Taking the first step is often the most difficult step to every success. Many questions inevitably will pop up on our mind. What to eat? Will I ever successfully lost weight? What if after I tried, yet I failed? What kind of weight loss regime is suitable for me?
Options are countless. For city dwellers like us who spend most of our waking up time often occupied by our work, social life etc, it is understandable that many peoples choose to raise the white flag before even started. I understand the struggling well as I had been there before. Multiple time.
Here, I would like to share how it all started. 😊
Taking the First Step - Decide what you want and JUST DO IT.
Start by stop giving yourself excuses. Ask yourself why do you want to lose your weight? You no need to tell the world the reason you want to do it as this is your personal target. As for me, multiple failures in my life makes me wonder... Am I really a big failure? Will I be able to achieve something great in my life? Hence, I told myself. I want to lose weight to prepare myself for my future travel. And unlike my other failure which might influence by external factors that I was not able to control, this is my own body which I had full control of it. So, even if I fail, I cannot blame others for it. This is my target. I want to achieve something.
Think of why you want to lose weight and what you can achieve once you hit it. Once you set it, strive for it. The key to success is small change at a time. Let start with this change.
What Next?
So, what's next after setting up your mind?
When I started my journey, I did not set myself a particular target on how much I want to lose in a certain period of times, as I did not have confidence whether I will be even shed 1kg of weight off.
START where you are. USE what you have. Do what you can. - Arthur AsheAs an engineer by profession, it is inevitable for me to collect some data. Before starting with any changes, it is important to take some measurement at your start point to track your progress. This is important to determine whether what you had been doing is working. This can be done through various method including weighing scale, photography, body (girth) measurement and body fat percentages.
---> Aug 2020
---> March 2021
For me, I used the combination of photography, weighing scale and body fat percentages. For a start, take the photo at the start of your journey. Take the combination of photos as above (front view and side view).
Do I need to spend a lot of money? On gym? On Special Food?
I had tried gym membership before this and the conclusion - Waste of money. This is because to consistently going to the gym, it required a high commitment on consistency. As the gym charge you monthly, even if you went for a day, you will still need to pay fully on the monthly membership. Knowing myself, my enthusiasm will fade over time. So, ask yourself about your gym commitment. If you are not able to commit, don't waste it on the gym membership.
How about a special diet? Desperately to have a quick result, I did buy some nutrition such as meal replacement, carb burners and protein. It causes me a few hundred dollars for each supplement. And after a month, I ditched it as I cannot see any obvious result.
Did I spend any money?
Yes, after waste quite some money, I realise the best return on investment for my weight loss is a weighing scale and a fitness band. There are various brand in the market. For me, I use the cheapest brand in the market. Mi band 4 (about SGD29.90) and Mi Scale 2 (SGD19.90).
There are many other brands in the market but I decide to buy from the same brand, so it will be able to synchronise in the apps to track my progress. What I like the most is it will give me the current status of my body as well recommend a target for me to achieve.
*Disclaimer : This is not sponsored post.
Here where the real challenge start...
A simple Google on weight loss method will come up with multiple searches. Which one suits me the best? However, the basic theory for weight loss is, weight loss happen only when you consume fewer calories than your body need. This was known as CALORIES DEFICIT.
So, what are calories? Calorie is a measurement of energy that came from the food you eat to provide you energy to survive. We gain weight when we ate more than what our body needs. These excess calories will then turn into fat to be stored for future use. Continuously build-up of excess fat will eventually lead to uncontrollable weight gain.
To maintain your weight, you needs to eat certain amount of calories daily.
If...
Consumed Calories = Daily Calories allowance -> maintain weight
Consumed Calories > Daily Calories allowance -> gain weight
Consumed Calories < Daily Calories allowance -> lost weight
The mathematics is simple, you consume less than what your body needs, you will lose weight. When you take in fewer calories, your body will turn to stored calories aka... the fat or muscles to turn it into energy.
But it doesn't mean you need to starve yourself. Do it in a smart way, not the hard way.
How did I start?
I started it off by calculating how many calories do I need every day. Everyone has different reading depending on their gender, activities level, hormone and gene.
I use the link as below:
After key in my particular, it will recommend daily calories intake for me. As calculated below, I need 1887 kcal/day to maintain my weight. If I wish to lost weight, I will need to consume less than it.
To lose 1 kg, I will need to achieve a calories deficit of about 7000 kcal. If I set myself a target of 500kcal deficit/day, I will be able to lose 1 kg in 2 weeks. And it works for me.
Tracking my Calories
Once I set a target for myself on how much I want to lose in a week, I will look at the nutrition information of the food I plan to consume as below.
Tips: There are 2 different units of measurement (kcal and kJ). Please ensure you track it with the correct measurement unit.
Manual calculations are difficult until a friend of mine introduces a calories tracking apps to me MyFitnessPal. Just set a goal, and here you go.
Link here: MyFitnessPal | MyFitnessPal.com
Calories Deficit doesn't mean you need to starve
You might ask, if I need to achieve calories deficit to lost weight, do I need to starve?
The answer is no. You may still maintain your daily intake of breakfast, lunch and dinner. But instead of a full blow portion, you can gradually reduce your portion size. Do it gradually and your body will automatically adapt to it.
There are many other foods alternative that can keep you full but I will leave it at part 2 😊
You don't need to be great to start but you need have to start to be GREAT
Weight loss is not something you can achieve overnight. Be realise on your target. Losing weight is hard but the result is rewarding. Celebrate even the smallest achievement to keep yourself motivated. For me, whenever I hit a small milestone, I will treat myself to my favourite food.
With proper tools and support, I believe you can achieve your weight loss goals. Keep motivated for a better future.
I had
tried gym membership before this and the conclusion - Waste of money. This is because to consistently going to the gym, it required a high commitment on consistency. As the gym charge you monthly, even if you went for a day, you will still need to pay fully on the monthly membership. Knowing myself, my enthusiasm will fade over time. So, ask yourself about your gym commitment. If you are not able to commit, don't waste it on the gym membership.
