Replace the dopamine

So, I’ve been on the wagon for about 3 months now. And honestly, I’ve discovered my own cheat. I have bad impulse control and always have and I’ve lived long enough that I only have enough discipline and willpower to practice guitar and get up in the morning, as well as go for a workout. Other than that anything I want to change needs to be replaced with a different source of unearned dopamine. I figure it’s harm reduction.

As such I’ve just replaced the dopamine source high calorie foods served as with other unearned sources of dopamine. Some days it’s excessive cannabis use, some days I play video games. I also add dopamine to my weight loss goal - I’m an avid watch collector so I let myself buy a new watch every 10 lbs.

Call it unhealthy, call it whatever you want, but making myself obese is probably the single worst way to get that unearned dopamine so I’d say I’m doing better for myself. I’m down 15 lbs and I feel better every day.

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I lost weight and now people won’t shut the fuck up about my body

I’m just so fucking tired. It’s 9:30pm and I’m crying in my bed, completely exhausted. I’m a 31F, almost 32.

A year ago, I left my boyfriend because our relationship was going absolutely nowhere. We were stuck in a loop, and after yet another fight, I finally signed a lease somewhere else and left.

To keep my mind busy, I decided to get my life back on track. My job wasn’t bringing me any joy anymore. I’m a blue collar worker for my city at first it was cool, I was outside a lot and doing physical work, but as I gained seniority, I ended up mostly just driving trucks. On top of that, my coworkers were getting more and more on my nerves… and I still had like 25 years left of doing that.

So I decided to take control of my life and go back to school to train in arboriculture (tree climbing with ropes, cutting dangerous or problematic branches).

When I started the program, I weighed about 176 lbs and I’m 5’8. The course was extremely demanding, and having adhd, I constantly felt like I was chasing a moving train always confused, struggling to organize myself, struggling to follow steps. I truly felt like the black sheep.

Long story short, I barely made it through, but I did finish. And I’m really proud of myself.

But all that stress, the anxiety, climbing every single day, plus changing my eating habits after leaving my ex made me lose 35 lbs I went from 175 to 140.

During my training, I was on unpaid leave from work. So when I came back 9 months later, people were shocked by my weight loss. I kept telling myself they’d get used to it… but it’s been 2 months now, and every single day people bring it up. They ask what I did, my “secrets,” my tips, etc.

I try to stay nice and answer politely, but it’s getting heavy. Nothing I say is ever enough, it never satisfies them.

Today my boss said: “How do you stay in shape? You don’t even work out!?”

She KNOWS I haven’t worked out in 2 months because I’m literally always at work 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, since it’s snow removal season and it never stops snowing.

That was honestly the last straw. I seriously can’t take it anymore.

I’m the same person. The same girl. With the same body. My doctor checked everything I’m healthy.

I’m just so damn tired of hearing about it 😢

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Two(ish) Month Weight Loss Progress

SW 225 | CW 205 | GW 145 | HT 5'5"

I made a post here back in November when I finally decided to start my weight loss journey, and people gave me some really good advice about calculating calorie deficits; I'm now down 20lbs in 2.5 months, which is pretty exciting! For context, I (23F) originally gained about 50lbs my first two years out of college due to the sudden shift in activity at work (went from food service to a desk job). I had been upset with the way by body felt and looked during that time, but I didn't take initiative until this past November.

I now go to the gym five times a week for about 45 minute sessions, with upper body for two days, lower body for two days, and one core day. My daily calorie intake is currently <2000, and I've tried to eat smarter without restricting certain foods altogether. I definitely still face struggles, such as not noticing a visual change in weight or getting upset when my weight fluctuates around my period, but I'm overall really happy with my progress.

I just wanted to share my journey thus far, and I hope that it keeps trending in this direction!

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Built my own calorie & macro targets spreadsheet - looking for a sanity check

Hi all,

I’m working on a long-term weight loss plan and decided to build my own spreadsheet rather than rely entirely on an app. I’d really appreciate a quick sanity check from people who understand nutrition/macros (Link to screenshot of sheet at bottom of post).

This spreadsheet is part of a broader self-tracking system I’m building. I log individual foods in a FoodLog that references a curated FoodRef table with verified nutrition data, and a DailyLog then updates automatically by aggregating calories and macros from the FoodLog. Alongside this, I record weekly body measurements (weight, VO₂ max, and circumference measurements) and daily contextual variables like sleep hours, stool quality, exercise minutes, and exercise type. The MacroGoals sheet brings this together by defining calorie and macro targets by weight band and desired rate of loss, so I can compare planned targets against observed trends over time.

Context:

• Female, 29, ~180 cm
• Current weight ~127 kg, goal ~70-80 kg
• Focus is fat loss while preserving muscle and minimising loose skin (I understand loose skin will almost certainly be unavoidable, but i'd like to do the best I can)
• I’m aiming for sustainability over speed

What I’ve done so far:

• Calculated BMR by weight band (every 5 kg)
• Used a conservative baseline PAL (1.25) for low-activity days
• Calculated calorie targets for ~0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 kg/week loss
• On days I exercise, I add exercise calories separately rather than inflating PAL

Macros:

• Protein scales with weight (currently ~1.6 g/kg)
• Fat scales with weight (~0.8 g/kg)
• Fibre is set at ~14 g per 1000 kcal
• Carbs are calculated as the remaining calories after protein + fat

The sheet lets me pick a target rate of loss per weight band and automatically adjusts calories and fibre accordingly.

What I’m looking for feedback on:

• Do these macro assumptions look reasonable for fat loss + muscle retention?
• Any red flags in how I’m calculating protein, fibre or carbs?
• Anything you’d simplify or change if this were your setup?

Here's a link to a screenshot of my MacroGoals sheet (Imgur)

Thanks in advance 🙂

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exercise regimen

hello! for context, 24F currently 120kg was 130kg. I started weight lifting 4-5 times a week and then doing a cardio session (20-30mins) at the end of the session and I feel like i’m not seeing any progress! I know cardio is best for weight loss and i’m struggling to come up with a good weight lifting to cardio ratio to ensure i’m losing every week. Unsure whether to cut out weights altogether and just do cardio sessions?

Also, I have been big all my adult life and I don’t have a clue what is a healthy body for myself (only “slim” photos I have are from when I was 14-16 ish so I didn’t have the womanly parts I have now, so I have no idea what goal weight i’m aiming for? I won’t ever be a size 8 i have curvy family genes (chest, legs, hips etc) so I just don’t know at all! Wondering if any women here have had the same experience! Thank you in advance for any advice I’d greatly appreciate it!

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Maintenance Calories - Still losing weight despite

Hello All,

I lost 25KG (55lbs) in a few short months (high protein, low calories for 3+ months) and now I'm down to 67KG (147lbs). I'm Male and 170cm.

I've got to a weight I'm happy with and I switched to Maintenance about 90 days ago.

However I'm still losing weight, but slower. I will eat clean and fairly low calories during the week about 1200-1500 a day (3 meals a day, volume eating mostly, chicken, fish, vegetables, low carb) and come Friday night, I will eat what I did before my weight loss (in smaller doses), as a way of balancing. So for example a large pizza on Friday night with garlic bread, some ice-cream. Next day I'll have streak and chips and carb heavy foods for lunch. Beers (quite a few) on Sunday (drink one day a week only) usually with ramen or the such beforehand. They are usually 2000+ heavy days.

Come Monday back to wholefoods and low carbs and eating good.

I was doing this as a way of balancing what I eat and my calorie intake. But I'm still losing weight. I've lost 2.5KG (5.5lbs) the past 30 days and pretty much the same (if not more) the month before.

I'm not gorging myself. I'm not snacking during the weekend either. I'm just trying to balance my calories and it's not working. It's hard to count calories when food is takeaway. I've also slowed down on cardio in recent times to see if that changes anything.

Does anything have any experience to give? Everyone (understandably) talks about dieting, but maintenance has been tricky for me. Getting a balance right. I don't want to just eat more clean foods. I want some balance and moderation.

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Frustrated over weird compliments

I have after a lot of years of struggling with extreme dieting, crazy fluctuation, pregnancy and (finally) visiting a proper dietitian lost about 40 kg!

I am so happy but also haven’t realized it completely yet. I don’t like myself in photos and feel like I still have a some left.

I gained 50 kg’s while having a depression and so I feel like it’s only natural to then want to loose the 10 kg’s I “have left”

I have PCOS and on top of that I’m doing a very slow weight loss. I’m counting calories everyday, but only in a 200 deficit, just eating more vegetables but also not restricting myself and I’m eating what I feel like.

I’m really trying to do it for good this time even if it takes 7 more years.

So here’s the thing.. All of my family members (mom, dad, sister, in-laws) are all saying the same weird phrases “You aren’t going to loose anymore aren’t you?”, “I can almost see through you, I think its getting unhealthy”, “oh no, now you are weighing less than me” and “I think you are good where you are now, I think you should stop here”

I know they mean it well but it doesn’t feel well and it’s every time they see me even tho the weight hasn’t changed since last time.

I never talk about my weight loss unless asked cause I don’t want the pressure, attention or feeling ashamed if I some day gain some of it back. I’ve learned that lesson the hard way.

For context, I’m 175 cm and my BMI is at 28. It used to be 41.

I get that it’s a big change but I really need my family to cheer on me and not encouraging me to stop.

How can I talk to them without sounding selfcentered? Should I just “take the compliment”?

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