Despite my [current] statistics not being too positive (re: 174 pounds | 5’4” | female | 27), I have (in the last 27 years of being in a perpetual state of trying to lose weight) learned a thing or two about the epic battle that weight loss is.

(I just [obviously] don’t do them that well). 

I used to be all like “tell me the easiest & quickest way to get myself from point A (overweight) to point B (slender ‘n fit) by doing the least amount of work possible, and still eating delicious foods, hmmm kay?” But as we all know, that didn’t work out too well… 

But I’m older ‘n wiser (‘n cooler?) now, so for the sake of my skinny-fit future self, here are a few things (reminders) I believe about weight loss:

• Sacrifice: it’s depressing, I know, but there are no magic beans, no secret words, no golden key to the world of being slender. It’s sacrifice & hard work. It’s saying NO to the box of chocolate almonds in the office; it’s choosing a salad instead of a pizza. It’s giving up something (spoiler alert: it’s giving up delicious, tasty, sugary food). It’s making a change. Doing something different. And not sneaking a slice of cheese when you’re trying to decide what to eat (<— totally side eyeing myself on that one)
• Do not be fooled (I totes magotes was), but weight loss and maintenance are two very different games. Weight loss is a lot harder, a lot. It’ll come down to a simple extra treat, a mere two or three hundred calories which will determine whether you maintain, or lose. Despite lots of books/professionals saying maintenance is harder, I think the opposite. 
• A plateau can’t last forever. Water weight. Starvation mode. Muscle weighs more than fat. They’re all nice ‘n dandy if it’s a short-term problem, but the second you realize that that’s been your excuse for, oh I don’t know, a few months, you’re doing something wrong. So stop. Re-calculate and change something.
• Exercise. The best weigh (tehehehe) to describe my thoughts on this topic is by saying: You lose weight in the kitchen. You get fit in the gym. Remember that. Always, always remember that. You can NOT out-exercise a bad diet. Know this, otherwise you’ll end up like me with three full marathons under your belt, a trek to Mt. Everest, being a (self-proclaimed, hehe) crossfit all-star, and *still* overweight – go me! But I HIGHLY recommend exercising, it encourages better eating, and just an overall better life. Whether it’s walking, crossfit, running, or dancing just try and move-move-move-move!
• Weight loss needs a deadline. Why? Because a goal without a deadline is just a dream. So put a big, damn, red circle with flashing stars on your birthday, or year end, or whenever it is, because there needs to be a start date. And a finish date. Otherwise, like me, you’ll always start tomorrow and be in this perpetual state of limbo. You’ll also know if you “failed,” and can find ways to fix the problemos.
• Be realistic. Aka don’t be like me. After one day of eating healthy I step on the scale and then am sad I didn’t lose 50 pounds overnight. Set goals that are possible. Slow ‘n steady, slow ‘n steady… it took me over two years to lose 50 pounds.
• You have to have a zillion “Ah-ha moment” moments throughout the whole process. There obvs has to be a big, kick start one (like that time I thought there was a dappled light on my legs. But oh, no, wait… that’s just my cellulite) AND then they need to continue each week, day, meal. We live in a world of delicious food everywhere, so yes, of course weight loss is hard. You have to keep reminding yourself why the food isn’t worth it. Why there will always be another *insert treat here* in your future. And no Liz, no. It’s not just “now or never!” (sometimes I feel I get anxiety when I’m near food: WHAT IF I DON’T GET ANY? OHMYGOD).
• Weight loss requires sleep. I used to give this point the side-eye until I realized that oh-so-very clear correlation between eating poorly and being tired. For reals. Sleep makes everything better. So shut yo computer, and snooze!
• You gotta drink LOADS of water. I am awfully bad at this, but I really do believe it’s one of the top things to do to lose weight.
• A Calorie-Is-A-Calorie-Is-A-Calorie… OR IS IT? Unfortunately I can’t really write too much on this topic because I don’t know enough, but lately I’ve slowly (I’m looking at you Crossfit) started thinking/believing in the whole “no portions, eat the right foods, it’s not just about calories, eat as much as you want” dealio (cough Paleo cough). Hmmm. Hmmmmm. Hmmmmmmm???
• Diets are NOT BAD. Most people (ie me) need help to lose weight and diets kick start weight loss the first few weeks. They give someone structure and guidelines and do actually help. And (this is shocking) they ALL work. All. Of. Them. Work. The key is finding one you like, one that works for your lifestyle, and one you can actually do for more than two months.
• Binging is bad. I know this, because I have an awful history of eating all the food in my house and/or store (read my battle with binge eating here). Binging is all mental and professional help may need to be considered - especially if you’re someone who’s like me and gets an A++ 90% of the time in eating, but then can literally consume 5,000 calories in one sitting.

Okay. PHEW. I think that’s it. Pretty straight forward, right? Ba-hahahahaha. I laugh because weight loss is HARD. And no, you’re probably not the only person in the world who simply just loves the taste of food (<— I seriously used to think that), everybody does, and most people are struggling.

Also, Little Blog, as I get the question, “How Do I Start Losing Weight / Find motivation?” a lot, here’s a link to my original, “So, You Wanna Lose Weight?” post, which may help you out.

Oh-Oh-Oh, also, I’m interested in what the People-Who-Live-In-My-Computer (aka YOU) think about weight loss. Want to correct a tip of mine? Or tell me what your #1 tip  to lose weight would be? YOU DO? Excellent!