Before and after pics: https://imgur.com/a/TB437uE
Height:5'4" CW:135lbs SW:220lbs
Hi everyone! I (F21) have been posting on this sub periodically since I started losing weight almost a year and a half ago. As I've gotten closer to my goal and my weight loss has slowed down my posts have become less frequent, but I thought it would be nice to post a final update here to celebrate the start of maintenance, and the start of 2021.
I have been overweight and/or obese for most of my life. I grew up with a parent with very severe mental health issues including (but not limited to) serious eating disorders and body dysmorphia. Seeing my mother's extremely unhealthy behaviors surrounding fitness and weight loss lead me to believe that I had to choose between physical health and mental health. For many years I believed that fitness was only for people that were vain, sad, and obsessed with their physical appearance. I thought "fuck, I'd rather be fat and love myself than be skinny and miserable like my mother"-- so I wouldn't touch fitness or dieting with a ten foot pole.
Luckily, going to college and getting some space from my mother allowed me to develop my own, healthier relationship with fitness. I started working out regularly my freshman year. Even though it was a hobby I enjoyed, I saw little progress because my diet was a mess. Then during the summer of 2019 I found this sub, and started learning more about nutrition and calorie tracking. I adjusted my eating habits and started losing weight. Losing weight was never really my primary goal-- being healthier overall was my goal, and I understood that losing weight was what I needed to do to get there. Losing weight was a means to an end. I think this mindset helped me succeed, because it prevented me from glorifying/obsessing over weight loss in an unhealthy way, if that makes sense.
While I was still obese, I lost around 10lbs a month. Once I passed the threshold from obese to overweight my pace slowed down to 5lbs a month, and for the last several months of the process where I was within the healthy BMI range it was around 2lbs a month. I've gotten really into running since I started losing weight, and one of the best parts of weight loss has been noticing how much longer and faster I can run without 85 extra lbs weighing me down! I've also started doing strength training routinely in recent months. I've been maintaining 135lbs for a month or two now. Since I'm not focusing on losing weight anymore, I've shifted my focus to building muscle, and improving my strength and endurance. I've found having goals to focus on helps me stay engaged with my workouts.
Fitness has absolutely become one of my passions in the last year and a half! I'm constantly blown away by what the human body can do; and i'm super excited to keep setting new goals and pushing myself to meet them in coming years. I'm happy I've managed to make this change relatively early in my adult life, so I have so many years ahead of me to continue reaping the benefits of a healthier lifestyle and a strong body. It feels good when personal wellness becomes a hobby instead of a chore.
Huge thank you to everyone who's taken the time to read all this. If ya'll have any questions for me (especially folks with similar stats) feel free to ask. Hope you all have a happy and healthy 2021 :)
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