10 Ways She Found Her Happy Weight After 20 Years of Dieting
At her lowest point, Linda Sun was trapped in an endless cycle of dieting, over-exercising, and self-criticism – a struggle many of us know too well. Today, with 1.3M YouTube subscribers watching her journey, she's found what she calls her "happy weight" – a place of peace with both her body and food. Her transformation offers a blueprint for anyone caught in the exhausting cycle of dieting and self-doubt.
She Started With An Impossible Challenge
"I made the impulsive, reckless, and life-changing decision to sign up for a half marathon with zero training," Linda reveals in her post. What began as a challenge in Singapore's humid climate became a turning point. "Running changes your brain because once you run a distance you never thought you could, you actually start believing in yourself," she explains. "I'm like, if I can do 20 kilometers, I can do 30 or 40 or a hundred. I can do really hard things."
She Acknowledged The Battle Was Real
For nearly two decades, Linda struggled with disordered eating patterns and body image issues. "I've spent almost 20 years ignoring hunger cues and dieting and over-exercising and undereating and binge eating and going from one obsession to another," she shares. "I had accepted that as my life that I would forever be in this battle. My body versus me – when it needed rest, I would move; when it was hungry, I didn't eat."
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She Learned About Her Body's Natural Wisdom
Linda discovered the science behind body weight regulation. "The set point theory states that our bodies have a natural body weight range where they function and feel their best," she explains. Instead of fighting against her body's intelligence, she learned to trust it. "Your body will encourage you to eat more or less food to try to keep your body within that range."
She Looked Beyond The Scale
"Healing my relationship with my body came from discovering what I valued beyond my body," Linda reflects. The journey wasn't just about food or exercise – it was about identity. "I didn't know anything about myself or what life I wanted to live because my body and food and exercise had been my entire life for as long as I could remember."
She Embraced The Learning Process
"To get to my happy weight, it took so much trial and error and experimenting and making the same mistakes," Linda admits. "It took years of not properly eating lunch to know that my body feels so much better and my hunger levels are so much more stable when I do." She emphasizes that progress isn't linear: "I had to go from undereating to overeating to find middle eating."
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She Redefined Her Definition of Health
Linda's understanding of health underwent a complete transformation. "If it's miserable to maintain a body or weight, then it's not your healthy body or weight," she emphasizes. "If you can only have a certain body size by obsessively controlling your food and maintaining a rigid exercise routine or a body where you feel deprived and anxious around food, it's not the body for you."
She Designed Her Ideal Life First
"Instead of thinking what body will make me happy, I started asking myself what kind of a life makes me happiest," Linda shares. She envisioned "a life where I can spontaneously go out for dinner without stressing about fitting it into my daily calories or macros, where I say yes to ice cream without worrying about how my body might change."
She Faced The Truth About Weight Loss
"A smaller body will not fix you," Linda states firmly. "All your problems don't magically disappear. You're not more confident. You don't suddenly begin speaking kinder to yourself." She emphasizes that "self-worth is an inside job. It requires work and change from the inside, unlearning the lies diet culture has made you believe."
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She Created New Body Goals
Linda's approach to body goals transformed completely. "My body goals have become rooted in compassion, respect, and health," she explains. "The goals I have for my body are to eat enough, to get plenty of rest, to avoid body checking, to prioritize its comfort by wearing clothes that actually fit my body." Her focus shifted to sustainable practices that enhance quality of life rather than aesthetic goals.
She Embraced Her Whole Self
"You are your kindness and your favorite things and your funny stories and your bold opinions," Linda declares. Her new relationship with her body is beautifully summarized in her closing thoughts: "I wake up excited to move. I can run more kilometers than my mind can even make sense of. I have the energy to make friendships and have deep, meaningful conversations. I'm not afraid of food, feeling stuffed, or gaining weight. I laugh big, and my heart and my mind are at peace." And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 15 Quick Ways to Lose Body Fat Percentage in a Week.
