Samantha
25 years old
From Switzerland
1. What do you do? What do you mainly deal with in life?
I graduated recently. In March of this year I obtained a bachelor in “business law”. Now, I work in a bank. I am a client advisor.
2. Can you tell us about your weight loss journey in detail?
In order to explain my weight loss I must first explain why I took it, also because, even though I have never been “thin”, I have never been overweight before. I had events in my life that have caused me a lot of stress and a lot of sadness and I am a person who finds comfort in the food. It is from that moment that I began to gain weight, again and again. I saw my body change and it seemed to me that I could do nothing to stop myself. It seemed to me that, apart from an intervention, there was no way to be able to “go back”. One day I talked to my boyfriend’s mom who explained to me how she had lost 30kg. counting calories and using the “fasting” method. He explained to me that she was starting to eat at lunchtime, around noon and stopped around 8pm; all the rest of the time she didn’t eat, he only drank water. I don’t know why but this method intrigued me, and I started reading many articles on the internet about it. I also bought a book, to understand exactly what could bring me the fact of not eating during 16 hours. And I found so many positive things, that I launched myself. I started eating only during the 8 hours a day and, the rest of the time, only water and hot tea. I immediately felt better, less heavy especially after lunch. I began to appreciate food much more … and I also started counting calories through the “Lifesum” application; I had no idea how much I had to eat, but I realized that I ate too much and in a way that wasn’t healthy. In short, I completely changed the way I fed … and only with these small changes, I lost 50 kg!
3. Having lost so many kilograms is a sign of a strong willpower. Can you get this energy in everything you do?
Unfortunately not always! For example, I’m not sporty. For now I haven’t been able to find a discipline that is enough for me. I practice with my dog the “dogcross”, which is simply the fact of going to run attached to the dog; in a few words we are going to run together and I like it a lot! I would like to start going to the gym soon. Fortunately, in many things I can be very disciplined and motivated, like for studies and for work! And also for Instagram ahaha …
4. What advice do you want to give to those who want to start a diet?
My first advised is not to take it as a diet, but as a “food adaptation”. It seems to me that when we talk about diet, we see it with too much rigidity, as if it had a beginning and an end. Unfortunately, to lose weight, habits must be changed “forever”. The changes I have made in my diet I want to keep them, because they make me feel good and fit! The second piece of advice is: DO NOT HAVE A HURRY! I understand that when you start, you want to see so many changes quickly, but you have to understand that the body needs time. I am very lucky because I have a good metabolism and have lost weight very quickly, almost too much.
5. You are now in great shape. Has this increased your self-esteem? Did you first accept yourself for how you were?
Sure! When I weighed 50 kilos more, I never felt “myself”. For me that body could not be my definitive body. Having lost all this weight allowed me to feel myself again. I was and I still am the same person with the people who are closest to me, but with others I never felt comfortable enough to be fully myself. Now, I feel more free to be what I am, because I am no longer afraid of what people can think of me, I am no longer afraid that people look at me. I could not accept myself as I was before, because as I explained, that body would not allow me to be free to be the “real Samantha”.
6. Now that the goal is achieved, how do you keep yourself in shape and not fall back into temptation?
To tell you the truth, I didn’t change my diet a lot compared to how I ate during the whole weight loss phase. It wasn’t a diet, I have new eating habits that I don’t want to lose. It is not easy to stabilize the weight, I continue to weigh myself quite often, I try to be as careful as possible about how I feed myself and when it is not possible to pay attention, I allow myself a “break” and some sin of gluttony, which does it take no?
7. How do you imagine yourself in 20 years?
In 20 years I will be 45 years old (my god …), I hope to be always surrounded by my big family, I also hope to be married and have some children … with lots of animals! Hihi I hope I will find a job that will allow me to feel fulfilled.
8. When was the last time you thought “Life is wonderful”?
I think of it every day. I’m in good health, my family too, and that’s the only thing that really matters to make me happy. I think that life is an immense gift, that we should not spoil it nor lose a moment of it!
9. The 3 favorite songs?
One of the Italian songs that always gives me the chills is the song “Mi fido di te” by Jovanotti.
Later, I really like the American singer “Sia”, I’m crazy about her songs, especially “She Wolf” and “Chandelier”.
Finally, my favorite song of the 2019 state was “Ostia Lido” by J-AX!
10. What do you think of the place where you live? Have you ever thought about changing and moving elsewhere?
I am very happy and grateful to live in Switzerland. For me, there is no better place to grow. I think I am a very homely person, even when I’m traveling abroad, I miss my home here in Switzerland, my comfort here is worth gold to me. I have sometimes thought that it would be a wonderful experience to spend some time elsewhere, but I think my family here would miss me so much that I could not be happy without them by my side. I need the closeness of mine, for this reason I think I will never go abroad to live. The only place apart from Switzerland where I feel at home is Sicily, because a large part of my family still lives there and a part of my heart is Sicilian!
11. Dream in the drawer?
I have no extraordinary dreams. I just wish I had my little family one day, with a few children and a person by my side who sincerely love me for who I am.
12. Do you love traveling? The most beautiful place ever seen?
Even though I’m a housewife, I really like traveling! 2 years ago I went to Santorini and I think I have never seen such a beautiful place! I also went to St. Petersburg and fell in love with this city! A true fairy tale! A marvel, I was amazed by the beauty of that place. However, in my eyes, there is no more extraordinary place than Sicily. In detail the long sea of Cefalù (home is always home)!
13. Who helped you the most in your journey? Has anyone been hindering you?
People that helped me a lot and felt supported are my parents, my mom, my dad and even my boyfriend! My biggest obstacle is simply me. I’m not always 100% positive, and in those moments I can be a real obstacle for myself. Fortunately it doesn’t happen every day, I’m pretty positive, I love to think that I’m my best friend!
14. What do you think of today’s aesthetic models?
It seems to me that things are changing in comparison to a few years ago. People got tired of seeing models that were photoshoped from head to toe. It seems to me that there is more attention to be seen more in a natural way. Not just people who are too thin, but people with real bodies, with real body shapes! Even on Instagram, you can see how much people now want to appear with less artifice. And I think even the models tend to search less for the perfection of the body, as it was maybe 10 years ago.
15. The most exciting experience of your life?
I am a girl who gets so excited, then I couldn’t just say an experience, but I think the day I got over 50 kg was a day to remember forever; I was very excited to have succeeded in all this on my own .. However, I get excited almost every day, a little for everything ahaha.
16. Has your weight loss affected your love life in any way?
I would say no. I met my current boyfriend when I was physically as before. He never asked me to lose weight. I did everything by my own will. He says he loved me first and that he loves me the same way now. For him it’s nice to see the girl who loves being happy in his body, and I think that’s what matters to him. But nothing has changed between us!
17. What do you think of Italy?
Italy for me is the country of the heart. My parents are both Sicilians. My mom was born in Switzerland, because my grandparents came to work here many years ago and they never left again and my dad came here at age 21 to be with my mom; he also lived in Sicily. Therefore, for me Sicily is my second home. They are my origins and I carry them in the depths of my heart. I also loved Venice, where I went in May this year. I think it’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen in the world, a marvel. I hope to visit Rome next year.
18. Are you Optimist or Pessimist?
It depends… ahaha. I try to be as optimistic as possible, but I am a very anxious person and sometimes my most pessimistic side comes out. I think that with the passing of the years I learn to be more optimistic, learn that life goes the way it should go and that things shouldn’t be taken too seriously. I think that, even if sometimes things go wrong, it is always for a precise reason and that after bad weather, good weather always comes!
19. If you could talk for an hour with a person (anyone, alive or dead) who would you choose?
I can’t choose one person (I swear I’ve thought about it a lot!), But if I had that chance, I’d like to talk to some of my relatives, who have now left for heaven, and I haven’t had time to say goodbye; I would like to tell them all how much I love them.
20. What makes you more angry?
People who treat animals badly make me very angry. For example, when I see people leave the dogs in the car when it’s hot, I get crazy! For me, animals deserve our respect. We are the ones who must protect them, not mistreat them. For me it is very important. The same thing with humans in general: it is important to treat everyone with respect and kindness.
21. If you look closely at yourself in the mirror today, who do you see?
A woman who has been quite sad in the past, but who learns everyday to make sure and live with her body, which tries to appreciate every moment, every day, in the most positive way possible. I see a strong woman, with a lot of will. I also see a woman who wants more than anything to preserve her soul as a child haha.
22. What was the most difficult moment of your life?
A few years ago, we lost my mother’s cousin, who suffered from leukemia. It was a very bad moment in my life, very sad … even now. My family is all that matters to me in this world. After such a tragedy, you see things in a different way, I think this very difficult moment of my life has changed me forever.
23. How would you like others to see you?
I would like to be seen as a person who is attentive to others, a person who takes care of others. A kind person, but who knows how to be strong and courageous when it must be. Every day I try to be the best version of myself, even for others. I would say that I am very attentive to the feelings of others and I always try to put people at ease.
24. Do you think you are a lucky person?
I think that we are the creators of our lucky, if we can say haha! I think I’m lucky, but I also think I’ve worked a lot, in a general way and on myself, to get this luck. I like to think that I have some little angel that protects me from up there.
25.Your perfect day?
Saturday! Because I don’t go to work and it’s the day of the week that I dedicate to my boyfriend and my dog! We spend the day together, sometimes with other members of our families and for me it is beautiful.
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credits: a special thank for the help to graphic designers beatrice bressi and Enrico Usberti 
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