Friday, January 9, 2026

Is it possible to take the 'sustainable' approach or is that unrealistic when you're obese?

Long, rambly post ahead! Hi all, I've posted in this sub before and received some super helpful advice, so with the new year upon us and me trying yet again, I thought I'd ask something that's been playing on my mind.

For background: I've lost 50lbs previously, currently around 210 from my highest at 256. Since I lost the initial 50 (which was 2022-23), I've yoyoed mostly between 185-210. The first time I lost weight, I just cut out junk food and walked. Initially I didn't even really count calories, just cut out takeaways, treats, chocolate etc. and that was enough. The problem is that I've never managed to regain that level of discipline. I'll be disciplined for a while and then there's a birthday or Christmas or holiday or whatever and it just derails everything.

Now, a couple months before Christmas, I decided to try and see if I could just maintain my weight and get over the binging behaviours. What's reassuring is that, when I was building in a couple of indulgent meals (takeaways, higher calorie stuff, desserts etc) per week, it massively reduced my cravings and I genuinely didn't have binge urges. It was the most incredible feeling, I genuinely can't remember feeling that much peace around food in my adult life. The problem is that it just doesn't work for weight loss. I was maintaining/probably gaining very slowly, I wasn't weighing myself as frequently, but it absolutely solved the binging issue and made me feel so much calmer.

Anyway, I came to the conclusion that the only way I'm gonna lose weight is by just doing what I did in the beginning and cutting all junk out like I did in the beginning. That worked the first time, right? But I'm five days in and I'm so fucking miserable. I'm starving hungry even though my deficit has been extremely small (like 300 calories a day deficit) and the food noise is constant. I'm so tired and fed up. Allowing myself more food I like brought me mental peace, but it didn't allow me to lose weight. Now there's a part of me that's wondering whether the only way to actually lose a large amount of weight is just to accept the constant hunger and misery lol.

So I guess what I'm asking is, has anyone had a similar problem/situation and did anything help you to overcome it and lose weight while not worsening binge eating or just generally being miserable? I'm at a loose end here. I want and need to get this weight off, but I don't want to spend however long it takes being miserable and never enjoying the food I love. I'm also conscious that if I lose the weight, I need to somehow find a way to not regain it all at the end. Any advice here would be so gratefully received, thank you.

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Gym or Bodyweight Exercise (Calisthenics) for an Overweight Beginner?

please read the whole thing, I really need some help.

I'm 19, I weight around 98-100kgs. I have been fat all my life. I even lost 10 kgs last year but gained it back due to lack of discipline, depression and other personal matters.

I am pursuing my weight loss journey once again but this time, properly. I have learned a lot from my last attempt. I tracked calories via food scale and walked 6-8k steps daily, but I neglected any sort of strength training.

At first, I tried doing calisthenics because going to a gym is very much out of my comfort zone. I know that each calisthenics exercise has easy variations but the internet says that gym is much better for overweight individuals due to the easy accessibility and quicker progress.

I just can't decide between both, because as of now, I can do calisthenics at home and for free while I would have to pay for gym and get out of my comfort zone.

which is the better option for me? both are equally overwhelming for me so I would have to curate some sort of workout plan. so yeah, I need some guidance on this matter.

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Thursday, January 8, 2026

Body Recomp - Looking worse?!

Looking for advice. I have previously lost weight and trained before with a PT but I was more focused on weight loss and lost around 30lbs from 160-130lbs. Then I started losing hair and struggling mentally so I ended up stopping the gym and I realised it’s probably because my calories were at 1000 ish and I was training 5 days a week I burnt out.

Around 4 months ago I started with a new PT and her goal was to raise my calories and gain muscle. I’ve slowly went from 1500-1850 calories 150ish protein a day with 3/4 training days. My strength has really jumped the past month and I’m feeling strong but im really struggling with the mental side. I feel like I look huge. I feel fatter and lumpier and even though I can see muscle shape and I have lost around 1 inch on my waist and gained 1 on each leg and glutes I know it’s muscle but mentally it’s really hard. And I’ve gained around 7lbs, I’m currently 155lbs I started at 147lbs.

I’m due to start a proper cut in 3 weeks and I’m just really doubting any changes happening it’s really messing with my head even though I know I’m gaining muscle I just feel like I look worse than I ever have.

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I lost 100 pounds in 8 months and I feel better than I have in years, I wanted to share my experience in case anyone else is struggling

Apologies for the long post incoming, but I want to give the appropriate context. Just for clarification, I am currently 29 years old (about to turn 30), 6’4, 325 pounds (down from 425).

I’ve struggled with weight my entire life, and I’ve been at most weight stages (from lean and athletic to morbidly obese), and I understand the struggle very well.

My latest bout of weight gain started around 2022, not get to much into it but a relationship I had been in for years fall apart and it was the start of me not caring about myself. I don’t want to blame it all on that, I’ve had a bad relationship with food and struggled with depression and anxiety forever, but I think that was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. Fast forward to 2024 and I was deep in depression and putting on weight like crazy. I was doing nothing except drinking, vaping, snacking and eating fast food. It got so bad where I was only eating fast food for about 2 months straight.

Every facet of my life had gotten demonstrably worse. My joints hurt, my body felt awful, I was breaking out, losing hair, getting 3-5 hours of sleep a night, libido and sexual performance were nonexistent, constant panic attacks, I was avoiding any and all social contact, and I constantly thought about death and felt like I would be off dead (my therapist later described me as ‘passively suicidal’).

Mid 2024 I was missing work coming in late, and my manager brought me in to a private room and asked me is everything was okay. He talked to me about how he was worried about and at that moment I realized I needed to change because it must’ve been incredibly obvious if he was noticing.

I’m lucky enough that my health insurance covers mental healthcare, so I started attending therapy and got put on antidepressants. We worked through a lot of past trauma and understanding why I was addicted to these destructive habits and coping mechanisms, but admittedly I was kinda just going through the motions and I didn’t take it too seriously to start with.

Come mid November 2024, my father (who is diabetic) has a heart attack. This was incredibly hard on my family, especially my mother and sister, and my mom sat down with me and told me she was really worried about me as well. I promised my mom at the new year I would go see a doctor and get a health exam.

January 2025 I was at a very low point (arguably my lowest), I was deep in debt and then come to find out I was under investigation at work for missing and being late to work so much the year before (this would get resolved a month later but I was put on probation for 9 months). I felt like I was at the end of my rope, and I didn’t know what to do. Luckily my mom was there for and helped me stay strong.

I kept my promise and got a health exam from my doctor. At this point I was 416 pounds and I found out I was pre-diabetic… This was very devastating to me as diabetes has killed multiple people in my family, and I decided I finally need to start seriously trying to change.

The first few months were rough. I tried hiring a personal trainer and although I liked the guy I just did not enjoy the experience (I’ve always worked better on my own). I also fell on and off the wagon and I actually put on 9 more pounds for a peak weight of 425.

Come June, I had gone to the dentist and they took my blood pressure while there. They took it multiple times with different devices and I asked what was wrong, and they informed me that my “blood pressure was way too high for someone my age”.

This was very scary to me and the final straw. I made the decision to start going to the gym the very next day. I signed up for the one down the road from me (a Gold’s). This wasn’t too hard of a choice since I had always enjoyed lifting weights (I was fairly lean and athletic in high school/college), however the night before I was so nervous and anxiety ridden about going that I had a panic attack and wandered around my neighborhood for 2-3 hours starting at midnight trying to calm myself down. I got maybe 2 hours of sleep that night, but I still went the next day.

I was very nervous but the gym staff were incredibly friendly and accommodating, and I realized people weren’t judging me. I started going 3-4 days a week and eating better, but I realized that my diet needed some serious work. Luckily I found out my health insurance also fully covers a nutritionist, so I started seeing them and I’ll be honest, I think this is the thing that really changed my results.

The nutritionist helped me form a nutrition plan and get my calories and macros in check, as well as explaining to me the importance of a calorie deficit and protein intake, and this is when the weight really started to melt off for me. Just so we’re clear, I don’t believe a nutritionist is necessary for weight loss at all, as most of the stuff they taught me is just freely available online, but since it was fully covered by my insurance I thought why not.

I also started seriously strength training and doing 30-40 minutes of light cardio (walking around my neighborhood or work office), and it felt like a light switch flipped in me internally.

It wasn’t an easy or linear process by any means, I learned motivation is the most fleeting of fuels for making a lifestyle change, and that weight/strength fluctuations in the short term are completely normal, but I just kept going and consistent, sticking to training and nutrition plans.

Fast forward to today; I’m 100 pounds lighter, I’m no longer pre-diabetic, and I feel more hopeful and ambitious than I have in years. I knew something had changed when I no longer fear public outings or seeing my reflection. I could finally dress for fashion as opposed to comfort. My pain is almost completely gone, my sleep is much better, and I look better than I have in years. No panic attacks in months, and no alcohol in half a year.

This time last year I was wondering if I would be better off dead, now I finally feel like I can do anything. I’ve still got a long way to go to reach my goal weight, but it’s never felt more possible.

I do recognize how privileged I am to have my mom and friends as a support structure, and that my health insurance covered the therapies I needed, but I just want you to know change is possible.

If you have any specific questions about nutrition, training methods, how to stay consistent, etc., I’ll try to answer them in the comments.

In the meantime stay strong guys, it’s absolutely possible to change, you guys got this.

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How to keep going after unintentional weight loss

Hi,

29F, 5’4 currently 195lbs.

Since September I’ve been dealing with health issues and recently got an official diagnosis of severe ulcerative colitis. In the time since September, I’ve lost 35lbs which is great but it’s really because I couldn’t eat anything without feeling ill or pain.

Last week I was hospitalized and started a new treatment plan. I have been feeling much better, but now I’m able to eat more and I’m scared to gain it all again. I am also on steroids for a few months which increases appetite apparently.

I want to lose more weight, at least 50 more pounds but I don’t know if I can do it on my own. I find myself panicking about eating again cause I’m scared I’ll gain weight.

Any insight would be appreciated, it all feels heavy. I know CICO and counting calories is the way to go but I’ve never been successful at it in the past :(

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Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Beginning Weight Loss and Feeling Discouraged

This post is for me to work out some thoughts and get some other people's point of view.

I'm starting to take my health seriously this year. My starting weight is 202 lbs. The plan for now is for eight weeks eat at a calorie deficit, eat high protein, and walk 8000 steps a day. Then a month at maintenance calories and re-evalute for the next eight weeks.

I've been consistent for a week and a half. This is the longest I've really done for a health change. So far I have technically lost two pounds. But that is the two pounds that I alway fluctuate with. The scale is moving in the right direction. I feel confident that I will do this for the eight weeks.

But I feel so discouraged. I know progress is slow day to day. I have barely started. The two pounds I lost don't feel like a win because I'm still in my normal weight range. I know change will come with consistency. I wish I was further along to see my weight outside my normal range so I could know that it's going ok. I just feel sad about losing weight. Maybe the sadness is from being in this position to begin with. I feel like I'm grieving.

I'm proud of myself for being consistent and making a change. It's hard to change your habits. But that feeling is over shadowed by some cloud of sadness.

Has anyone else felt this way when starting weight loss or during the process? I don't really have the words for how I'm feeling so I can't really talk about it with the people who support me.

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[Progress Pics] M/31/5’10 [315lbs>170lbs] (12 Months)… Yes, I know it’s long….

https://imgur.com/a/c82sLtv

I will start this by saying that I never within one single fiber of my being, thought that I would be sitting here typing this out for the world to see.

I lived my entire life overweight, from a very young boy - 30 years of age. I vividly remember being TERRIFIED of seeing my weight on a scale, but remember being forced at 13 years old, due to joining a boxing club, step on said scale… I weighed 193lbs that day, ingrained in my memory for the rest of my life… I remember thinking “you’re almost 200lbs… When are you going to do something about this?”….

Well, little did I know, I would go another 17 years of my life very obese and unhealthy. All while convincing myself that I was perfectly fine, and happy the way that I was. This “happiness” truly could not have been further from the truth. Yet I did truly believe I was happy with myself, this was not a lie. I had developed hypertension, high blood sugar (very close to diabetic), gout in both of my feet, severe joint pain, and a lower back that I would be thrilled to have only go out once per month. I also was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome at 7 years old (which may sound out of place, but does play a massive role in my story).

I have always been a researcher, a learner. I would say it’s truly, deep down, my favorite hobby as an adult. Theology studies are usually my go to, throughout all aspects of life. When I stumbled upon fasting and what a single ingredient, near “ancestral” lifestyle “Could” do for you. I decided to for the 4,560th time, to try another “diet”. These rules felt super simple, because I mean… they were… If it doesn’t have an ingredients label, and is a natural, whole food, it’s fine. Otherwise, don’t eat it…

I went into this as I always do to a new “diet”. Very motivated, very pumped, and ready to overdo the absolute hell out of it for a few weeks, then crash back out and eat 8 honey buns mashed up in a half gallon of bluebell ice cream (true story….. sadly)…….

The first few weeks of this were honestly super easy, and you guessed it, I seen absolutely zero results in regard to weight loss. However, for the first time in my life. I felt “different”. I was aggravated, yet super calm (more of both than usual). This feeling, this change, was something I hadn’t felt, and it went unexplained for quite some time for me. But the feeling beings so unique, I continued this “diet”.

Fast forward to 2 months in….. This guy is fu\*\*\*\*\* DYING, I do not want to continue doing this. (This was addiction kicking in full force). I was driving down the road, between two local towns and I said “I’m weighing myself when I get home, if I haven’t lost any weight, I’m done with this and I’m going to have pizza tonight.” Keep in mind like I said earlier, that childhood fear of scales still existed for me… I knew how much I weighed when I started the fasting. I was 303lbs (I always fluctuated between 300-315lbs). But I had not weighed myself in over a month in this instance of almost breaking.. I arrived home, and aggressively pulled the scale that was laying vertically against the wall onto the floor and stepped on it… 289. 2 months in, and I had lost 14lbs. This was JUST enough to keep me going, but I still thought about that pizza and spicy ranch that night…..

I began to hone in on this “feeling” that I spoke of earlier. It was alignment, it was restoration of frequency, it was me healing from fasting and a natural diet. I started to compare what I was feeling to the countless theological texts I’ve read throughout the years, and THIS is what they spoke of. Consciousness, frequency, peace. It took 4 months before this had sat in with me. I knew at that point, nothing would stop me, I could finally see the metaphorical forest for the trees, I no longer needed motivation, I (me) became the motivation. I was healing from no longer poisoning my body, and allowing myself to heal.

At around the 6 month mark into this journey, decided to really understand the gym, strength training and this was where I discovered a passion for running. Never in my 30 years on this earth, did I think I would ever be running, unless something was chasing me (I’ve used that ole line a few times). 1 mile per day, turned into 2, then 3, then workin my way up to 7. I jogged/ran 5-7 miles per day, 5-6 days per week, while strength training 3-5 days per week as well. How you may ask? Why? Why at 30 years old would you possibly want to starting running that much.. How can you possibly get your mindset wrapped around that? This is what I mean when I say I discovered healing through fasting. It rewired my brain, it made replacement theory so incredibly easy to do that anything became possible. I read a story of Nikola Tesla walking around his office building 3 times, opening a door 3 times while consciously thinking of a negative connotative behavior and positive one in which he wanted to replace it with. I applied this and watched my subconscious begin to stop thinking of the negatives which doing the positive. This in turn swapped the mental energy I had for lazy or lustful activities, and re-manifested them into positive, healthy actions.

Weight loss became an after thought soon after, as I began to feel better and better every day. I get very emotional talking about it now, but this became a chase to see just how sick I was before. To prove a point to the people around me, my loved ones, my friends, that you can naturally heal yourself. You do not “need” pills, you do not “need” shots (while I do not in any way condemn anything like that, whatever makes you truly reach your higher self, by all means, your journey is yours), you can heal your mind, your soul and your body naturally. By controlling what you put in it. It all began to make sense at this point. This DWARFS the feeling of any food I have ever tasted at the Michelin star restaurants, or even my grandmothers homemade German chocolate cake. NOTHING tastes as good as I feel. NOTHING tastes better than waking up every day with a pure heart, a healthy body, mind and soul.

You’ll face persecution through this journey. You’re going to find out who your friends are very fast. You’ll notice how supportive everyone around you is to begin with. The more you evolve, you’ll know the ones that truly support you. You’ll know who truly means it, and you’ll know the ones who push you away, as it is a reflection of what exists within them. Friends will come and go, please do not let this lead you astray, because it’s ABSOLUTELY heartbreaking. But you must do this to discover your inner peace, to find true happiness. Your friends parts in your story are simply over, you should not stray just to keep them around. This is an unnatural phenomenon made to lead you into a left hand path, which will lead you right back to where you started. If they’re meant to be in your life, they will return.

**In reference to the issues I had before changing my lifestyle.**

- Tourette’s - 98% cured (if you have Tourette’s you understand what this actually means for you)

- Blood sugar - cured

- Hypertension - cured

- Gout - Cured (over a year now with no flare up)

- Lower back - Cured through training my lower back in the gym

- **knocking on wood** I have not been sick since changing my lifestyle. Not a cold, not anything. I was a very regularly sick human being before. Amazing what only putting good foods in your body and moving every day can do for your immune system. We aren’t fighting the poison we ingest, the fasting allows me to heal and fight infection now. Why do we lose our appetite when we get sick? The body’s most effective way of healing is through fasting. Your body is telling you to stop eating and using its resources to digest food.

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07/15/2024 - 303lbs

07/26/2025 - 170lbs

I ended up going down to 162lbs at my lowest, but I have since rebuilt muscle and I am currently sitting at 173lbs with a body fat percentage of 12.1%. (The goal is 10% body fat and 175lbs.)

I have ENDLESS energy, I WANT to workout every day because I actually FEEL GOOD…. I HATED anything to do with moving before, I liked gaming and watching TV… Now I only want to workout, play golf, be active and healthy.

This is a lifestyle, it’s not a “diet”. I still only eat eggs, beef, chicken, fish, low carbohydrate vegetables, and fruit. Nothing else. And I absolutely thrive doing it. Without any form of craving whatsoever for bad food. I never think about eating unhealthy or processed foods. I can have a great time out with my friends at dinner at a bar, I won’t drink a drop of alcohol, and what they only have burgers? Great, give me 5 burger patties and that will be all. You don’t have to conform to society to enjoy yourself and the people you’re with. If the people you’re with do not support that, or peer pressure you to do something. I have news for you, the company you’re keeping is a MASSIVE issue you’re having with more than just your weight. If your friends don’t support you in a super positive change you’re making for your life and the betterment of you………. They’re not your friends. Reevaluate.

I’m asked very regularly if I’m “carnivore”, “Paleo”, “Keto”.?? “What exactly are you?” Well that answer is simply, I’m nothing. I eat for what works for ME. What I mean by that is, I will forever add natural foods, meats, vegetables, fruit in and out of my life, based on HOW I FEEL EATING THEM. Nothing else matters when you’ve arrived at that level of sentience in your body. You know what is and isn’t making you feel at your best. While you’re eating any and everything under the moon 3-5 meals per day, you have zero clue which combo of the 3000 chemicals and compounds you ingested are making you feel bad, you cannot possibly know. Hell, the odds are, you probably don’t know just how bad you feel anyway.

In no way shape or form am I sitting here writing this to push you into doing it exactly how I did it. That would undermine my entire belief system of what I’m covered here. I am only here to say, this is about a mental shift if you want true, long lasting, permanent results. You have to become a more conscious being to truly become ready to do it. You don’t get to cheat nature, as popular of a belief as that may be today. You CAN blossom, you CAN discover you, in YOUR way. For me, it was a mental awakening triggered by fasting and discovering how to realign my energy and my frequency to life in general. Realizing I am in full control of my manifestation. We create light and darkness, and both MUST exist.

YOU are the creator, all things are possible. All you have to do is manifest your reality. Believe it before it’s even there. I walked around at 260lbs, fully believing and visioning my self at the 170lbs I currently am.

My DM’s are ALWAYS open, I’m here for absolutely anyone who needs help. I want you to know, you’re not alone, and if this guy can do this and become reborn, so can you.

🤍

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