2016 - A mission to reach 265lb

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bigianmma
bigianmma Posts: 24 Member
edited January 2016 in Introduce Yourself
I seem to have developed a bit of a bad habit in regards to my personal health. Each year I set myself a goal of completing Tough Mudder (in September) and work hard with dieting and exercise to slim down as much as I can to complete the course in a reasonable time, then back on the pounds afterwards and generally start to enjoy a more relaxed lifestyle for a few months. The problem is, I put on all of the weight inside 3-4 months as the bad eating habits start creeping back into my general routine.


2014 - I started off at 330lb and dropped to 262lb (I weighed 367lb at my absolute heaviest) for Tough Mudder and ended up around 315lb around Feb 2015.

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2015 - I started off around 316lb before I started training and ended up at 270lb for Tough Mudder, although I was a little heavier, I felt much stronger and had a lot more energy.

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2016 - I started the year at 314lb and plan to train and diet for the whole year with a cheat meal every fortnight to keep myself sane but hope to drop to the 240/250lb mark.


In 2014 I had a lot of trial and error finding a diet that worked and didn't involve me starving myself or eating salads 24/7 as most people seem to assume. I finally ended up trying a diet that an ex-girlfriend recommended called the Dukan Diet - Essentially this is a phase-based diet where you eat as much lean protein as possible and slowly introduce non-starchy carbs back into the diet over several weeks.

Initially I struggled for weeks to drop under the 300lb mark with normal dieting alone but I was able to do it over the course of around 12 days (301lb to 296lb) and found a lot of success with the eating culture I developed along with regular cardio (4-5 times a week jogging 3-5k).

I hit a weight loss wall again at 280lb and spent a few weeks there until I introduced the 16:8 I.F to the mix which helped me create an even better eating routine and within 2 months, I dropped to between 265-270lb and was happy with how I looked and how I felt - This takes me back to 2016 where I'm currently doing the same diet and having a lot of success, losing 14lb since the start of the year (18 days) and going from 314.8lb to 300.4 as of Sunday morning.

Why am I creating this thread. In all honesty, I just feel like I need a little corner of the internet to post regular updates and seek a little inspiration. I fully anticipate to hit some more weight-loss barriers, the occasional diet slip-up and the inevitable slowing down of progress and training injuries but I'm here to share my story and be completely honest with how it goes.


My daily food diary and exercise plans will be added to my page here (food intake and exercise will increase dramatically by Feb) http://www.myfitnesspal.com/bigianmma

Here are the weekly weigh in stats so far (every Sunday morning). I'm 6ft 6" tall so I carry it well:

03/01/16 - 314.8lb (22.4 stone)
10/01/16 - 308.2lb (22.0 stone)
17/01/16 - 300.4lb (21.45 stone)


Add me if you'd like more information, a friendly face or any other reason you want :)

Replies

  • Jeandre29
    Jeandre29 Posts: 19 Member
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    Wow bigianmma! Well done for taking on the Tough Mudder in the first place! I dream of just being able to run 5k never mind doing a challenge like that.
    I've decided that 2016 in MY year to get myself in shape. So far so good!
    I guess the good thing for you is that you know you can do it as you have done it before and you know what your body is capable of.
    Most of the time I'm like a rabbit in headlights! I have no idea what weights I should be lifting or if I should be pushing myself harder. So for the moment I just do intense dance classes and eat well ☺️
    Good luck on your journey and I will be tracking your progress from my corner of the Internet
  • bigianmma
    bigianmma Posts: 24 Member
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    I have a diploma in sports & exercise science which helps when it comes to nutrition and exercise plans but admittedly, I don't always practice what I preach.

    I've always been able to lift heavy and could squat 220KG at one point in time but that's not my goal any more. I don't want to be a monster or beast anymore as I've been like that my entire life and it has more 'cons' than 'pros' nowadays so my aim is to lean out and aim to have my body fat % around 15% which is lower than its ever been in my adult life.

    My plan is to slowly introduce exercise back into a routine but I'm not doing it much at the moment whilst I sort my diet out and lose a little more. It just makes it easier on my knees and back when I go out running :)
  • scbenz3415
    scbenz3415 Posts: 1 Member
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    Great goals, I too, feel the need to participate in an obstacle race. However, need to get healthy & fit, just the goal should motivate me. Any hints on training and diet?
  • bigianmma
    bigianmma Posts: 24 Member
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    It's a bit of a general question really. It all depends on your needs and requirements, I'm a firm believer of eating yourself thin so that would be the only given here.

    If you want to build muscle, aim for 3.5-4K cals a day and build that up to 5-6K over a few months. With regular training, you'd put on a lot of muscle mass. If you are looking to lean out, the only way my body reacts well to it is by drinking 3 litres of water a day (cuts off water and sodium retention), cardio and cutting carbs (less than 30g net carbs a day).

    Ironically, the first Tough Mudder I did was a goal to motivate me to lose weight. The less I weighed, the easier it would be (or so I thought).
  • bigianmma
    bigianmma Posts: 24 Member
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    Heres a (not so great) photo of me close to 370lb compared to a 270lb me last year.

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  • bigianmma
    bigianmma Posts: 24 Member
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    Struggling a bit to drop under 300lb as I've been the same weight (exactly) for the last 4-5 days which is a little frustrating as I usually lose 1lb every 2-3 days.

    Time to step things up with exercise I think :)
  • gunrock1970
    gunrock1970 Posts: 45 Member
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    Wow, man! Absolutely, no disrespect, but how do you put on 44lb in 3 months (September 2015 to Jan 2016)?! I'm amazed that you can put on so many pounds and get them off again- your skin must be elastic!

    How's the plateau going, have you busted through it yet?