everything? Talking about eating disorders, self-deprivation, low self worth, self body shaming, negative thoughts... so, if you’re triggered by these topics or anything similar, please read no further.

So, I guess I should preface this with a disclaimer: I love who I am. I love my mind, and the way I think and analyze. I love the way I love the things I’m passionate about.

But I hate that I can’t love the way I look.

I want to. I want to be happy and confident in how I look, but every time I see myself in a reflection I veer away as fast as possible. I can give you every reason in the book, but I couldn’t tell you where my poor body image comes from.

As far back as I can remember I have been hiding in clothes two sizes too big for me. Anything that will shield my imperfections from the world. Hell, I’ve even been living for these mandatory masks because that gives me the ability to hide my face. The less that can been seen of me, the better. I suppose that’s because I assume the rest of the world will judge me as harshly as I judge myself.

I have this saying: “Go ahead and say what you want because it can’t be worse than what I already tell myself.”

Which is true. In fact, I actively avoid mirrors when I can. I don’t even own a full body mirror. I have two vanity mirrors that show my face from the neck up and there are more than enough issues just there to keep me occupied for an hour.

Owning a full length mirror would be... well, let’s just say the last time I looked at myself at length in one I cried and nearly broke my hand.

I am... overweight for my height and body type. And for myself. About 35lbs (15.88kg) to be precise. I’m 5’1” (155cm) and of a petite build. I should weigh in the 112lb (50.80)-121lb (54.88kg). I understand that each body has its own version of healthy, but I can physically feel the effects that the extra weight is having on my body.

I should add that I wasn’t always this heavy. In middle school and high school I was about average weight even if it was a little over the “ideal” and later I was in the spectrum of healthy weight for my size twice.

And neither time did I get there healthily.

The first time was out of my hands— I had been quite ill with Lyme disease for the first two years of my college life and I was spending 75% of my time asleep or too weak to move. Surprisingly, I actually GAINED weight at this time and was at the unruly weight I’m currently at today.

However, that changed drastically when doctors finally discovered the cause of my ailments and put me on aggressive medication for it. I had Lyme for two years— there was already irreparable damage to by body from it. I though the treatment would be the end.

Wrong.

The pills prescribed to me were meant to eliminate the disease as swiftly as possible and consequently made me more ill. I was throwing up two to three times a day and with that came a sensitive stomach and a nonexistent appetite. I loved off of bread and chocolate milk for a month because that’s all my stomach could keep down.

I lost 35lbs (15.88kg) in four weeks. My body was eating itself. I was weak. Every bone in my body hurt. My eyes were sunken in. I couldn’t eat because the bacteria in my stomach were so damaged.

But I was finally— FINALLY— skinny. My body had essentially transformed over night in my suffering and I felt like at least one good thing had come out of me being sick.

I began working out regularly trying to gain some of my muscle back and I toned up, I had definition and some of my energy back. And I continued to try and nurse myself back to health for the next year by slowly introducing more food into my meals. I was trying to do the right thing for my body, but I also wanted to keep the weight off.

This was the first... and the last time I was ever happy with my body.

It lasted little more than a year.

Once I was able to eat full meals again after quite some time, I gained all the weight back— and then some. I was the heaviest I had ever been and I was MISERABLE. I had gotten a taste of my version of “the perfect body” and I ate it away.

This is where the self-hatred really set in.

After I graduated college and broke up with my boyfriend, I decided to lose the weight again. The beginning was hard— not due to lack of motivation or knowledge (my mother had been a personal trainer) but because my metabolism had be irreparably damaged from the earlier events. And when I stopped seeing results, I cut back on calories.

And cut back again.

And again.

And again.

Until— finally— I had lost most of the weight again. And I was eating 300 calories or less a day. Preferably less. The less I ate, the more I complimented myself for restricting and having restraint.

“You did good today!”

“With this, you’ll definitely lose weight!”

“Look at how flat your stomach is!”

Of course my stomach was flat. I hadn’t eaten anything!

And all the kind, sweet words to myself were doing was reinforcing horrible, life-threatening habits that I still struggle with today.

This also went on for a year, and, while I wasn’t completely satisfied with how my body looked, it was the last time I can pinpoint where I was happy. And because I link that period of time to happiness, I now connect the eating disorder I had to contributing to it.

Flash forward to now— four and a half years later. I am back to my miserable weight. I feel like my body isn’t mine, and that it’s betrayed me. And I hate it.

I am still in constant pain from the joint damage caused my the Lyme disease. My stomach is still sensitive and I often feel ill after eating (whether this is a physical response or a psychological one at this point I cannot tell). And my metabolism has never recovered from what was now 9 years ago.

And I have tried to lose the weight again. I went to a personal trainer and that worked for a bit— I dropped 11lbs (4.99kg) in about four months and I was eating healthy. But then I plateaued. I was told I needed to eat more since I was doing weight lifting. So I ate more and the weight started coming back.

I tried intermittent fasting, and that worked for a time. But then I did a body scan that measures fat vs muscle vs skeletal mass and it showed that the weight I was losing was actually muscle. I was told again to eat more, so I did.

I gained all 11lbs back.

Then I fell back on what I knew worked for me. Calorie deficit.

I started cutting back until I began to see weight drop, but immediately stopped when I realized that I would have to eat less than 700 calories a day for any sort of result.

So here I am, in my traitorous body with no light at the end of the tunnel. I have more issues than losing weight can resolve at this point. I should see a therapist, but I can’t afford one. I should consult a nutritionist, but, again, can’t afford that. The only reason I could afford a trainer because she was a friend of mine and gave me an amazing deal. However, after I had to drop $2k to fix the watermain to my house I was unable to afford that even.

I’m not the confident woman my husband married three years ago, and because of my insecurities and poor body image marital problems run rampant in our relationship.

I know there are many factors to how I view myself— I have unrealistic standards that I feel I must live up to. I have a deep-seeded fear of being ugly because at some point in my life I decided that only good things happen for beautiful people.

I was listening to a podcast today and they were discussing how hot people don’t need to develop certain personality traits or social skills because they’re beautiful and everyone loves beautiful people.

I guess I’ve always wanted to be one of these beautiful people.

It’s vain, and plastic, and superficial, and my common sense finds it absolutely ridiculous. But when I look in a mirror I can’t find anything that I actually like. It’s like I’m screaming from inside a body that I don’t belong in, because the way I feel about myself isn’t reflected in how I outwardly look.

Again, I love my mind. I love my art and the stories I want to tell with it. I love my soul. I just hate the cage it’s trapped in.

I don’t know why I decided to write this... I guess... I really just wanted someone to listen... and I wanted others who feel the same or have been through similar circumstances, that they’re not alone.

And I suppose not being alone and being heard can be exactly what’s needed sometimes.

I’ll delete this later.

[odaatlover]

Any tips on how to accept your body and your weight?

I’ve been trying to loose weight since forever and it’s hard and I want to keep going but not make it my priority and not let it really affect me but it’s hard.

I don’t really have tips for how to feel comfortable in your own body because that’s something per individual :/ But I have some tips for helping you reach your goals!

First, being in a caloric deficit and consistency are the only two things you need for fat loss. The issue that most people have — myself included — is consistency. You have to find something you can sustain for the rest of your life, because once you lose the weight you have to be able to keep it off so it’s not like you lose it and then can eat whatever you want. You’ll end up just gaining it all back, especially if you’re someone like me who has an unhealthy relationship with food and struggle with binging. So these diets like weight watchers, Atkins, Jenny Craig, or even things like keto or a low carb diet don’t really work because they’re not sustainable. You lose it at first and then you gain it back. And so you blame yourself thinking “Oh I just didn’t do it well enough and need to get back at it again” when in reality the programs aren’t meant to last forever. That’s how they get you to go back to it. They make you think it worked because you lost some weight for a bit and so you repeatedly buy their products. These diets are only useful as tools. They only help if you understand why you’re losing weight on them.

So you have to find something that works for you! If you tried something and lost weight but you weren’t able to keep it off and ended up gaining it back, then it’s not something that worked for you. As Albert Einstein once said, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” Try something different! I’m still trying to find the thing that works for me, 12 years of losing weight and gaining some back repeatedly.

Right now I’m trying to eat lower calorie foods that will fill me up, and that taste really good. For example, these are the kinds of meals I’m eating now:

Brownies: 280 calories for the whole plate (cocoa powder, chocolate protein powder, flour, baking powder, pinch of salt, Diet Coke, Lily’s white chocolate chips, topped with crushed reduced fat graham crackers)

Cheeseburger crunch wrap with salad: 430 calories for the meal (whole Joseph’s lavash bread, beyond meat crumbles [can use lean ground beef], onions, tomatoes, pickles, ketchup, mustard, reduced fat shredded cheese) and for the salad (cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, spinach, 0 calorie honey mustard)

Anabolic chocolate ice cream: 365 calories for the bowl (cocoa powder, PEScience chocolate cupcake protein powder, xanthan gum, topped with sugar free chocolate sauce and a fiber one brownie bar)

Breakfast burrito: 380 calories (whole Joesph’s lavash bread, 1 egg, 3 servings of egg whites, beyond meat crumbles, sugar free maple syrup for some sweetness — or can use salsa)

Egg grilled cheese sandwiches: 320 calories (4 slices Lewis 35 calories white bread, 4 servings egg whites, reduced fat shredded cheese — sometimes I’ll add some Simple Truth vegetarian deli ham slices for an extra 70 calories to add protein)

French toast with eggs and fruit: 430 calories for the whole meal — I usually have 4 pieces of French toast so that’s what the 430 calories is including. The French toast is 4 slices of 35 calorie Lewis bread dipped in a mixture of egg whites, cinnamon, Stevia, half capful of vanilla and cooked on pan with a bit of cooking spray. The eggs is 1 egg with 1 serving of egg whites and veggies. And I use sugar free maple syrup and just eat as much of that as I want because it’s only 5 calories for 2 tbsp.

Shepherds Pie: 285 calories for the bow full, 1/4 of the dish. (Mashed cauliflower — which is a head of cauliflower, one potato, few spoonfuls of Greek yogurt, and spices blended together; Gardein crumbles, frozen veggie mix, vegetable stock)

Nachos: 400 calories (2 whole Joseph’s lavash breads cut up and baked in oven to make chips, reduced fat shredded cheese, onions, salsa)

These are just a few examples. But notice how much food you get for low calories — that’s what you want! I’ve been trying this for the past month and have lost about 10lbs so far. I’m not sure if this is THE thing for me yet, but so far it’s incredibly easy to stick with because everything tastes so good! And it doesn’t feel like a diet or anything. The foods don’t taste like a 10/10 like the highly paletteable foods that are full of sugar and fat, but these are more like an 8/10 or sometimes even 9/10, and that’s worth it to me for being able to stay in a good caloric deficit. So if this is something you think might work for you, then definitely try it out! Read food labels and WEIGH your food! Even you’re bread — you’d be surprised.

On Saturdays I allow myself a “cheat” meal. We usually do something active like a bike ride and I’ll eat what I want afterwards. Right now I’m eating pizza 😂 But I’m going to be trying a low calorie chocolate chip cookie recipe for dessert tonight so I’m not going too crazy! The important thing is I can definitely see myself eating this for the rest of my life because I don’t feel deprived, everything tastes good, and I’m not constantly thinking about fast food because this food honestly helps those cravings as you can imagine.

So, just try to find something that works for you, that you can do for the rest of your life! Something is out there, I promise. Take your time with it. Trust the process, don’t rush it. Don’t try to lose weight fast because omg that’ll most likely cause you to gain it back because you’re under eating and will eventually want to give up and eat everything high in calories lol. Also, DON’T WEIGH YOURSELF EVERY DAY. I’d say once a week at most. But the scale isn’t that great of a tool because weight constantly fluctuates. Use your clothes and measurements to track progress, plus pics! Otherwise, you’ll get easily discouraged thinking you’re gaining fat when reality you’re probably losing fat but retaining water and gaining some muscle so the number went up.

This was a lot, but I’m so passionate about it and love helping people as much as I can with it, because I was really heavy a while back and know what it’s like to try to lose fat. So I really hope this helps ❤️ Feel free to DM me anytime if you want some more tips or recipes!

[reclaimingmyself-finally]

Finishing this program and looking over basic stats (Thanks, fitbit, and my compulsive record keeping.  Spreadsheets were good naturedly in my wedding vows.   Not kidding.  He’s still ok with it. ;) ).  Every time I finish a program I find myself self reflecting.

Started late May of 2020, and have logged 197 workouts (everything all together.  Strength training, running, crossrope, etc.).  197 times of choosing health.  197 times of pushing play.  

Let’s be real, though.  I also have notes such as “date:  tortilla chips and snow” with no workout logged. ;)  And injuries.  And flu bugs.  And crazy preschooler.  Things pop up to get in the way.  That’s inevitable.  I just try to take it as it comes.  And do what I can.  When we went to Sunriver I was in the middle of P90x3, so I just ran and did basic push ups and ab exercises.  And I ate delicious hot dogs and ice cream.  Balance.  Vacation.  Rest.

I lost 40 pounds.  And I don’t know how many inches.  (Those are logged, too, but I’m too lazy in this moment to do the math.)

I went from lifting 5 - 10lb dumbbells to lifting 15 - 25lb dumbbells (depending on exercise.)  I can run between 3 and 7 miles without stopping (I could run maybe one when I started.)  (Increasing this is in my top list of fitness goals this year.)  

The habits I’m most proud of include:  giving up the daily (DAILY) sugar laden, high calorie latte and pastry (seriously every day) and moving to a cold brew with no added sugar; consistently waking up at about 4:45am to prioritize workouts; dialing in nutrition; allowing myself treats in moderation (election night Oreo incident was not necessarily a treat, but I do feel it was ... necessary).

The habit I’m still struggling with is a nightly splash of wine, and I’m struggling with it because I know your body works on burning that first before burning other things.  (Splash = 2-3 ounces.  I measured once.  OF course I measured.)  I’m currently experimenting with behavior approximation / steps of drinking a La Croix slowly as I make dinner and through dinner.  After dinner I don’t want a splash.  It’s very odd.  Just when I cook and sit down to eat.  I’m also considering drinking hot lemon water while I cook.  (If I engage in healthy behaviors first, I know for myself I get in a mindset of not wanting to undo my hard work.)

I think what makes the difference are a few things.  Consistency over a long period of time (when it’s a lifestyle change, momentary blips mean less.  If it’s viewed in the context of a 90 day program only, momentary blips are probably going to feel catastrophic.)  Nutrition (changing something.  It’s complicated, but calorie deficits are usually needed to lose weight.)  Grace / self compassion / viewing this as doing something for yourself instead of punishing yourself (although I’ve had a few leg days that felt like torture.)

Goals for 2021:  Increase running mileage (when all this snow melts.  Yeesh.).  Continue to increase weights.  Continue to up pull up numbers.   As I feel safe to do so, consider joining a Crossfit gym.  

Anyway.  Tl;dr - Onward.

[weirdo-with-a-nametag]

Cw for discussion of weight loss, dieting, eating disorders

This is basically just me venting some worries! No need to read or comment if you don't wanna!

I continue to lose weight, unintentionally. Just like...not eating. Trying to. At least it's slowed down. When I started working i dropped like 9lbs in 2 weeks while making a concerted effort to eat and make up the calories from working, and that spooked me.

Like. I had been less active than usual because of quarantine, and gained some weight, got past what I consider mostly comfortable, figured that doing this physical job would build muscle and that I'd lose some fat reserves I'd built up from not doing stuff, you know?

But I consistently struggle to eat, and have been walking the line between trying to just, eat pretty balanced stuff to promote healthy body functions, etc, and like. Starving myself to be skinny. For as long as I can remember. And typically my struggles with food are primarily executive dysfunction, lack of hunger/appetite, sensory issues, or anxiety over the social aspect (going into public parts of the house, getting yelled at for eating the wrong thing or at the wrong time, or getting comments on how healthy/unhealthy whatever it is is, and my body/clothes, and then conflict over dishes). And like not having the energy for some/all of that.

But there's definitely part of my brain constantly going "what if you just don't eat, wouldn't it be nice to lose weight (or be in a malnourished fog so you don't have to think)" and that bit gets louder when I know that I am losing weight. So I'm checking, trying not to do so very often but checking. Because it makes me nervous, any large changes in physical parameters mess with your like..homeostasis . You know. And I don't want to deal with that. And, if I lose weight this fast it's not just from working. I'm not getting enough nutrients. How many calories do I need, because I'm not getting it. The last time I tried to track that, it was less than 1000 most days. Which is so far from enough! Hello, brain! Let me eat food! Please! I'm begging you!

I can't even lean too hard into like, sugar and bread and pasta to just cram into calorie deficits, because they make me nauseous if I eat too much. I can't eat a ton of anything without getting nauseous. So I'm trying to keep snacks around. Stuff with protein. I can do meat sticks, nuts and craisins, goat cheese and smoked salmon. And there are other things I can usually eat, now. Trying to make it so my safe foods are on hand more often. But most days I stare at the ceiling or into the cabinets, knowing I need to eat, and can't do it.

Why is this so hard.

I think I'm at..what? 20 pounds? I've lost 20lbs since starting this job? I'm ok with being at the weight I'm at right now, but the concept of losing weight is what's scaring me

[the-fit--teacher]

Lessons learned in 2020

1. Be radically honest with yourself.

I learned that I needed to be honest and realistic about what sacrifices I was willing to make in order to achieve and maintain long-term weight loss. For a long time, I held on to the idea that I had to do keto because it worked so well for me before. I lost 30 pounds in 3 months, had tons of energy, and my skin was the clearest it's ever been. However, it was nearly impossible to eat a satisfying meal in a restaurant as someone who is both low-carb and a vegetarian. I also realized that I am not willing to give up black beans, bananas, chocolate, and pasta for the rest of my life. Keto is an excellent tool for weight loss, but it isn't something I pereonally would be willing to do forever. It's better to accept that I am going to eat "less healthy" foods like chocolate sometimes and find ways to slowly reduce the amount that I eat to a reasonable level.

I also learned to be honest with myself when tracking my food. It took me until late September this year to realize why I was losing little to no weight: I wasn't tracking all of my binges. I would pre-track my "ideal day" in MyFitnessPal and stick to the planned foods all day, only to overeat by 500+ calories after dinner. I would feel ashamed of myself for messing up and wouldn't bother logging the binge. This made it easy to underestimate how often my binges were happening. Once I started tracking them, I realized I was binging 2-4 times per week! Even if I ate at a deficit on the other days, I was erasing my progress with my binge eating. Now that I can see easily when it happens, I am much more mindful and focus on strategies to reduce their frequency, and I now only binge about twice per month.

2. Focus on reducing binges first, then you can work on eating at a deficit.

Trying to eat at a deficit when you have a binging problem will only make matters worse. It's better to focus on maintaining your weight for a while and work on strategies that will prevent you from binging. For me personally, my binges usually happen when I am emotionally overwhelmed, bored, or drunk. They also almost always happen in the evenings and on weekends, when I don't have structured time. What I've been doing is finding ways to manage my emotions more healthily, as well as fill the time between dinner and bed. Before, I would eat dinner and then watch TV until it was time to go read in bed. Now I wash dishes, go for a walk (even if it's walking in place in front of the TV), do a skincare routine, and play a video game for a while. This, in addition to avoiding alcohol and making sure I eat at least 80-100g of protein per day, has reduced my binging enough that I can consistently eat at a deficit most days.

4. Know your minimum habits.

When I think back to what has caused me to gain weight in the past, it's that I completely abandoned my healthy habits whenever I was going through something difficult or stressful. My mindset was that if I couldn't do everything optimally, there was no point in trying all. This all-or-nothing mindset caused me to gain back much of the 54 pounds I lost before my first seizures happened in 2018. I was forbidden to do strenuous exercise and wasn't allowed to drive myself, so getting groceries was challenging. I was so frustrated with not being able to run or to visit multiple stores to get the keto ingredients I was accustomed to that I didn't bother just walking instead, or just tracking the food I had and eating at maintenance calories. If I had done that, I probably would have maintained my weight rather than putting back on 30 pounds.

You have to accept that life is going to throw you curveballs, like health problems, breakups, or deaths of loved ones. No matter what, these things WILL happen, and giving up on all of your healthy habits won't help anyone. Therefore, you need to know what your minimum habits are, the things you will do NO MATTER WHAT is going on in your life. This way when difficult things happen, you are hitting the "pause button" and maintaining your weight rather than going backwards and gaining weight.

For me, my minimums are tracking 100% of what I eat, getting 5000 steps, and doing 50 squats. I know that if I'm being mindful of what I eat and at least doing a small amount of activity, that will go a long way towards making sure that I don't undo all of my hard work.

Note: I owe a lot of these changes in mindset to the Half Size Me podcast, which is aimed more towards middle-aged and older women; however, its message is simple and universally applicable: *You* are all you need to lose weight. Start where you are now, accept yourself as you are, and make small incremental changes that you can realistically and happily maintain for the rest of your life. Let go of the idea of "perfection" because you and your life will never be perfect. (This is all common sense, and I understood this before, but the host Heather puts this into concrete and easy-to-implement terms.)

[h1ghparad0x]

WEIGHT LOSS TIPS

Hey guys!! So I come on here pretty often in search of weight loss tips, but I’ve been trying a few things that have helped me lose weight relatively fast so I thought I’d share :)

1. BLACK SEED OIL PILLS

honestly these are a game-changer!! I’m not sure if it’s occurred because of my change in diet or these pills or both but OMG!! The main difference is my skin. I’VE NEVER HAD MORE SOFT OR CLEAR SKIN IN MY LIFE!! Like this stuff does wonders for your skin. Even my back acne has cleared up in just a few weeks. I take two pills in the morning and two pills at night, alongside my green tea. I’ll drop the link for the ones I bought down below.

Link: 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0714PK8VV/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_PApPFbXH1N31G?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

2. CALORIE DEFICIT

pretty self explanatory. most everyone already knows this, but you want to actively burn more calories than you consume. EX. burn 1000 cal- you want to eat less than that. that being said when I restrict and don’t eat anything pretty much this can be hard. I say you do it some days and don't the other but try to be active or at least walk everyday. Just moving more has had me losing weight in my thighs noticeably. However, it is common to plateau if you restrict too much. I recommend restrict however you normally would, eat about 500 more calories than normal, then go back to your routine. This should cause your metabolism to switch up and help you lose more weight. (p.s. this also helps you with your bowel movements if you’ve been stuck for a week or so from not eating)

3. PATIENCE

I know this one may sound stupid, but hear me out. I’ve been at this weight loss for two months and today I hit my lowest weight since sophomore year of high school, four years ago. I guarantee if you curb your cravings and stick things out THE RESULTS WILL SHOW. In that time, I’ve most notably lost weight in my stomach, thighs, and ESPECIALLY my collarbones. One thing I do that may or may not help, but it helps me personally which is kinda weird is I watch ASMR Mukbang Binges. It makes me see the food visually and teach myself to turn away. 

Hope this helps anyone out there! Stay safe loves! :)

[sourscreamsnowstorm]

Why did I make this blog?

This is not my main Tumblr blog. I made this separate account to chronicle my weight loss and fitness journey. I have a specific goal in mind- I want to lose enough weight to get a breast reduction! I am very uncomfortable with my chest, and I want to use this blog to keep me accountable and to gather inspiration for myself to keep going. I have to lose roughly 80 pounds for most plastic surgeons to consider a breast reduction for me. This is based on my own Google searches about general needs/requirements for breast reductions. 

PLEASE take everything I say and do with a grain of salt. I am not a health professional, and I am not working with one -  I can’t afford it. I’m doing this using my Fitbit tracker, exercising with videos on youtube, and trying my damn best to lose the weight and keep it off!

Previously, the closest I was to my goal was 212lbs. During the pandemic and the depression I fell into, I got up to 280lbs. Now I am down to 265, and working toward my first goal of 220. After that, my goals are 20 lbs at a time. Each time I lose 20 lbs, I will reward myself with a non-food item, experience, or self-care. This could be an item of clothing, a face mask, some new clothes, makeup, anything! My overall goal is 140lbs, the high healthy weight for my height. HOWEVER, this is based on my BMI- which we all know is problematic AF. KNowing this, I’d be happy anywhere between 180 and 10- because I know how my body carries weight, and if I weigh 180 and look the way I want to look (and can get that sweet sweet titty surgery), then I’ll be happy! A few caveats: I have a few health issues I need to take into account. I have hypothyroidism, (I suspect its actually hashimotos!), and a blood disease that means my blood doesn’t carry enough oxygen. I get winded VERY quickly, my body temperature is hard to regulate, I’m anemic, and I have bunions. Basically, I’m exhausted, hot, and in pain all the time! Sometimes I’ll need to take a day or two to let my body heal and relax. And that’s OK! This journey will take AT LEAST a year- and maybe more because of these issues. Slow and steady progress is the goal!

I am trying to heal my relationship with food. I have previously had some pretty disordered eating habits, specifically binge eating. I’m using my Fitbit to deter me from overeating (that red bar for food is not fun to see!) I’m not paying attention to macros, low carbs, or any other fad. I am eating whatever I want, with a lean toward healthier options. This means brown rice over white, cooking at home rather than eating out, making sure I get enough protein, and trying to eat more greens. This doesn’t mean I’m not eating pasta, chocolate, and other snacks! Im just making sure I stay in a calorie deficit. 

If you’re interested in coming along, please do! I’d love to hear tips and other ideas from other people on similar journeys.