Weight Loss & Staying Fit
Tumblr won't let me Ask you stuff and I can't reply to your post so I'm going to tag you. I see a bunch of questions from others on your dash about weight loss and calories so I just thought I'll share what worked for me.
Quick background: I modeled for several years, did mainly runway shows. Some of the brands I've modeled for included Dior, Vivien Westwood, Volcum and Stussy. So looking young, fit, and thin is a requirement for that.
So for the longest time, I go with the common route of counting calories and not eating. I'm one of those people with very slow metabolism and I swear I gain weight just by breathing. Counting calories and eating as little as 500 calories a day will only work for so long, not to mention it got me to the point where different parts of my body will get severe cramps for no reasons, and I would always be cold and getting random bruises. The weight came back very quickly the moment you start binging, and you will binge because your body at some point will revolt. So counting calories by eating very little in my experience would not work.
Crash diet also doesn't work that well because it's pretty much equivalent to taking out a major chunk of your normal diet. So what you lose is mainly the water and the muscle mass. So even if you do get to the weight you like, you may not look the weight and or you may still look funny. You'll also pack on the weight quickly the moment you get off the crash diet.
What actually ended up working for me was the following. I ended up only eating vegatables and protein. I cut out carbohydrates completely except for fruits, and even then I stick with fruits low in sugar. I do not drink fruit juices (eat fruits instead because you get more fiber and less sugar. In addition, I lifted weights to get muscle tones on my arms so that they are lean but compact (so you end up looking thin and fit rather than thin with saggy skin). I also drink 1 gallon of water a day (and it made my skin pretty damn good). Lastly, I sped walk for 15 miles everyday. What that did was I built up muscles everywhere. The more muscles you have, the more calories you burn so I can afford to eat a good amount of calories but still look thin and fit. I got to the point where I had a six pack on my stomach.
My measurement at the time? 5 ft 9 inches at 105 lbs with 18% body fat and 32"-21"-32" measurement. Yes I know, that's actually pretty thin and people would consider that unhealthy BUT I actually do NOT look unhealthy and my fat percentage and muscle percentage certainly proved that. I don't have a sickly palor and I have a healthy percentage of body fat. So I look thin, but fit and healthy, and I still have curves in the right places. I'm not hungry and I feel energized. My back pain went away, I didn't get sick (I'm prone to flu, cold and allergies) anymore, and I could lift rather heavy things even for my size.
I also don't smoke or drink, they make your skin look bad and tend to age you. I also do not stay out too late because lack of sleep can make you hungry for no reasons and once again, make you look older.
Of course, I gained weight after I relocated overseas to where I am now, where healthy food like fresh greens are super expensive and the climate is way too hot and humid for me to do 15 miles of speedwalking everyday so I am not as thin as I would like now. However, I do intend on getting back into it because I miss looking good.
Lastly, it's important to remember that whole thing with eating and exercising is supposed to be a permanent thing. Anything you do will have to be permanent but things like permanently not eating or permanently crash dieting will probably in the long run end up either killing you or still make you gain weight anyway (your body will build up a resistance). At the end of the day, body will always needs food so if you're eating healthy and exercising, your body will let you stay thin and healthy.
Hope this helped. I struggled with weight and was never happy with the way I look, and it took a long time and a a lot experiment for me to actually figure out what will work. Obviously at the moment I am not happy with the way I look because I've lost that healthy lifestyle for the time being but I know as soon as I get back onto it, I'll be back to my old self in no time. It took about 3 months to look perfect (I'm a perfectionist). If someone like me can actually be thin, fit, and healthy, anyone can be.
