Weight Management Journey: Tracking Progress and Diet Changes
My weight has held steady at 173 lbs for the past five years. I started gaining weight from 2004 to 2010, reaching above 170 lbs, which roughly coincided with my decision to stop long-distance running, where I used to run 25-30 miles per week.
My Diet (2019 - 2022)
In the years following, I explored dietary changes, particularly considering a keto diet due to my research on the issues with processed sugar. I was concerned about potential side effects like feeling tired or sluggish during ketosis. Instead, I decided to focus on reducing my carbohydrate intake by avoiding processed sugar while increasing my protein and fat intake.
To simplify my approach, I made four specific changes to my diet:
- Breakfast: Opted for an egg or tuna salad sandwich.
- Vegetable Intake: Aimed to eat 8 oz of veggies daily (celery, carrots, cucumbers, etc.).
- Hydration: Increased water intake to 48 oz daily.
- Sugar Reduction: Avoided processed sugars.
I began implementing these changes in 2018, and they seemed to be effective. I primarily had an egg or tuna salad sandwich for breakfast, snacked on crunchy veggie sticks, and drank a cup of water every two hours, all while avoiding the office snack corner. Lunch and dinner remained unchanged.
Update 2/22/19 - 171 lbs
By this time, I consistently weighed 171 lbs. I found that simply eating less was the most effective strategy, rather than changing my diet drastically or increasing exercise. I planned to continue on this path, aiming to break below 170 lbs.
Update 7/4/20 - 185 lbs
The COVID-19 stay-at-home orders caused my weight to increase, reaching 185 lbs a few weeks ago. I worked on bringing it back down, managing to reach 180-181 lbs. I calculated that getting back to 170 would require a loss of approximately 35,000 calories (3,500 calories per pound) and reaching my ideal weight of 165 would require a total loss of 52,500 calories. My goal was to drop 1-2 pounds per week, hoping to return to my pre-COVID weight within 10-15 weeks.
Update 6/21/22 - 176 lbs
After a long hiatus, I found my weight had ballooned to 184 lbs. I managed to reduce it to 176 lbs and aimed to get back to my 2018 weight of 173 lbs, with hopes of reaching 165 lbs.
Update 7/4/22 - 174 lbs
I experienced a plateau at 176 lbs but finally hit 174 lbs. The bright side was that hunger pains had subsided; while I still felt the urge to eat, it wasn't as intense as during the initial days of dieting in June. I focused on maintaining a higher proportion of protein to avoid losing muscle, typically through boiled eggs and salted nuts. My target was to reach 173 lbs by the following weekend, July 9.
Update 6/2/23 - 177 lbs
I struggled with my weight, which had been creeping back up to 177 lbs. I recognized that my alcohol consumption and tendency to snack at work were significant factors. The lack of exercise, with only about 5,000 steps a day, worsened the situation.
A recent two-week trip demonstrated that I could easily walk 20,000 steps in a day when I didn't think about it. Additionally, my VO2 improved to some of the best levels I had ever seen, hitting 32, compared to my usual range of 29-30. This suggested that increasing my walking and exercise could benefit my health and help with weight reduction.
Update 8/5/23 - 165 lbs
After a year of effort, I finally reached my goal weight of 165 lbs. I hadn't been this thin since 2008, which was 15 years ago. To my surprise, I learned that this weight is still considered overweight for my height. I am now aiming to lose another 15 pounds, targeting a final weight of 150 lbs.
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