My Journey of Losing Weight
2020 has been challenging; for some people, it will be a year of change, or better put, a year of misfortune. I was lucky; I didn’t lose anyone close to me, nor did I lose my livelihood or home. At the beginning of the year, I set a few goals for myself; to sum all of them, I wanted to be a better human being, to self-improve. The biggest issue was my physical condition. As time went by, and my focus changed, I stopped being active like I was before. I started eating more, and I gained weight — a lot.
I got from a good physique and 80 kg (176 lb) up to a mountainous 113 kilograms (249 lb) in just two years. My weight gain was quite visible. After some time, many people who saw me definitely noticed, judging by their surprised grimaces and judgments on my sudden physical appearance. To be honest, I started longing for more activity in my life this spring when lockdowns began happening. It was precisely when I told myself that my diet and body should be my main focus.
By writing this article, my weight got down to 88 kg (194 lb). That’s a 25 kg (55 lb) difference. My transformation took approximately 9 months, and today I’d like to write about some of my experiences.
Gamifying the progress
With every long-term intent, motivation is fundamental. It would be naive to think that this can be pulled off without a big heap of inspiration and motivation. To lose this kind of weight is not about a diet and a time frame, but more about changing nutrition, exercising more and learning how to incorporate it into everyday life. It was not a small turn, to say the least. To stick with something so distant and intangible, I needed something that could help me keep going. After looking at some fitness apps (Freeletics or Nike Run Club), they all use gamification to some extent — whether it is getting XP points and leveling your profile by completing workouts or receiving trophies and finishing community challenges. As studies suggest, gamification can help users keep engaged in specific areas like education, sport, or interaction.
It undoubtedly encouraged me. By having small motivators like trophies for completed kilometers every month or challenges for a certain number of workouts each month, I stuck with it and looked forward to every next activity. There was a threshold I started losing impulse, so I implemented my own gamification framework on other aspects, for example, lowering my bodyweight. I achieved that by only measuring my weight every week and observed how the graph curve went down. Seeing that I’m losing mass every week and that the progress is linear kept me going.
Focusing on how my body responds to food
It may seem weird, but another thing that helped me was the sensation of eating healthy. That feeling of lightness in my body when I ate something light and nutritious was something I forgot exists. After a couple of months of my nutrition development, I realized how good it feels when I eat veggies, steamed meat, and other raw foods. When I ate outside of what I was supposed to, it was troublesome to get the mental satisfaction out of it. On the contrary, I felt guilty, and like I’m cheating on my body. When that sank in, I had to make it up to myself, take an extra hike or something. I found myself enjoying every bit of the journey, and this sensation is something that I focus on even now when I achieved my biggest goal.
My taste preferences changed, as well. I have never enjoyed steamed vegetables or fresh fruit like I do now. It became a habit of mine to eat healthily, and now, when I’m standing on the side where the grass is greener, I’m glad to say that the transition was worth it. My body responds differently to other elements as well — for example, drinking alcohol became difficult for me as it’s something my body is not used to anymore. When I drink, I can prepare myself for a terrible hangover, which is an experience I’m avoiding no matter what it takes.
Adopting new hobbies
When I was a kid, I was never a good fit for any sport. My parents didn’t raise me to be an athlete, and I generally disliked any sport I tried during my childhood. I was also chubby and clumsy. After some time, I started visiting a local gym and lifting weights when I was around 16 years old, which was the first sport ever I took an interest. From there, I started doing CrossFit for a while before I had to move out and start working.
As a working adult, I had problems with my sport/life balance, and as I’ve already written, things considering my body went downhill. I was battling crippling depression during those years, which also helped me gain weight. When I decided it was time to lose weight, gyms were closed, and the only option to exercise was at home or in the park. After giving it a few thoughts, I decided to start with a sport I didn’t quite enjoy — running.
It was hard. As a beginner, I struggled with the technique. My running was sluggish and painful. My condition didn’t allow me to run even one mile without stopping to catch a breath. Seeing myself weak and powerless gave me a window that showed me I can be healthier, so I kept running three times a week. After a few weeks, I was able to run 5K; I broke all my personal records on running, and I got so motivated I had to set myself longer-term goals — to run 10K and to cut times — 5K under 30 minutes and 10K under 60.
As I progressed through my goals, I found myself enjoying running more than ever before. It gave my life some meaning during the tough times that 2020 brought. When I was feeling sad, a run was my anchor I can rely on. During the last year, I was able to find new communities and other people with the same enthusiasm as I have. As my mental wheel was spinning, and I was on my plan, I was able to break all running achievements I planned.
Adjusting my goals
When I commenced the journey of losing body mass, I would never think that it would change a huge part of my life, and it did. It changed what I do every day, how I feel about nutrition, how I sleep, and more.
I feel happier and whole; I’m doing what I enjoy, and by beating both small and significant milestones, I’m moving on. This determination and patience also transformed into other areas of my life — my drive to learn new things, and sticking with ongoing projects is stronger.
I’m glad I took this path, and even with some hiccups, I’m confidently stating that I did it. I’ve lost the weight I wanted to. As I’m on the finish line of this accomplishment journey, another starting line emerges — let’s do a half marathon, and it’s gonna be awesome.
