50 lbs down....with pics

jxchambe · January 2014

2nd attempt to post....hopefully the pictures worked this time.

How I got to the weight I started at:
When my wife got pregnant in April 2011, I gain 40 pounds within that 9 months. I went from 200lbs to 240(my heaviest!). Ironically my wife actually weighed less after she gave birth than before she got pregnant. I however, packed on enough weight for the both of us. I tried dieting after the birth of my daughter but never got below 228. Unfortunately, I didn't stick with it and gained it all back.

The reason for the change:

My children:
One of the reasons I decided to lose weight was so I could be a better influence on my kids when they get to the age of awareness for weight. It would be hard to convince them to make better choices and stay fit if I were overweight. Also I wanted to have the energy to run around with them and play without tiring out easy.

Myself:
I knew I had to make a change when within the last few months my self esteem plummeted! I literally began to avoid looking at myself in the mirror. If I had my shirt off and had to go into the bathroom to brush my teeth or shower I would keep the light off and my head down so I wouldn't have to see myself. That was the main thing that bothered me about being so big (along with the other things that come with being over weight). Even the clothes I thought looked good on me considering my weight, were no longer looking good. That is when I knew that it was out of control.

These were all taken around the same time (December 2012).

The rewards:
I started in January 2013 and have so far lost 50 LBS and went from a size 40 jeans and can now fit into a 34 or 32 depending on the brand.

The pic with my daughter was about a week before my son was born. The pic with my son was taken in NICU on March 12, 2013.

Here are my recent pictures

That is my story. Thanks for reading. My goal weight is now 170 LBS.