I only wanted to lose 63 pounds

jrrflr

I wanted to share my story, just in case it can help anyone out there realize that it is entirely possible to accomplish your goals, as long as you put forth a lot of dedication and hard work.

When I turned 39 in December 2009, I weighed 293. That was the heaviest I had ever weighed. I made a promise with myself that day that I would adopt my very first New Years Resolution in hopes of losing 63 pounds before my 40th birthday. I waited until after the holidays were over and then decided to give it my best shot. I know 39 isn't "old", but I figured this would be my last opportunity to make a meaningful change in my lifestyle and health. On January 4th, I cut out red meat, fried foods, sweets, and soft drinks. I have never been a coffee drinker and I had already stopped drinking anything with caffeine two years prior so cutting out the soft drinks didn't bother me at all. I adopted about a 1,200 calorie-per-day diet.

After a couple of weeks of getting used to my new diet, I started walking to and from work (2.5 miles each way). After a couple of weeks of walking, I decided to try to jog, but it didn't work out too well for me because of my weight. So, I went out to Craigslist and bought a used bicycle. I was eager to try riding, so I went out with my brother for an eleven mile ride. It was tough and I could barely move afterward, but still I went out the very next day for another 11 mile ride. It didn't take long for me to realize that I really enjoyed cycling. What really sold me was the fact that every single day, I would step on the scale and see the weight loss which I could directly associate with my cycling.

After 3 months, I hit my goal of losing the 63 pounds. Summer was approaching, so I decided to keep on cycling and see if I could lose 93 pounds. This would take me down to an even 200 pounds. Once I reached 200, I decided that I would just keep going until I reached 189, which is the top range of the normal category on my BMI chart. By the time my cycling had to slow down for late Fall/early Winter, I had lost 121 pounds and weighed 172 pounds. I managed to keep the weight off during the winter and now enjoy cycling as a permanent part of maintaining my healthy lifestyle.

My daily pre-work rides range from 28-50 miles and my weekend rides are usually about 40 miles (I ride about 5 times per week). During the height of the riding season, I can intake about 2,400 calories, but I back that down to about 1,400 during the off-season. My longest ride in 2010 was 123 miles and I logged a total of 4,000 miles. In 2011, I logged 4,479 miles.

Previous attempts to diet had only produced a 20 pound (or so) loss. I never thought I could have achieved a loss of 121 pounds. In doing so, I reversed sleep apnea and took away all the risk factors I had for heart disease and diabetes (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc). I lowered my resting heart rate to 52 bpm and greatly increased my aerobic capacity. Further, and probably the most visible benefit, is I went from a 44-inch waist to a 32-inch waist and a 52-inch chest to a 42-inch chest.

I really hate to brag on myself, and am only posting this in hopes that it helps someone to realize that you CAN accomplish your goals, no matter how lofty you think they are. You just have to put yourself first and force yourself to make time to work on achieving them. Good luck!

dls06

You should be very proud. Thanks for the post. Inspiring.:flowerforyou:

deeharley

Great story! And good job!

kimmerkay

Great story!

sgosa

Holy cow! 63lbs in 3 months??? Thats awesome, even better to be under 200 in 1 year. I enjoy cycling, but I cant imagine riding that much everyday. But thats where your determination came in and helped you achieve your goal. Im trying to cut the calories now, weather will be getting warmer soon and hopefully I can (will) start exercising as well. Great story dude!

Whodatgirl77

Very inspiring story! great job and thanks for sharing.

jrrflr

Thanks y'all!

And sgosa, cycling has become an opportunity to connect with friends and to work things through my mind before getting my day started. It energizes me and has become a form of meditation, if you will. Love the avatar! BS rocks. Have seen them live and have a couple of CDs.

trolkeeper

great story u rock!!!!!

ShrinkingChelle

You did amazing!! Thanks for the inspiration!.

Leanz

A fantastic job - well done!

Great to keep it off too!

brbetha01

Great job! Very inspiring.

scapez

Thanks for sharing your story and congratulations...you look amazing!

Captain_Tightpants

Very inspiring - and very relevant to me as you pretty much started right where I am (m, 37, 268 at heaviest). My cals are set at 1800/day right now and I'm not sure I could manage going down as far as 1200 per day like you did, but it's still great to hear success stories like these.

I have an old Trek mountain bike in the basement. I might pull it out this spring and get some new wheels and chain on it. :-)

theginnyray

What an AWESOME story!!! And great thread title!

KyleB65

Congrats!

I am on a similar path!

Started at 272 lbs, now at 198 lbs and working my way towards the 180 range. Waist was closing in on 46", now 34" and aiming for 32". Note: I am 47 years old. Last time I had a 34" inch waist was in high school!

And, a big part om my weight loss was thanks to lots of bike riding! My main exercise is Martial Arts training but until the snow & ice arrived I was out on my bike 4 - 5 days a week for at least an hour (much more on weekends).

Thanks for sharing your story!

fancyfee

Thank you for sharing your very inspirational story! I enjoyed reading it and most of all it gave me a lot of motivation to start riding a bike at the GYM. I will be there bright and early tomorrow riding the bike. While I can't commit to everyday but I will definitely do 3 times per week for starters. Thanks again for the motivation! Way to go.....:happy:

sherrirb

What an inspiring story, thank you so much for sharing!

davecreed

very inspiring! I was 285lbs with a 44inch waist lol...I never realized how fat I was until I looked back at my before pictures when I joined this site...and it was hard to find them because i never took pictures of myself. lol 44inches...i saved money on belts that,s for sure...now i own about 12 belts lol

jrrflr

Thanks for the nice comments everyone!

JeSuisPrest

Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous!!!!!!

karenwill2

keep on bragging! you rock!

Leeanne1974

What an inspiring story!!!

I only joined a few minutes ago and there are so many people i will be getting inspiration from, well done!

JayneWilson1963

Awesome job, you have every right to brag...Congrats on a job well done and thanks for sharing.

H_Factor

you are freakin' awesome. thank you for sharing the inspiration. When I started my journey last January, I was 252 pounds, wearing size 42/44. I'm currently 182 pounds, wearing size 34 and my goal is to get into size 32.

Toonster

Hi, great story thanks or posting. I have 80lbs to lose and have just taken up cycling, its great but currently tiring but your story has given me hope that i too can get up to serious miles per week. Thanks again and well done!!

starznholes

That is awesome!!! I started out weighing 280 lbs at my MAX, and i did the same as you...Started by cutting out sweets/soda/ fast food. Then I bought a bike at BIG 5 on sale, and started cycling. I was doing it every weekend. My boyfriend at the time had me start out riding about 15 miles every Sat/Sun and i noticed the lbs DROPPING off. I now weigh 100 lbs less, thanks to just riding my bike and eating healthier!!!! Still in the process of losing weight, but it was a great jumpstart for me.

realpure

Wow, that is inspiring!! My favorite part is that you have found a new passion in cycling. 40 is young, and how fabulous that you have paved the road to enjoy your next decade as a healthy person. Kudos!!

tuffhd

I liked reading your post... My situation is similar to your's and made my resolution at the first of this year. On Jan 3rd I started on MFP at 240, in two weeks, I've lost 13 pounds.I am also into cycling, but gave it up last year do to the fact I couldn't keep up with the other riders in my group. Although I've exercised and cycled regularly in the past (in spurts) I never watched what I ate and never really lost any weight. Holding myself accountable for what I eat has made a huge difference in a very short amount of time.

I'm hoping that when the weather warms a bit, I can start cycling again regularly and actually keep up!

Thanks for the inspiration and congrats on the weight loss!

HollyTsab

That is awesome. Thank you for sharing your story.

sbyllek

AWESOME!!!

shady81x

Reading that makes me wanna pick up cycling all over again! Used to night cycle much when I was in my late teens/early 20s - back then it was pretty much a 'mode of transport' for me & a few friends. We'd take our bicycles and meet up somewhere for supper & hang out like 1/2 the night before heading home. That stopped when I went back to school, got a job after (so no more late nights for me)... etc. etc. I kinda miss those times & quite often I wish I still have my bicycle.

Mhmm... that's it, it's on my to-get list now

Thanks for sharing the story !