I went from morbidly obese to 6 pack abs! Ask me Anything

vismal

NekoneMeowMixx wrote: »

Much congratulations, that is AWESOME! I'm personally looking to get a similar physique, (lean muscle) I'm currently 5' 6", and 133 pounds. My BMI is about 21.6, and I'm looking to get around 18. What would you suggest for someone who doesn't have a lot of weight to lose, but needs to get rid of some of that "fluff" and build up some muscle?

Congrats again, that is seriously some baller progress!!

First, stop paying any attention to BMI. For someone with muscle and physique goals, it's next to worthless. It's a great tool to make generalizations about a population but a very poor tool to use for individuals, especially those who do strength training. At 5'6, 133 you have a few options. You could try and lose more weight and get very lean, then attempt a lean bulking phase where muscle growth is your goal. If you do this, I'd lose 5 lbs, reevaluate, then if you still wish to be leaner lose another 5. The other option is to try and do the lean bulk now. You reach a point where sometimes you lack significant lean mass to really get much leaner without looking skinny or scrawny. In my middle picture on the first post of this thread I'm nearing that point. While I technically could have lost another 10-15 lbs of fat to be very lean, I didn't really have the lean mass to support it. For me, a bulk was the best option. It's hard to say based on height and weight alone which would be best for you. Pictures would help. The one thing you do not want to do is get caught up in trying to lose fat while gaining muscle. Those are competing goals and often when people attempt both simultaneously, they fail at both miserably. Whichever option you pick, you want to be sure to be on a proven lifting program that has you hitting all body parts 2-3 times a week. I usually recommend beginners do a total body workout 3x a week and focus on heavy compound lifts like squat, deadlift, bench press, and rows.

seferovkrm

One question!How????

momto3kidz

First of all you look amazing! Maybe one day I can lose this weight for good. I've always been big but at 37 I think my body is starting to fall apart. Time to finally start doing something for me and lose this weight. I have 3 kid's and really don't have time to drive to a gym everyday and work a full time job. The little one is 2 so that would just be too hard. My question is if I was to do something at home what could it be and how much do I need to do this to start on my goals? Thanks!

ljjuarez

Dude, you're such a boss. I saw your YouTube video and I've been wanting to message you. I also lost lots of weigh but now I feel I'm "skinny fat" I'm an active person and do attend the gym 4 times a week to lift but I feel I still run too much. I run 6 times a week

vismal

seferovkrm wrote: »

One question!How????

Read the rest of the post...

momto3kidz wrote: »

First of all you look amazing! Maybe one day I can lose this weight for good. I've always been big but at 37 I think my body is starting to fall apart. Time to finally start doing something for me and lose this weight. I have 3 kid's and really don't have time to drive to a gym everyday and work a full time job. The little one is 2 so that would just be too hard. My question is if I was to do something at home what could it be and how much do I need to do this to start on my goals? Thanks!

Fortunately diet is about 80% of weight loss. You can completely control your diet from home. While lifting weights can help you preserve lean mass while dieting, and doing cardio can increase the calories you burn each day, you can still lose weight through diet alone. There are home workouts available. While not as useful as a gym, they are far better then doing nothing. There are products you can buy as well as a slew of free ones on YouTube. Also things like walking, playing with the kids at the park, hiking, biking, etc can all be beneficial and are things you can do with your kids.

ljjuarez wrote: »

Dude, you're such a boss. I saw your YouTube video and I've been wanting to message you. I also lost lots of weigh but now I feel I'm "skinny fat" I'm an active person and do attend the gym 4 times a week to lift but I feel I still run too much. I run 6 times a week

Running doesn't automatically make you skinny fat, but it can make it harder to gain lean mass if you do not eat enough. The problem with being skinny fat is that often times you need to go on a lean bulking diet, even though you aren't all that lean. This will give you more of a muscular base to cut down to when you resume fat loss as a goal.

sixpacklady

Congratulations on your transformation!!

I have few questions which you could please help me with:

1. I am female, 36yrs, 135 lbs, 5'3". I have my intake set to 1500(90g protein, 190 carbs, 42 fat) on weekdays and 2000 on weekends. I am hypothyroid as well. What do you think of my macros? I workout 5 - 6 times/week and have been losing very slowly with this intake. I increased my thyroid medication and is hoping to see at least 0.5lb/week loss.

2. I know that heavy lifting is the way to go, but I see better results , weight loss/inch loss with circuit type workouts like Jillain. Whenever I do heavy lifting type workouts ( under 12 rep range), i don't see any change even after 6 weeks, causing me to go back to JM type of workouts. Is there any advice for me? I love heavy lifting, but hesitant to start until I lose more weight.

londoncpecial01

vismal wrote: »

Did you stop losing when you started using weights? As Ive been successful for 4 months losing 55 odd lbs and am wandering what the immediate effect will be if I lift

No. Weight lifting does not halt weight loss. That's kind a rumor. People think they start gaining muscle rapidly when they lift and it's why the scale stalls. That's not true at all. Gaining muscle is hard and takes time. If you stop losing weight, 9 times out of 10 it's because you are eating too much.

What if you don't eat all you calories

Bahamabeachbody

I'm 387 lost 67 pounds so far and took a break my goal weight is 220 any suggestions on how I should tackle this?

Leah_Nicole219

I need some motivation! I'm trying to drop 40+ pounds and getting back into exercise. I started Turbo Fire yesterday and I'm using their schedule and trying to keep with it 6 days a week. I'm going to send you a friend request, if that's okay, because it seems like you know a ton and I really think you can keep me motivated!

vismal

sixpacklady wrote: »

Congratulations on your transformation!!

I have few questions which you could please help me with:

1. I am female, 36yrs, 135 lbs, 5'3". I have my intake set to 1500(90g protein, 190 carbs, 42 fat) on weekdays and 2000 on weekends. I am hypothyroid as well. What do you think of my macros? I workout 5 - 6 times/week and have been losing very slowly with this intake. I increased my thyroid medication and is hoping to see at least 0.5lb/week loss.

2. I know that heavy lifting is the way to go, but I see better results , weight loss/inch loss with circuit type workouts like Jillain. Whenever I do heavy lifting type workouts ( under 12 rep range), i don't see any change even after 6 weeks, causing me to go back to JM type of workouts. Is there any advice for me? I love heavy lifting, but hesitant to start until I lose more weight.

I'd increase protein slightly, maybe around
110. Other than that, the macros are okay. Calories might be too high for someone your height and weight especially if you also have thyroid dysfunction but this is a better question for your doctor, not me.

This has got to be coincidental. I would say other factors are causing your results to stop when doing heavy lifting. Circuit training does burn more calories then heavy lifting, but not so much so that one yields results and the other yields none. Not losing weight/inches is a problem with diet, not exercise routine. If you aren't losing weight/inches you are eating too much. When doing heavy lifting what is your program like? Is it a proven beginners program that has you hitting all body parts 2-3 times a week?

londoncpecial01 wrote: »

vismal wrote: »

Did you stop losing when you started using weights? As Ive been successful for 4 months losing 55 odd lbs and am wandering what the immediate effect will be if I lift

No. Weight lifting does not halt weight loss. That's kind a rumor. People think they start gaining muscle rapidly when they lift and it's why the scale stalls. That's not true at all. Gaining muscle is hard and takes time. If you stop losing weight, 9 times out of 10 it's because you are eating too much.

What if you don't eat all you calories

You need to be more specific. I'm not sure what you're asking

Bahamabeachbody wrote: »

I'm 387 lost 67 pounds so far and took a break my goal weight is 220 any suggestions on how I should tackle this?

You lost 67 lbs already. How did you manage that? The answer, whether you know it or not, is you ate less calories per day then you burned. Doing that will take you to whatever goal you set.

shaunaDK

Awesome Job! I lost 40lbs in 2013 but have since gained it back. What are some things that keep you motivated? I am obese once again and need to lose 60+ pounds Once and for all.

want2behappy31

You look amazing.. great job

vismal

shaunaDK wrote: »

Awesome Job! I lost 40lbs in 2013 but have since gained it back. What are some things that keep you motivated? I am obese once again and need to lose 60+ pounds Once and for all.

I am never satisfied. I could easily say "job well done" pat myself on the pack, and stop working at things so hard. Instead, after I met every goal my 300+ lb self could have ever imagined, I simply said, "What's next?". I keep setting new goals, pushing myself, seeing what's possible to achieve. I feel like people struggle so hard with maintaining because they become complacent. On paper, it's easier to maintain then to be pushing for something further. But in actuality, the mindset of "I'm at maintenance, I can relax a little" is what screws people. I avoid that by never being at maintenance. There's always something more to strive for.

Eileen_T

I just love your attitude, kindness, and dedication. You certainly deserve this result. Just started mfp and I have started to exercise, after years of inactivity, to help lose my padding ,
( about 40+ pounds). I am walking, and doing some stretching, but at 64 with arthritic knees I am limited as to what I can do.14 years ago, I lost 20 kilos because of NHL and the treatment. Any muscles I had - melted then. When I regained the weight it was flab! I havent really researched weight training but would be willing to try anything within my ability. Any ideas? You have inspired me. Thanks for that.

nouriapolis

Hiii, congrats, of course, on being very freaking amazing and accomplishing what you have.
I was hoping you could demystify everything around a caloric intake below 1000. My BMR is of 1878 and MFP says I should be eating 1350 but more often then not I get full on 700-900 calories. I feel like there's a lot of information on this but not as much as misinformation. I just dont know what to really believe. I'm not really on board with the starvation mode thing. But does it slow down your metabolism?
Thanks you for answering! What you're doing, the support you're offering, is cool af.

FatMoojor

Good job man, that is a seriously impressive. No questions because you have answered a ton in this post, which in itself is a great thing. Nice to see people being helped out.

I thought I would just add if people are looking at starting a 5x5 strength routine, one of the best is "starting strength by Mark Rippetoe". It gives you great details on the routine themselves but also a lot of information on why you do a certain lift and how to do it correctly.

You can just get the actual routine off the net for three, but if you are just starting out with lifting it may be worth looking for a copy of the book as know HOW to lift correctly is probably the most important thing about lifting.

indianarose2

Thank you for sharing all of this!!! I wish I would have known this years ago! Heading to bodybuilding.com NOW!! (& I've had 2 trainers in that time that I paid good money to mind you, in which I was trying to get info like this from, who kept putting me on 3 sets of 12. Thanks again and congratulations on your accomplishments!!

vismal

Eileen_T wrote: »

I just love your attitude, kindness, and dedication. You certainly deserve this result. Just started mfp and I have started to exercise, after years of inactivity, to help lose my padding ,
( about 40+ pounds). I am walking, and doing some stretching, but at 64 with arthritic knees I am limited as to what I can do.14 years ago, I lost 20 kilos because of NHL and the treatment. Any muscles I had - melted then. When I regained the weight it was flab! I havent really researched weight training but would be willing to try anything within my ability. Any ideas? You have inspired me. Thanks for that.

With arthritic knees and your medical history, a physical therapist might be a good choice for you. They can personally assess your individual needs and help design an exercise routine that you can complete safely. Normally I tell people to just do a 5x5 routine but this might not be appropriate for you.

nouriapolis wrote: »

Hiii, congrats, of course, on being very freaking amazing and accomplishing what you have.
I was hoping you could demystify everything around a caloric intake below 1000. My BMR is of 1878 and MFP says I should be eating 1350 but more often then not I get full on 700-900 calories. I feel like there's a lot of information on this but not as much as misinformation. I just dont know what to really believe. I'm not really on board with the starvation mode thing. But does it slow down your metabolism?
Thanks you for answering! What you're doing, the support you're offering, is cool af.

Starvation mode, as many people tout it, does not exist. When you eat very low calories, for a long period of time, you do see metabolic slowdown. Not enough to stop losing weight though. The idea that you body stores everything because it thinks it's starving sounds like it makes sense, but when you look at the physiology side of things, it's simple not possible. Your body requires fuel to function. Humans get that fuel from food. When we don't eat enough fuel, we used stored fuel (glycogen, fat, muscle tissue). If the body started storing the little fuel we were taking in while eating very low calories, what would it use to function. The body cannot run on unicorn tears, good intentions, or rainbow kittens. The starvation mode people forgot this fact. In some of the most extreme studied examples of starvation, a slowdown of around 15% in bmr occurred. While significant, it's not enough to halt weight loss. Not even close. And that degree of slowdown was from an extreme case.

To your personal situation, 7-900 calories is not enough food. However, I question how accurate that count is. I'd say the majority of people would be incredibly hungry eating so little after just a few days. After a week or two most people would crack and binge or have to increase calories. Are you weighing everything you eat on a scale (not using measuring cups or estimating portion size)? Cheat days? Eat out at restaurants? All these things need to be considered. If you are indeed eating that little, its a bad idea. Not because of starvation mode, but because of recovery. You will be unable to get in good workouts or have decent energy if you keep your intake that low for too long. There are certain situations where eating that low can be appropriate for short periods of time, or when monitored by a physician, but it should not be the norm. Again, I would examine your calorie counting methods extremely closely first.

c_white1990

I've been reading through all your comments, questions and answers so all my questions I could possibly have are already answered but I just want to say congrats and great job!!! You are a huge motivation and inspiration to me!!! This is only my 2nd week in my weight lose journey but seeing success like yours is truly amazing and I will forever keep your story in my mind throughout my journey so THANK YOU!!! You are amazing!!!

paddybhoy7

Outstanding. Well done mate.