I reached my goal and lost 130 pounds!!

lsala187

Hey everyone!

After suffering from morbid obesity for most of my life, I lost 130 pounds so I could look good on stage. I am a 23 year old music artist who finally gained the confidence to play local gigs!

So here's the story:
At 330 pounds and just 22 years old, I started getting lower back pain. The pain was so severe that I skipped school a couple of times to lay in bed. This was my initial wake-up call.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, I was able to take classes virtually. That meant more time to focus on weight loss AND music. For the next few months, I walked outside every day with my dad and ate only when hungry. This is how I lost the first 20 pounds or so.

But then I gained back a couple pounds and knew I couldn’t keep up my method without some assistance. So, I decided to use MyFitnessPal Premium to track calories, and I even connected a FitBit to track my steps. Now I was able to create a calorie deficit and make sure I was getting enough exercise.

After losing 20 more pounds, I was certain I could complete the entire weight loss journey. I brushed up on my live music playing skills, gaining more and more confidence as the weight loss continued.

Summer 2021 came, and I was 10 pounds to my goal weight. That’s when I started to focus on strength training and incline walking on a treadmill.

I played my first open mic after my 23rd birthday and achieved my goal weight shortly thereafter. The music gig went so well that I decided to play every week at different locations around town.

Over the next year, my plan is to keep gaining muscle and losing fat in an effort to look my best after skin removal surgery. In the meantime, I’ll look great performing at local venues and promoting my rock album!

So excited that I got this far and added a few years to my life!

SmithMLD

Congratulations! What an incredible story!

sweetdixie92

That's awesome, and some serious determination!

Interested to hear how your album comes along! I love some good rock music

lsala187

SmithMLD wrote: »

Congratulations! What an incredible story!

Thank you so much! I really hope my story inspires some people

lsala187

sweetdixie92 wrote: »

That's awesome, and some serious determination!

Interested to hear how your album comes along! I love some good rock music

Thank you! This album is in the works now, and for sure I can show you when it’s released:) I have another album out already, but linking it here might break MFP’s spam policy lol

ChoosingToChange

wow what an inspirational story, I'm at the beginning and hope to see the success you have. thank you for sharing your story, it helps me see I can do it to!

graschlauren

You look amazing! What an inspiring story!

i_SWEAT_n_SWEAR

WOW--totally remarkable. Congrats on a major transformation!
(You didn't look like you were 330, you must be tall.)

spider_mark51959

So inspirational

dubonnet480

thats awesome, well done you

LostViking404

Thanks for sharing your story - this kind of dedication and success is the necessary fuel for my own journey.

lsala187

i_SWEAT_n_SWEAR wrote: »

WOW--totally remarkable. Congrats on a major transformation!
(You didn't look like you were 330, you must be tall.)

Thank you!! Haha yes, I’m 6’2”

lcatalan93

wow amazing job! Glad you are feeling better and able to do what you love!

rmorgan37

Wow, such a great story. Focusing on you and what makes you happy is the way to go!

StephanieStC

So happy for you! You look so handsome! This is inspiring and a good reminder to keep working on building muscle and track your foods.

JudyKenova2022

Amazing work and such attention to detail 👏

sandysaia

This is an awesome success story. Please tell me what you eat on a typical day?for example for breakfast lunch and dinner?I weigh 330 right now and I’m 5 11 tall.how many calories did you eat when you started?

DiscusTank5

Thanks for sharing your success. Great work!

Lorepp

Great job!!

lsala187

sandysaia wrote: »

This is an awesome success story. Please tell me what you eat on a typical day?for example for breakfast lunch and dinner?I weigh 330 right now and I’m 5 11 tall.how many calories did you eat when you started?

Hi, thank you! I started eating somewhere around 1400 or 1500 calories I think, plus a lot of walking. It depends on the individual though, so do what works for you! Even though I exercised, I put the setting to “little to no activity” to see results faster. But this probably isn’t recommended lol. I typically eat a big breakfast and like to keep track of my macros (carbs, fats, and protein). I’m building muscle now, so macros are important to me. But I didn’t used to focus on macros, just calories in calories out. Plenty of beans, lentils, fish, turkey, oats, vegetables, fruits, eggs, etc. And even when losing weight, I’d eat sweets, ice cream, etc. I’m no expert, but I would say eat what you want as long as you’re in a calorie deficit

Poobah1972

Amazing Job! And nice looking flex, you look great!