How to lose weight naturally

In the last few months, I have been asked advices by many friends and family on how to lose weight. I am so happy that I could shred lots of weight in a year and I am very close to reaching my weight goal range. I had written a post about ‘body positivity or body shaming‘ a year before and now, I am writing a post to help others on how to lose weight. It has been a beautiful journey with ups and down, totally worth it.

These tips are general ones about making lifestyle changes, but very effective. I am not an expert in nutrition or exercises to recommend something specific, but if you have any questions regarding any tips below, you can ask me on this post and I can share more of my personal experiences.

1. Good diet

Diet is very important and plays a big role in the journey of losing weight. You should be mindful of what you eat and cooking at home as much as possible is the best way. When I lived in Los Angeles, I hardly cooked for years. I do not enjoy cooking. I was eating almost every meal outside and one of my funniest experiences was ordering McDonalds at 3 am. I ordered the food, but was so ashamed to receive it from the Uber Eats delivery guy. Now, I have a completely different lifestyle. I still do not enjoy cooking, but I live with someone who enjoys cooking. So, I eat more homemade foods and I think it helped me lose weight. We discuss about what ingredients we are adding in the food, what are the health benefits of each ingredient, what we enjoy and which vegetables are growing this season. It’s fun discussing about foods and learning about them.

2. Be active 

Just do some 30 minutes activity at least 3-5 days per week. It doesn’t have to be certain exercise or cardio. Start with what you enjoy and go with the flow. I love being active for many reasons. I have shared one part of the story in ‘Motivation on #bodylove‘ post. I have always been an active person. I enjoy working out. I love working for my curves, my stamina, my body, and living the lifestyle I dream of. I, personally, change my exercises every 2 – 3 months based on what my body is getting comfortable with and try new exercises. The main point is to make sure you move your body. Dance, jump, do some TikToks move..anything that gets your heart rates up and muscles moving.

3. Good amount of sleep

Sleeping is so important. You should try to get good amount of sleep every day. We all need rest to be physically able to implement the two tips above (good diet and be active) in our daily life. If you sleep enough, your body is rested and you have the energy to be active, you have the energy to cook and your mind can focus on what you are eating. I had a crazy life before. Luckily, I was younger back then and my body and my mind could take it all. Imagine working until midnight and sometimes even longer, being constantly available for your work and drinking coffee like water. I hardly had a good amount of sleep. However, I have no regrets as I enjoyed those experiences so much with some of my favorite people (we all were awake together) but now sleep is very important to me. If I am not sleeping enough at night, I make sure to take a power nap for an hour during the afternoon, especially after lunch. I listen more to my body and do not challenge it just by sipping coffee after coffee.

4. A friend to motivate you

Any journey, including losing weight is fun with a friend. Get a friend who wants to start the similar journey as you. Share your goals, ideas of what is working, support each other and cheer for every small achievement. My biggest supporter and cheerleader is my partner. He not only motivated me, but also encouraged me every second. It’s amazing. One friend is more than enough to pull each other up and to continue the weight loss journey. Luckily, I was blessed to have many. 2 of my close girlfriends, my family and my partner, they cheered me for each kilo I lost. I could share new things I was trying and update them about the changes I was noticing. It’s amazing to be surrounded by people who thinks the best for you. Try to start and continue this journey with a friend. It’s very helpful and also after some years, you can chat about this experience with each other while drinking coffee in a beautiful cafe.

I am a big cheerleader of #bodypositivity. I lost weight for some personal reasons. I have always expressed body love for all types since forever. If you follow me on Instagram (@ang_pemay), you know how much I encourage body positivity. It’s an individual choice if someone wants to gain or lose or maintain weight. This post is to help people who want to lose weight naturally through lifestyle changes. As I always say, sharing your experiences and lifting others to achieve their goal is important. Hopefully, this post helps you in some ways.