How do you start again after regaining the weight you worked so hard to lose?
For most of my life, I’ve been fat. I’m 24 now, and I feel like I missed out on so many opportunities, events, and experiences because I hated the way I looked. I could never find clothes that fit me properly, and because of that, I spent most of my life isolated and alone.
Last year, I hit my highest weight, nearly 310 lbs. After so many failed attempts to lose weight, something finally clicked. I stuck to a diet for 6 months, lifted heavy weights, built muscle, and lost a lot of fat. I was eating around 1600 calories a day and got down to 210 lbs.
For the first time in my life, I actually liked the way I looked. I started going out more, meeting new people, and feeling comfortable with myself.
Then I traveled for a month, and that’s where everything went wrong.
I kept telling myself: “It’s easy to lose weight now. I deserve to enjoy myself.” By the end of the vacation, I had gained 20 lbs back. And ever since then, every day I keep telling myself: “I’ll start next week,” “One more night won’t hurt,” “You already know how to lose weight.”
It’s been almost two months since the vacation, and I still can’t stick to the diet again. I gained another 20 lbs. I honestly don’t know what to do.
The weird thing is... I know I can lose the weight. Last time, even with an aggressive cut, I actually enjoyed the process once I started seeing results. The hardest part is always the beginning, when there are no visible changes yet.
I’m terrified of becoming fat again and going back to the life I used to have.