SOPHIA'S SUCCESS STORY: HER WEIGHT LOSS TIPS FOR YOU
Sophia has lost 50lbs in the last year! She’s combined the methods of intermittent fasting, counting macros, and exercising to lose weight, while still eating out and enjoying her favorite foods.
Understand Why You’ve Gained Weight
Everyone that is overweight has the same technical reason - they eat more calories than they burn. The question is why? Some people are tired from work and eat fast food as convenience. Some people eat very healthy food, but their portion sizes are too big. Some people have no idea they have one very high calorie item that is sabotaging them. The reasons vary from person to person and finding out why is a start to fixing the problem.
Sophie was an emotional and binge eater her entire life. She turned to food to help her deal with stress since childhood. As an adult, domestic violence, family stress, and miscarriages led to anger, depression, and lashing out. She decided to put caring for herself on her priority list, and not only her kids, husband, school, and cleaning. While she still has hard days, she no longer lashes out or turns to food for stress relief. Stress management and emotional regulation were keys to stopping overeating.
“After binge eating my entire life, I still have to stay in control of my emotions and stress so I do not overeat. I still have hard days, but I always keep working towards my goal.”
Ditch the Fad Diets
For Sophie, the hardest part of dieting was starting, and intentionally choosing a diet that she knew wouldn’t give quick results. She knew that the diets that gave quick results were always unsustainable, which only leads to failure long term. She decided to go slower and make sure her diet included enough carbs and her favorite foods.
“My body needs carbs and I wanted to build muscle. I can't do that if I'm eating under 50g of carbs a day. Now I eat healthy carbs and it helps me feel full and keep muscle. I don’t feel deprived.”
Enjoy Weight Loss with Tasty Food
She decided this time to enjoy a tasty diet and make it a part of her lifestyle.
“My favorite meals are big breakfasts or healthy take-out! I love eggs, bacon, and avocado toast with coffee. I also like getting Wendy’s Chicken Apple Pecan Salad, Panda Express Kids Meals, or Subway 6-inch sandwiches with extra meat. These help me adapt to eating out but staying in a healthy calorie intake and hitting my macros. I loosely track macros.”
Use Failure to Course Correct
Like many of us, Sophia has had some failures along the way. She’s tried seven times in her life to lose weight before she was able to find success. I asked her what made the difference this time. Paradoxically, it was a failure that led to her success. She regained 35lbs in only two months from emotional overeating.
“I knew I would kill myself this way if I didn't start small changes.”
Expect Obstacles Along the Way
Naturally, losing weight isn’t easy, and there are certainly obstacles to jump over. Sophia was able to overcome challenges strategically. She knew eating out or going to social events could derail her progress but avoiding them altogether wasn’t sustainable. Instead, she worked around it.
“I work out on days that I know I'm going to eat out or have a family get-together. I also drink lots of water. These help me stay on track.”
Plateaus are very common during weight loss, so Sophia found a way to get past them.
“Every month I would plateau. It’s just a normal part of the process. I would just eat in my normal calories amount for a few days (diet break) and then get back to it. It always broke my plateau. I also ignored my worry and didn’t overeat during these times.”
Time Is an Ingredient
Sophia started seeing small changes in her photos four weeks in. It took eight weeks before she noticed bigger changes. She did see improvements like clearer skin and better sleep after only two weeks of making changes. It has taken her a year to lose fifty pounds.
Start RIGHT NOW, and Don’t Rush the Process
Sophia didn’t have one big thing that motivated her or a miracle diet or pill that made the difference.
“There wasn't really a game-changer. I wanted to feel better and look better. My kids need a mom that has energy and isn't depressed. Better nutrition truly cures so many ailments and I had to make the change.”
Sophia has this one message for people who have tried and failed to lose weight:
“Do not wait for the scale to scare you to death. It's the darkest feeling. You have to start now, even if it's just the smallest changes. Don't rush it. You could lose weight fast, but you will regain it back in no time when you could have enjoyed your food and still lost weight in the same time that you lost and regained. Weight loss puts stress on the body, and you have to love your body, not over-stress it.”
Start RIGHT NOW, RIGHT HERE
1. Get the right tools. The first one should be a water bottle. Increasing your water intake helps activate the stretch receptors in your stomach to tell your vagus nerve that your stomach is fuller, faster. Having a water bottle you keep next to you at your desk or near you at all times helps keep you from snacking and eating as much.
2. Sign up to our newsletter. We send tips that help you make small changes along the way that can add up to huge weight loss. Overwhelming yourself with massive change can work, but for most people it's a set up for failure as the changes are unsustainable. Weight loss is a long game, a marathon, not a sprint. You have to pace yourself in order to win.
3. Enjoy the process. You continue to do what you like to do, so make eating healthy food and exercise a fun and tasty endeavor. Our newsletter has great tips on how to do that. You can also follow us on Instagram.
Do it now, for you.