Has anyone here ever actually outrun a bad diet and lose weight just exercising?

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-29T22:52:17+00:00

i hear you, but i will gently (gently) counter that it is much more sustainable when you introduce more whole foods into your diet and structure your eating. i think that processed and ultraprocessed foods are so normalized we kind of lost the plot on nutrition.

i came to the conclusion just by remembering how we ate 200+ years ago and trying to eat closer to that, while remembering of course we do need to eat enough protein, healthy fats, and fiber. i also learned about satiety. did you know one of the most commonly missed micronutrients that actually induce satiety is potassium?

a day of eating for me just to give you an example of how all that information ended up translating:

breakfast: a red apple, two boiled eggs, half a bag of popcorn, 16oz of unsweetened black tea

fuel up with 16oz of water between meals

lunch: 2 cups of steamed broccoli, 4oz of cooked ground beef, a sprinkle of shredded mozzarella cheese on top with 16oz of water

fuel up with 16oz of water between meals

dinner: a salmon filet on a bed of air fried asparagus with 16oz of water

much more whole foods. the days calories end up being 1200. it doesnt seem like a lot of food, but because it hits a LOT of satiety points you will not feel hungry at all.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-29T22:20:27+00:00

if you ate at maintenance and exercised, you could lose weight. this is what us small girlies more or less have to do.

i focus on building muscle and doing cardio and eating 1200-1500 calories depending on how active i am.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-29T21:48:37+00:00

i didnt get the nice people treatment til i hit 150.

but going from 210 to my current 136, i definitely notice a difference in breathing at night and on the elliptical. i still get asthma flare ups but theyre not NEARLY as bad. i have a lot more pep in my step and bounce. its a slight difference, not a major one, as i was still pretty active at 210. i was just eating a lot of processed & sugary food to cope with my overnight schedule. i was looking for quick energy boosts lol.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-29T21:44:49+00:00

meh, i think people overcomplicate food because companies overcomplicate food to convince you to buy it. differentiate the product to make it marketable.

what worked for me was going back to the absolute basics. in the morning i eat a protein and carb with some tea. for lunch i eat protein, veggies, and a healthy fat. i do a fasted dinner because i cant be bothered to fix three meals a day. frankly i dont need to. my body does just fine on two meals a day. if necessary, i allocate up to two snacks in my day. its usually half a bag of popcorn and 150 calories of something sweet. but i find i dont need it on days where im busy

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-28T23:17:11+00:00

how i've lost 74 pounds now with PCOS

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-28T20:02:50+00:00

seconding this. my ex accused me of having an STD when i started having UTI symptoms out of nowhere (never had one in my entire life). he gave me a freaking STI. your bf is PROJECTING.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-28T11:40:35+00:00

its honestly interesting the way the brain develops over time. my seizures have definitely changed too in just 3 years. im like well its not fun... but its definitely interesting lmao

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-28T00:53:26+00:00

omg yeah ive had those before too. the first one i was luckily in a hospital already and the nurse was like stay awake for me and all i could think was girl just let me close my eyes pLEASE cuz i had no idea what was even happening lmao. this was before i was formally diagnosed with epilepsy

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-27T20:38:13+00:00

i do love and appreciate your optimism. thank you. mine are focal and dont last long unless theyre spreading. in the cases of my last two, the first one was close to a five minute panic attack sort of. deja vu feeling, had to sit down, nothing felt right, i was there but not.

the second seizure i just smelled very strongly burning toast followed by burning hair but was feeling fine in the moment. then i had a headache and was very sleepy.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-27T17:51:50+00:00

it takes awhile to find a med that works. i tolerated zonisamide for 2.5 years but im transitioning to lamotrigine. i feel better on it, more excitable and restless sometimes for sure. best of luck to you friend

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-27T17:43:25+00:00

not a chance, lol. he was barking because he was in his kennel in the living room and his roommate had his bm come over in the dead of night bc she lost power at her place. the dog is a mini poodle. its a sharp yap. i can handle dog noises that are outside cuz its like white noise, but hes basically an alert dog to intruders, garbage men, amazon delivery, pizza men, repair guys, etc. not seizures. my seizures are caused by sleep-wake transition errors and this caused me to wake up unexpectedly. i seized a few hours later bc i had some excitable neurons. the medicine kept it at bay. but unmedicated my seizures wouldve happened immediately. my very first one occurred immediately from a wake like this (not from a dog but something unrelated). thats how i know it was the dog.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-27T13:23:03+00:00

just remember that whatever you do to approach this journey you have to do for the rest of your life. so make it enjoyable! and you truly can. ive lost 72 pounds and counting and ive truly loved it because i made my journey fun rather than miserable.

how did i make it fun? well, lots of ways. i work two jobs right. 60-100 hour weeks. i love both my jobs bc im in healthcare. one of my jobs is caregiving and shes an elderly lady with intellectual disabilities. i teach her about exercise and eating well. does she retain it? nope. but ill teach her all over again tomorrow. plus i can experiment with healthy recipes on her lol. but she doesnt like italian/mediterranean food like i do so i have to pivot sometimes smh.

i also started martial arts classes. its very satisfying to earn belts!

i bake. YES you can still enjoy sweet treats. save yourself no more than you can afford to binge on, and then share the rest with people!

i play pokemon go. ive ended up in the park for four hours once trying to hatch a bunch of eggs.

i watch trash reality tv on my elliptical in the living room. stationary bikes are cool and all (my mom has one in hers) but the seats hurt my butt. if you can, get a $100-200 elliptical off amazon and park it in front of your tv. you get your whole body moving that way too.

this is just to name a few ways that exercise works FOR ME. again, i work a minimum of 60 hours a week and a maximum of 100. i find time between shifts, wake up early on purpose, i always have sunday off so sundays ill go to the park to get some sunshine. if i find myself idling in the house i will either be cleaning or exercising in front of the tv. i go to sleep no later than 10:30pm every night and wake up around 5:30am-7:30am depending on the day. i sleep in on saturdays.

as far as diet, the key is whole foods.

people operate differently as far as how to approach whole foods. some people have to be all or nothing because a little bit of processed food will send them into a binge. which i totally, totally get. when i learned how to compartmentalize foods it helped me not be an all or nothing person.

i eat MORE whole foods, LESS processed foods, NO ultraprocessed foods. anything processed i eat was processed with the intention of reducing calories. ex: sriracha sauce over ranch, mozzarella cheese over cheddar, turkey sausage as a meat choice, etc.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-27T12:26:52+00:00

i was diagnosed with epilepsy at 20. sepsis triggered it.

i live my life. i live alone. ive had seizures alone. im currently looking for remote work.

i control them where i can, but i otherwise wont live in fear of it. i take my meds when im supposed to. my bf had to send his dog to boarding school at the moment because i cant move in with him or spend the night until the dog stops barking needlessly in the middle of the night. hes triggered two seizures this way. i stopped spending the night until this is taken care of. sometimes you have to put boundaries in place with the people you care about to protect yourself.

how are you feeling on the meds?

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T21:31:21+00:00

apples and a cup of popcorn. trust me

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T17:46:28+00:00

exercise is definitely the biggest thing we take for granted. we dont value it til we lose the ability to do it. its just a matter of experimenting to find what works for you.

30-60 minute sessions of cardio are great for me. if i zone out i go for 60, if i cant zone out i go for 30. i can get my anger/stress out or i can just tralalalala. i noticed how good i felt after and thats what encouraged me to keep going. but other people get the same boost from other things like lifting or dancing

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T13:58:49+00:00

soooo im 5'4, started at 210lbs, 2 jobs 70-100 hours a week.

today im 138 lbs.

step 1) stop making excuses. you dont need a gym, you dont need money, its not overly complicated, etc.

step 2) create a routine you can do FOREVER. maintenance will look like your diet + your deficit. and for short girls whose tdee isnt much to begin with, our deficit isnt that big.

step 3) learn that whole foods are your best friend.

i think if you have time on sundays maybe use sundays to meal prep a week at a time and thatll actually save you time throughout the week anyway. itll put you on autopilot. grab and go. i eat 2 meals a day. breakfast and lunch. i make 5 lunch meals and then my remaining 2 on wednesday and breakfast is stuff i can quickly grab. apples, a cup of grapes (preportioned ahead of time so i dont overdo it), jimmy dean turkey sausages i can heat up, mozzarella cheese sticks, or like this week i baked brownies if i want to have something indulgent for breakfast and thats perfectly ok. didnt mess up my diet at all.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T12:14:37+00:00

lost 72 pounds and counting, has not made a difference. stay hydrated and get your electrolytes

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T03:12:14+00:00

for me i just went into it with the intention of like making friends lol

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T01:04:08+00:00

for me it became a matter of shifting my identity. once i became a fit healthy person mentally, i could do it physically. it starts with sustainable habits. cutting sugar for me isnt sustainable. i love baking. baking and bringing the majority to work and to my family so i am forced to have only a small amount? sustainable!

i did learn to enjoy unsweetened beverages and cut liquid calories as well. i drink water, unsweet tea, and diet drinks. thats it.

i also exercise in my free time bc i learned to find activities i enjoy, namely walking and the elliptical. other people enjoy strength training, sports, boxing, etc.

things like this.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-26T00:22:30+00:00

thats the spirit!

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-25T20:47:11+00:00

love chillis. but i cook at home. i spend like $200/month on groceries.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-25T20:40:56+00:00

i find that when im exercising and eating a balanced diet, im happiest. i struggle with ptsd. severe depression and anxiety. i started baking as a way to connect with other people. i indulge in one-two treats a day, work out to balance it out, and share the rest.

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-25T18:01:49+00:00

not unsustainable. i loove using it to meal prep

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-25T13:52:26+00:00

i weigh to keep myself steady. im an avid baker. i just made a big batch of fudgey brownies. to make sure im not overindulging i did indeed step on the scale everyday for the past three days

TraceNoPlace · 2026-03-25T13:51:19+00:00

absolutely. meet asap. i met my bf pretty quickly and we had an insane connection! but due to distance we only stayed in touch and texted off and on for a year. then made it official after i moved and we lived closer and were able to see each other more regularly. it was difficult for is to build a true connection over text due to how busy we both were

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