5’4, 195 lb, 23 y/o female with past fitness experience, CANT LOSE WEIGHT

[chado2423]

Hi! I’m currently at 195 lbs, the heaviest I’ve ever been, and although I wear the weight fairly well, I miss the 145 lb - 160 lb look of my figure, but haven’t been able to maintain that since high school. I hit 145 running track and field, but my mindset with working out was based in insecurity and driven by anxiety— although I looked my best, I still thought I looked the same as I do now at the time, and was struggling with practically every mental illness in the book. After quitting track (I threw up before and after every meet and rarely ate, so I had to force myself to stop) I gained 20 pounds quickly. Then I went to college and gained the college 15, which then escalated after getting Nexplanon (birth control) in my arm, taking antidepressants, and obviously the college diet…. I did T-25 for a few months my junior year of college and ate under 1500 a day and was nearing 160, (losing about 20 pounds in two/three months) but when I stopped doing it, I gained it all back, and was also incredibly mentally unwell regardless of the healthy diet and obvious change in my appearance. I now work 5 days a week, walking briskly 4-8 miles a day, and maintain eating under 2,000 calories a day, but haven’t been able to drop a POUND. Because of my busy schedule, I’m reaching out to ask for any dieting tips or home workouts that could improve my health and get me to my goal weight of 160 lbs without sending me into a toxic frenzy. (In other words, I want to lose 40 pounds and feel good doing it). For additional context, I have a pear shape and broad shoulders, and every fitness test in the book has informed me I lose the most weight with HIIT workouts, but I always come away from them feeling winded and exhausted rather than feeling better. I also struggle with cooking, so any specific store-bought items or recipes would be a god send. Also, I live in the city, so personal trainers aren’t really an option for me— the best deal I could find was two 30 min sessions a week for, get this, $300 a MONTH. Any and all tips are extremely helpful, but especially in terms of what to buy and cook, and how to get in a good workout from home. Thank you so much!

 

[mlc12]

@chado2423 For me personally, I’ve only ever been able to lose weight when I lift. Heavy cardio makes me so hungry that I end up going over whatever calorie goal I set for the day, but lifting weights and doing light cardio or yoga helps me feel a solid burn and the increase in muscle mass actually helps your body burn more calories throughout the day! I know some people aren’t a fan of it, and if you’ve had disordered eating in the past I wouldn’t recommend it, but measuring out portions and servings of foods can really make all the difference too. Also, I’m not sure if you have before, but if you haven’t i recommend looking up a TDEE calculator, and doing a small deficit bc slow and steady wins the race!

What kinds of food do you like? I tend to be lazy in the kitchen too, and protein bars, salad kits, frozen veggies, chicken breast, oatmeal, and Mac and cheese (it’s possible to lose weight and eat a whole box for dinner!) are a godsend for me personally

 

[iamtheall]

@chado2423 Hi! Would say a few things- most exercise doesn’t feel good in the beginning- it’s tiring, especially before you build up a base level of fitness.
However, exercise doesn’t affect weight loss nearly as much as caloric intake. Most people significantly underestimate the calories they eat and overestimate the calories they burn. The way to calorie track is to get a food scale, cook all your meals at home, and measure all ingredients/portion sizes. Without that, there’s just no way to know how many calories you’re eating. You can calculate your caloric needs online, and just make sure you’re in a sustained caloric deficit over time.
In terms of specific recipes, I personally have had a lot of success with the keto diet. Look into Maria Emmerich’s cookbooks- I cook from them all the time.

 

[dinafrancis]

@chado2423 The birth control and anti-depressants could be affecting your metabolism. You can choose to come off at least the birth control and that may help.

But ultimately, the only way to lose weight is to eat fewer calories than you burn. Maintaining eating under 2000 calories could still very well be in a surplus for you, as you are quite short, especially if your metabolism is out of whack due to hormones.

You say you struggle with cooking... This should be a priority in fixing. Store bought items are going to be more processed and contain more calories than if you were to make it at home yourself. If you learn to cook and prioritize it, you can eat much more enjoyable food for fewer calories. You'll also be in total control of your diet then. If you don't already have one, buy a kitchen scale and measure everything by weight rather than using cups. For example, my oatmeal box says a half cup scoop - or 40g - is about 150 calories. If I measure with a cup, I typically get closer to 50g, which is about 38 calories more. Now 38 calories doesn't sound like much, but repeat that across your entire diet and you could have some pretty big errors in there.

Cooking doesn't have to be difficult. Buy yourself a microwave steamer basket and now you can make quick steamed veggies that dont' taste like garbage (steam in bag frozen shit always tastes like shit to me. I buy fresh only). Get yourself a nice non-stick frying pan and a toaster oven (if you don't wanna use your full oven). A good knife and a couple of cutting boards. Sometimes I'll do a stir fry of meat and veggies, other times I'll just bake some chicken in the toaster oven and steam some veggies. I'll put a dash of seasoning on top after its cooked. If you cut a chicken breast in half (so that it's thinner), it only takes about 20 mins at 350 degrees. You don't need to do anything fancy to make good food.

As for workouts, keep with your walking, that's great to do. As for HIIT workouts, considering your size, I could absolutely see these being absolutely exhausting. Slowly build up these workouts. Trying to start hard right out the gate would be a good way to burn out.

 

[dawn16]

@chado2423 I would have your hormones checked, especially with the birth control and antidepressants. Especially check where your testosterone and estradiol are at, both absolute and relative to each other.

Also I would talk to your doctors perscribing both the anti depressants and the birth control and see if there are other options that are less likely to cause you to gain weight. I was actually once perscribed Welbutrin as a weight loss drug by an endocrinologist, and it did seem to help some.

I have fought it all my life and struggle with it every day, even without birth control or anti depressants. I stay pretty active and eat about 1,200-1,500 a day. Currently 340lbs, down from 385lbs. I have an enormous frame so that isnt as bad as it sounds, but still a long way from my ~275lb goal weight.

Best of luck to you.