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

lisanataliestanley

bloody hell! wow i got loads to loose love weights an waking 2.5 stone down agree with the taking note whats going in an out am worried about having a baggy belly as thats an age thing lost weight before kids everything went back, now touching 40 dont think will be so lucky with this 9stone to go 6.5 left any more tips?

kettlebells_and_cupcakes

vismal wrote: »

Moisturize and exfoliate. It helps a little. The 2 biggest things that help with lose skin are lifting to preserve/gain lean mass, and time. My skin is almost completely recovered at this point. It is still not tight and probably never will be but the hang is virtually invisible unless I am in a push up position. So as long as I don't do push ups at the beach I'm good...lol

But you are correct, fit with loose skin looks and feels better then fat. It's also worlds healthier. With cloths on you can't notice at all!

A true inspiration! My weight has yo-yo'd 3 times in my adult life and despite stretch marks which have now faded my belly is the only part of me that hadn't fared well. I'm hoping it will improve and be less noticeable but in some ways it's proof of how far I have come and is something I am partly proud of, if that makes sense! Still a bit scary to plank at the gym tho!

vismal

justinelouise10 wrote: »

Did you follow macros or just nutrition on this app? Confused and want to loose water and fat and tone up and strengthen muscles.any tips on all ?

I track my macronutrients using MFP but I do not use their macro recommendations. You cannot "tone" a muscle. That look is achieved by a combination of things. I talk about it here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4smQf8MrZEg

Scamd83 wrote: »

vismal wrote: »

Scamd83 wrote: »

@vismal Hi, was directed here by someone after I posted about being frustrated/bored with weight lifting. In 2012 I did a crazy amount of cardio, about 2-3 hours a day, 7 days a week. Ate very little, did minimal weight lifting after cardio and with all of that I got down from over 15 stone in January to below 10 stone in November. In 2013 I got more into weights and drastically cut back the cardio, put on a little bit of muscle later that year and got to about 10 stone 7 lbs. But since then I've sort of stalled, diet adherence has been hit or miss where I've done a lot of compensating for over eating just to remain below 11 stone. Strength gains have been minimal, I'm a horribly weak on upper body movements. Right now I am (I think) about 17-20% bodyfat which I've been led to believe is not great for going on a bulk. But I'm completely bored and frustrated with cutting and stalling with lifts but still feeling like I need to cut. I guess I was wondering what you would do in my position?

My entire answer would be contingent on what your goals are. I'm happy to give you my opinion if you can fill me in on your ultimate goals.

@vismal My goal is to lose fat. After that I want to put on muscle, strength and improve performance.

If your goal is fat loss, you must simply continue with the calorie deficit. It is boring training in a deficit as strength gains are slow and sometimes non existent. Fighting hard only to maintain strength is not nearly as rewarding as training to make gains, but it is a necessary part of the process. I would not advise a bulk until you reduce some more body fat. Also, hit or miss adherence to diet is going to only make the length of your cut longer. I try to take VERY few free days while in a cut. My goal is to get the cut done as fast as possible while still keeping calories at a tolerable level.

huntersvonnegut

Great job!

Scamd83

@vismal Whilst fat loss is what I want more than anything, I should say I have been attempting what should be a brief cut for a couple of years now and failing every time and now get so hungry and tired it makes my whole existence quite stressful. I don't think a couple of more years of trying unsuccessfully to cut is going to work.

HungryasFuark

Great job man! , just wondering how many cut/bulk cycles did u do in the year period from pic 2 to 3 ? And how big was ur surplus on ur bulk ?

Dimples1975

Hi Vismal,
First of all I want to thank you so much for all the help you've given us. I really appreciate it.

My question is: Do you weigh your meats raw or cooked? I'm not sure if it makes a difference but I wanted to check with you.

Also, if I understand correctly, you can go over your fats or protein as long as you don't eat over your allotted calories...correct? I calculated my macros with the technique you explained in your video. For example today I am over my fat and protein calories.

Thanks again for your help! You're an awesome person.
Liz

PoisonDartFrog

looking good

vismal

Scamd83 wrote: »

@vismal Whilst fat loss is what I want more than anything, I should say I have been attempting what should be a brief cut for a couple of years now and failing every time and now get so hungry and tired it makes my whole existence quite stressful. I don't think a couple of more years of trying unsuccessfully to cut is going to work.

Dieting sucks. There are ways to make dieting suck less, but it sucks. You simply have to get through that part of the process. Sticking to mostly minimally processed whole foods helps. Vegetables add a lot of bulk for the calories they contain. Additionally, I find that eating a lot of protein to be satiating as well. While it's far more than I need to maintain muscle mass, I often eat 2-3 grams of protein per kilogram I weigh. This helps with the hunger. But at the end of day with over 100 lbs lost and kept off for years, dieting still sucks for me every time I have to do it. Eventually I accepted that while hunger sucks, it won't kill you and it's just a temporary feeling that will eventually go away. In your situation, bulking simply won't help you achieve your goals. Even if you bulk, you'll still have to do a cut, and it will be a longer cut because of the added fat that will come with the bulk. So basically do whatever you can with your food choices to make the dieting easier, and after that, it's simply a matter of desire.

HungryasFuark wrote: »

Great job man! , just wondering how many cut/bulk cycles did u do in the year period from pic 2 to 3 ? And how big was ur surplus on ur bulk ?

It was a while ago, I think 2 but it may have been 3. My first few bulks were a 3-400 calorie surplus but these days it's closer to 250-300

seayemily100

How did you prevent having excess skin?

Spliner1969

vismal wrote: »

To lose the last 30 lbs before picture 2 probably took 4 months. I couldn't tell you exactly.

I'm somewhat in the same boat at the moment. I'm 6'1" to 6'2" (lost a little height over the years from some back surgeries and spinal compression injuries) and hoping for 190-195 as a final goal along with the promise that when I hit 50 I want to be in the best shape of my life (I am 46 now, so gave myself plenty of lead time for that lol). I'm currently at 201ish and doing well again after some injuries late last summer to my back but can no longer lift. I have some spinal problems in my lower back that prevent me from dead lifting or putting anything over about 25-50lbs of weight on my lower back, and currently have a bulging disc in my neck that is causing some pain in my right arm. For the longest time I was able to bench lift (barbell presses, free weights) to work on upper body strength, but can no longer do that due to the neck issues. I manage push ups though, just not a lot each day before aggravating the nerves. I also have started body weight exercises for abs and legs (squats) which seem to be helping. I'm likely going to be stuck with body weight exercises until at least the neck improves (it's been since December).

No real questions, just wondered if you had any recommendations for body weight exercises? I'm still in deficit until I hit at least 195 this spring, then I intend to ramp up to maintenance calories slowly (very slowly) and keep up with cardio and body weight exercises. Once I hit maintenance and can maintain the 195 weight I plan on adding calories and attempting to slowly build more muscle.

I started this journey last February at 305 lbs, so I've managed to lose almost 105 lbs to date, and also enjoy the hell out of ice cream - I buy tons of the no sugar added stuff. Anyway, I enjoy reading your posts and wish you luck on your continued journey!

vismal

Dimples1975 wrote: »

Hi Vismal,
First of all I want to thank you so much for all the help you've given us. I really appreciate it.

My question is: Do you weigh your meats raw or cooked? I'm not sure if it makes a difference but I wanted to check with you.

Also, if I understand correctly, you can go over your fats or protein as long as you don't eat over your allotted calories...correct? I calculated my macros with the technique you explained in your video. For example today I am over my fat and protein calories.

Thanks again for your help! You're an awesome person.
Liz

I personally always weigh my meat raw you have to check and make sure that the nutritional data you put into MFP is also for raw. If the only data you have is cooked, weigh it cooked, but most meats have data for raw available. Raw is more accurate because cooking times and temperature can very. For instance, a medium rare steak that was 8 ounces raw will weigh more than a well done steak of the same raw weight.

You can be over on protein or carbs. They are both minimum values. If you go over on either, you can simply make it up by eating less carbs.

seayemily100 wrote: »

How did you prevent having excess skin?

Asked and answered many many times in this thread. Take a look back a few pages and you'll find a video I posted on the topic.

vismal

Spliner1969 wrote: »

vismal wrote: »

To lose the last 30 lbs before picture 2 probably took 4 months. I couldn't tell you exactly.

I'm somewhat in the same boat at the moment. I'm 6'1" to 6'2" (lost a little height over the years from some back surgeries and spinal compression injuries) and hoping for 190-195 as a final goal along with the promise that when I hit 50 I want to be in the best shape of my life (I am 46 now, so gave myself plenty of lead time for that lol). I'm currently at 201ish and doing well again after some injuries late last summer to my back but can no longer lift. I have some spinal problems in my lower back that prevent me from dead lifting or putting anything over about 25-50lbs of weight on my lower back, and currently have a bulging disc in my neck that is causing some pain in my right arm. For the longest time I was able to bench lift (barbell presses, free weights) to work on upper body strength, but can no longer do that due to the neck issues. I manage push ups though, just not a lot each day before aggravating the nerves. I also have started body weight exercises for abs and legs (squats) which seem to be helping. I'm likely going to be stuck with body weight exercises until at least the neck improves (it's been since December).

No real questions, just wondered if you had any recommendations for body weight exercises? I'm still in deficit until I hit at least 195 this spring, then I intend to ramp up to maintenance calories slowly (very slowly) and keep up with cardio and body weight exercises. Once I hit maintenance and can maintain the 195 weight I plan on adding calories and attempting to slowly build more muscle.

I started this journey last February at 305 lbs, so I've managed to lose almost 105 lbs to date, and also enjoy the hell out of ice cream - I buy tons of the no sugar added stuff. Anyway, I enjoy reading your posts and wish you luck on your continued journey!

As far as body weight exercises go, my favorite are chinups and dips. Those two moves will work the majority of you upper body muscles.

Epidemx

Hey Vismal,
Just wanted to say I love your thread and YouTube videos. They have been a big help for me and I have learned a lot from you. I have a few questions.

1. I know nutrient timing is mostly irrelevant but I am curious your thoughts on getting to much of a macro in one sitting. Have you done any research on whether your body uses all the protein or fat if you have a lot of it in one meal or do you think it's better to spread it out?
2. Do you have any go to or favorite foods for when you need a lot of one macro? So like favorite food/recipe to get a bunch of protein or favorite way to get your fats without blowing the calorie budget.
3. What's up with your quest bar recipe. In one of your vids you say your back to buying them because of the pricing change and you would explain later but I'm not sure I ever heard the explanation. Do you have a breakdown of the cost per bar homemade now? I was thinking about trying this but only if it's worth it over just buying a box.

vismal

Epidemx wrote: »

Hey Vismal,
Just wanted to say I love your thread and YouTube videos. They have been a big help for me and I have learned a lot from you. I have a few questions.

1. I know nutrient timing is mostly irrelevant but I am curious your thoughts on getting to much of a macro in one sitting. Have you done any research on whether your body uses all the protein or fat if you have a lot of it in one meal or do you think it's better to spread it out?
2. Do you have any go to or favorite foods for when you need a lot of one macro? So like favorite food/recipe to get a bunch of protein or favorite way to get your fats without blowing the calorie budget.
3. What's up with your quest bar recipe. In one of your vids you say your back to buying them because of the pricing change and you would explain later but I'm not sure I ever heard the explanation. Do you have a breakdown of the cost per bar homemade now? I was thinking about trying this but only if it's worth it over just buying a box.

As far as having a large portion of a macronutrient in a single meal, it depends mostly on your goals. If you are in a deficit, it matter very little. So little that I wouldn't even concern myself with it. If you were trying to gain muscle, there is some research showing multiple protein feedings throughout the day is best. This does not mean you must eat 6 meals and let each meal have an equal amount of protein. Also, this probably isn't hugely significant. I usually like to say that 90% of your results come down to total calories and macros for the day. Everything else accounts for 10 % or less so don't bend over backwards to achieve that small portion especially if it makes it harder to hit your goals for the day which account for so much more of your progress.

On my youtube channel www.youtube.com/feedingfitness I do a full day of eating video each week. They have TONS of examples of my go to macro friendly foods.

I haven't looked into the price of vitafiber in a while. Originally I was able to make a "quest style" protein bar for around 0.50. The cost of shipping went through the roof and then the company changed the sizes they sold and my cost per bar almost tripled. While that's still cheaper than the 2ish dollars a piece I pay for quest bars, I added in the time and effort to make the bars, and decided to just go back to buying them. I also don't eat them as often. I used to eat them daily so keeping cost down was important but now I only eat a couple per week so I'd rather just have the convenience of the premade bar. I have heard there are MANY more vendors of vita-fiber so I bet it is again worth looking into.

rldeclercq4

I'm wondering if you have big family members? I have a lot of obesity in my family and so I keep thinking that whatever I do I could never look like this because of genetics. This all despite the fact my three siblings are all at a very healthy weight including my sister who has had 4 kids. I've got a lot of cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, my mom, etc who were all overweight. When I started here in January I was 367 and my last weigh in was 342. I've cut way back on calories and have been doing cardio almost everyday. Based on the research I've done and what you corroborate here I have a plan to start incorporate strength training very soon ( I did cardio so far just so I can feel like I can breathe again while exercising). How long were your strength training exercises? (Sorry if you've answered either of those, I just don't have the time to scroll through 63 pages of comments).

samanthachen

Congrats!

My question might not pertain, but since I saw you mention the 5X5 lifting program, I figured I'd ask just in case...

Is a program like that available or possible 100% from home, more meaning one with limited equipment? My husband and I own our healthcare business, and we don't have money to spend on memberships to any gym. I'd love to start lifting. Open to suggestions!! If it's outside your experience, I totally understand.

Thanks in advanced!!

BuccaneersFan

samanthachen wrote: »

Congrats!

My question might not pertain, but since I saw you mention the 5X5 lifting program, I figured I'd ask just in case...

Is a program like that available or possible 100% from home, more meaning one with limited equipment? My husband and I own our healthcare business, and we don't have money to spend on memberships to any gym. I'd love to start lifting. Open to suggestions!! If it's outside your experience, I totally understand.

Thanks in advanced!!

I do the 5x5 program at home. You'll need a barbell and a weight bench for doing bench presses. For squats you'll need some kind of squat rack. Some weight benches double as a squat rack. I use a poor man's squat rack (two ladders! lol) Other than that you just need weights. If you're on a budget I strongly suggest looking on Craig's list. There's always someone trying to get rid of weights, weight benches etc. If you or your husband is handy, I've seen many people build squat racks.

matthewhumpherys582

I feel like my weight loss is very slow and I am not noticing a difference around my waist and thighs etc. I started at 280 and now I'm at 260. So how long did it take you to start noticing a difference? It's irritating to see the numbers on the scale go down but not see anything as a result. @vismal

Congrats btw!!

samanthachen

BuccaneersFan wrote: »

samanthachen wrote: »

Congrats!

My question might not pertain, but since I saw you mention the 5X5 lifting program, I figured I'd ask just in case...

Is a program like that available or possible 100% from home, more meaning one with limited equipment? My husband and I own our healthcare business, and we don't have money to spend on memberships to any gym. I'd love to start lifting. Open to suggestions!! If it's outside your experience, I totally understand.

Thanks in advanced!!

I do the 5x5 program at home. You'll need a barbell and a weight bench for doing bench presses. For squats you'll need some kind of squat rack. Some weight benches double as a squat rack. I use a poor man's squat rack (two ladders! lol) Other than that you just need weights. If you're on a budget I strongly suggest looking on Craig's list. There's always someone trying to get rid of weights, weight benches etc. If you or your husband is handy, I've seen many people build squat racks.

Thank you so much!!! It has been a while since I commented, and I worried that my question was stupid, hence the lack of replies. Haha Appreciate the info!!

vismal

rldeclercq4 wrote: »

I'm wondering if you have big family members? I have a lot of obesity in my family and so I keep thinking that whatever I do I could never look like this because of genetics. This all despite the fact my three siblings are all at a very healthy weight including my sister who has had 4 kids. I've got a lot of cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, my mom, etc who were all overweight. When I started here in January I was 367 and my last weigh in was 342. I've cut way back on calories and have been doing cardio almost everyday. Based on the research I've done and what you corroborate here I have a plan to start incorporate strength training very soon ( I did cardio so far just so I can feel like I can breathe again while exercising). How long were your strength training exercises? (Sorry if you've answered either of those, I just don't have the time to scroll through 63 pages of comments).

Yes, while my immediate family is normal weight for height, obesity as well as coronary artery disease runs in both sides of my family. Genetics will not stop you from being as lean as you want. Anyone can accomplish that. No one is destined to be fat. Genetics do make it harder for certain individuals to get lean, but never impossible. Also, most people have average genetics (hence average). Those who are genetically predisposed to obesity must remember that regardless of genetics, obesity is a 100% modifiable condition. You might have to eat a little less, exercise a little more, and be hungry more often than someone with no predisposition, but it is completely in your control to be as lean as you desire. Strength training for beginners doing a 3x a week total body workout should take around an hour to accomplish, maybe a bit longer.

samanthachen wrote: »

Congrats!

My question might not pertain, but since I saw you mention the 5X5 lifting program, I figured I'd ask just in case...

Is a program like that available or possible 100% from home, more meaning one with limited equipment? My husband and I own our healthcare business, and we don't have money to spend on memberships to any gym. I'd love to start lifting. Open to suggestions!! If it's outside your experience, I totally understand.

Thanks in advanced!!

It would help if you let me know what you have access to in order to give you an idea of how to proceed.

samanthachen wrote: »

BuccaneersFan wrote: »

samanthachen wrote: »

Congrats!

My question might not pertain, but since I saw you mention the 5X5 lifting program, I figured I'd ask just in case...

Is a program like that available or possible 100% from home, more meaning one with limited equipment? My husband and I own our healthcare business, and we don't have money to spend on memberships to any gym. I'd love to start lifting. Open to suggestions!! If it's outside your experience, I totally understand.

Thanks in advanced!!

I do the 5x5 program at home. You'll need a barbell and a weight bench for doing bench presses. For squats you'll need some kind of squat rack. Some weight benches double as a squat rack. I use a poor man's squat rack (two ladders! lol) Other than that you just need weights. If you're on a budget I strongly suggest looking on Craig's list. There's always someone trying to get rid of weights, weight benches etc. If you or your husband is handy, I've seen many people build squat racks.

Thank you so much!!! It has been a while since I commented, and I worried that my question was stupid, hence the lack of replies. Haha Appreciate the info!!

Your question wasn't stupid, I just don't respond to this thread more than a few times a week. I prefer to answer multiple questions at a time and routinely leave one or two unanswered to give the thread a shameless bump when it falls far down from the top

samanthachen

vismal wrote: »

Your question wasn't stupid, I just don't respond to this thread more than a few times a week. I prefer to answer multiple questions at a time and routinely leave one or two unanswered to give the thread a shameless bump when it falls far down from the top

Haha fair enough!

Congratulations again on your success. It's clear that you worked very hard (and I'm sure, continue to). And again, thank you!!!

vismal

matthewhumpherys582 wrote: »

I feel like my weight loss is very slow and I am not noticing a difference around my waist and thighs etc. I started at 280 and now I'm at 260. So how long did it take you to start noticing a difference? It's irritating to see the numbers on the scale go down but not see anything as a result. @vismal

Congrats btw!!

How fast are you losing the weight? A 20 lb loss is significant but if you are just starting out, a sizeable portion of those 20 lbs may be water weight. Gains and losses in water weight are less visually apparent the more overweight you are. How many calories per day are you consuming? How many lbs a week are you losing?

I cannot say for certain exactly how many lbs you will have to lose for it to be noticeable as that varies from person to person.

lisahutchinson4work

orangbatak wrote: »

For the first 3 months, how many calories were you consuming a day?

During the same time for fitness, did you focus more on cardio or resistance?

Any issue with loose skin? Did you get surgery done?

I'm curious about the answer to this

plectrum29

Thank you for this. Even though I am well into my journey I still look for those story's that continue to motivate me. My start was 307 pounds and I weighed in this morning at 230 pounds. My target is 195 as well. Absolutely amazing and thanks again for sharing.

adescio

Wow! You're seriously amazing! What do you recommend for women? I'm a 24 y/o and I went from a diet that made me loose a lot of weight making me be under weight (but probably because of muscle loss, not fat loss) to binge eating and a little overweight; I feel like IIFYM is the only way of eating that would work for me, but I'm confused about the amount of macros I have to consume, also about how to train. I wanna burn fat and have a Very lean BF % (20-22, I'm currently in 28,5%) but I'm not looking forward to build muscle or look bulky as for bikini competitions or anything like that, I just wanna be lean and fit, a little toned but that's it... I don't know how to lift and how to distribute my macros (mostly the protein/carbs ratio) and I really want to figure it out!

vismal

lisahutchinson4work wrote: »

orangbatak wrote: »

For the first 3 months, how many calories were you consuming a day?

During the same time for fitness, did you focus more on cardio or resistance?

Any issue with loose skin? Did you get surgery done?

I'm curious about the answer to this

All three of these questions were answered previously in more detail earlier in the tread. For a short answer, I did not count calories initially. I ate very few calories during the week and probably overate by a bit on the weekends. Things probably averaged out to a moderate to high weekly deficit. A focus on both cardio and resistance training is important but I place priority on resistance training. I have very mild loose skin that still improves each year. I did not undergo surgery.

Yurie222

oh wow!!!!!!!! Good job!!!

vismal

adescio wrote: »

Wow! You're seriously amazing! What do you recommend for women? I'm a 24 y/o and I went from a diet that made me loose a lot of weight making me be under weight (but probably because of muscle loss, not fat loss) to binge eating and a little overweight; I feel like IIFYM is the only way of eating that would work for me, but I'm confused about the amount of macros I have to consume, also about how to train. I wanna burn fat and have a Very lean BF % (20-22, I'm currently in 28,5%) but I'm not looking forward to build muscle or look bulky as for bikini competitions or anything like that, I just wanna be lean and fit, a little toned but that's it... I don't know how to lift and how to distribute my macros (mostly the protein/carbs ratio) and I really want to figure it out!

You will not gain muscle if you are eating in a caloric deficit. Further, without some muscle gain you will never look toned. Gaining muscle takes an excruciatingly long time, especially for women. Women who are able to look "bulky" at a low body fat percentage likely spent many years purposefully training to look that way. You should do any proven beginners weight lifting program that focuses on heavy compound lifts, even if your goal is to simply be lean and fit. I usually recommend the ICF 5x5, stronglifts, or starting strength. For fat loss macros, this video explains how I set them up:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7cc18wLJW3k

Kie_Hughes

Well done sausage