50 pounds down 23 to go
johned63
Posts: 306 Member
I never imagined I would post any pictures here but when I reached the 50 pound loss milestone recently I realized that looking at the progress pictures from others has helped me on my journey and decided I would give it a shot. Sorry this is a long post, but there are a few important things about the changes I have made that are important to my success.
The one thing that is missing from most progress threads is height, it really helps me to compare when I can relate the persons height as well. (I am 6’2”)
In 2004 I weighed 210 pounds, went to the gym at least 3 times a week and was in pretty decent shape. I had gone up and down in weight most of my life, most of the time that was tied to inactivity periods following surgery. Up until 2004 I had a total of 11 operations on my legs and at that time I had been making regular visits to my orthopedic because of an increasing level of pain for the previous 18 months.
To make a long story short the problem was eventually found at a point where it was almost too late to fix. I was sent to a specialist who sent me to another one. The final Dr told me that if I was an older person he would just tell me that I was going to be in a wheelchair the rest of my life but because of my age he was going to try to fix things, but could not promise anything more than a wheelchair. He scheduled me for surgery the day after he saw me for the first time and said it was a good thing he did because another few weeks and he may not have been able to fix it.
Things were successful and I was able to rehab over a period of a year moving from crutches to a cane. I still went to the gym, no weights allowed and mostly walking and water exercise. Then the other leg gave up and another operation was required. I managed to rehab again but was still dependent on the cane.
In retrospect I realize now that I had kind of given up around this time, after trying to recover from 13 operations and getting myself healthy to just do it all over again seemed like a never ending process. Even more so this time I had even more significant muscle damage and the Dr. and Physical Therapist both said I would never fully recover but could get them stronger. At the time I did not realize that I had given up, I had a scatoma and subconsciously convinced myself that I had done all I could do and there was nothing more to do.
For the last few years I have had to use a cane constant to walk properly because of my weak muscles and have my permanent handicap tag so I can make sure to not have to walk too much. I started to wake up this year after seeing the results of my annual health screening. That and realizing it was not going to be long before I turned 50 and I was tired of being in pain all the time and getting fatter.
The chart on the report only goes back to 2005, but remember I was 210 in 2004. The chart with the rise in blood pressure matched the rise in my weight and for the first time I was told I was borderline high blood pressure. I was also borderline high cholesterol and borderline diabetic for the first time ever.
In March I began to work hard on the general physical therapy needed to strengthen the bad muscles and made an appointment with a therapist to make sure I was doing the right movements to target the appropriate muscles on each leg. I was not yet worried about diet I had to concentrate on getting the muscles stronger. I knew I could do it, but I could only use isometric moves and no weight at all. By the end of May I was able to quit using my cane and walk on my own power without a rocking limp and moved on to working on my diet and increasing the length of my walks to continue to get stronger.
At that time I stepped on the scale and was 268 pounds.
I wore a size 38 pants with a “comfort waist”, this helped convince me I was not too heavy because I could wear a size 38. If you have ever seen those pants what that really means is when they are tight you are probably a size 42.
I wore size 18 and 18 ½ shirts. I had to have the 18 ½ for when I needed to wear a tie because I could not fasten the collar on a size 18.
Today I am wearing a size 36 pant and they are loose. I tried on a size 34 last week and they fastened and fit ok, but were just a little tight so I am waiting a few more weeks to try them again. I don’t want to wear uncomfortable clothes that make me feel heavy because they are tight.
I am wearing size 16 ½ shirts, the collars button when I need to wear a tie and they are not at all tight around my neck.
I am walking daily and generally walk between 8 and 10 miles a day. Yesterday was my best day to date, I walked 20 miles. Walking and recumbent biking are going to be the main lower body exercise I can do and I have finally come to terms that such a limitation is really not the limitation I thought it was.
The most important thing I have done was to really examine my attitudes going all the way back to when I was first hurt and come to terms with all of those events that contributed to my attack of stinking thinking and an 8 year pity party. I had to knock down every one of those barriers I had built in my head in order to move forward.
My initial goal weight is 195, which is the top end of normal BMI for my height. I will decide if I hold or work a little more once I get there. I also plan on starting back at the gym before too long; I have a little more work to do on a few leg muscles first.
Now for a few pictures:
My annual health screening:
This chart has been important for me. During those periods when things seem slow or do not appear to be moving I would look at this and remind myself how many years it took to add the weight and so it really was not coming off all that slow.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/weight.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/bp.jpg[/img]
Pictures at 268 – I don’t have many because I have never really liked having my picture taken. These were all taken at work for publications.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-2.jpg[/img]
I was able to get the person that takes photos to take a new one with this same pose after I lost 50 pounds, I thought it would be a good comparison photo
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-3.jpg[/img]
These pictures I took at 218 were taken wearing the same size 18 shirt in the pictures above. I could not button the collar on that shirt without choking myself when I weighed 268.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-2.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-4.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-3.jpg[/img]
And look how much room in the collar!
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-c.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-5.jpg[/img]
My cane and handicap tag have remained used for 5 months and will continue to remain unused. I know it is hard to lose weight and the best advice I can give anyone is to spend some time getting to really know yourself and break down those barriers that have been built. I did not even realize I had built so many of them until I took the time to really look deep inside.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/compare.jpg[/img]
23 pounds to go to reach
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/neargoal.jpg[/img]
Good luck on your journey, I wish you every success!
The one thing that is missing from most progress threads is height, it really helps me to compare when I can relate the persons height as well. (I am 6’2”)
In 2004 I weighed 210 pounds, went to the gym at least 3 times a week and was in pretty decent shape. I had gone up and down in weight most of my life, most of the time that was tied to inactivity periods following surgery. Up until 2004 I had a total of 11 operations on my legs and at that time I had been making regular visits to my orthopedic because of an increasing level of pain for the previous 18 months.
To make a long story short the problem was eventually found at a point where it was almost too late to fix. I was sent to a specialist who sent me to another one. The final Dr told me that if I was an older person he would just tell me that I was going to be in a wheelchair the rest of my life but because of my age he was going to try to fix things, but could not promise anything more than a wheelchair. He scheduled me for surgery the day after he saw me for the first time and said it was a good thing he did because another few weeks and he may not have been able to fix it.
Things were successful and I was able to rehab over a period of a year moving from crutches to a cane. I still went to the gym, no weights allowed and mostly walking and water exercise. Then the other leg gave up and another operation was required. I managed to rehab again but was still dependent on the cane.
In retrospect I realize now that I had kind of given up around this time, after trying to recover from 13 operations and getting myself healthy to just do it all over again seemed like a never ending process. Even more so this time I had even more significant muscle damage and the Dr. and Physical Therapist both said I would never fully recover but could get them stronger. At the time I did not realize that I had given up, I had a scatoma and subconsciously convinced myself that I had done all I could do and there was nothing more to do.
For the last few years I have had to use a cane constant to walk properly because of my weak muscles and have my permanent handicap tag so I can make sure to not have to walk too much. I started to wake up this year after seeing the results of my annual health screening. That and realizing it was not going to be long before I turned 50 and I was tired of being in pain all the time and getting fatter.
The chart on the report only goes back to 2005, but remember I was 210 in 2004. The chart with the rise in blood pressure matched the rise in my weight and for the first time I was told I was borderline high blood pressure. I was also borderline high cholesterol and borderline diabetic for the first time ever.
In March I began to work hard on the general physical therapy needed to strengthen the bad muscles and made an appointment with a therapist to make sure I was doing the right movements to target the appropriate muscles on each leg. I was not yet worried about diet I had to concentrate on getting the muscles stronger. I knew I could do it, but I could only use isometric moves and no weight at all. By the end of May I was able to quit using my cane and walk on my own power without a rocking limp and moved on to working on my diet and increasing the length of my walks to continue to get stronger.
At that time I stepped on the scale and was 268 pounds.
I wore a size 38 pants with a “comfort waist”, this helped convince me I was not too heavy because I could wear a size 38. If you have ever seen those pants what that really means is when they are tight you are probably a size 42.
I wore size 18 and 18 ½ shirts. I had to have the 18 ½ for when I needed to wear a tie because I could not fasten the collar on a size 18.
Today I am wearing a size 36 pant and they are loose. I tried on a size 34 last week and they fastened and fit ok, but were just a little tight so I am waiting a few more weeks to try them again. I don’t want to wear uncomfortable clothes that make me feel heavy because they are tight.
I am wearing size 16 ½ shirts, the collars button when I need to wear a tie and they are not at all tight around my neck.
I am walking daily and generally walk between 8 and 10 miles a day. Yesterday was my best day to date, I walked 20 miles. Walking and recumbent biking are going to be the main lower body exercise I can do and I have finally come to terms that such a limitation is really not the limitation I thought it was.
The most important thing I have done was to really examine my attitudes going all the way back to when I was first hurt and come to terms with all of those events that contributed to my attack of stinking thinking and an 8 year pity party. I had to knock down every one of those barriers I had built in my head in order to move forward.
My initial goal weight is 195, which is the top end of normal BMI for my height. I will decide if I hold or work a little more once I get there. I also plan on starting back at the gym before too long; I have a little more work to do on a few leg muscles first.
Now for a few pictures:
My annual health screening:
This chart has been important for me. During those periods when things seem slow or do not appear to be moving I would look at this and remind myself how many years it took to add the weight and so it really was not coming off all that slow.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/weight.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/bp.jpg[/img]
Pictures at 268 – I don’t have many because I have never really liked having my picture taken. These were all taken at work for publications.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-2.jpg[/img]
I was able to get the person that takes photos to take a new one with this same pose after I lost 50 pounds, I thought it would be a good comparison photo
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/268-3.jpg[/img]
These pictures I took at 218 were taken wearing the same size 18 shirt in the pictures above. I could not button the collar on that shirt without choking myself when I weighed 268.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-2.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-4.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-3.jpg[/img]
And look how much room in the collar!
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-c.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/218-5.jpg[/img]
My cane and handicap tag have remained used for 5 months and will continue to remain unused. I know it is hard to lose weight and the best advice I can give anyone is to spend some time getting to really know yourself and break down those barriers that have been built. I did not even realize I had built so many of them until I took the time to really look deep inside.
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/compare.jpg[/img]
23 pounds to go to reach
[img]http://i1294.photobucket.com/albums/b605/johned63/Photobucket Desktop - JOHN-TAB/50 down/neargoal.jpg[/img]
Good luck on your journey, I wish you every success!
0
Replies
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Great job! Looking good
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Wow, super proud of you!!! i can see the happiness in your eyes!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!0
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Great job, keep it going! Your heading in the right direction and I can tell your confident and happy! >:O) U should be.0
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Thank you for taking the time to share your story. Reading it inspires me, and makes me think about how I, too, can be successful. Be proud of your accomplishments, and enjoy your health! Best of luck to you as you work towards your ultimate goal weight and switch to maintenance!0
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Too much onions for me.
Thank you for telling your story. It is amazing how much the human body can take and where you can go if you really WANT to.
I'm very impressed by your life and the way you choose. For me you are a hero! (Mostly because other people wouldn't had have the power to make the necessary decissions and to turn their lifes in a way you did!)0 -
Awesome job. Thanks for sharing0
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Thanks everyone!0
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Terrific changes ....... thanks for sharing ...... and keep on truckin' to get to GOAL !0
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Brilliant loss! well done youve lost a whole tummy!0
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You should be so proud!!!! You look incredible, awesome job!!!0
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why do you want to get any smaller???? if i was you i would try to get ripped now0
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Major props to you! Great job and way to stick with it. Keep up the good work.0
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