How I Gained 20 Pounds, Lost It, and Plan to Lose It Again
Weight loss is never easy. I gained 20 pounds, lost it, and eventually gained it back. However, the weight returned gradually over the course of a year, not within weeks or months, so I wouldn’t consider it a yo-yo diet situation. Now, I’m determined to lose the weight again through conscious eating, calorie control, and regular exercise.
There’s no magical solution for weight loss. No secret sauce. Losing weight takes consistency, discipline, and hard work. If you stay committed, the pounds can come off from your arms, stomach, face, neck, and legs. The transformation may surprise both you and the people around you. More importantly, the journey can help you build confidence and learn to love yourself more.
This is my personal story about gaining and losing 20 pounds — and my plan to do it again.
Accepting Weight Gain After College
Like the title says, I’m much heavier now than I was when I was younger. Some people have told me to accept that my body has changed with age and that my metabolism has slowed down. While that may be true to some extent, I’ve lost the weight before, and I believe I can do it again.
For comparison, I weighed 105 pounds in college, and now I weigh 132 pounds after graduating. My goal weight is 110 pounds, which I believe is realistic and achievable with consistency.
Why I Gained Weight
One major reason I gained weight was because I quit smoking. I’ll write a separate post about my quitting journey and the benefits of stopping smoking because it’s truly life-changing. Although many people worry about gaining weight after quitting cigarettes, smoking damages your skin, health, and overall appearance. Quitting was one of the best decisions I could make for myself, even if the weight gain was difficult.
Another major reason for my weight gain was drinking boba tea almost every day. There’s a boba shop near my house that offers buy-one-get-one-free drinks daily, and I took full advantage of it. I was drinking two boba teas every single day, and the calories and sugar quickly added up.
This is my warning for young women trying to maintain or lose weight: bubble tea can seriously affect your weight loss goals if consumed too often. Having it once or twice a month is perfectly fine, but drinking it regularly can make weight gain happen faster than you realize.
My Weight Loss Plan: Intermittent Fasting and Calorie Deficit
To lose the weight, I’m currently practicing intermittent fasting. If you’re unfamiliar with intermittent fasting, it’s an eating pattern where you fast for a certain number of hours and eat during a specific time window. Many people use intermittent fasting to reduce overeating, control cravings, and improve eating habits.
However, one important thing to understand is this: you will not lose weight unless you are in a calorie deficit. Weight loss happens when you burn more calories than you consume.
Common Intermittent Fasting Schedules
Some of the most popular intermittent fasting methods include:
16/8 fasting — Fast for 16 hours and eat within 8 hours
18/6 fasting — Fast for 18 hours and eat within 6 hours
20/4 fasting — Fast for 20 hours and eat within 4 hours
You can choose whichever schedule works best for your lifestyle, but it’s usually easier to start with a smaller fasting window before progressing.
Why 18/6 Intermittent Fasting Works for Me
Right now, I’m following the 18/6 intermittent fasting method. I’ve only been doing it for about two weeks, and while I’ve cheated once or twice, I know this approach works because I’ve successfully lost weight with it before. In the past, I’ve lost anywhere between 15 to 25 pounds.
One of my biggest struggles lately has been nighttime eating, which is actually new for me. Normally, I don’t get hungry at night, but recently, food just seems to taste better at night. During the day, I can manage my hunger fairly well, but once nighttime hits, all I think about is food.
Intermittent fasting helps me stop late-night snacking by creating clear boundaries around when I should and shouldn’t eat. The fasting schedule also helps curb my hunger over time and keeps me more mindful about my eating habits.
Like my parents always say, weight loss is all about willpower. If you’re struggling to stop snacking or stay on track, try reminding yourself why you started in the first place. You want to lose weight. You want to feel good. You want to look good and feel more confident. Sometimes that means saying no to cravings and finding healthier alternatives that keep you on schedule.
Counting Calories for Faster Weight Loss
In addition to intermittent fasting, I also count calories carefully. Right now, I’m eating between 800 and 1,000 calories a day to create a significant calorie deficit.
I understand this may sound extremely low for many people, and calorie needs vary depending on age, height, activity level, and overall health. My main focus is making sure I eat enough protein to stay fuller longer and reduce cravings throughout the day.
I use the MyFitnessPal app to track my calories, and I honestly think it’s one of the best free calorie-tracking apps available. The app already includes a huge database of foods, which makes logging meals quick and easy. Tracking my calories daily helps me stay accountable and maintain my calorie deficit throughout the day.
I also try not to snack because snacking can quickly push my calories over the limit. I’ve read on Reddit that some people lose weight quickly with intermittent fasting alone by simply cutting processed foods and sugar. In many cases, that naturally lowers their calorie intake.
For me personally, I still need to count calories carefully to stay under 1,200 calories a day if I want to lose weight consistently. If I don’t track my calories, I tend to overeat, and realistically, I can’t completely cut out sugar.
What I Eat in a Day
Here’s an example of what I typically eat in a day while staying around 800–1,000 calories:
Breakfast
Skip breakfast
Lunch
3 fried eggs
Rice
Coffee with milk and 2 teaspoons of sugar
Dinner
3 fried eggs
Rice
Yogurt from a brand called The Yoghurt Shop — an Australian-style yogurt that honestly tastes like heaven
I know what you’re probably thinking — that sounds depressing. Honestly, I don’t mind eating similar foods every day. Sometimes I’ll eat something different, so don’t worry, it’s not always exactly the same. But for the most part, I try to keep my calories under 1,000 per day.
Of course, sometimes I fail. For example, today I ate around 1,300 calories because I had two yogurts instead of one. But honestly, it wasn’t because I was hungry. It was because of cravings.
I’ve realized that a lot of eating is driven by habit, boredom, emotions, or cravings rather than actual hunger. And sometimes, messing up is okay. One higher-calorie day doesn’t ruin your progress. The important thing is getting back on track the next day instead of giving up completely.
My Daily Exercise Routine
To support my weight loss goals, I brisk walk for one hour every day. Walking is one of the easiest and most sustainable forms of exercise, and it helps burn extra calories while improving overall health.
I also try to maintain a healthy sleep schedule. I sleep at least 8 hours a day because proper rest plays a huge role in weight loss, hunger control, and energy levels. It also helps me stay on my intermittent fasting schedule. I let my sleep time take over most of my fasting time to help.
Drinking More Water Helped Me Lose Weight Faster
In the past, when I lost weight quickly, I also drank a lot more water. I know people say this all the time, but drinking water really does help with weight loss. It helped reduce my cravings, kept me full longer, and encouraged me to snack less throughout the day.
At the time, I drank at least 3 litre of water every day. These days, I still drink water, but I find myself drinking tea more often instead.
My Weight Loss Progress So Far
My goal is to lose 20 pounds in 3 months through intermittent fasting, calorie counting, portion control, and daily exercise. While weight loss takes time and consistency, I believe creating healthy habits will help me reach my goal in a sustainable way. What I need is structure—consistent meals, enough sleep, and stability. What I want is instant results, cravings satisfied, and comfort food at night. Most of the struggle isn’t knowledge, it’s choosing between the two.
So far, I’ve already lost 4 pounds, and I’m excited to continue this journey.
I’ll keep you posted on my progress.
See you soon,
Haiena
