Are you overweight or obese person? And want to lose weight? I will give you a proven method to help you to lose weight and keep it off permanently. No matter how many times you tried and failed, you may want to give this one a shot.
I lost 17 Kg of weight in 10 weeks and have successfully maintained my weight for the last three years.
I am not using any diet program and do not suggest you join any diet program. The method I am suggesting is not a quick weight-loss method. It would be best if you have some patience, commitment, and a strong mindset.
I am sure you are aware of the dangerous effects of being obese and overweight. If you want a healthy body, you can follow this simple method. I firmly believe that this method will work for you.
My Story
My name is George K Thomas. I am 48 years old male.
One day morning, I woke up with an abnormally high heartbeat—a lot of discomfort and sweating. I consulted a physician who checked my weight, blood pressure, and blood sugar. When the results came, everything was on a higher end. My weight was 82 Kg, my blood pressure was 165/100, and my blood sugar was also in the abnormal range.
My doctor suggested some medications to keep my blood pressure under control and advised me to keep my weight bellow 70Kgs. He said if weight is under control, it will also keep the blood pressure and blood sugar levels normal. Thus, I may not be dependent on the medications further.
I came back home and started my medication as a first step. But I didn’t want to continue taking medicines for long. I started thinking about how to lose 12Kgs minimum. I asked many of my friends; some suggested exercise and gyms, while some suggested different diet plans and supplements. I got completely confused because everyone suggested different things
So, I started researching online. I read many authority websites, joined forums and groups, asked questions, and saw how people do it.
I noticed that those people follow a quick weight loss program; they lose weight fast but regain back after stopping the diet program. Some people stop dieting in the middle of the journey because it is a challenging diet to follow. Others are dieting, but they are also paying attention to lifestyle and habits, resulting in weight loss for a long time.
Now I had some ideas and observations. I had a clear picture of what I needed to do to achieve my goal weight.
The Key is to change my diet, lifestyle, and habits.
How did I do it? Let me explain.
Changed My Mindset
I knew every success starts in the mind. So, I prepared my mind to accept upcoming changes in lifestyle and habits. If my mind does not accept the changes, I can’t succeed in my journey.
I accumulated 12 Kg of extra weight in so many years. Now, I want to take off this excess weight in a short time. Thus, this journey will need additional commitment and willpower.
I accepted all of the changes. I understood if I do not change my lifestyle and habits, permanent weight loss was impossible.
My Goal
If I want to achieve something in my life, I must have a target or goal. This goal should encourage me to go forward and work hard. Sometimes I may reach my target before a defined time or a little late, depending upon the commitment and hard work
So, I first prepared my mind. Then set a goal.
My goal was to lose a minimum of 12 Kg. I knew the target was a little high, but not impossible. How I can achieve my target was my next question to solve.
What Strategy I Used
I remember someone telling me,” If you have a good plan or strategy, you can achieve any tough goal in your life” This quote was a big inspiration for me.
I thought about my day-to-day activities. We take food and drink for energy, do some activities and get sleep. I understood these are the three main areas that I need to improve to achieve my weight loss goal.
Let me break down the steps I used to lose weight
Step-1. Logged My Body Weight and Measurements
The first step is to take the current body measurement and weight. Why is this important? If we don’t have any previous data, then how will we track our weight loss progress? I did the same; I wrote down my weight and body measurements. These data and readings will help me to track my progress.
Measure your body weight, preferably in the morning, empty stomach with the help of a scale (If you don’t have one, buy one). The scale tells you the whole-body weight, including muscle, fluid, bones, and organs. I needed to save lean muscles and reduce excess fluid and fat.
Sometimes the scale does not tell you the minute story. Imagine you are on a weight loss program; you are dieting and exercising very well. It helps you to increase muscle mass and decrease body fat percentage. But your weighing scale will show the same readings.
The scale gives you an overall idea. The scale does not tell you what you lost and what you gained. We need to fine-tune, so we take body measurements also. Body measurement helps you to find body composition and fat loss progress.
So, Prepare for the measurements. To do this activity, need a cloth measuring tape.
How to do this?
You need to measure a specific body area.
They are listed below
1. Bust – Measure around the chest right the nipple line, but don’t pull too tight.
2. Chest – Measure just under the chest.
3. Waist – Measure a half-inch above your belly button or the smallest part of your waist.
4. Hips– Place the tape and measure around the biggest part of the hips.
5. Thighs – Measure around the biggest part of each thigh.
6. Calves – measure around the most significant parts of each calve.
7. Upper arm – Measure around the most significant part of each arm above the elbow.
8. Forearm – Measure around the most significant part of the arm below the elbow.
Note – Keep tape parallel to the ground. Stand in front of a mirror that helps you to find a tape position that isn’t too tight and loose.
I wrote down all of the reading in a notebook.
I need to take measurements in the future to track my progress.
Now, I completed the first step and am ready to go for the next step.
Step-2. Check my BMI
In this step, I needed to find my Body Mass Index value. For this purpose, I used an online BMI calculator https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-weight/bmi-calculator/. You can use any calculator for this task. I entered the following data in the required fields. Height 173 CM, Weight 82 Kg, Age 48, Sex – Male, then selected activity level – Moderate. Now click on calculate.
The result showed 27.3, and the indicator went to the overweight side; I cross-checked with other calculators. The result was the same. Now, I understood I was overweight, and I needed to lose weight. My healthy weight range was 55.4 Kg – 74.8 Kg, and I set my target weight as 65 Kg.
To achieve this target weight, I followed the next step.
Step-3. Track my food intake
Food is the main component that contributes to weight gain. Write down all the foods that you eat and drink every day for a week.
Don’t skip anything. Write everything down, what you ate, how much, and when you had it. A food log will help you find what foods and drinks you consumed daily and track calorie intake.
How to do this
Take a diary and make a chart. Draw 6 Nos of the columns. Write time in the first column, describe the food in the 2nd column, quantity in the 3rd column, location in the 4th column, the mood in the 5th column, and calorie value in the 6th column.
Start with day 1- I wrote down all the things that I ate. I filled up all columns to find out the calorie value. I filled the chart for all six days in the same way. I found my calorie intake was 3000.
For this purpose, you can use an online calorie calculator like https://caloriecontrol.org/healthy-weight-tool-kit/food-calorie-calculator/
Step-4. Required Calorie
Now I needed to find how many calories are required to achieve my target weight. I used an online calculator https://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html and filled in the following data, age – 48, Gender- Male, Height 173 cm, put my target weight (65 Kg) in the weight section, and activity level – Moderate. The result showed that to maintain and reach the target weight of 65kgs, I needed to consume 2192 calories/day.
Step-5. My Target Weight and Time
As mentioned above, I set my target weight to be 65 Kg. I needed to lose 17 Kg to achieve my target weight. But I was not looking for a quick weight loss journey. So, I decided to lose 1 Kg/Week. Total 17 weeks to lose 17 Kg weight.
Step-6. My Old habits and lifestyle
I understood lifestyle and habits play a crucial role in weight loss. So, I checked my lifestyle and habits.
I am a 48-year-old male and have been working in a multinational company for the last 20 years.
I work for 12 hours, day/night shifts. My company is situated 40 kilometers away from my home. I usually leave for my work at 6.30 Am and reached back home by 10.30 Pm.
I never ate breakfast. I ate lunch at the canteen and dinner at home. White rice, starchy vegetables, and sweets were things I preferred for lunch and dinner. Whenever I’m hungry, I ate and drank packaged foods and cold drinks, and soda.
I never liked walking. I used public conveyance or cars for even small distances. I liked fast food, Pizza, burgers, etc. I drink alcohol 3 to 4 days a week and also smoke. I never exercised and never worried about my health.
I usually reached home by 10.30 Pm, took a bath, and ate my dinner while watching Television. I ate until I am satisfied. After 30 minutes, I would go to my bed to sleep.
I wake up at 6 Am and take a bath and drink a coffee and go to work. These are my old habits and lifestyle.
As I was reviewing my old lifestyle and habits, I realized that I will never achieve my goal if I followed this lifestyle and habits.
So, I decided to change my lifestyle and habits to a healthier way. Now I understood my lifestyle and excess calories were the reason for my overweight.
What I did. Let me explain.
Step-6. How I lost 17 Kg
First, I need to increase my activity and burn more energy than usual. For this purpose, I bought a Treadmill.
I planned my daily routine. I started waking up at 4.45 am and then did 45 minutes of jogging on a Treadmill. Sometimes this increased to 1 hour. I tried to burn 300 to 500 calories in the morning. Then I relaxed for 10 minutes. I also practiced deep breathing exercises for 10 minutes. Breathing exercises helped me to allow enough oxygen to the body and increase concentration.
Then took a bath.
I started having breakfast daily. The biggest mistake I committed throughout my life was skipping breakfast. My breakfast contained mainly protein or whatever was available at home.
I stopped eating from the office canteen because the food served was oily and spicy. Moreover, the quality of oil used may also not be healthy. I decided to cut off from outside food.
I started carrying my food and snacks from home. I kept two food boxes. I ate one food box at 12.30 pm for lunch and another food box at 7 pm for dinner in my workplace. I had dinner at my workplace because it gave me enough time between dinner and sleeping.
Before lunch and dinner, if I felt hungry, I ate fruits (low in sugar) and a handful of nuts.
After coming home, I did a 30 minutes workout on Treadmill and burn nearly 200 calories.
Then I took a bath and ate something light, mainly soup.
My food mainly consists of low in carbs and enough fruits and green vegetables. I don’t avoid any food groups. But focus on portion control and eating when I am hungry.
I reduced my sugar and salt intake and avoided cold drinks and soda. I also avoided packed junk foods and refined oils. I replaced them with plain water because they are full of empty nutrients.
I drank a lot of water, but I did not count how many liters or glasses. But I check urine color and keep it almost clean. Sometimes I drink less quantity of water and sometimes more depending upon the weather and activities.
I did not stop alcohol but reduced the frequency by one or two drinks occasionally. Thank god I quit smoking.
I again calculated my energy intake following the same method in step 3. This time, it came to around 2200 calories, and I was close to the target, which kept me motivated.
After following this lifestyle and habits for one week, I rechecked my weight. I was shocked, and the scale showed 79 Kg. I lost 3Kg, it kept me motivated to continue.
These were all changes I have made in my lifestyle and habits, which I am continuing. It feels great to have more comfort and flexibility in my body. On weekend holidays, I increase my workouts to one hour in the morning and one hour in the evening. And increase walking in daily life.
This way, I lost 10 Kg in the first four weeks. Then in the 5th week, I continued to follow the same lifestyle and habits. But I noticed that my weight loss was getting a little slow. I lost 1.2 Kg to 2kg. I was disappointed with what happened.
I remembered the first few week’s weights quickly went down due to the loss of water weight. It happened in my case also.
Following four weeks, I lost 1 to 1.5 Kg/week. During these four weeks, I lost 5 Kg. Total lost 15 Kg. Now I was close to my target weight and was happy with my progress.
Now I retook my body measurements following the same method in step 1 and compared them with old measurements. My waistline went down from 36 inches to 32 inches, and my clothes became loose for me. This change kept me motivated.
I followed the same practices for Week 9 and Week 10, and I lost 1 Kg each. In total, I lost 17 Kg in 10 weeks. I felt so proud and grateful. I achieved my goal weight before the targeted time.
How I kept the weight off permanently
Mainly I focused on my lifestyle and habits. I adopted new and healthy practices and lifestyles explained above.
I achieved my target weight within 10 weeks. But to maintain it for an extended period is a critical task. Once I reached the target weight, I continued to follow the same strategy. There were chances of me losing more weight. So, I made some adjustments.
First, I altogether avoided refined items from my diet and added more seasonal vegetables and fruits. Having fruits and vegetables made me full, and calories were also kept under check.
Second, I work out once a day for 30 to 40 minutes in the morning. I followed the same routine for a week. When I rechecked my weight, it was the same.
Next, I work out exactly 30 minutes per day and continued for two weeks. I found no changes in scale. That meant 30 minutes of workout is enough for me to maintain my current weight. And I also increased deep breathing exercise time by 10 to 15 minutes.
I repeated the same method for one month and rechecked my weight. There were no significant changes in weight. A little bit up and down in weight may occur. That’s completely normal.
I am so happy with my achievement. And also, proud and motivated. I have followed this method for the last three years and maintained my weight within 65 Kg.
Conclusion:
My tried and tested weight-loss method is something you can also replicate in your day-to-day life and achieve your weight loss goal.
You only need to analyze your lifestyle and habits. Find out unhealthy practices in your lifestyle and habits and work on them.
It would help if you also focused on your diet. Avoid all unhealthy foods like refined carbs, oil, artificial sweetener, etc. replace them with a healthy option.
Add more vegetables and fruits to your diet and keep food well balanced.
I do not suggest avoiding any food group entirely from your diet. But it would be best if you focused on portion control.
Exercises are essential for your weight loss journey. Adopt a good exercise method you enjoy and stick to it, like- walking, jogging, etc. You do not need to purchase costly equipment and subscription programs. There are so many free options available in your surroundings.
Now I hope you understand how to lose weight healthily and keep it off permanently.
I wish you a successful weight loss journey.
Thanks for reading.
