2 weeks in Onederland! (And someone took a picture of me I don't hate)

Someone took a picture of me last week on a hike without me knowing, and I haven't been able to stop looking at it! I've avoided cameras my whole life. The 2 before pics I included are a candid picture from a wedding photographer and a photo I had to provide when I got promoted. The idea that people's first impression of me is now at 196 lbs instead of 270ish blows my mind.

Before and Now

Story time for anyone who cares to read:

I started my weight loss journey back in February (29M, 5'10). I've hovered between 250-280 my entire life since the beginning of high school. The last time I wasn't overweight/obese was probably kindergarten. My depression and anxiety have always kept me held down, and I spent my life resigned to being fat, fantasizing about a future version of myself that could fix it.

I'm not sure what was different this time, but after a particularly bad depressive episode driving home from work, my mood swung up and I was again feeling motivated to finally commit to improving myself. I wrote a note to myself before I slunk back into my usual apathy:

"I can't do this alone -- I need your help. You don't always need to be on a high like I am now, but you do need to know that I'll always be here on this page."

I started with common sense dieting. No calorie counting, no weigh ins, just making all of my own meals with whole foods. No more Wendy's at midnight on my way home from work (biggie bag with baconator fries and chocolate frosty), no more Burger King for breakfast/lunch (eggnormous burrito, hash browns, iced mocha/ large whopper meal), no more Domino's (2 whole medium pan pizzas in 2-4 servings), etc. I stopped buying my biggest trigger food, PEANUT BUTTER. Instead I was eating foods (that I LIKED, this is vital) such as brown rice, whole wheat bread, veggies, beans, eggs, chicken, avocado, cheese, potatoes, beef, fish etc. No processed foods. And I had fun with my cooking and meal prep. Weirdly, quarantine was a huge help. I still had to go to work, but I could spend my time at home focusing on nutrition and cooking.

When I did weigh myself almost a month later, I had lost 17 lbs! Another 13 next month, then 10, then 5. At this point I decided to try keto and intermittent fasting, as I thought it might be sustainable for me since cutting out so much sugar had made me realize that carbs weren't my favorite food. The water weight loss put me down another 20 in just over a month. I've stayed on it, but it definitely isn't for everyone. The best thing it's done for me though is forcing me to track my calories/macros. I actually enjoy it now, it's like a game. The combo of keto/fasting also plummeted my appetite. I actually have to make sure I get ENOUGH calories/protein some days!

Since then, I've been losing at a much more normal rate, and I've been ok with it. I'm not in a rush anymore, and I KNOW I'll reach my goal. I've also finally gotten consistent with strength training at the gym, increased my calories closer to maintenence, and started (attempting) jogging and hiking. I'm starting to recognize and appreciate non-weight results. Running for over a minute without dying for the first time was a watershed moment for me.

I've also gone to the doctor for the first time since high school, and started seeing a therapist again. For anyone trying to lose with a mental illness, please do the same. I can't emphasize it enough. You don't have to do it alone.

By taking these new habits on piecemeal, I finally feel like I have a healthy lifestyle without needing to throw myself over a wall every day. I have a basis to start the rest of my life on. Do I have bad days? Of course! I still get emotionally exhausted, and I binge once in a while (albeit on healthier food). I went out drinking with my friends last month. While I was good and stuck to gin and sodas, drunk me downed a cup of mac n cheese and an order of maple fried chicken at 1am. Shit happens, you have to be able to forgive yourself and keep doing what you are able to put in. It doesn't need to be more than that.

Even with all this, I struggle with my self image. My loose skin from decades of obesity isn't going to magically disappear. And I'm still the same person with a lot of the same problems. But now I trust myself to actually work on them in the future.

Oh, and I've now had peanut butter in my house without binging on it for 4 months!!! (biggest accomplishment)

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Fun Run Challenge Day 2 – Running Shoes

FUN RUN Challenge Day 2 is all about Running Shoes. Share your pics on Instagram for the photo a day updates! And watch the video for Running Shoes TIPS! FUN RUN Challenge – Day 2 What Running Shoes are you wearing right now? What color are they?? My Current Running Shoes & TIPS FUN RUN ... Read More about Fun Run Challenge Day 2 – Running Shoes

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Thank you Loseit for giving me my life back!

Progress Chart

As someone whos been on this sub for 2yrs and a bit I feel so grateful for what it has given me. I started doing IF and religiously weighing my food and counting my calories about two years ago. I did it for a few months and dropped a few dozen lb but ultimately it ended up with me bouncing around 230lbs for a year and a bit and every time I'd try to get back on track I'd give up within a month or two of trying. During this rough patch I stuck to IF but just didn't care at all what I ate. I feel like IF is what helped me not gain everything back when I wasn't watching what I ate.

This summer something changed though I decided instead of counting my calories I would just try to monitor what I ate mentally. I'd struggled with this in the past, but this time it seemed to work. Id just each two meals, no snacking if I could avoid it, and just being conscious of what I ate for my meals. e.g. not eating a fried chicken burger with fries and mayo, or at least if I was planning on eating out I'd have a smaller lunch to try and account for what I'd eat later. If I though I went over I didn't beat myself up, I didn't feel bad, I just enjoyed it and knew it wasn't something I did every night, so I tried not to let it affect my progress the next day. I think this is called Intuitive eating however when looking at that I think its slightly different. I don't just each when I'm hungry, If I'm a little hungry between meals I just try to occupy myself with stuff to do to distract me from the hunger.

The other thing is that I've started actually cooking and planning nice meals in advance. I'll look up recipes that I think I'd really enjoy and make 3-4 portions to keep in the fridge. This really helped me plan and know what to eat so I don't rely on takeout, or easy to prepare frozen foods. This also gets me excited about cooking the food and looking forward to my next meal instead of just eating whatever while watching YT.

Now that I have started losing again I'm at the point where my gut is disappearing slowly, my face is slimming, just in general I look healthier. I still look a little over weight but its way way better then I used to look. One thing I didn't notice would be a problem is my clothes, I have several shirts and just items that look drab now because of how loose they are. I have a custom tailored suit that I had made when I was significantly heavier and I had to wear it the other day. The pants looked like they were for a completely different person, my belt which I used to struggle to get onto the largest loop now fits much better several notches smaller.

I used to be self conscious about going to the gym because of my weight. I decided to go this week because of how much better I looked and it was just so much more enjoyable then I'm sure it would have been if I was obese and self conscious the whole time. Now I'm not saying don't start the gym if you are currently overweight/obese because it defiantly could have helped me along the way, I'm just saying I personally feel a lot better with myself then I otherwise would have.

About a month ago I visited my grandparents who I haven't seen in two years (don't worry I got tested for covid before I went and basically self isolated between the test and seeing them). The first thing my usually very critical about weight and health grandma said to me was: "OMG you're skinny now! I never though I'd see a skinny you". This is coming from someone who regularly complains about too much fat, too much salt, too many carbs, not enough protein, way too much sugar, calories, weight and the list just goes on. It just made me feel so accomplished and inspired to keep going.

Now this advice might not work for everyone and ultimately everyone's success story is going to be different. I have also had my fair share of ups and downs, weight loss isn't a linear line from your SW to GW and there are defiantly challenges along the way. I ultimately just want to thank this sub and everyone on it for giving me my life back! Without it I'd probably be close to 300 lb by now and even more unhappy with myself.

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Venting: I've lost 81 pounds and I'm ashamed

I don't usually post on here but I feel like I have to vent right now, I hope nobody I know sees this.

For context, I'm 17M, 5'5".

I started losing weight about 7 months ago at 228 pounds and I regret how quickly I've lost 81 pounds.

for the first few months, I was doing Keto and intermittent fasting with a huge caloric deficit, it ranged from 1000-1300 calories a day, I also STARVED myself every now and then (at one point, I went about 6 days without food and lost 5 pounds), I was addicted to seeing the scale go down rapidly.

I eventually quit Keto and starving myself and sticked to 20/4 IF and 1200 calories a day, then went down to 16/8 IF and eventually dropped IF completely, it wasn't until last week that I decided to consistently eat 1500 calories a day.

Now I'm 147 pounds, 15 pounds from my goal of 132 pounds, and showing signs of loose skin (especially in my upper arms) and from what I've heard, it was due to my rapid weight loss (unrelated to this, I still look like I have a lot of fat to lose but I only have 15 pounds to go).

I was careless, I wish I could go back and convince myself to lose weight slowly, or better yet, somehow convince my preteen self to eat less and avoid this mess I'm in.

Eating 1500 calories a day is hard for me, I keep telling myself things such as "If you instead eat x calories a day, you could lose x pounds in a week", I don't know how to stay patient.

Thanks for reading.

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Just got laid off from a job I moved crosscountry for 3 months ago

I accepted my dream job with the company I’ve worked with for almost 3 years, and moved from Florida to Utah at the end of June for it.

By mid July, everyone was furloughed. 3 days ago, I got the call from my boss letting me know that I (along with almost everyone else) was being laid off. While I don’t blame the company (the financing issues really did come out of nowhere, no one could have anticipated it) the timing is SO BAD.

I have no job. I have no friends. I, someone who is zero percent outdoorsy, traded my beloved theme parks for mountains. I, an atheist, am now the complete black sheep in a town that is 90% belonging to a single religion. I feel like I’ve lost everything, and I’m really struggling. I want to move back to Florida, but I’m stuck for another 12 months on my townhouse lease.

The day I got the news, I was pretty numb, and while I managed to eat within my calorie limit, I didn’t bother with exercising or trying to close my rings on my Apple Watch. The day after I got the news, I became the human embodiment of Kirby. I inhaled everything in sight, including my prepared lunches for the rest of the week. I convinced my husband to take me to chili’s, specifically so I could chow down on 2 giant baskets of their chips and salsa, mostly on my own. By the end of the night, I felt physically ill. I literally had to fight not to throw up. Maybe I should have let myself, because I honestly felt horrible. It was the worst binge I’d had in years, but it was the only thing that kept me from losing it all day. The only time I cried was when I wasn’t stuffing my face.

Yesterday, I made a decision. I’ve been big my whole life, but personal tragedy has always been a milestone on my path to gaining to nearly 300 pounds. Because food is how I process sadness. But this time- I literally have nothing going for me, I feel like everything that makes me really happy has been stripped away (except my wonderful husband). So if I’m miserable anyways, I might as well channel that misery into something positive. I may not have theme parks or friends, but I can have my weight loss journey and my health.

This personal tragedy is going to be the catalyst to the change I’ve wanted for my entire life, because I finally have the clarity to realize that weight loss is never going to fall into my lap, it’s always going to be the hardest thing I’ve ever done. So why the hell not now, when the rest of my life feels like it’s falling apart.

Yesterday, with that mindset, I kept to 1300 calories, about 200 less than my official goal. I put on my Oculus Quest and played Beat Saber, my cardio of choice, for 20 minutes. And while my scores were terrible, because my playing wasn’t refined at all, I channeled all of my raw anger into slashing those stupid squares, and I was sweating more than I ever had playing the game. And you know what? I went to bed feeling ok. I was sad, for sure. But my body felt so much better not completely stuffed with crap, my arms ached a bit from swinging around ferociously, but overall I physically felt so much better than I had the night before. Mentally too, because even though I am still sad and I will continue to be sad, I’ve given my brain something positive to latch onto and strive for.

In a year, when I hopefully move back home, I want people to see me and think “Holy crap. Losing that job is the best thing that ever happened to her” as opposed to “poor thing, she’s been through a lot and you can see it”

So yeah. Sorry for the novel. But that was honestly cathartic to get out. I’m hoping in a year I can post an update to this, and show you guys that I really did kick absolute butt.

F/5’7”/283 pounds. Here we go.

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Goal themes for weight loss, suggestions?

I have a new partner who is overall way more healthy and fit than I am, and wonderfully supportive. I had a bad mental health day the other week just being very down on myself and my body and divulged to him. He told me about this idea of goal themes. Basically instead of setting really hard goals that as soon as you mess up on you feel as if you've failed them, you set an overall THEME for what you're trying to work towards. Then as you go through your days you keep your theme in mind when making decisions, and the overall goal for the theme is really just to push the trend line in the direction you want it to go.

I'm sure some of you already know what I'm talking about. There was a video he linked. It's a thing. Anyway the theme is usually one word (or a short phrase) that resonates with you, and is usually fairly broad and can be creatively applied to all kinds of situations.

I have been struggling to find the right theme that resonates with me and that I can remember longer than three days. Obviously my real goal is weight loss (and tangentially anything that supports that like fitness, healthy eating, etc etc). The only word I came up with is "Wellness" but despite its definition being literally the exact thing I'm going for, it's just NOT resonating with me.

So I'm looking for suggestions on a theme word (or phrase) that resonates better and isn't overly specific but also captures what I'm going for.

Thank you in advance!

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My wedding dress doesn't fit...

When I ordered my wedding dress, I was between 2 sizes. I went with the bigger size because I didnt want to deal with the stress if I gained any weight. In july I went to a fitting and.... i needed it taken in 4 inches!!! Last time I tried it on, it was on the loose side of fitting. Im a little worried because I've lost a few more pounds since then. But since we are only having a small ceremony now, I can potentially get it altered further in the future. If i stress eat between now and next week, it won't be a huge deal too.

All i did was CICO and 15+ mins of exercise a day. Typically I ate between 1500 and 2000 calories a day (maintenance is 2000 without exercise). There have been a few days where I ate a bit more, but I forgave myself and tried harder to be on track the next day.

I didn't start this journey to lose weight for the wedding which helped me keep on track. My goal is to just be healthier and to get to a healthy weight by the time I'm ready to have kids in my 30s. I think by buying a bigger size dress, I stopped myself from going on diet fads and yoyoing. Long term lifestyle changes are more important to me than this 1 day. Im happy weight loss happened, but im more happy that I'm now able to run a mile in 13 mins, lift 10lbs hand weights, and do a pushup. I still have a long ways to by goal (SW 222.8, CW 206.8, GW 150), but I've made great steps forward. And if I take a step back, I know i can continue going forwards because I've been able to so far.

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