Stoid, you’re pretty much the same as me, it seems - I’ve found that losing weight through dieting alone just does not work very well for me at all. When you have a lot of weight to lose, dieting alone tends to make you burn through your muscle mass, creating a really nasty cycle of resurgence of weight gain. The same principles that apply to losing 10 pounds just don’t apply as well if you need to lose many times that – human beings just don’t do very well with calorie restriction alone. A lot of people (generally people who have never lost significant weight) will sneer, “well, look at concentration camp victims – are you suggesting you can’t lose weight if you’re starving?” Well, sure, you can, but can most human beings starve themselves to that state by willpower alone with an abundance of food available? Fuck no.
For me, I’ve found, the way to a healthier life is through exercise. I know that the wiseacres will say it’s just not worth it on a calorie basis, but for me it’s the only way to diet and not fail in willpower sooner or later when my energy level tanks.
I haven’t figured it all out – I’m not at my goal yet – but exercise has made my life a lot more livable along the way. All my medical screenings are great - my cholestrol, blood sugar, blood pressure, are all normal now, where before they were somewhat risky levels. In fitness tests, I consistently score average or better in every category for my age, despite still being significantly overweight.
It’s frustrating to not see the scale go down like I’m used to. It creeeeeeps down now - because I’m not shedding muscle and water consistently anymore. I’m moving to measuring my progress through measurements and body fat to get a more comprehensive approach.
I’m in better shape than I ever was at less weight now that I lift weights and work out. I feel better, I can do more. I feel like weight lifting is really the answer for those of us who just have shitty metabolisms (I was put on my first diet before my first birthday - it’s just innate for me). I’ll never be model thin, but I’ll work on making progress and in the meantime I’m living a better life than I was starving myself.
For me, high-protein (not necessarily low carb - just getting sufficient protein for muscle building), low-sugar, small meals, whole grains… these are critical, just as much as watching the calories, to long-term success.
The way I look at it is this. Maybe I’ll never be “thin”, but really why do I want to lose weight? To look better, to feel better, to have more energy, to be able to do more things. Weight lifting has absolutely started to achieve those things for me within a far shorter time than I could lose fat. People have pointed out to me that my posture has improved, I carry the weight differently (smaller around the waist), and it’s far easier to mark incremental improvements than relying on the scale.
I’m about ready to chuck the scale entirely. It doesn’t matter how much I weigh, in the end - it’s how much of it’s fat. It’s about health, and the scale is very misleading, especially for women.