12 years of weight loss, EDs, and growth

Summary

This video chronicles the creator's 12-year weight loss journey, exploring the ups and downs of dieting, disordered eating, and self-awareness. Beginning with childhood weight gain and a restrictive calorie-counting phase, the story delves into the emotional and physical toll of disordered eating during adolescence. Despite challenges with yo-yo dieting and body image, the creator learns the importance of sustainable habits, such as cutting out sugary drinks and incorporating physical activity. By adulthood, the creator shares how they’ve navigated these struggles to maintain a balanced lifestyle, emphasizing the long-term value of calorie awareness and self-compassion.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker has been on a weight loss journey for over 12 years, starting at the age of 12, and reflects on the challenges and strategies learned along the way.
• 😀 The main difficulty in weight loss is not losing the weight itself but maintaining it over a lifetime, with only a small percentage of people successfully maintaining weight loss long-term.
• 😀 The speaker describes their early childhood as not overweight, with a healthy diet from home-cooked meals and limited fast food exposure, which helped lay a foundation for a balanced approach to food.
• 😀 A pivotal moment in the speaker's weight gain occurred at age 12 when they visited their grandmother and began overeating sugary candies, which contributed to significant weight gain.
• 😀 At age 12, the speaker joined a weight loss group and began using a calorie-counting app, leading to unhealthy habits like extreme portion control and eating only 1000 calories a day, which affected their physical and mental health.
• 😀 The speaker discusses how calorie awareness from early dieting habits is useful but can become problematic when taken to extremes or misused, especially in children without proper knowledge of nutrition.
• 😀 One positive outcome of this early calorie tracking was the elimination of sugary drinks from their diet, which contributed to long-term weight loss and healthier habits.
• 😀 During high school, the speaker lost weight, mainly through a mix of cardio and Pilates workouts. However, they struggled with yo-yo dieting and the emotional toll of unrequited love, which led to periods of not caring about weight gain.
• 😀 In university, the speaker experienced more freedom in their eating choices but also began exhibiting disordered eating behaviors like skipping breakfast after overeating, leading to a cycle of guilt, overcompensation, and binge eating.
• 😀 The speaker emphasizes that disordered eating behaviors, like overcompensating through exercise or restrictive eating, can resurface at any time, especially when seeking aesthetic goals, as seen in their experience during the Pilates trend. This led to loss of muscle mass and irregular periods.
• 😀 Despite these challenges, the speaker gained more awareness of metabolism and nutrition over time, especially after studying it academically, which helped them make healthier, informed choices regarding their diet and exercise habits.

Q & A

What was the main focus of the podcast episode discussed in the script?

The podcast episode discussed how most people who are overweight or obese will lose a substantial amount of weight throughout their lifetime, but only a small percentage, referred to as 'unicorns,' are able to maintain that weight loss long-term.

How did the speaker describe their childhood in relation to their weight?

The speaker described themselves as not being obese as a child, with a healthy and normal weight. They grew up in a household where home-cooked meals were common, and there wasn't significant exposure to fast food, which contributed to a balanced diet.

What event contributed to the speaker's initial weight gain?

The speaker's initial weight gain occurred after spending a summer at their grandmother's house, where they ate a lot of sugary candies, which led to significant weight gain. This was not a typical growth pattern for children, as they gained more weight than what was considered normal for their age.

How did the speaker's early attempts at weight loss impact their health?

The speaker's early attempts at weight loss, including using a calorie counting app and restricting food intake to about 1,000 calories per day, led to irregular periods and unhealthy behaviors, such as extreme portion control. These actions were particularly harmful as they occurred during puberty when proper nutrition was essential for growth and development.

What did the speaker learn from their experience with calorie awareness?

Despite the negative aspects of calorie counting, the speaker gained lasting calorie awareness, which helped them develop a system for maintaining a healthy weight. This awareness allowed them to estimate their food intake without the need for constant tracking, ultimately making it a part of their lifestyle.

How did the speaker's eating habits change in university?

In university, the speaker experienced more freedom in choosing their meals, leading to a diet with more fruits, vegetables, whole grain bread, and eggs, while eating less meat. However, they also struggled with disordered eating behaviors, like skipping meals or overcompensating after overeating, due to their past restrictive habits.

What impact did the speaker's restrictive behavior have on their physical health?

The speaker's restrictive eating behavior caused a negative impact on their physical health, including the loss of muscle mass, irregular periods, and difficulty with everyday tasks, such as opening doors due to weakened upper body strength. This highlighted the harmful effects of prioritizing aesthetics over overall health.

What role did the gym environment play in the speaker's fitness journey?

The speaker initially avoided gyms due to the unfriendly environment for women in their home country, where gyms were often small, poorly equipped, and male-dominated. However, after moving to Austria for university, they had access to better gyms, which allowed them to pursue their fitness goals in a healthier and more supportive environment.

How did the speaker's relationship with food and exercise evolve over time?

The speaker's relationship with food and exercise evolved from restrictive behaviors and disordered eating to a more balanced approach. They transitioned from extreme calorie restriction and skipping meals to building a healthier exercise routine and gaining strength, while also learning to manage their mental health regarding food.

What lessons did the speaker learn from their weight loss and fitness journey?

The speaker learned that sustainable weight management involves building healthy habits, such as regular physical activity and balanced nutrition, rather than relying on extreme dieting or calorie restriction. They also emphasized the importance of understanding the long-term effects of disordered eating behaviors and the need for continuous self-awareness to maintain a healthy lifestyle.