OK this is kinda personal but I'm reflecting on my fitness journey. I'm finally at the lowest weight I've been at in about 7 years. In 2013 I was a weak 143lb- that's how long it's been.
So I am a man, and I am about 5'7, and I've got a pretty small frame, and I've always *thought* I've had a fast metabolism. (Truthfully, I ate a lot of junk food and was at a "healthy" weight even though I think I was pretty out of shape.) Anyway, I started off around 143lb and my timeline has been something like this:
2014: Lifting and running, made a consistent habit and hovered around 155lb, but was kinda chubby
2015: Cut down to around 147lb with Insanity, and ended up feeling very lean and cardio fit. Played around with more lifting and running after that and worked back up to around 155lb.
2016: After a bout of Insanity and P90x, and lifting and a lot of running, managed to get around a fit 153lb. Clothes fit great, really was a nice summer.
2017: Bulked up quite a bit, and got a nice girlfriend and everything. I lifted a lot and got to around 175lb.
2018: I kept lifting and bulking, getting to around 185lb. I was stronger than I'd ever been at this point. But honestly, 185lb was fat on me, and I ended up looking like a linebacker and just missing that lithe feeling of being light. This was honestly a low point for me in life. Broke up with my gf. In two years, I went from looking 23 to about 32. In actuality I was only 27. I decided I didn't like this new version of myself and started to diet back down.
2019: I managed to diet all the way back down to around 152lb. I used Insanity for a while, and then keto with lifting. I honestly looked pretty terrible throughout most of this process. I think as we lose weight, fat gets all squishy and will make you look proportionally worse until you start maintaining weight again. After hitting 152lb I bulked up again (accidentally)to 166lb after switching off. Then I cut down again to around 158lb.
2020: Since COVID hit, I have been cutting with running and Insanity. Get this--I am now down to 143lb. I look about 20 years old tops (I'm 29 this year). I'm feeling leaner than ever. And you know what? I'm going to keep going with the cutting. My goal is a high-schoolers cross-country runner physique. I've come to realize I'm a small framed dude, and the American message that dudes need to bulk and get big, beefy, and Thor-like no longer appeals to me. I know THICC women want an even bigger dude, so this might hurt my chances in certain ways, but screw it. I'm loving my body now and how youthful I feel.
TL;DR: "Eat and lift" is not necessarily good advice. You have to do what's best for your body. In my case, I don't carry weight well, and I have a small frame, so a "light" weight goal is perfectly fine.