Does anybody here lose fat by doing more work?

[GeneralSerpant]

I lost around 20+ pounds in one particular stint with no regard for diet except for protein quotas. Needless to say, the amount of work needed to do that is somewhat drastic, but at the same time I can say that I literally outran a bad diet. As far as a sustainable workout pattern, despite it being excessive, is something I've adhered to for around 2 years +/-. I've read from people on forums that described similar workout etiquette who had statedly been doing it around what I'm coming to.

All that being said, does anyone here have any stories about doing more work, or how you think it's supposed to be done?