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If you read my blogs regularly then you might be aware of that I have lost 24 kg.
I have talked about it before in a different blog.
But, I thought my weight loss journey needs more clarity. This blog is based on my personal views and the things I feel are crucial for weight loss.
I aim to guide beginners and clear some misconception.
How I lost weight
I feel, 24 kg is huge thing. I was 104 kg, now I am 79-80 kg. I have lost weight before, but this time I wanted something sustainable. When you will search online about “how to lose weight” or “fat loss diet” you will find some unrealistic things. Things like you have starve in order to lose weight, or do tons of exercises for weight loss.
But, let me tell you that’s a lie. You don’t have to stop eating food, and you certainly don’t need to kill yourself while doing over-exercise. Weight loss is easy, it just needs some wise planning.
I made a plan about what I need to do and how much and what I need to eat. This can be done if you do some research or talk to a certified nutritionist. I am not saying that everyone should hire a nutritionist but if you are a novice it’s better to consult a certified person rather than listening to the random trainer.
What people think about me
People think that I must have stopped eating in order to lose weight and I lost all this weight with cardio. I hate this mentality, I feel this belittle my efforts. When people see my process, they automatically assume that I’ve done too much cardio, and now I cannot do anything else.
I love doing Cardio-HIIT, but there are so many things that helped me with weight loss.
What is cardio?
Cardio is a form of aerobic exercise, which is of low to high intensity. Here weights are generally not used and these exercises increases heart rate to a certain extent.
Few examples of cardio are walking, running, swimming, dancing or even household chores. People generally use it for weight loss, as it shows quick weight loss results. I love doing HIIT, which is High intensity interval training. This is basically high paced cardio, which included series of exercises in short duration or less rest.
People have 2 opinion for cardio, either they do it too much or they completely ignore it. As I mentioned, I love doing it because it packs intensity and fun in my workout. But, people think that I do it too much and this is why I lost all this weight. I wonder how they don’t see me doing weight training from Monday-Friday.
Weight training is important if you aim for muscle building. Weight training also helps in weight loss.
Some trainer told me that cardio cuts muscles, means it thwarts muscle growth. But we cannot ignore that regular cardio is necessary for us, as it enhance sleep quality, improves stamina, keeps heart healthy, relieves from stress and anxiety and more.
A session of 20–30 minutes, 4–5 times a week is good for those who wants to stay active and healthy. Those who wants a specific physique, they should talk to a certified trainer about how to include cardio in their routine.
Make sure you choose the right kind of activity and not overdo it. Beginners can start with a regular walk, especially after a meal.
> Speaking of walking after a meal, I think that’s another factor that helped me. I walk 30 mins after a meal, this is a small habit but very helpful if you are losing weight.
You can learn more about cardio by clicking here .
Never be random
Another thing I strictly avoid is being random. I don’t do a lot of things and I don’t throw everything at once. I know a dude at gym, he trains under a trainer. And, I don’t know if his trainer suggested him, or he is doing it by himself, but he does a lot of random things. His workout is not planned, and he mixed everything at once.
I feel like this is torture with the body, like at one point you are lifting weights, then suddenly you started running. You are doing stretching (cool down), then suddenly you started doing cardio after stretching. This is nothing but some foolishness, and it’s increasing the risk of injury.
If you are new let’s say at a gym, learn some basic things. Which I believe no trainer will care to tell you (unless you pay them). Learn the importance of warm-up and cool down which is important before and after every workout. Learn about workout and learn what and how much you need to do.
I am telling you this because, if you don’t know what you want to do, you will drop it, and you might not see any progress, or can hurt yourself.
Spot reduction is also not possible. No amount of abs workout can reduce your belly fat, if that’s your only goal. You need to work on your overall body. If somebody is telling you to do 100 push-ups for bigger chest (or toned chest in case of females), then stay away from such fraud.
FGW
You don’t need to starve
The thing I abhor a lot is, how trainers and some uneducated fools makes food a villain. They will always tell you to stop eating this or that and eat boiled food if you want to see results. This is called a crash diet, where you stop eating everything for results. You will get fast results, but that’s not sustainable. Means, you will gain weight much faster when you start eating any of those things.
When I was 102 kg, I wasn’t seeing results, or let’s say others were not seeing results in me. I was suggested a stupid diet in which I was told to stop eating almost everything and start eating things which doesn’t sound realistic.
I realized that this is stupid and will not help me anyhow. Trust me losing weight while eating everything is easy. You just need to make smart choices and some healthy replacements.
> Instead of eating Trans fat and simple carbs (sugar), switch to Unsaturated fats and complex carbs. Also, every diet whether it’s for weight loss or gain should include Protein and fibers.
> You don’t necessarily need to eat fruits and veggies all the time, you can enjoy your favorites, but make sure you are majorly eating healthy. Avoid gimmick food like green tea or any other thing that claims to reduce your belly fat. There’s no food that can help you with anything. Your habits will help you.
Love your food. Food is not the villain. Bad eating habits is the villain.
FGW
How tracking calories can help?
Calories are basically a unit of energy. Whatever we eat has some amount of energy. The simple math is, if you are eating more calories than your body requires, it turns into body fat. So tracking calories is important if you want to lose or gain weight.
I measure my food, so that I can get an educated result of what and how much I’m eating and how useful it is to me. If you are curious about how tracking calories work then read this trusted source.
How to see results
A very simple answer to this is, you need to show persistent efforts. Fat loss or weight loss should not be a task but a journey. If you take it as a task, you will not enjoy it after a point and it will become mundane. If you want long-lasting results, you need to see this as a journey. When you consider it as a journey, you are in for acceptance and patience.
You will not see results immediately. I never felt any change in me for months. Even after losing 24 kg, I feel nothing has changed. But, my increased stamina, strength, flexibility and confidence tells me that I’ve done something good.
Conclusion
I have shared what I did to lose weight, which is not too much. These things are doable, if you have a passion for it. You need to be very patient and serious about your diet.
Weight loss needs no gimmick, no stress. It can be done in a fun manner, with a regimen. Make a plan for yourself today or consult an expert.
Until next time, remember to smile.
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