I tried to lose weight in spring of 2022 without knowing anything about nutrition/ working out, etc. I didn't even have an idea what a calorie really was. I just knew that I weighed a few kilos too much. I tracked my calories and worked out and lost weight over a couple of weeks. It all worked out like it was supposed to.
Then summer came around, a lot of things were changing and I stopped tracking the calories and by the end of summer I had put my weight back on.
Now, a little over a year later I have gained a few more kilos.
I think it started with finding out about calories. before I knew about calories, my eating was much more "intuitive" because I had to rely on that intuition to feel good while eating. I was a wee bit over the optimal weight for my height, because I just love food. After finding out how calories worked and using that to lose weight, my food choices shifted from what felt good to what was within the caloric range. that meant sometimes eating more of something not because I wanted to but more because "I still had some calories left". when I stopped counting calories I still had them in the back of my head but now used them more to justify overeating/ unhealthy eating because I had no real idea how many calories I was actually burning and consuming but surely I was still within the normal range, even when I probably wasn't.
I actually also think that all the fitness/ health content I am casually fed by my algorithms is often more detrimental than helpful even though the people posting it don't intend for it to be that way; that's my fault, but still. When I see people posting their healthy recipes it just makes me think about food more than I probably should. When people encourage their audience to eat more protein, fibre, etc. it just leads to me overeating because I can easily justify eating some vanillaskyr, fruits, etc. with chocolate just "because it has protein and fibre" even though I'm not even hungry. I just want to eat because it feels good. that needs to stop. I need to get back to eating being about fuelling my body, not about fuelling my happiness (at least not to that extent).
Recently I started noticing that I was gaining weight again instead of just being stuck at that weight that I had put on last year. I do not want to gain any more weight. I'm only about 20 lbs overweight and I feel it in the knees already. I sweat a lot more than I used to. I feel so heavy in general. I am quite short- I do NOT need to be weighing that much. Another thing that really bothers me is that feeling of waking up in the morning and feeling nauseous from what I've eaten the night before.
Over the last few weeks I've realised, I need to change. That lead me to the difficult task of deciding HOW though. I do not think pure calorie counting will work. I somehow need to get back to that more intuitive way of eating with some restrictions though so that I see an effect in my weight. I do not believe in cutting out certain food groups plus simply eating too much sugar/ fast food/ anything like that is not at all an issue for me. I eat pretty healthy, have been vegetarian for years (for ethical reasons, not dietary ones). I just overeat on my meals plus I LOVE snacking.
I saw a woman talk about intermittent fasting as a way not to restrict yourself regarding food groups which I thought was very interesting. It would also solve my issue of feeling nauseous in the morning, because I wouldn't eat that late in the night anymore.
i will have to see how it works, though, which is why I am creating this blog- for myself, to slowly figure out how to make this a sustainable lifestyle change instead of just a weight loss journey. I truly believe if I only set the focus on the weight loss, I will not succeed. I am not disciplined like that. but if I implement positive habits, this will automatically happen.
There are various problems that could come up with intermittent fasting, but I am sure that I will find a way. For example when I come home from uni late and still have to eat. Or when I go out at night and drink. I usually like to eat something in the middle of the night to not get hungover. I will see. and I will post :)
