Things I wish had known before my weight-loss journey!

When you tell people that you want to lose weight, they will tell you ‘n’ number of things you ‘should’ and ‘should not’ do, out of which some might be true and some might be absolutely false to even practice. Here I will list down ‘Do’s & Dont’s’ that I followed to lose weight and that worked for me really well. Let’s start!

Myth- We gain weight faster and we take time to lose the same weight: Truth is it takes almost the same time to gain as well as lose. Only thing is, we need more hard work if we want to lose weight and hence you feel it takes time. When we start to gain we don’t realize it the very next day, we gain slowly and then after a few months, we see the change or people start telling us that “you have gained weight” (we don’t have to work hard for gaining weight just sit, eat and follow an unhealthy lifestyle). Similarly, when we start losing weight, we will see the results after a few months of hard work or people will ask you “how did you lose weight”. Hence, know that your body takes time to give you results, changes happen slowly and you need to patient with your body.

There’s nothing called as “instant weight loss”: We just want to lose weight instantly and fast which is practically impossible (refer point 1, to know why). The process of weight loss involves following healthy habits, exercising, eating clean & healthy. There’s a huge market for detox teas, slimming belts & machines, sugar-free food materials like biscuits & chocolates, but these are all traps to empty your pockets so they earn profits. Rather drink herbal or organic teas or green tea, make detox water or simply drink hot water. Sugar-free products and free of sugar but contains artificial sweeteners which are very harmful to your body, switch to jaggery or honey instead. Our body is not an instant weight loss machine so let’s stop expecting the same from it.

Does starving help?: Oh please! starving only helps you to crave more and if not it helps you to get weaker and not fit. You might lose weight but you will end up having problems with your body, skin, hormones etc. Never ever starve yourself, it only worsens the situation.

When I started my journey I did immense research, saw many youtube videos, read books on diet and even tried them out. I always had one doubt – Some said, eat every 2 hours if you want to lose weight and some said to eat only twice a day or thrice a day. Every one had a different point of view so I tried everything in order to see what works best for me.

I found that while I was eating every 2 hours my stomach was most of the time upset and I felt bloated because my stomach had to work and get activated every 2 hours and on top of that I was always thinking what to eat next as I did not have much healthier food options. So I switched the diet to starving which I obviously did not succeed and did it only for a week. Then I tried eating only thrice a day breakfast lunch and dinner which was okay but I always ended eating a lot so I don’t feel hungry till next meal and I did not see much of a difference in my weight.

I was tired and I wanted a diet I could follow for the rest of my life and so, Lastly I switched to eating 4 times a day in adequate portions. Heavy breakfast, medium lunch which made me a little hungry sometimes in the evening so I had healthy snacks and then very light dinner and I now live happily ever after!! 

For the diet that I follow now, see my previous blog – “How I lost 7kgs in 3months?-My Diet”. I would suggest this diet for everyone who is a foodie like me. Try it with regular workouts & exercises.

The first step to losing weight is to accept yourself and promise yourself you want to see yourself better and fitter. Love your body as it is and give it time to be as you want it to be. Drink at least 8 glasses of water and just be you & stay you!

Thank you for reading.

Nikita Shinde