What you've all come here for. Before/After pics
Quick Stats
Starting
Day 1 - September 1, 2011
Weight: 330 lbs/150 kg
Height: 6'0"/183 cm
BMI: 45
Current
Day 2762 - March 20, 2019
Weight: 210 lbs/95 kg
Height: 6'0"/183 cm
BMI: 28.5
Total weight loss - 120 lbs/55 kg
First and foremost, I want to thank each and every one of you for doing your best to improve your health. You have all been a welcome and often necessary source of inspiration. The knowledge that I have gained from your stories has been the guiding path of my lifestyle change.
Part 1
Countdown to Getting Married
September 1, 2011 - May 31, 2012 - 330 lb/150kg - 265 lb/120 kg
My lifestyle change (yep, it's a lifestyle, I'll argue that later) began 8 months before my wedding date. My then-fiance, now-wife and I did what every couple planning to get married does and decided to lose weight. We were one of the lucky few that had access to the resources to put our plan into action in that we lived relatively close to a gym, worked jobs that allowed a routine, and kept each other accountable.
Have a workout routine. Move > Eat
Find what works for you. For me, it's every day. When I first started working out, it meant every day in the gym. If you have the resources (time, location, and money) then I can't recommend this option enough. If you can afford a personal trainer, do it. If you can afford to take classes, do it. Technique and habit are the most important parts of starting out a workout routine. For those that are missing one or more of these resources, I would be happy to point you to what I did in each situation. Otherwise, just get moving. The simple fact of losing weight is that you have to move more than you eat. If you keep putting gas in the car without driving it, it gets heavier.
You can't outrun a bad diet.
So now, after working out like a maniac for 3 months and barely losing any weight, I was ready to give up. But then I read something here that I will hopefully never forget. You cannot outrun a bad diet. A pound is +3500 calories. Running a marathon is -2500 calories. If you eat like crap, which I was, then you will not be losing weight to the best of your ability. This is the most important part of any diet. Write it in a notebook, log it on your phone (MFP, LI, WW, etc. (check if your company offers these for free)), take pictures and pretend you're posting them on social media, I don't care how I log it, just log it. You do you as long as that means you have an accurate count of what you are putting in your mouth every day and reviewing it. If you are hungry enough to eat an apple, then you're actually hungry. But you have to eat an apple.
Part 2
Maintain?
June 1, 2012 - June 30, 2017 - 265 lb/120kg - 265 lb/120 kg
Again, log everything
So, for 5 years I was the exact same weight. What happened in that time? Life happened and I stopped working out as much and being as diligent about logging my food. I fell into thinking that I could mentally log my calories after doing it for a while. My weight had not changed at all, so I must be doing something right. But, after looking at pictures of myself during that period, I went from a "still kinda fat but working on it" to a "just fat" 265. How much you weigh is not everything. So, I went back to entering every bit of food I was putting in my face and working out like I should have all along.
Part 3
Finding a lifestyle routine
July 1, 2017 - Today - 265 lb/120kg - 210 lb/95 kg
Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.
About this time, the love of my life got some bad news. She had been slacking on her diet and gained back the weight she lost before the wedding. This, in turn, had a pretty big effect on her health. She swore that she was going to change, and by golly, she did it. She's down 100 lbs/45kg and I could not be more proud of her. Her change is the biggest driver for me doing the same. If she was going to change herself for the healthier, then I was not going to get in her way. Plus I could stand to lose some weight myself. Could I let her do it alone? Absolutely. Should she get to have all the fun? Absolutely not. Same advise goes for life in general, but that's a different story.
You don't have to be smart, but you can't be stupid. [Shoutout to Radical Personal Finance podcast (Episodes 567 - 571)]
While driving into work one day, listening to podcasts, the above was said and that is when it really clicked for me. I was "dieting" but was being stupid about it. So while you dudes are cool and all, I started to hunt around on other subs for advise and came across /r/mealprepsunday, /r/1200isplenty (mostly for guidance, I hover between 1500 and 1700 calories per day), /r/bodyweightfitness, and /r/intermittentfasting. Between these, I have found a lifestyle routine that works for me. While repeatable, it offers up enough variability that I don't get bored. So, what is this routine?
Monday - Friday
- 5:00 - Workout - Currently on OPM with max pullups between each set + 60 second traditional planche
- 6:30 - Breakfast (handful of granola or banana chips) (200 calories)
- 8:00 - Breakfast II (handful of almonds) (200 calories)
- 12:00 - Lunch (prepped or protein bar if IF (Warrior) day) (150 - 600 calories)
- 3:00 - Snack (whole piece of fruit) (100 calories)
- 6:30 - Dinner (usually the bulk of my day's calories) (700 calories)
- 10:00 - Bed
Saturday - Sunday
- Workout - I don't care when I do, but do it. Usually spend it experimenting with new styles of pushup.
- Food - Usually leftovers in the fridge and following the YDHTBS/BYCBS rule.
Allowances
1 alcoholic drink or 1 dessert per day - Most of the time I save these up for the weekend or don't spend them at all.
Don't let a bad day ruin a good week - same goes for a bad 5 minutes ruining a day
A disturbing piece of information I read when I first started was that the human body will absorb 80 - 95% of the calories ingested, regardless of the number. That being said, do I cheat on occasion? Absolutely. Just last week, we had our quarterly "college day" in which we stay home, get as inebriated as humanly possible, and eat literally whatever we want. My menu for that day consisted of a whole, large pizza, a family bag of flaming hot Cheetos, and 6 ice cream sandwiches and gained 6 pounds in a single day. Most of it was water weight and was gone in a couple days. The rest of it I lost in 2 weeks and was back on my journey. My goal is to 'lose weight', not 'lose weight quickly' so I could afford days like this. They keep me sane and give me something to look forward to when things are getting pretty monotonous.
Getting over the addiction
All said and done, like I said, this is a lifestyle change. I was, and still am, addicted to food. No drug that I have tried (and I've tried a lot) can touch the high that food gives. The enjoyment of different flavors and textures on the palate while also satisfying a basic human need is as close to nirvana as I can get. Anyone that feels the same, I highly recommend reading up on drug addiction. For some, this may seem dramatic, but It is what worked for me. So, while a lot of this is routine at this point, it's a routine that is followed one day at a time. Every decision is an active one. You have to educate yourself against ignorance and then make the right decision for you. The right choice becomes easier to recognize, but taking it doesn't. No one can keep you as accountable as you. Just remember, the easiest calorie to burn is one you don't ingest to begin with.
Prologue
"Reverse" body dysphoria
A common theme I am hearing of people that are working on themselves, physically, is experiencing body dysphoria. Here's the thing, I believe that I was experiencing it, but in reverse to the usual. The way that I look today is how I thought I have always looked. I honestly didn't think I was *that* fat. Yes, I was overweight, but no way was I one of *those* fat people. It was just a few extra pounds and I carried it well, so what if I didn't fit in airline seats? I was getting the large meals because if the restaurant offered it, then it must be ok to order it. They make clothes bigger than the ones that I buy, so I can't be that fat. There are escalators up, so that must mean that it is ok to not take the stairs. I, personally, live in a society that will not tell me that I am fat and will do whatever it can to be accommodating to the complaining masses. Being overweight for so long, everything that was a sign that I was was taken as a normality. Now, the sweating is gone. Being out of breath after a single flight of stairs is gone. The heart palpitations are gone. The constant feeling of crashing from eating too much sugar is gone. The need to go to a special store for clothes is gone. And mostly, the ignorance is gone. Thank you for sticking around to the end and good luck in whatever your journey may be.
TLDFLR: Guy grows up as the fat kid. Figures out he's fat as an adult. Got less fat through diet changes and exercise. Discovers how to bold life advise in the body of his post.
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