Hi guys! I've been on the weight loss journey for over a year now, and by now, at a bmi of 22.9, my curve looks more like a small hill downwards rather than me tumbling down a mountain. Don't get me wrong, dropping the initial 20kg in a year was great and all, but at this point, where I have maybe 5kg to lose and literally no hurry, I'm enjoying my slow walk down this hill. I've been busy and stressed with a start of a brand new adventure studying chemistry. It's been fun, but also scary and stressful. So right now this is what my routine looks like.
I wake up and eat the same breakfast every morning. I eat cereal (I know, the spooky unhealthy food you should never eat!!), a piece of fruit, and a boiled egg. Coffee is a must, with plant milk. I take the bus to school, and go about my day. I eat my free school lunch with at least half a plate of salad, a piece of bread (carbs keep me going ok? A little tangent here, don't trust when people say it's gotta be fat and protein, listen to your body. For me whole grain carbs and fruits are the thing if I want to have energy. Paired with healthy fats and protein, of course, but I need carbs to survive.) and I eat the protein and carb that is presented that day. Ah, the perks of being Finnish.
I go about my day, and often my lunch is a bit too light, so I have a snack of nuts or a fruit smoothie pouch with me. It usually holds me over until dinner, which hasn't been great recently, I became too busy and stressed to cook, so it is often something very simple, sometimes ever prepackaged. Can't be perfect in every part of your journey. My exercise has also been lacking, and all I do nowadays is walk home from school for 2,5km. My scoliosis has been bugging me, so I've been thinking of adding yoga and strength training soon. But I'm not in a hurry, I'll get to it when the time is right. Trust your gut instinct and take things easy. If you pile all these things on top of each other, you'll just end up burned out. If your only exercise right now is a small walk most day, that is fine, then you focus on your diet.
Speaking of diet, I nowadays eat pretty much up to maintenance 4 out of 7 days a week. The rest 3 I'm in a 300-500 kcal deficit. And my body is thanking me for it. When I get a bit tired after restricting for two days straight, I just eat up to maintenance until my body is good to go again for a couple of days. I count all calories, and I still have my trusty scale, but I have some leeway with how accurate I am each day.
I have a fitbit, which is maybe 80kcals off, which honestly I can't be too mad about. I usually burn 2050 kcals on a normal school day, and on weekend if I'm more sedentary it goes up to 1750 a day. (Note, this is after I reduce the 80kcals from it.) It's been a really good tool, I'm not sure how long I'll still use it once I reach maintenance, but currently I'd recommend it to anyone who is in a place to buy it.
The point of this post is: weight loss doesn't have to be stressful, especially when you have less than 10kg to go. It can look like maintenance, it can look like you aren't even trying. Because frankly, I'm doing the bare minimum and still seeing results. I am so happy about the 4kg I've lost in the last 6 months, and by now it has become so slow, that I often don't see any change in the scale because of fluctuation, only to realize at some point that I've been hitting a new low without realizing it. It has become so relaxed and I can honestly say this is a lifestyle by now. Those few days of eating in a deficit are the thing that keep me losing, and the maintenance days are what keep me sane. I can say with absolute certainty, that once I reach my goal weight I will be able to keep it off, because it has been so ingrained in me in these last months how much I need to eat to maintain and how much to lose. I am happy, and I am excited about reaching my next goal of under 60kg. For the reference, I am 21 y/o F, 163cm, SW: 85kg CW:60.8kg, GW: 55kg.
This post was for those with a little to lose. Enjoy the journey, you are in no way unhealthy, and the reasons you want to lose are personal to you, but keep in mind you are perfect the way you are. I'm not saying don't lose the last few kg, all I'm saying is take it easy. You're in no hurry. Good luck and I hope my post was useful for some of you.
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