Hello friends,
All my life I've wanted to lose weight. I became self conscious about my belly around the 5th grade (and kids called me fat). By middle school, i was 5'-4, 130 lbs, 32% bmi. I could not do a push up or pull up. In high school I played tennis and was 6-0,180lbs. I still felt fat, bmi 25%. Looking back, I realize I did not have a flat belly, but I can't believe i thought i was fat and lived as a fat person.
However, I've been gaining weight my entire adult life. Not gradually, but usually in short bursts that become my new normal. For example going up to 200 once in college, ballooning up to 220 in 2012. I lost 50 lbs that year, but soon was back at 200 the next year, then gaining 40lbs in 2 months up to 240, and finally 260 since last year. I started to get really scared about approaching 3## land, and the stress i was putting on my body. Still, my body packs all my weight on my midsection, my arms and legs have very little fat. I look engorged, pregnant even. It's embarrassing.
So why am I posting? Why did I sound jubilant in the OP? Well... in April my friend died of cancer. That was finally the push that got me to really decide to try something different. So I decided to get a gym membership. I've failed here before, getting a membership and only going 2-4 times a year. But this time, I spent like 2 weeks just.... GOING. I didn't really do anything. Just walked around, maybe shot some free throws, jog for 12 minutes. But I just kept going, and soon the gym was just a place to hang out.
Finally, after about 2 weeks, I wandered out to the weightlifting area. And this has changed my life. LIFTING. After downloading Progression app and following a beginner routine, I decided to just make lifting my focus and not worry about the number on the scale. I've always worried that lifting would make my weight INCREASE. Many lifting tips talk about bulking and cutting cycles, the thought of bulking at 260 made me want to cry. But I was finally giving it a shot.
As lifting became a routine, it became fun. It was fun to see my numbers go up every week. It became easier to make better habits. Now i find myself avoiding the costco chocolate muffins not because I'm trying to lose weight, but because I want to see my numbers go up at the gym. I want to eat more protein to feed my muscles, and eat healthier carbs, less fat. I want to drink less, because I don't want to mess up my sleep and then end up having a bad day at the gym. Being able to see my numbers go up in all sorts of exercises is very rewarding, compared to seeing my weight go down from 260 to 255, "big whoop I'm still fat and no one can tell -_-" is how I'd feel.
However, now I couldn't care less that the scale has not budged. I can see more muscle definition, it seems my belly has shrunken, and I'm feeling myself and my power. I feel like I can do anything. I can even eat more, and I feel like a calorie burning machine. When I'm ready, I can start doing more cardio, maybe I'll ride my bike to the gym. Weightloss is no longer about desperately trying to get to a weight that I want, it's now just a part of fitness, and fitness is now something I'm doing well at. I'm sure I will be able to do that when I'm ready, but right now I'm trying to deadlift 4 plates, I want to bench 2 plates etc.
For years, I was trying to replicate the success I had in 2012. Back then, all I had to do was stop drinking, fast after 6pm, and I was playing tennis and soccer at school The pounds just fell off. But for 10 years, I was unable to make any progress. But what is progress? The number of the scale? I think weightloss is ultimately about trying to become healthier, more active, and more attractive. So weight is pretty irrelevant to those things. For example, Hasan Piker has been an attractive, buff dude for several years now, but he swings from 250 to 280 or even more. He's a hefty guy. But who cares about the number on the scale? That was a big revelation for me. I can still be 260 and look amazing, if that's what I want.
So that's why I decided to make this post. I hope this inspires people to realize that the real goal is just to live like a healthy and fit person, whatever your definition of fitness is. The weight is only one metric amongst dozens of ways to look at your fitness and body. And if weight is not the metric that's helping you, perhaps you should look at a different way of achieving your goals.
If you guys liked this post next week I will do a followup where I can compare my Dexa scan from June to my scan from May and we can see if the data backs up how I feel about my progress. Please let me know what you guys think of my post.
PS: I always avoided weightlifting and tried to use cardio to acheive weight loss. However, recently I got back on the treadmill after 6 weeks of nothing but lifting. I was able to run farther, faster, and more intensely than ever before. That means that even just lifting, without diet or cardio, was also making me better at running, and more fit in general. I also just hit my life long goal of being able to do a flat footed resting squat as commonly seen in non western countries like China and India.
[link] [comments]
source https://www.reddit.com/r/loseit/comments/v8sen3/33m60_cw_260_gw_180_cw_260_and_thats_ok_why_im/
No comments:
Post a Comment