The Things People Never Tell You About Weight Loss

For me, 2017 has been a journey of self-discovery, resilience, and pound shedding. On January 1st I constructed two New Years resolutions:

1. Diet
2. Stick to it

Ever since I was a kid, I had always been fat. After puberty hit, I just seemed to get bigger and bigger. It got to a point last year when I couldn't face looking in the mirror anymore, or seeing myself naked, and I finally thought that enough was enough. I started calorie counting and almost one year later I am 60 lbs. lighter and feel incredible. Although, there are some limitations to losing weight. I've found that these physical, emotional, and mental factors are rarely talked about or brought up in conversation, and honestly, they had never crossed my mind before I started this journey.

You Won't See A Difference Over Night

Weight loss takes its sweet time. Upon starting a new diet or fitness regime we expect immediate results and instant gratification. Of course, it's always a disappointment when after a week of eating well and working out the scales are yet to budge. But these things take time! I didn't notice a physical difference until May of this year. 5 months of calorie counting and 2 stone down was when I finally looked in the mirror and saw that I was making progress. So don't be disheartened, progress takes time, and results aren't always immediate, but every step you are making to lose weight is working, I promise.

People Won't Always Notice And That's Okay

After we've noticed a physical difference and become proud of our progress, we want others to notice that too! It boosts our confidence and self-esteem when people point out our weight loss, which makes us feel incredible. But that doesn't happen all the time. Even though I look completely different to the way I did at the start of the year, some friends and family members don't even approach the topic. Perhaps it's because they're too polite to, or jealous, or maybe in their eyes, they don't see a physical difference. And that's okay! All that matters is that you can see a difference and that you feel better about it. It's your progress to be proud of, not anybody's else's.

The Guilt Of Bingeing Is Real

While some people count down the days until their next cheat day, others are the complete opposite. Even though I love eating and being reunited with my pals; peanut butter, crisps, and chocolate, the binge guilt is real! Of course, it's always nice to have a day off once and a while and not have to count and track your calorie intake, but the feelings that surround off-plan eating are awful. Not only do I feel guilty and unhappy with myself and my choices, but I also feel sluggish, bloated, and nauseous. But we can't eat on-plan all of the time. We can have days off. We can enjoy eating good food and bad food and naughty food. We can learn to embrace our choices and live guilt-free. One day of bad eating won't hinder your progress or cause you to gain all of the weight you've lost. Having that slice of cake or an extra helping of potatoes isn't going to ruin your diet. Enjoy the food you eat, ignore the guilty, and enjoy the balance. It's called a balanced diet after all.

Not Being Able To Eat Like You Used To

When we lose weight, our stomach shrinks, as does our stamina and ability to cram three burgers, a large fry, and a mountain of ice cream into our bellies. But that's a good thing! Of course, we're not going to be capable of putting away the same amounts of food like we used to. The portion sizes I eat now probably wouldn't have scratched the surface for pre-weight loss me. But that's what weight-loss does to us; we change, we grow, we adapt. I eat things now that I'd never reach for back then, and I used to eat things then that I'd never reach for now. In my entire life I never thought that I'd be satisfied snacking on an apple as opposed to a packet of crisps, but look at me now.

The New Wardrobe

Ah yes, what everyone longs for when they dream of losing all of that weight! Brand new clothes, new styles you wouldn't have dared to try out before and finally not wanting to cry in a store changing rooms. But it's not all that it's cracked up to be. I mean, of course, it was liberating to buy a pair of size 10 jeans and to style my 'new' body the way I'd always hoped to. But clothes are expensive, and weight loss is ongoing. I made the mistake of buying new clothes mid-way through my weight loss journey, which I will put down to being overexcited and well, not having any clothes that actually fit me. I purchased new jeans and new shirts, which as of right now are hanging in my wardrobe, too big for me, and haven't been worn in months. Oh, the irony!

Becoming Consumed

I thought I'd leave this nice little cheery one for last, because, let's be honest, I didn't want to scare anyone off the concept of losing weight. But this is a harsh reality of weight loss that a lot of people get fixated on. Many people can become obsessed with dieting, counting calories, and constantly weighing themselves. I for one am guilty of all of the above. There's something about having to calculate every meal and every snack that gets ingrained into our brains; it rewires the way we think about food and what we are putting into our bodies. And sometimes this isn't always healthy for our minds. People can obsess and overthink until it becomes a real problem. Even though I've lost all of the weight I wanted to lose, I still find myself counting my calories and weighing myself every morning. What's important here is to not let it consume you. It's not the end of the world to eat a bad meal, or not track every single calorie, it's okay to cheat sometimes. But what's most important is to be okay with it. Having a healthy relationship with food and with your body image are the most important factors to losing or maintaining weight, which is not only healthy for your body, but for your mind too.