Hey folks.
I've been dragging taking you along on my weightloss journey which I'm super fired up about but honestly, I almost can't be bothered with it because truth be told, it hasn't really been that big of a deal. I've pretty much described to you how this has been the easiest diet I've ever done, and that hasn't changed in the past 3 months or so. I've simply kept on eating in a calorie deficit. My appetite never really had to suffer throughout the whole process all that much. The end result is that I'm just sitting here reflecting that I'm well over half way to my goal and the fact is, it really doesn't have to be that big of a deal. With the right outlook and a solid structure with a simple plan that you can follow, I think anybody can do this.
There wasn't anything specific in my life that happened that made me want to lose body fat other than waking up one day and saying I wanted to be more healthy. I've never been morbidly obese but I did get to the point where I said this is a problem. So I started to lift weights and to walk 5-6 miles a day at about an average pace. I started to notice that I was losing weight and I was beginning to see my abs. As you begin this process, I'd say your diet is the most important thing, but as your body fat percentage starts to get lower, exercise is actually required to continue burning fat. If you don't exercise, what's going to happen is that you're going to end up becoming skinny fat, which means your body fat percentage is still going to be high but you're going to have less muscle and more fat. So for me, the perfect thing that worked was proper diet and exercise, and, in fact, this has been the most positive thing that has happened to me in a very long time. I have really begun to take care of myself and I'm blessed to say that my health and quality of life have improved significantly. I'm probably in the best shape I've been in since high school. I am so incredibly grateful to have begun this journey at my age and stage in life. I'm the type of person that really goes all in. If I've made up my mind that this is what I'm going to do, then I don't slowly put my toe into the pool and see how cold it is. I do a backflip cannonball into the deepest end of the pool without even being sure I can swim.
This is sort of what's happened with my exercise. I started eating intentionally, working out at the gym 3 days a week, and getting in my daily steps. As I began walking every day I started noticing that I was losing weight more rapidly and was feeling better. I actually got to the point where I looked forward to these walks, which is crazy because I've always prefered running to walking.
So if you're looking to optimize your health and fitness, then ideally you should be getting in at least a couple of sessions of walking during the week. That said, always remember that fat loss still ultimately comes down to calories in versus calories out in the overall picture of things. If your diet isn't on point and you're not in a net calorie deficit, you're still not going to lose body fat when it all comes down to it. You diet should always be front and center in your thinking, though eventually you'll want to add walking into the mixture to maximize things even further.
Have a wonderful weekend!