Hi everyone - first of all, I want to thank this community, it's helped me so much on my journey.
SW: ~220 CW: 175 GW: 155. Nonbinary (assigned female at birth, femme presenting) 5'6. Start dress size range: 16-20, Current dress size range: 8-12. My age: 22
I'm making this post for a couple reasons: (1) for others, who are just starting their journey, to see what I've done (2) for myself, as a marker. looking back, it's crazy to see my own posts from when I was over 200 pounds.
I lost my weight in 3 main phases:
(1) College: I started college at my heaviest. By the end of college, I dropped about 10-15 pounds, averaging between 195-205 as my "normal range"
(2) Summer after college: This summer, I dropped to about 180. Intermittent fasting is largely to thank for this - I lost 20 pounds with minimal effort, and it was amazing. I also am a vegetarian (have been for almost a decade), and I currently eat primarily Whole Food Plant Based (WFPB), with some egg and cheese.
Some general weight loss tips I have:
-Don't count calories, just stop eating processed foods. Look into it, do your research, but dang, it makes a whole lot of sense, and has worked wonders for me.
-Intermittent fasting is magic.
-Be nice to yourself. If you beat yourself up after binges with shame, you're just telling your brain food=shame=fat=you=worthless, and it's a vicious cycle :/
-I learned about fashion once I fit into my first size 10 pants, and fashion has really inspired me to keep going.
(3) Phase three, the final phase:
-I recently started work, and I find that when I work from home ("WFH") for a week, I'm able to be incredibly controlled about my eating, but when I'm at work, there's sweets and eating out, and I put on the pounds. The last few weeks have been a lot of fluctuation on the scales. Every week, I end up having a sugar binge, and it feels awful, painful, and I'm bloated. Worst these binges have done is get me up to 185, but usually they get me +3 pounds by the end of the week, and then I get down to 175 again by Monday. It's a mess.
-I used to be vegan, and for me, it's always seemed like the "right" thing to do, but I just don't do it for convenience. Although now, sitting here bloated and fat, I'm realizing that if I didn't eat dairy or eggs, that would eliminate the sweets I encounter at work, and I'm not the type to go out of my way for sugary foods, it's just the temptation that gets me.
-So... I'm going to do WFPB vegan, give it a try, and I'll get back to you guys in a month or two, and hopefully I'll (finally!!!) be posting my before and after pictures then. I'm ready to lose these last 20 pounds, and I think embracing this vegan lifestyle (when I'm eating well, I'd say it's already 90% vegan), is the path to success for me.
Anyway, fellow loseit friends, please wish me luck!!!