How to Lose Weight Post-Pandemic, When Nothing Seems to Work—so you can go back to the old self, live your life to the fullest, fit in your old (or new), and feel normal again (or better!)?
I can’t stop daydreaming about finally traveling to some exotic destination (I think I’ve watched all the episodes of Caribbean Living and the Mediterranean Living TRICE by now), taking a walk on a tropical beach (or even sun-bathing on a bench in a park near to the place where I live, but without a mask on my face), wearing my favorite pre-pandemic shorts.
Only will they still fit?
Let’s face it, I started putting on weight even before the Covid-19 lockdowns began, but with all gyms and closed for over a year, tennis courts under lockdown, and a few months of gloomy winter weather behind me that are not conducive to long walks and bike-rides—those extra pounds keep piling around my waist and tights.
YIKES!
Now I have a serious spare tire around my waist. (It’s more like a bike tire, fortunately, not a car or van tire, but still). It’s SUPER ANNOYING. As I was going through my closet, pulling out clothes for the warmer weather, and trying them on—I found that most of them have SHRUNK! LOL. Especially around my waist and hips. Muffin top, belly fat, spare tire, visceral fat—whatever you call it—I DON’T WANT IT!
So, what do I do? Do I go to the mall (as soon as they re-open) or shop online (I’m so not into buying clothes online without trying them on, if I must do clothes shopping, I much prefer to do it in physical stores)? Or do I try to lose the flab?
Only, I’ve tried some different strategies—exercising (a little), eating less, skipping meals, limiting carbs, eating more fats and protein (all vegan, of course), but without any noticeable results.
Can you relate?
You’ve tried everything, including the latest fad diets: low-carb, high-carb, low-fat, high-fat, keto, paleo, gluten-free, Mediterranean, exercising, calorie counting, fasting, intuitive eating, and whatnot. But whatever weight you managed to lose in the process, you gained it right back, and you’re back to where you started (or worse).
What the heck?
What to do when nothing seems to be working?!
And why am I even in this situation?
I’m vegan. I am eating lots of whole or minimally processed plant foods.
Aren’t these supposed to be the healthiest and best for ideal weight?
Turns out—not exactly.
I had to do some digging and soul searching and have a couple of REALLY HONEST conversations with myself (which wasn’t easy).
But, after all that—I have my answers, and I’m on my way to regaining my old self, already losing pounds and inches—BOOHOO!
The good news, despite not being great for my waistline, I haven’t gotten sick, so I believe my current eating habits kept my immune defenses are strong.
But, just as my weight needs some resetting, so does my health, probably.
So, here I am.
Starting again the old-and-tested Green Smoothie Reset. (With some juices and blended soups/salads thrown into the mix J)
My goal—to fit in my old clothes again, get my energy back, and feel great, which means I need to lose about 15-20 pounds and keep them off FOREVER.
You may not think of it as a very ambitious goal. But for me it is.
And super frustrating.
You see, I was always one of those skinny people who never thought of how much I had to eat, because whatever weight I put on, I was always able to lose it quickly without effort. By eating less, moving more, and just doing whatever was necessary.
It was literally enough for me to think—okay, I need to lose 10 pounds or whatever—and before I knew it, the weight was gone and I could fit in my old clothes again. No wonder I never understood what the big deal about weight loss is about—if you want to lose your belly fat, just eat more raw veggies, cut your portions in half and get active. I literally thought it was literally that simple.
(Please, don’t hate me.)
Now I know how hard it can be.
It may be a result of my getting older, being less active due to pandemic and constant lockdowns (where I am right now, it’s really bad), binging on local news, HBO and Netflix with the refrigerator and my kitchen being a few steps away from the couch.
And—it gets worse. Recently, a new and awesome bakery opened downstairs, with a selection of artisan breads and cakes that’s just insane and oh-so-tempting.
I swear, if you’d ever tried them, you’d understand that they’re IRRESISTIBLE. And PURE DEVIL.
Caloric BOMBS full of pure sugar. And I’ve been eating them daily—as a consolation to the misery of being stuck in my apartment, while my husband and I both work from home and our teenage son is stuck in his room doing online-learning.
Trying to write and create is doable; I can’t complain. I can’t imagine what people working in medical professions are going though. I admire them every day.
I haven’t been vaccinated yet, but it’s getting close. What matters to me more is that my mom (who is 78) is already safe from the virus.
But let’s not kid ourselves. This virus—is not the only thing that we should be concerned about. Even if we vaccinate everyone, there’s no guarantee that another one just as deadly (or more) is around the corner. It’s not even the deadliest pandemic that we have right now.
What about all the people who die from chronic diseases? Diabetes, for example, is a killer. My dad passed away seven years ago due to heart disease caused by diabetes (which is quite common). What about all the people who die each year due to heart disease? Cancers? Diseases caused by poor air quality? Diseases caused by poor food quality and obesity? And the list goes on.
Expecting pills and vaccines always to cure us is naïve.
Hoping doctors will save us is unrealistic.
Doctors and modern medicine definitely have some major super-powers and can do pretty amazing stuff that’s almost god-like, but they can’t save us unless we want to be saved. We must do our part. Take responsibility for our health and well-being of our loved ones.
Do you want to join me?
If yes, sign up HERE for the Appetite Reset Challenge and the Body Reset Formula.
What will be there:
- Intuitive eating—what you need to do before you even think of trying it. (Or you risk binging on your favorite junk foods and gaining more weight!)
- Calorie counting—does it still work? (Spoiler alert: It does! But with this ESSENTIAL modification.)
- Intermittent fasting—does it work? And if not, how to make it work for you?
- The truth about breakfast no one talks about.
- The problems with keto—and more.
And stay tuned for the next episodes of my Body Reset Journey.
Questionnaire:
Which of the following topics you’d be most interested to learn about—check all that apply:
- Weight loss—resetting your metabolism and appetite and finally losing body fat—including that belly flab (and keeping it off forever)
- Also, how to lose weight on a plant-based/vegan diet? (You thought it was supposed to be easy. Weren’t you supposed to lose weight just by going plant-based? Yes, usually, but it’s not a given. It may happen that you’ll gain weight while being vegan, and then have trouble getting rid of the excess fat (and it sucks!).
- Eating for health to prevent diseases—strengthening our immune defenses in case another round of viral epidemic comes around.
- Eating for health to cure diseases—getting rid of lifestyle-related diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, and other.
- Transitioning to a vegan diet—how to do it right so you’re able to stick to it for the rest of your life.
- Green smoothie and juicing recipes.
- Plant-based/vegan recipes.
- Other: ________________________________________________________
Sign up to get the updates and be notified when this thing launches!