78 Pounds in just over 4 months - side by side compare

I started with MFP on January 21, 2013. Starting weight was 342. A lot of hard work and much better eating has paid off. Gone from XXXL shirts to XXL and even some XL, 48-50 waist pants, to 40. Quit smoking quite just over 2 months ago and have lost over 20lb since then. I can honestly say that there is not way I would have got this far, this fast without the support, motivation and inspiration of my MFP friends as well success stories have seen on the boards. It's not easy, but sooooooooo worth the effort!

78 pounds in just over 4 months... that's fast! Congratulations on the weight loss and on quitting smoking.

Congratulations and you look great!


I gotta ask tho...
78 lbs / 4 months (16 weeks) = 4.875 lbs each week.
How did you do that? Calorie restriction and diet changes alone?
What was your daily calorie goal during that time?
Were you actively gaining weight before? Or did you simply eat enough to maintain your previous weight?

Please don't take my questions as rude or snarky. I'm simply wondering.

Not rude at all, nor snarky. I would say I was gaining weight before I started, I went from 317 to 342 the year prior to starting here. When I decided to make the commitment to the change, I checked out my TDEE and BMR on a few different websites. It ranged from 3200-3500 cals a day to maintain my svelte 342 physique. I think when I started MFP, it gave me a calorie intake of around 2800 per day to lose 2 lbs a week. I choose to try and stay around 1500 per day. I lost 14lbs the first week, which I am sure was a lot of water weight. Once I started exercising, I did not eat back any calories.

I did not exercise for the first 2 weeks. My plan was to use the Wii for exercise as I have a bad knee, but I needed to lose 18 lbs before I could use the Wii Balance Board. Once I started exercising, it kicked my butt! It took me an hour or longer to a pretty simple 20 minute/200 calorie burn workout. Each week, I made it a point to add something to the workout, whether it just be time, or additional exercises. I started with the Wii Fit Plus and then moved to the Wii Active More Workouts. I added walking to my daily routine, and now that the weather is nicer, I'm golfing as much as possible and not using a cart as long as my knee lets me, which is usually 9 holes, then I'll use a cart and play some more.

I've gotten to where I can do 1 1/2 hour/1500 calorie workouts on the Wii, I walked my first 5k in forever, and feel really good. As I am getting closer to my goal, I'm trying to get prepared for maintenance mode, so I have started eating some of my calories back, but still try not to go over 2000 a day. I also lowered my weight loss per week goal here on MFP. So hopefully, when I get to my goal, I will be ready to maintain the weight and not gain it back.

Thanks for the comments and hope this gives you some insight.