From 363.4 to 197.7 lbs: My One-Meal-a-Day Success Story

arguablysamson

tammylynn31105 wrote: »

You look wonderful.... This was my normal way of eating until life led me to 3 meals a day and some. I have to congratulate you on your weight loss. You look amazing....... I have been trying everything out there with no success due to I have consumed myself into thinking I have to eat 3x a day. As of yesterday I just went back to OMAD and what I have realized is I'm not as hungry as I thought I was. Just out of curiosity, how long did it take you to lose your weight?

Way to switch back! We OMADers are glad to have you on our side again! ;-)

It took me 10 months and about 27 days, as I recall.

angela233Z

wow - this is an amazing story - thank you so much for sharing

OMADTammy

Awesome..............

Local_Atlantis

I think that you have achieved amazing results! Well done.
I don’t agree with your method, not because I am an “armchair dietician” but because I would be simply miserable if I only ate one meal a day! I am eating more now than I ever have!! I’m just eating the right things, with an occasional treat (calories permitting!). My weight is coming off slowly, but I think it is more sustainable.

That being said, your method clearly worked for you, and I admire the will power that it must have taken for you to stick with it. Nobody can take that away from you. Well done, Sir!

williamwj2014

Amazing transformation! Glad you are healthier and able to live life fuller now.

Bchlvr64

You are such an inspiration. This makes so much sense to me. I have often thought about eating in such a way but never did because I thought "it was the wrong way". Sounds silly I know. We sound very similar in the way we are with food and I love your no nosense approach to basically grow up, stop making excuses , and do what needs done. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and I am going to do this. I am excited to do it. While everyone is stuffing their face I will have a little smile going on inside that only I will know why. I have lost 94 lbs at this point. I need to lose another 80. I can really see myself getting there using this method. Thank you and you look great.

arguablysamson

tammylynn31105 wrote: »

You look wonderful.... This was my normal way of eating until life led me to 3 meals a day and some. I have to congratulate you on your weight loss. You look amazing....... I have been trying everything out there with no success due to I have consumed myself into thinking I have to eat 3x a day. As of yesterday I just went back to OMAD and what I have realized is I'm not as hungry as I thought I was. Just out of curiosity, how long did it take you to lose your weight?

Thanks. And sorry for the very late reply. Took me over 10 months to drop the lbs. After that has been really more of a toning, loose-skin-settling process, which hasn't proven too troublesome. I continue to add muscle, run, and advance my health and my life as I hover in the low to mid-190s.

keelz2010

You look great, well done!

krawhitham

CONGRATULATIONS!!

There is NOTHING WRONG with one meal a day or fasting! I only eat two meals a day, and I never eat breakfast. I'm WAY healthier and I sleep better and everything. Don't let anyone tell you what works for YOU. Only you know this

christmaseve70

God bless ya! I personally couldnt do one meal a day but to each his/her own! You look fantastic! Truly are an inspiration!!!!

aarar

OP, I know this is an old thread but I would love to know how you've been doing over the past year since you started maintaining. I think everyone can agree that maintaining over the long term is as hard, if not harder, than the weight loss phase so I'm genuinely curious how OMAD has been working for you.

arguablysamson

aarar wrote: »

OP, I know this is an old thread but I would love to know how you've been doing over the past year since you started maintaining. I think everyone can agree that maintaining over the long term is as hard, if not harder, than the weight loss phase so I'm genuinely curious how OMAD has been working for you.

Hi to all,

It's me. Wanted to revive this old thread anyway to update pics, so below is a quick pic of me just the other day (at 195.8 lbs). I know that many have worried that I would gain the weight back (I laugh at the thought). But I can assure all who may be concerned on that front that such is never, ever going to happen.

Maintenance is actually quite fun and not hard at all--except for the confusing and scary transition of going into it. In fact, for a while, I had the problem of trying to maintain weight since, once you've been losing for so, so long, that is all your body wants to keep doing. But I have been putting on lean muscle and continue to see a reduction in loose skin.

All should learn and remember that once you've been really big and have reclaimed your life in weight-loss, it's not like losing 25 or 15 lbs to just firm up for the summer. That's where so many people get it wrong. The loss process actually changes you and you have to then restructure your thinking to learn not to be afraid of eating more.

Once you learn to trust that your body will maintain just by having a system in place whereby you won't go crazy again with food - and once you realize that you WON'T start regaining weight by upping the calories like social myth and all the diet sites say - you can again start enjoying food and not have to live to control yourself like you do when losing. It takes years of careless living to allow weight to get out of control, and it takes about the same amount of time to put it back on.

I have several threads in the forums on OMAD maintenance. Basically, by cycling on and off with heavier and lighter eating days (some on OMAD and a few not), you get your calorie needs and can keep in control.

For those who have asked, yes, I still eat OMAD. I will till the day I die.

:-)


Me, in the crosshairs of a snapshot, getting chased by some six-year-olds around the house!

mamma_adventure

Fantastic work

Brenda7037

You look great!

janjandangin

So thankful for your inspiring story, I stumbled upon this thread as I was looking for vindication that what I have been doing the past 3 weeks is not a crazy idea of eating once a day. for 15 years I have been trying really really hard to lose weight. My dad even bought me a book to inspire me it was I about eating only fruits and all and though I lost some weight but God I felt so weak and the hunger pangs was hell. I also tried countless diet pills and expensive diet programs with the shakes and the powders and all but all gone to waste because as soon as it was over I was back to my eating habits again. Then last month I was so sick I had a series of bouts with skin infection and depression that I decided to make serious change on my health. I was doing the one day meal as a last resort to change my eating habits and I never felt better and seeing results in the mirror. I haven't weight myself yet as the bathroom scale that we have only reaches up to 120 kilos lol. But anyways, I stumbled upon this thread looking for people who are doing the same thing and this led me your story and OMAD. Your story is so inspiring that I am even sharing it with my family and is encouraging them to do this as well. So far Ive been doing this for almost a month now and I really love how I am feeling. The energy I have throughout the day is wonderful though I still feel a bit hungry here and there but it's not like being hungry and weak. On my first week when I got hungry I would munch on a couple of nuts but now I can go on throughout the day with just water and only a meal at night. My cravings also is slowly disappearing specially on sweets. I think this has been the best thing that happened to me to be able to take control of my health and finally lose weight. Thank you so much for sharing your journey you don't know how many lives you have touched and changed. I can't wait to post my pics soon.

arguablysamson

janjandangin wrote: »

So thankful for your inspiring story, I stumbled upon this thread as I was looking for vindication that what I have been doing the past 3 weeks is not a crazy idea of eating once a day. for 15 years I have been trying really really hard to lose weight. My dad even bought me a book to inspire me it was I about eating only fruits and all and though I lost some weight but God I felt so weak and the hunger pangs was hell. I also tried countless diet pills and expensive diet programs with the shakes and the powders and all but all gone to waste because as soon as it was over I was back to my eating habits again. Then last month I was so sick I had a series of bouts with skin infection and depression that I decided to make serious change on my health. I was doing the one day meal as a last resort to change my eating habits and I never felt better and seeing results in the mirror. I haven't weight myself yet as the bathroom scale that we have only reaches up to 120 kilos lol. But anyways, I stumbled upon this thread looking for people who are doing the same thing and this led me your story and OMAD. Your story is so inspiring that I am even sharing it with my family and is encouraging them to do this as well. So far Ive been doing this for almost a month now and I really love how I am feeling. The energy I have throughout the day is wonderful though I still feel a bit hungry here and there but it's not like being hungry and weak. On my first week when I got hungry I would munch on a couple of nuts but now I can go on throughout the day with just water and only a meal at night. My cravings also is slowly disappearing specially on sweets. I think this has been the best thing that happened to me to be able to take control of my health and finally lose weight. Thank you so much for sharing your journey you don't know how many lives you have touched and changed. I can't wait to post my pics soon.

Hi,

Sounds like you have taken off. OMAD certainly changes a lot of lives. Stay with it, but hold off on publicizing it for a while. You'll get enough resistance as it is. Just keep plugging and enjoy seeing the changes for now.

LilannB

OP, you look great. Very happy to hear about the improvement in the loose skin.

I have always heard that you need to eat more times a day to keep your metabolism up. Yet I find eating three times a day a struggle. Nice to know that eating once a day did not slow your metabolism.

arguablysamson

LilannB wrote: »

OP, you look great. Very happy to hear about the improvement in the loose skin.

I have always heard that you need to eat more times a day to keep your metabolism up. Yet I find eating three times a day a struggle. Nice to know that eating once a day did not slow your metabolism.

Thanks!

Yes, that tired old myth about the metabolism slowing down still persists, but alas, it is only a myth! ;-)

sbahlezinwe67

I have just started today... and i still have questions since this is still new to me .... mow that i have eaten my meal at 15:00 pm does this mean my next meal should be tomorrow 15:00?

beanerschnitzel

2BeHappy2 wrote: »

Just curious...youre now up to 2-3000 calories a day?
So does that mean that youre eating regular meals now?
If you were once eating a low 700 calories then how come you couldn't break that down to 3 meals?

This is what I had 1 day last week:
Calories Carbs Fat Protein Fiber Sugar
Breakfast
Egg - 1 Medium Hard Boiled, 2 whole 128 1 8 12 0 1
Lunch
Light Yogurt, Lemon, 6 oz 80 12 0 7 1 9
Banana - (Small), 6 - 6.9 inches 90 23 0 1 3 12
Emerald - Dry Roasted Almonds - Per Nut, 10 nut 63 3 5 2 1 0
Dinner:
Baked Fresh - Spaghetti Squash 1 Cup, 2 cup 62 14 1 2 3 6 I replaced pasta w/ this...no it wasn't noodles but still good
Ragu - Meat Flavored Pasta Sauce, 1 Cup 140 20 6 4 4 12
Parmesan Cheese* - Kraft 100%, 2 tsp (5 g) 20 0 2 2 0 0
Green Beans - Fresh, Steamed, 0.75 cup cooked 26 6 0 2 3 2

Totals 609 79 22 32 15 42
Remaining 591 71 18 28 10 3
Im not saying 1 way or another that your way is good or bad, Im just trying to figure out why its all calories in 1 sitting.
As you can see, I don't get tons of calories to work with so I have to modify my food to fit into what MFP has set for me (it was slightly higher till I lost 13lbs).

I think if you're eating multiple times a day, all your body is doing is burning the calories you're eating. If you're fasting for 12+ hours, you're making your body not only burn what it's eaten, you're making it then delve past glycogen stores and into fat reserves.

beanerschnitzel

I wonder if they're eating 5-6 meals a day and minding their macros? Prolly not, LOL.

arguablysamson

sbahlezinwe67 wrote: »

I have just started today... and i still have questions since this is still new to me .... mow that i have eaten my meal at 15:00 pm does this mean my next meal should be tomorrow 15:00?

You are correct. If 1500 is when your eating window opens, then keep it as consistent as possible. My eating window has been 1000 and 1400 for a while now. It is easiest for me to manage.

arguablysamson

I think if you're eating multiple times a day, all your body is doing is burning the calories you're eating. If you're fasting for 12+ hours, you're making your body not only burn what it's eaten, you're making it then delve past glycogen stores and into fat reserves.

True.

JoeyCage

looking great Joe!

LightbulbSeven

Wow!!! Results don't lie! I am so happy for you and I LOVE your attitude! Keep up the great work my friend. Very inspiring.

elili132

Wonderful! Just Wonderful!! You trusted and respected yourself and your limits! Loce it. Congratulations and thank you for sharing!

AwesomizeRoxi

Inspiring !! Because this is convenient for my lifestyle for now i will try this out
Actually i have already started

arguablysamson

FullButEmpty wrote: »

Inspiring !! Because this is convenient for my lifestyle for now i will try this out
Actually i have already started

Excellent. Lifestyle considerations are always important. In order to really work for you, any eating plan needs to accommodate your activities, routines, and timeframes. The more time you spend being productive all-round, the less likely you are to digress into self-destructive eating and the more likely you are to stay in control on a path that regulates your intake in a constructive way.

cristical

Wow!! Great job! You look fantastic!

lnjonesapn

FatGuyNL wrote: »

Congrats! I don't think I would be able to hack the 1 meal a day, but you can't argue with over 160lbs gone and lowered blood pressure!