"Big Guy" to Big Loser in 1 Year - PICS

fe_nyx · January 2014

I think this would be one of my favourite posts I have read on here. Why? Because you are honest and realistic. You haven't compromised on anything. You (and your wife) are proof that "dieting" doesn't need to be all lettuce leaves and fresh air - you can still eat a normal diet, but everything in moderation. Well done to both of you, awesome

qtgonewild · January 2014

see. but you are an inspiration. great job.

nikibean123 · January 2014

You both look so happy and healthy now! Well done, you really ARE an inspiration :happy:

willnorton · January 2014

Ed is a great friend of mine.too...would love to talk to you some...

Briargrey · January 2014

You have done fantastic, kudos! You look so nice and awesome in your first pix, and while yes, it's obvious you are overweight, what shines through is that you're probably a pretty rockin' person. Now, that still shines through (obviously) with a nice side helping of "damn, look what he's done!". You and your wife are both doing awesome, thanks for the inspiration!

Manda_1986 · January 2014

Love stories like this

. You and your wife look fantastic! Keep up the great work.

thedestar · January 2014

You look great! Way to go!

Roger_Vaughn · January 2014

Congrats to you both. You are looking Great.

Andrea0971 · January 2014

Awesome!!

People keep asking me "what are you doing"? and I never have a good concrete answer. "Eat less and move more" just seems so uninteresting. Your philosophy is very similar to mine. I've approached the idea of goals the same way, but I was never able to put it into words like you did. But it is exactly what's going on in my head .

My mindset has been that I won't make myself crazy trying to manage my weight. When you have a LOT to lose, you can't go at it with a "buckle down and get it done" mentality. It's a marathon and you just have to tackle it at a pace you can live with. I took a break from Thanksgiving to New Year's with exactly that notion in mind, but just tried to eat as normal as possible and keep up my exercise. I needed the mental break from tracking and I knew I'd go bonkers trying to monitor everything I ate through all the holiday activities or skipping things trying to "be good". End result: My weight is the same today as it was the week before Thanksgiving and I'm absolutely fine with that. In the context of a lifetime, enjoying the holidays is more important than trying to lose a couple pounds in December instead of January.

To the OP -- keep up the good work!

BL_Mark · January 2014

Awesome!!

People keep asking me "what are you doing"? and I never have a good concrete answer. "Eat less and move more" just seems so uninteresting. Your philosophy is very similar to mine. I've approached the idea of goals the same way, but I was never able to put it into words like you did. But it is exactly what's going on in my head .

My mindset has been that I won't make myself crazy trying to manage my weight. When you have a LOT to lose, you can't go at it with a "buckle down and get it done" mentality. It's a marathon and you just have to tackle it at a pace you can live with. I took a break from Thanksgiving to New Year's with exactly that notion in mind, but just tried to eat as normal as possible and keep up my exercise. I needed the mental break from tracking and I knew I'd go bonkers trying to monitor everything I ate through all the holiday activities or skipping things trying to "be good". End result: My weight is the same today as it was the week before Thanksgiving and I'm absolutely fine with that. In the context of a lifetime, enjoying the holidays is more important than trying to lose a couple pounds in December instead of January.

To the OP -- keep up the good work!

I love your mindset too!! That's exactly my point... that this entire thing is a marathon and it's going to take me years to undo... once I figured THAT out, everything changed. Logging got easier, eating got easier and I didn't stress anymore when we went to someone's house for dinner or a bbq. It was YEARS of substantial food abuse to get me to 350... and one meal or even one weekend is going to undo all my hard work. THAT'S been a valuable lesson.

Thank you everyone for your kind words and continued inspiration. My wife and I are really looking forward to what this next year brings for us and our weight loss journey. Cheers to you and good luck on YOUR continued success!!

veggiebuckeye · January 2014

Great job more people need to follow your lead! Inspirational!

Lns25 · January 2014

Awesome work!! Your kids will be forever grateful you made the change

0408boys · January 2014

You and your wife look completely amazing! Your story and your outlook on weight loss is inspiring. Wishing you only the best.

HealthyEscape · January 2014

I love the way you tell your story and your "do's" and "don'ts". Straight and to the point! Great work!

lajoiemr · January 2014

dude... excellent post. congrats, keep it up!

EDollah · January 2014

Very very cool. I like how you and I had divergent approaches in a lot of ways, for example I've been very goal oriented during weight loss while you were not, yet we both still ended up in a much much better place. I think the lesson is that one needs to approach weight loss in a way they're most comfortable with.

BL_Mark · January 2014

I think the lesson is that one needs to approach weight loss in a way they're most comfortable with.

Yep, EXACTLY!! Just because it works for me, doesn't mean it's gonna work for someone else... thanks again!

simonc14 · January 2014

Many, many congratulations on your progress Mark, it's truly amazing what you've achieved and I'm sure there still more to come over the next year! I love the approach you've adopted and have found that it works in a similar way for me too. :happy:

angex3333 · January 2014

Wow - well done!!! You are looking fantastic

Shyfig1 · January 2014

I just love your absolute honesty too. Congrats to you and your wife....what a great role model also for your children. I'm curious about the water....why so much water and how on earth does one convert body weight (in lbs or kilos) to liquid measurement of water (pints/litres/mls) so you can calculate 1/2 of body weight in water?

BL_Mark · January 2014

I just love your absolute honesty too. Congrats to you and your wife....what a great role model also for your children. I'm curious about the water....why so much water and how on earth does one convert body weight (in lbs or kilos) to liquid measurement of water (pints/litres/mls) so you can calculate 1/2 of body weight in water?

My current weight is 260lbs.... so half my body weight in oz is 130oz. The glass I use at work holds 16oz so I drink 8 or more glasses of water per day. Water keeps you hydrated and flushes out all the bad stuff, especially if you're retaining water. I've found I don't drink enough water on the weekend and my weight will reflect that on Monday morning. Be warned... drinking a lot of water will keep you running to the bathroom! What I do is every time I get up to go, I'll grab another glass of water.

Thank you again to everyone for your words of encouragement! Let's rock it out in 2014!! Good luck to all my new MFP's!!

ReclaimingSarah · January 2014

Fantastic job to both you & your wife!!

SuperCrsa · January 2014

:drinker:

Nyksta · January 2014

"Stuff I Wasn't Expecting
This is EASY!
Plateaus.... that is all.
My *kitten* hurts. All... the... time.... I didn't have much of one before... and now... I'm sitting on bone.
My wedding ring doesn't fit ANY of my fingers. My wife has since stopped wearing hers too.
In NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM am I an inspiration... and yet, people keep telling me I am. I've had people that I barely know come up to me at church and say, "I had to take a double take to see if that was really you... I have to know, what are you doing?!" "

This really strikes a cord. Especially the first statement - this is EASY. I have found myself saying that to people over and over.

Congratulations to both you and your wife.

Nyk

BL_Mark · January 2014

Every week, someone on MFP really makes my day/week/month. Guess it was your turn! Haha. Thanks man, and congratulations. I wanna be like you when I grow up.

DUDE... I wanna be like YOU when I grow up!!

josavage · January 2014

Thank you for this post and congrats to you and your wife. I love that you have such a healthy attitude and have truly made a life style change instead of going on a diet. Reading this is very helpful so thanks again!