Learning to eat food for enjoyment again

I’ve been sticking with a very bland, 'clean', boring diet for the past couple of years, and it helped me reach my goal weight. But now that I’m maintaining, I’m realizing how hard it is to let myself enjoy food again. I saw a recipe with peanut sauce today and my immediate reaction was “no, I can’t have that,” and it honestly made me sad. It made me realize how much I’ve cut myself off from enjoyable foods — things like using oil, sauces, and buying fun grocery items. It hit me that my habits might be drifting into obsessive.

How do you relax after being restrictive for so long? Weight loss feels so tough at every stage because we’re always fighting for a balanced mindset.

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The Weird Things No One Warns You About After Major Weight Loss

For context: I’m a woman, 5’5”, and I went from 255 lbs to 117 lbs. This is the smallest I’ve been since I was 11, and honestly I’m still adjusting. I’ve always had a conventionally attractive face even at my highest weight, but the difference in how the world treats you when your body changes is… insane.

Here are the biggest changes I’ve noticed:

1. The attention is constant and unavoidable. Everywhere I go, people stare. A lot. Men especially, but women too. I used to be invisible at 255. Now I feel like I’m on display all the time.

2. People are suddenly extremely nice. Random strangers hold doors from 20 feet away. Cashiers start conversations. People compliment my hair, clothes, makeup, even my perfume. When I was bigger, none of this happened.

3. Some women look at me with straight-up hostility. Not exaggerating....dirty looks, glaring, looking me up and down. At work, in stores, literally anywhere. It’s jarring because I’m not doing anything.

4. Male attention feels real now, not delusional. When I was heavier, anytime I thought someone liked me it usually wasn’t true. Now? If a guy is acting like he’s into me, it’s almost always legit. They get nervous, try harder, make excuses to talk to me, the whole thing.

5. People take me more seriously. I don’t get brushed off anymore. When I talk, people listen. It’s subtle but noticeable.

6. Men treat me like long-term material instead of a joke or afterthought. This one shocked me. I’m not just getting sexual attention..some men act like they want to “wife me up,” for lack of a better term. They’re respectful, intentional, and way more serious.

If nothing else, this whole experience made me realize how differently society treats you based on your body. Not saying it’s fair, but it’s real.

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No longer obese according to my BMI.

For the first time in probably 5/6 years, I'm officially under 200 pounds. I'm 5'8.5" so not only did my BMI change when I dropped under 200, but.. I'm under 200 at like 29.8 BMI

Started at 250lbs in April at of this year (with a 2 month "break" between May and July lol) and just hit this milestone today.

The worst part is my goal was 180, and now I'm starting to realize my real goal should probably be like 150 to get how I wanted to look😅 I still feel like I look the same, but a lot of people have still pointed out the weight loss.

Not done yet!!

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Just Looking For Words of Encouragement

Near the end of September I started hitting the gym harder than I ever had in the past with the goal of making this weight loss journey the one to put the nail in the coffin. I’m in the gym 4/5x a week and I joined a weekly spin class which I ended up really enjoying. I ran 2 10km races this summer and finished in just over an hour which I was very proud of. Fast forward and I’m now able to squat over 200lbs and where I had no upper body strength before I can now bench a plate and a half. I can see the results in my body and strength.

The only thing that hasn’t happened is my waistline shrinking. While I don’t plan on giving up, it’s a bit disheartening to not see a change in the area where you want it the most. I’m going to keep pushing and I’m going to make sure that this attempt isn’t just my last attempt, but the one where I succeed.

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You are what you consume, not just what you eat

Something I've had to learn the hard way is that its a lot more than just "calories in vs calories out".

When people say "its a lifestyle change" they mean its a LIFESTYLE change. Think about it this way. Your goal is to be healthy. Who is more likely to accomplish that goal, a personal trainer or a truck driver.

"Well obviously the personal trainer, thats their job, they're literally in the gym all day"- bingo. You've cracked the code.

The truck driver isn't in the gym all day, their life doesn't allow for it. Boo. What are they doing in the car? Snacking? Listening to music? Watching tv? Wait? No. They're healthy. What would the personal trainer being doing if they were stuck in the car all day? Definitely choosing better snacks. Maybe listening to health and fitness podcasts. Taking frequent breaks to move around.

That's how you have to live life. You've probably heard that you're a combination of the 5 people you spend the most time with. If all your friends are fat, you're more likely to be fat. If all your friends are losing weight, you're more likely to lose weight.

What's the best way to learn a new language? Move to a country where they only speak that language. The best way to learn and become fluent in anything is immersion. Immerse yourself in health, I realized weight loss got a lot easier for me when I started filling my social media and podcast feeds with content about weight loss and fitness and removed thinks about junk and food and anti diet health at every size.

It's just as much mental as it is physical. Maybe more.

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From fat to slim in 10 months

I’ve (29F, 5’4) lost 44 lbs so far this year, going from 165 lbs to 121 lbs. I’m still dieting and determined to tone up & reach my dream body.

I had lost weight 4 years ago, going from 175 lbs to 125 lbs. But I slowly gained it all back due to depression. I really deeply resented myself for re-gaining all that weight. I started to only wear baggy T-shirts and oversized jeans.

Since reaching 125 lbs, I’ve started getting such better treatment in life. Men are so much nicer to me, and compliment me regularly. Women are also friendlier, and seem less dismissive of me. At my workplace there are a lot of athletes, and it used to destroy me. Seeing such fit and active people, while I’m in such a fat body made my self esteem plummet.

Now, when I see beautiful people I don’t immediately spiral or binge eat. I can actually wear cute outfits and feel attractive, instead of a pig with lipstick on. I feel such a deep sense of peace, compared to the constant internal screaming when I was fat. I still honestly have a lot of body goals, I want to push myself to become the best version of me.

Losing weight has felt like coming back home to myself, being me again. I can wear cute outfits, I can feel pretty, I can even feel relaxed now. Because all that time I spent hating myself and my body is now time spent taking care of myself. For me personally, being fat absolutely destroyed my mental health. I couldn’t even function because I was so ashamed of the state of myself. Now, it’s like having a clean slate to rebuild my life again.

I’ve even gotten into a relationship, when before I was single and socially isolated for 5 years. Around 130 lbs, I struggled a lot with confidence and intimacy. But since losing another 10 lbs, I’m started to feel better about myself. I can’t lie, I started losing weight rapidly when I developed a crush on my boyfriend. It was such a wake-up call, I realized I’m not even myself at that high weight.

The best tips that worked for me:

Calorie count, get more steps in, go to therapy, track weight weekly, portion control is king, eat satiating foods, popcorn not chips, eat a lot of soup, load up on fruits and vegetables, no soda, no sweet coffees, limit fried foods, eat less carbs and more protein.

I track my calories daily on the app LoseIt! which is 100% non-negotiable now. Over the summer I didn’t track calories, and I didn’t lose any weight for over 2 months. I’ve truly listened to the saying “80% diet, 20% movement” for weight loss, and I’m really happy with my results. Of course I wish I’d have lifted weights, as I’d have my dream body by now. But going from fat to slim, feels pretty good regardless.

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"When Will You Go Back to Normal?"

I've been on my weight loss journey since the end of February 2025 (5'1F SW: 190 CW: 140). Starting out I was only really utilizing Intermittent Fasting paired with walking, as I started to see some progress I further challenged myself by (mostly) cutting out alcohol, adding in running and a more dedicated exercise routine, and cutting back on both salty and sweet snacks that have always been my biggest enemies in the face of weight loss goals.

I'll usually run right after work 3 days a week, then go home and do weights before finally eating a small healthy dinner. In the middle of one of my recent workouts, which I do in the living room, my mom asked when I planned on going back to "normal." The same "normal" that caused me to gain all this weight? She's a huge supporter of my weight loss, this was definitely just a thoughtless comment about how my routine has changed and I no longer go out to eat/drink with her as frequently.

The thing about lifestyle changes is that they're... well... for life! I don't find myself wanting to drink anymore, it can be a bummer socially sometimes, but I feel so much better without near daily drinks--and DEFINITELY better without hangovers. I like challenging myself to run, I am not particularly "good" at it, but I am going farther and faster than I ever have. As for a restrictive diet? Yea, it can be challenging, but I won't let my life get ruled by it. There will always be exceptions, and there will be weeks I eat things I shouldn't, or gain weight after a weekend of excess, but that's LIFE!

I'm losing weight not to reach a destination, because I'm sure there's not some magic number that will suddenly make me feel wonderful, but to experience my life more fully and with challenges that keep me accountable.

This IS normal for me, for now at least!

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