Finally putting my progress pictures side by side has been a true eye opener!

Maxematics · February 2016

Hey all! I'm a bit nervous to post this but since I'm finally entering maintenance mode, which I never thought would happen, I decided to post here. I started up on MFP at the end of June at 139 pounds. I was tired of feeling lazy, depressed, and unhappy with my body so I decided to make a change. My highest weight was 190 pounds 12 years ago at age 18. I lost that weight and got down to 115 pounds by 20, but ever since then I've yoyoed between 115 and 141 pounds.

I tried and failed miserably in the past year to finally commit to a lifestyle change. Thankfully starting up again in June has stuck. Sometimes it's hard to see how much progress you've made, which is why I'm glad I've been taking photos along the way. I'm now 113 pounds and I'm now at the point where I can finally say I'm much healthier and happier. I'm ready to finally start recomp and it's actually sinking in how far I've come along. Sure I lost weight, but my whole life is different now. I'm more positive, I have tons of energy, I no longer feel depressed, and I can't even relate to the person I was before June. If I could do this much in a bit over seven months, anyone can! Good luck on your journey everyone!

queenliz99 · February 2016

Wow! Awesome stuff! Congratulations

TheBeachgod · February 2016

Excellent work! You made a major difference in a short amount of time.

MMA_Fighter · February 2016

The difference from June 2015 to July 2015 is incredible - 8 pounds and a huge difference. Great job!! Did your diet change drastically from June to July?

Maxematics · February 2016

Thanks guys!

MMA_Fighter wrote: »

The difference from June 2015 to July 2015 is incredible - 8 pounds and a huge difference. Great job!! Did your diet change drastically from June to July?

Yeah it did actually. Like most people, I went balls to the wall and eliminated all sweets. I never drank anything but water, tea, or black coffee anyway, so I didn't have to eliminate things like soda. I actually would get unexplained hives after eating on and off since I was 18 years old and I thought it was due to grains, so I bit the bullet and eliminated those too.

After a severe outbreak while running in the park after eating eggs I seasoned myself, I found out the allergy was actually to sulfur/sulfates/sulfites and not grains. By August everything I enjoyed was back in my diet in moderation including chocolate, pizza, donuts, and everything in between. I still kept seeing progress even though people swear you have to eat "clean" 24/7. I only did/do cardio two to three days per week; the rest is compound lifts. Now, I down a whole large BBQ chicken pizza by myself at least once every two weeks and have no negative effects to my body aside from a day or two of water weight gain.

FromHereOnOut · February 2016

Whoa! What happened since December? What a difference!!!
Well done on all!

Maxematics · February 2016

FromHereOnOut wrote: »

Whoa! What happened since December? What a difference!!!
Well done on all!

Thanks! Since December, I put my focus on a compound lifting program and stopped eating at a higher calorie deficit. I feel like that made all the difference in my body composition.

ty_fit0815 · February 2016

You go girllllll!!

Chupiite · February 2016

Gosh, look at those abs! Well done!!!

craignev · February 2016

Chupiite wrote: »

Gosh, look at those abs! Well done!!!

This was my first though too! Very well done!

TangosHuman · February 2016

the abbs! Huge congratulations! You look incredible and sounds like you feel it too!

Sumiblue · February 2016

Excellent results!

kellyj0729 · February 2016

You look incredible! Our bodies actually look very similar (your before pics anyway!) How tall are you? I am 5'2" and I started at 142 lbs. I am currently 137 lbs and goal weight is 120. I lost about 25 lbs 2 years ago, got down to 112 lbs but I was "skinny fat." I see the you avoided that with the lifting. Can you tell me what kind kind lifting you are doing and how often?

Teemoney19 · February 2016

Helloooo

huango · February 2016

Great job!!!
Thanks for the inspiration.

How tall are you?

I am your August picture and aiming to get to your February pictures.
I do compounded heavy lifting 2x/week, Zumba/dance-cardio 1x/week, and 2hr-walk 1x/week, while eating at a deficit. I need to lose ~15pounds before doing recomp.
I just need to stick to it, instead of letting "life" get in the way.

Thanks!

Maxematics · February 2016

kellyj0729 wrote: »

You look incredible! Our bodies actually look very similar (your before pics anyway!) How tall are you? I am 5'2" and I started at 142 lbs. I am currently 137 lbs and goal weight is 120. I lost about 25 lbs 2 years ago, got down to 112 lbs but I was "skinny fat." I see the you avoided that with the lifting. Can you tell me what kind kind lifting you are doing and how often?

Thanks! I'm 5'3", so yeah we have very similar starting stats!

To be completely honest, when I started out I was running three days per week with the C25K app on my phone. I was also doing the 21 Day Fix program, but not the eating plan. I still counted calories. I am NOT a Beachbody coach nor do I buy/sell their Shakeology stuff. I only chose the 21 Day Fix workouts because they had a wide variety of exercises per week: pilates, yoga, weights, and cardio and I didn't want to get bored because I know how I can be sometimes. Also, I was able to get it online for free, so I went with that. After two rounds of 21DF and a round of 21DF Extreme, I thought I needed something more intense so I tried ChaLEAN Extreme.

ChaLEAN Extreme was a program I downloaded for free years ago and I always gave up within 30 days, but not this time. It focuses on nothing but resistance training. It's not 150 pound deadlifts or an 100 pound bench press, but it is compound lifts and it WORKED. Besides, I didn't feel ready for intense lifting yet being a beginner and all. I can honestly say that doing the program changed my body composition. Again, I hate Beachbody's Coach/MLM side of things, but some of their workouts are solid. For me, ChaLEAN Extreme is that workout program. My body responded well to it. I just finished the 90 days and I'm doing the 30 day Lean for Life phase. After that's over and I take a week off, I'm going to be looking into more intense lifting to further my progress with my body composition. I also plan to start running again when the weather gets nicer.

Maxematics · February 2016

huango wrote: »

Great job!!!
Thanks for the inspiration.

How tall are you?

I am your August picture and aiming to get to your February pictures.
I do compounded heavy lifting 2x/week, Zumba/dance-cardio 1x/week, and 2hr-walk 1x/week, while eating at a deficit. I need to lose ~15pounds before doing recomp.
I just need to stick to it, instead of letting "life" get in the way.

Thanks!

I'm 5'3". As long as you stick to it, you should definitely see results! I'm glad and shocked that someone is actually inspired by my photos. Thank you!

Asher_Ethan · February 2016

You look great. Congratulations.

JScottBldrs · February 2016

Lean and mean WTG you look fantastic

JesmineDNCS · February 2016

Awesome progress and inspiring! How many calories did you consume when eating on deficit?
Those abs look fantastic!

Maxematics · February 2016

Thanks all!

JesmineDNCS wrote: »

Awesome progress and inspiring! How many calories did you consume when eating on deficit?
Those abs look fantastic!

Thank you! At first I started with 1200 calories, but my body let me know after a few months of this that it was NOT happy, so I bumped it up to 1500 to 1700 depending on the day. Now I usually eat 1800 to 2300 per day.

kellyj0729 · February 2016

synacious wrote: »

kellyj0729 wrote: »

You look incredible! Our bodies actually look very similar (your before pics anyway!) How tall are you? I am 5'2" and I started at 142 lbs. I am currently 137 lbs and goal weight is 120. I lost about 25 lbs 2 years ago, got down to 112 lbs but I was "skinny fat." I see the you avoided that with the lifting. Can you tell me what kind kind lifting you are doing and how often?

Thanks! I'm 5'3", so yeah we have very similar starting stats!

To be completely honest, when I started out I was running three days per week with the C25K app on my phone. I was also doing the 21 Day Fix program, but not the eating plan. I still counted calories. I am NOT a Beachbody coach nor do I buy/sell their Shakeology stuff. I only chose the 21 Day Fix workouts because they had a wide variety of exercises per week: pilates, yoga, weights, and cardio and I didn't want to get bored because I know how I can be sometimes. Also, I was able to get it online for free, so I went with that. After two rounds of 21DF and a round of 21DF Extreme, I thought I needed something more intense so I tried ChaLEAN Extreme.

ChaLEAN Extreme was a program I downloaded for free years ago and I always gave up within 30 days, but not this time. It focuses on nothing but resistance training. It's not 150 pound deadlifts or an 100 pound bench press, but it is compound lifts and it WORKED. Besides, I didn't feel ready for intense lifting yet being a beginner and all. I can honestly say that doing the program changed my body composition. Again, I hate Beachbody's Coach/MLM side of things, but some of their workouts are solid. For me, ChaLEAN Extreme is that workout program. My body responded well to it. I just finished the 90 days and I'm doing the 30 day Lean for Life phase. After that's over and I take a week off, I'm going to be looking into more intense lifting to further my progress with my body composition. I also plan to start running again when the weather gets nicer.

Thanks so much for the info! I am going to look into that. I have done Insanity and T25 and enjoyed it a lot. I tried weights at the gym, even hired a personal trainer to get me into a routine and learn how to do everything safely. But, I hate it! I love cardio, kickboxing, yoga, Pilates, running but I really hate lifting! I know it's necessary though so I need to find something I enjoy. I kick myself all the time for having gotten to my goal weight and turn and around and gain it all back. So I am approaching it differently, not just eating 1200 calories and being miserable all the time. Also trying to get over the # on the scale vs how I feel and how my clothes fit. Congrats to your success and hope you continue to achieve your goals.