When You've Lost All The Weight
After eating tons of salad and vegetables, I realized I'd reached my target weight. I'd reached 135 pounds, the number I'd hovered around for most of my adult life.
Weight loss is kind of a religion, particularly in the west. (Especially fast weight loss.) I'm good at it now. I can take my weight down by two pounds in a week, if I set my mind to it. (Totally not advised or recommended.) Part of this is familiarity with calories, some of it is willpower; some just good old horse sense. It's easy to raise the number of vegetables in a meal.
It can be hard to transition from 'losing weight' (and thinking about it all the time) to 'eating healthy'. I would encourage a 'get more healthy' approach rather than 'I must lose all this weight by summer to look good in a swim suit.'
Now I can pretty much eat without worry, now that I've figured out the rules. I'm still a little wary of some foods now that I'm more familiar with their calories and content. But it's nice to be able to say 'what the heck' and have whatever my friends are having while they ask me 'what's your secret.' Most people have a clearer idea of how much gas is in their car's tank, than how many calories they've had that day.
For many people that works! Our bodies are meant to be self-regulating. But as we get older, our metabolism slows so that can fake us out.
My hobby now is taking food I like and making it more healthy. Indonesian Mee Goreng noodles? How would they work with whole wheat noodles? Tandoori Chicken? Maybe I can pair that with some brown rice. Breakfast burrito? Yes but with egg whites for me, thanks.
I also snack all the time. One recommendation: 'apple a day' really works. Fruit is a great snack, and really filling, and not super calorific. In the past I'd really crave cookies, crackers, leftovers for a snack. But I'm happy to put fruit first; it's full of natural sugars which mean quick energy.
One of my go-tos is cashews in the freezer, which make them extra crunchy. I have managed to transition to hummus, tzatziki, cut vegetables – but also I don't mind peanut butter from time to time.
My idea of a good snack or dessert is to go to a nearby bakery and get a gigantic, freshly baked, preservative-free chocolate chip cookie. I don't have this treat very often; if I'm going to have a cookie why not make it a premium product?
I am also mindful of my 'macros' (carbs/fat/protein). I try to hit a minimum protein target every day based on recommendations for moderately active people my age. The great thing about protein is it 'satiates' you, makes you less hungry. Most people don't realize that fruit and vegetables are, well, fibrous carbs. I'm now looking at more healthy fat sources like hummus and avocado.
Weight loss is a good catch-all goal if you want to be more fit, feel better, avoid larger health challenges. But if you are doing vigorous exercise you may actually build a bit of muscle at the same time. Keep at it. Muscle is good; building and maintaining muscle has a wide host of health benefits.
Most athletes alternate between cardio and strength training. Even athletes that are mainly doing endurance work (running, swimming) will do some standard weight training. Muscle fiber will add to your body mass and overall weight. Don't worry too much about it.
So now I'm interested to watch the scale as as my ability to do various exercises increases and my weight creeps up. I'm not in a hurry to achieve a superhero physique, but it's fun to grow and evolve.