Eating Less to Weigh Less
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JessLLoser
Posts: 235 Member
Hi EM2WL family. My story is a different kind of success. Not one that will fit on the success story board. You see, I didn`t need to eat more to weight less. I needed to learn about my body.
I`ve been on MFP for 6 months. I did a metabolism reset over the summer. Gained 5 lbs and lost it over August and Sept. I am still at a higher weight than when I started MFP. I`ve lost about 4 inches overall, and my body fat has gone down by 3.4%. My clothes fit wayyyy better. I guess there are a lot of places we don`t measure that make a difference. I can zip up my skinny pants I wore when I was 30 lbs lighter. Tell me, does that make any sense?
A testimonial on Leigh Peele`s website really got to me, a woman said, " Maybe your metabolism isn`t really damaged". I started thinking, geez, I only did the starvation thing for two months am I really that damaged? I added cardio in 2 days a week in addition to my strength training. All only 30 min sessions now 5 days a week. A month and still no weight loss. Yet, my body fat is steadily going down.
When I lost my weight with a starvation diet I did it in 2 months. I finally found some information that losing 50 lbs in 2 months made me lose about 25 lbs of muscle. I`d been eating normally for two years after and gaining a lb a week because I had no muscle to burn it off.
I quit counting calories. Focused on eating well, keeping up with my strength training and keeping my cardio short and sweaty. Weigh in only once a week. All the numbers made me crazy! Now, I am focused on having fun! I used to only run because it burned the most calories. I spent 2 years as a freak for numbers with no results, I was so frustrated, I would have tried anything. Now, I`m still frustrated in weight loss. But my brain is clear. I feel good and I can easily keep up with my training schedule and enjoy my family time and life without worrying about the weight. I just need to gain the muscle back. Just keep working in that direction.
So I want to thank the EM2WL family. My ticker says 0 and I will not be a success story now or maybe ever. But I am a success in my head and feeling good about what I@m doing has made all the difference.
My trip isn`t just about losing weight, it`s about being a better human. I won`t be a slave to diets, or even pay attention to their claims anymore. My kids won`t think about it because I don`t. It`s so simple. I probably won`t count my calories ever again, or try to eat to a certain number or track my fitness and eat back exercise calories. I will eat to feel good, and eating right feels good. I will exercise because I like it and the way it helps my body look. I will enjoy my life and deal with each situation with thoughtfulness.
I don`t know if anyone else feels the same but I hope that those of us who don`t lose weight aren`t looked down upon. Sometimes you can do everything right and still not fit into the mold. Fitting into your jeans feels good though. :ohwell:
I`ve been on MFP for 6 months. I did a metabolism reset over the summer. Gained 5 lbs and lost it over August and Sept. I am still at a higher weight than when I started MFP. I`ve lost about 4 inches overall, and my body fat has gone down by 3.4%. My clothes fit wayyyy better. I guess there are a lot of places we don`t measure that make a difference. I can zip up my skinny pants I wore when I was 30 lbs lighter. Tell me, does that make any sense?
A testimonial on Leigh Peele`s website really got to me, a woman said, " Maybe your metabolism isn`t really damaged". I started thinking, geez, I only did the starvation thing for two months am I really that damaged? I added cardio in 2 days a week in addition to my strength training. All only 30 min sessions now 5 days a week. A month and still no weight loss. Yet, my body fat is steadily going down.
When I lost my weight with a starvation diet I did it in 2 months. I finally found some information that losing 50 lbs in 2 months made me lose about 25 lbs of muscle. I`d been eating normally for two years after and gaining a lb a week because I had no muscle to burn it off.
I quit counting calories. Focused on eating well, keeping up with my strength training and keeping my cardio short and sweaty. Weigh in only once a week. All the numbers made me crazy! Now, I am focused on having fun! I used to only run because it burned the most calories. I spent 2 years as a freak for numbers with no results, I was so frustrated, I would have tried anything. Now, I`m still frustrated in weight loss. But my brain is clear. I feel good and I can easily keep up with my training schedule and enjoy my family time and life without worrying about the weight. I just need to gain the muscle back. Just keep working in that direction.
So I want to thank the EM2WL family. My ticker says 0 and I will not be a success story now or maybe ever. But I am a success in my head and feeling good about what I@m doing has made all the difference.
My trip isn`t just about losing weight, it`s about being a better human. I won`t be a slave to diets, or even pay attention to their claims anymore. My kids won`t think about it because I don`t. It`s so simple. I probably won`t count my calories ever again, or try to eat to a certain number or track my fitness and eat back exercise calories. I will eat to feel good, and eating right feels good. I will exercise because I like it and the way it helps my body look. I will enjoy my life and deal with each situation with thoughtfulness.
I don`t know if anyone else feels the same but I hope that those of us who don`t lose weight aren`t looked down upon. Sometimes you can do everything right and still not fit into the mold. Fitting into your jeans feels good though. :ohwell:
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Replies
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Sounds like a success story to me.
Most people that want to lose weight don't REALLY want to lose weight. They want to feel better about themselves. Feel better and look better.
Your clothes are fitting better, you're exercising in a way you enjoy and you can eat and feel happy about it without having to count everything you put in your mouth.
To me that is every bit a success story.
I can't remember the blog off the top of my head but I remember reading one about a girl that had always been big. She lost a lot of weight over about 2 years, watching her food and a lot of exercise, until she got to goal weight. She tells how she broke down in tears one evening over fretting about not having time to get to the gym that evening and a realisation dawned on her.
She wanted to lose the weight to feel free but was no more free now than before, maybe even less. Chained to counting grocery thing she ate and scared to miss a gum session in case she put weight on.
She decided that's not what she wanted. She choose that she'd only do exercise she enjoyed and if that meant the weight she was meant to be was 5-10 lb more than her "dream" weight than so be it. Better to be happy and free and 10lb heavier than trapped, miserable and 10lb lighter.
I think I bookmarked it so when I'm on my pc next I'll try and link it, it's a good read.
And again, what you've achieved is better than any shift on the scales. Happiness and freedom.0 -
It sounds like a great success story to me! I hope to be in the same spot some day.0
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Thanks for the uplifting comments you two.
You don`t think I sound like a crazy person for joining and posting on a weight loss site and trying to lose weight for 6 months and losing nothing at all?
Trying to diet all that time, I have actually gained weight. It made me think I might be wanting the wrong thing.0 -
Can I just say. . .your story is very inspirational to me.0
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Congratulations to you. You have found success and you should celebrate that!
Losing 50 pounds in 2 months - that's extreme. Knowing how much your metabolism can get messed up from that, I can understand how you felt trapped monitoring calories.
I think everyone on EMLW wants to be healthy - inside and out - and it sounds like you've found that.
I really like what you said about not having your kids go down the same road you did. That's REALLY what it's all about - teaching your children a healthy non-obsessive lifestyle.
I wish you continued success.0 -
You are a success. Own it:)
Not everyone here is trying to lose weight. And some of those that want to lose that last little bit, dont neccessarily want to.. they want to fit in smaller sizes and feel good about themselves. And you have proven you can do that without a change in the scale.
You are a EMTLW success. Congrats on your accomplishments and your new clear mind:)0 -
Definitely a success story. You're learning to love your body and have a healthy relationship with food and exercise. Now that's sustainable for life. That sounds pretty great to me.0
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Definitely a success story. You're learning to love your body and have a healthy relationship with food and exercise. Now that's sustainable for life. That sounds pretty great to me.
Thank you so, so much. Although that wasn`t my initial goal, this kind of success is finally looking better than the scale numbers. Who gives a fart what they say!
And I finally learned not to trust every diet thrown at me. You wouldn`t believe how many people think they have the answer on the main forums. Everyone and their brother tried to fix me. People thought that as an outlyer I would be the one to prove their diet, weird way of eating, exercising etc was the right way.
I really did think there was an answer out there, that would definitively prove I was a success at dieting.
I don`t think I am a success in this group because it is Eat More to Weigh Less. And I do not weigh less.0 -
I hope to be like you one day…never counting calories or worrying about the scale. I am slowly getting there but this journey is for the long haul so I’m going to be patient and as long as I see some results in any form I know this is the right path for me. Just joining EM2WL for the past 4 months has made me realise how much love I have for the body that God gave me :-) I want to treat it with respect and compassion like I would my friends and family. I want to pamper it and make it feel good my giving it healthy food and exercise daily. I also want to treat my body to pleasure whether that be food, new clothes, intimacy or anything else pleasurable. I am no longer beating my body up for what she has not got…I am concentrating on what she has got and learning to make the most of that and be the BEST ME I can be
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I don`t think I am a success in this group because it is Eat More to Weigh Less. And I do not weigh less.
I don't want to sound critical of the group but I've been thinking a little bit that maybe the names not quite right.
There always seems to be a huge focus on the fact that the number on the scales isn't everything, and even Kiki admitted she gained some weight and never lost it.
It's Eat More 2 Weigh Less in name, but in reality it's Eat More 2 Be Healthier ( and weight loss may be part of that).
EM2WL(AWLMBPOT) is rather a mouthful though. ;-)0 -
I don`t think I am a success in this group because it is Eat More to Weigh Less. And I do not weigh less.
I agree that it's a misnomer, but the essence of the group is still true. I'm not interested in weighing less, I'm interested in FAT LOSS and body re-composition. For some people, that does mean weighing less, but depending on how fit you already are, it can mean weight stabilizing or even gaining. But I think most members of this group are pretty bright and not at all literal when they think of EM2WL :P
Congrats to you, I'm hoping to have similar results I've only lost 1 kg, but so many inches! And you're totally right about losing fat in weird places, some unmeasurable. My shoulders look much slimmer, but how the heck do I measure that! 0 -
Great to hear, that you have found your way. And to me too it sounds like a success!0
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Great to hear, that you have found your way. And to me too it sounds like a success!
DITTO!! 0 -
It seems that you are embracing who you are, beginning to love your body, and enjoying life.....and that is a huge success!0
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I would call you a success! Skinny pants = success! Seriously though, BF% is a much better indicator of success than what the scale will tell you. I like Eat More to Feel Healthy! You need to eat more to sustain the active lifestyle you've embraced. And you've developed a great attitude about the whole thing.
Congrats! And keep on keeping on!0 -
That is EXACTLY the kind of success I want, so congrats!!
Most people in this group are striving for the same thing.
I agree that the name does not really describe what we are all here for, though I will admit that it was the name that first attracted me to the group. I struggle to understand why people in this group still have weight tickers because from what I have understood the whole entire purpose of the group is to find success like yours! If you keep reading a lot in this group, you'll soon see that.
Best to you! Stick around and keep updating us!
ps, Despite doing some VLCs and not-so-smart diets, I haven't weighed myself for 10 years (except at docs office) and that is something I will continue. No way will I ever be slave to the scale. I am waaaay more concerned about body composition. I learned a long time ago that I weigh more than what I look like. So does my sister. It kind of runs in the family.0 -
Yes. I think you are a success story and thank you for sharing. You are winning the battle over food, and having a healthy attitude towards weight, fitness, and fueling your body. That is what this group is all about, IMHO.
I am hoping to one day get away from the numbers because it makes me crazy too. Hoping that I can get to the place where you are someday. I'm not there yet. I struggle with binge eating and writing down what I eat keeps me accountable. But I'm getting there, and I will get there.
You are a success story. Very inspirational!0 -
Your attitude and fueliong your body makes you a success. Congrats to you!!!! :flowerforyou:0
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Thanks for that post it's good to hear of your success and feelings of freedom. Love the bit about not passing on bad eating habits, however subliminal to your kids! I'm sure they, especially daughters will benefit. I think a lot of us are coming around to this way of living and whilst the name of the group may not quite fit what happening to our bodies,its certainly helping release me from a lifetime of food and body image obsession.0
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thanks for sharing...great story and path. congrats! 0
