I never believed in counting calories so heres my story

Last summer (at my peak of 250#) I remember asking a buddy of mine who is a pro natural bodybuilder how he gets so ripped for competition, I asked "cut the carbs?" He said aside from his workouts watch your caloric intake. I didn't see it as something that simple so I never gave it much thought.

I have always considered myself a little health conscience, physically active and athletic. Most my family is obese, my dad has an amputated leg from being a type 2 diabetic. I am 6' tall and of polynesian descent, so I have what we call thick bones and its genetically difficult to maintain a healthy BMI which (at 213#) lists me at a score of 29, borderline obese. I don't care for the BMI much.

4 years ago my wife and I had our first child. I also got laid off from work, (construction) became a stay at home dad, got lazy, lost motivation and found too many reasons to have a few beers. 2 years later we had our second child. Not working and staying home all the time I was a couch potato and developed a "beer gut" LOL! So I went from my physical best of 195# in 2007 to sedentary worst of 250#. I just ate there weren't restrictions on portions. I tried eating less sugary and white flour foods. It helped a little.

Last September 2011 my wife and I got memberships to the local gym. Looking for a lifestyle change and wanting to get back into playing a few competitive volleyball tournaments and leagues I started the lifestyle change consisting of weightlifting and cardio. I would cycle into losing a couple pounds then plateau for a month.

April of 2012 I'm at 235 and I had lost about 15# in 7 months. One morning my wife told me about this "app" that her co-workers were talking about. So I started MFP on April 16th, 2012... It changed my life! I never thought I would get back into shape. I feel so much better. I lost 25# in just 3 months of using it. I'm currently at 210# and keep lowering my goal weight. My first goal was 220# to 215 to 210, now I don't see a problem with striving for 200-205#.

Along with tracking calories and portions, I now eat nutrient rich, whole, low cal foods within my daily allowed caloric intake (currently 1920). Nothing really crazy at all, I work out 3-4 times a week for 45-90 minutes, consisting of 33 minutes of cardio (about 350-400 cals) and strength training
(mostly hi reps). I like to add to my "calories remaining" by doing cardio and sports. I end the day/week below my calorie allowance. It feels surreal to fit back into clothes I haven't used in 4 years. It's also fun to research tasty low cal foods and recipes.

I would like to share a tip that helped me shred past them plateaus.. 900-1500 calorie burn 1-2 times a week when I plateau. It consists of biking uphill for a mile or 2, jogging on the beach, an hour or 2 of competitive volleyball, any suitable sport helps. Even 45min to an hour of "extra", vigorous cardio can burn up to 500-700 cals, on the day. From the app hit add, then cardiovascular then search for an exercise or activity it can give estimates on calories burned. After all that I might have a beer;)

If you've read all through this I hope it can help!

2009, 250#


2010, 240#


currently 213#