DISCLAIMER: This essay included unhealthy weight loss methods that shouldn’t be used for any reason as they can be life-threatening.
I’ve tried plenty of diets out there in my life. Whether it is Keto Diet, Low-Fat Diet, No Carbs Diet, High Protein Diet, Smoothie Diet, Juice Diet, Vegetable Soup Diet or even Potato Diet. For those who have never heard of the Potato Diet, it’s a type of diet that allowed you to eat only plain potato throughout the day. You can eat as many as you want be it baked, cooked, or boiled. It’s claimed to aid weight loss, so I gave it a try for 3 days. And the result? I did shred a few pounds. However, it leads to overeating and weight gained (because of the overeating) afterwards because of the strong craving for other foods that I couldn’t eat during the diet.
I’ve even tried slimming pills, fat burn pills, carb blockers, weight loss powder, fat burn cream and many more. If I were to list out all of the things I’ve tried in my weight loss journey, it could be a super long list so I’m not going into that. But what I mean is I’ve tried almost whatever I can to lose weight and found out that there’s no perfect diet out there. No diet that fits all size, no diet that can promise 100% weight loss in 7 days, no diet that can give you the perfect bikini body forever, and no diet that promise quick weight loss without a rebound effect.
So, what exactly I’ve learnt throughout my weight loss journey?
If you’ve restricted yourself to certain foods, it will lead to a strong growth of craving for those foods and you’ll most likely end up with binge eating or overeating. I’ve tried a diet which 6 days a week to eat super healthy clean foods and another 1 day of cheat meal day. During the cheat meal day, I ate like an insane person. I know I won’t get to eat these foods for the next 6 days, so I ate non-stop from morning to night including dessert after every single meal and snack throughout the day.
This is not a matter of discipline or lack of willpower. This is because our body sends a signal to our brain saying it needs a certain type of food because it is lacking it. This is also a reason why we still feel hungry after a meal. Because we didn’t get all of the nutrients that our body needs.
However, not everyone will have a rebound effect towards a certain type of diet. One of my best friends adapted to this 6 days clean and 1 day cheat diet and she becomes healthier, happier and of course, shred a few pounds. Shredding a few pounds was her goal but most importantly, she gets to reconnect with her body and becomes healthier. Another one of my friends has been doing an 80/20 diet for more than a year and still doing fine. 80/20 diet is a diet where you eat healthy meals 80% of the time and indulge for the remaining 20%. For example, your daily calories required is 2000kcal. So, you eat healthy meals for 1600kcal (80%) and indulge 400kcal (20%) be it cake, chocolate, dessert as long as it does not over the 20%.
As for me, I can’t skip carbs or I’ll feel tired and sluggish. I also need a good amount of fibre to help with my digestion (I’ll get constipation if I don’t eat enough fibre) and protein is crucial to repair body cells especially when I do weight training. So, I fill half of my plate with vegetables, a quarter of carbs and a quarter of protein. For dinner, I’ll have a type of fruit together with my meal.
I found this to be the most suitable meal plan for me to keep my body healthier and my mind to be happier. Also, I listened to my body needs before each meal to choose which protein, carbs and vegetables I feel like having for the day. I also have dessert when I want to, without any restriction – sometimes 2 bars of dark chocolate, sometimes 1 bar of milk chocolate biscuit.
I realized I don’t have a strong craving for any foods when I eat this way. This is because my body knows I’ll give in without restriction, so it gets what it needs.
This is a way of me nourishing my body for all the hard works it did for me unconsciously. Helping me get through difficult times, giving me the energy to work my ass off my job, and letting me wake up feeling healthy and refreshed for another new day.
“Think of food as nourishment and not a punishment. Your body deserved what it needs.”
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