https://imgur.com/AVQgWFG
I started college at 155 lbs. I’m 6’0 and was always slim throughout high school. I managed to maintain that weight my first 2 years of college, but as the stress of exams and internships caught up to me, I started gaining weight very quickly due to lack of exercise and using food as a coping mechanism for stress. I gained 33 lbs by the end of senior year. At graduation, I was 188 lbs, 35inch waist, and I just kept growing out of the new clothes I had to keep buying and I felt awful. Looking at my grad pics, I felt disgusted with how I let myself go. I know 188 can look good for a 6’0 guy but in my case it was all fat.
May 29, 2019, I started counting calories with my fitness pal. Although it was difficult the first few days, I stayed within the 1500 calorie limit. By the end of the first week, I was used to it. I ate whatever I wanted, just less of it. Basically what I used to do before I put on weight. I joined a gym and started doing the elliptical for an hour a day. I passed the time on the elliptical by watching Netflix shows, which made it a lot easier. Eventually I started running outside a couple of times a week - I do 4 miles in under 30 minutes now!
After the first week, I was down 3 lbs. I was very excited to see my work pay off and it gave me the motivation to keep going. I actually started to enjoy counting calories! The next week, I set up a spreadsheet in Excel and tracked my daily calorie deficits using my total calories burned from Apple Watch. At the end of the week, I summed up the deficits and calculated my expected weight loss based on the 3500 calories per lb of fat rule. This is what happens when an actuary decides to lose weight! Week after week, I stuck to the deficit and became addicted to seeing results. I loved how formulaic it all was. My actual weight loss was always within a couple tenths of my calculated expected weight loss. I felt so in control. If I ate a lot one day, I made up for it later in the week.
Honestly, the hardest part was the lack of support from my friends and family. I got used to limiting myself from eating junk food while going out and after I lost 10 lbs, my family started telling me I was becoming anorexic and needed to start eating more. Also, suddenly all of my friends and family members became expert nutritionists, telling me that I couldn’t keep losing weight if I didn’t drastically change my diet or start lifting weights. I just learned to ignore and focus on bettering myself and sticking to what I knew was working.
As the weeks went by, I stuck to the calorie limit and continued to exercise and the weight kept coming off. The weekend before I started my new job, I was down to 157. The lowest I had been in years. I rewarded myself by going out and getting an all new wardrobe for work. At this point, I was back down to a 31 inch waist and fit into my old “hot jeans” that at one point would not go over my knees. Today, I’m down to 153. I was pretty satisfied with my body at 160 but I wanted to hit my goal of 155 to prove to myself that I could. Now, my goal is to add some muscle and try to maintain my weight.
My favorite part of this weight loss plan was that I did not feel restricted at all. I ate whatever I wanted and kept losing weight! For years, I had been told that to lose weight you had to eat salad and vegetables and all the things I hated. I know, I know, eating nutritious food is better for you and I have to say that as my weight loss progressed, I started paying attention to my macros more and trying to eat nutritious food. But it made it easier to stick to it in the beginning when I was able to continue consuming the junk food that I love.
I learned that the power of CICO is real. There were days when I ate a lot over my goal but my tip is to track everything! Even on days when I had a family party or something and ate 3000 calories, I tracked it so that I could be aware of it and use it as motivation to be better later in the week. When it’s not tracked, it feels like it didn’t count. Also, if I was eating out and the restaurant didn’t list calories, I would look up the food and choose the highest calorie one listed in the app. Better to be on the safe side.
This sub was very helpful to me during my weight loss, so thank you! I realize that I was fortunate to catch myself before my weight gain really got out of hand and I know that what I did was not easy. I am a very disciplined person and I was able to use that to my advantage. But if you’re struggling at first, keep chugging along! Once you start seeing results, it becomes addicting, trust me. Best of luck to all my fellow redditors as they go after their personal fitness and weight loss goals!
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