Long time lurker here, never been consistently active on this subreddit. But I am wanting to get active in this super welcoming, lovely community. Anyway, I wanted to share a bit about what's been working for me so far.
A bit of background: I've struggled with disordered eating since I was ~13. From browsing those pro-anorexia corners of the Internet in middle school to straight-up bulimia up until fairly recently. Being a teenager is always a ride (lol). I binge ate after coming home from school, ravenously hungry. I didn't know this was binge-eating at the time, and my parents never intervened. This was comorbid with a serious snacking habit, and general unawareness of how much I was really eating. I would eat late at night, continuing to snack after dinner. I've been vegan since I was 12, so I mistakenly thought that vegan food = lower calorie/healthy. Boy, was I wrong. While nobody ever told me I was fat, I didn't like where my body was. Things came to a peak when I went on a trip abroad and came back at my highest ever weight, 147lb. I am 5'7, and I carried the extra weight especially in my face, thighs, and stomach. I still don't like looking at pictures from my heaviest, which is a shame because they're sentimental trip photos.
Fast forward up until a couple of weeks ago, I was doing 1200cal p/day by the skin of my teeth. Every day felt like an upward battle. It wasn't until I gave myself permission to up my calories to 1500cal p/day that things began to fall into place! Here's what's been changing:
- Plenty of dog walks. I like calmer, less intense exercise. I totally admire people that go hard in CrossFit boot camps and can deadlift several kindergarteners, but that's not me haha. I love plugging in my headphones and setting a timer on my phone for 35-40 minutes. I live in a town with a couple of really good hiking spots, so occasionally I'll treat my Sheltie on a nature walk.
- Natural IF. I find that a lenient 10-6 intermittent fasting period has helped me curve my snacking habit. Instead of waking up and eating breakfast first thing, I'll take a shower/go on a walk/do my makeup/do some light homework/read. Sometimes I'll wake up in the middle of the night and really want a snack. But instead of engulfing a family-sized bag of spicy tortilla chips, I'll have a persimmon and go back to bed. When I previously attempted IF, I would be watching the clock like a hawk waiting for the time to eat and feel actual melancholy when it was over. It's not a big deal eating breakfast a bit earlier around 9:30. The important part is not starting or ending my day immediately with food.
- Fidget more. I heard you can burn up to 300cals just fidgeting at your desk. Might not be true, but it's something and it's fun.
- Cooking homemade meals a lot more. Quarantine has turned me into a chef. I love to cook, and it puts you in control of what goes into your food. I used to eat restaurant food almost every day. I'm limiting it to 2-3 times per week now. I didn't realize how sensitive I was to sodium bloating until I experimented with reducing my salt intake.
- Belief I can do it. I used to feel hopeless about weight loss. I'd tried and failed so many times. But I'm only now realizing it was because they weren't sustainable. I'm going to do this slowly and the right way this time. I'm going to be going into college Fall 2021. I want to use this season of my life to work on myself so I can enter as a more stable, confident person.
Thank you for reading, if you made it this far! We're all in this together <3
[link] [comments]
from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2V4DMQg
No comments:
Post a Comment