I like how I look for the first time in years

[scsimodem]

First post, and I hope you enjoy it.  First off, thank you everybody in this community.

 

I used to be a competitive swimmer, and I was cut and lean and looked like a wiry machine.  I loved it.  Then came college.  No more swimming, lots of sitting.  I was a compsci major.  It wasn't the freshman 15.  It was the freshman 50.  I don't really have a before picture from when I started trying to get in shape, but here's a photo from Dragon*Con last year (sandwiched between Courtenay Taylor and Kimberly Brooks).

 

 

Notice the shirt is taught across the waist and loose across the chest.  You can't see my arms in that picture, but trust me, there's not that much to see.  Well, that was about a month or two after I began small changes to my diet and commuting to work by bicycle.  I continued to make changes, but I really codified the technique when I found out about this site through the Art of Manliness podcast.  Small changes that I can stick with, backed by research, added up over time, are how I did it.  For example, I didn't give up all soda cold turkey.  I cut back until I stopped wanting it.  I didn't start exercising by going to the gym three days a week.  I started by riding my bike for fun.  This site is also how I found Mark Rippetoe's Starting Strength, a perfect workout for somebody who has an intense job and needs to work in good exercise in limited time (I've also never had much upper body strength, to speak of).

 

 

That picture, I took yesterday.  Notice the large arms, even without flexing, the tightness across the chest, and the looseness across the gut.  That's the same exact shirt.  I can actually see a six-pack starting to come out when I look in the mirror.  Those shorts in the before picture don't even fit without a belt any more.  I look better.  I feel better.  I sleep better.  I don't even need as much coffee to make it through a work day as I used to.

 

I was honestly starting to think I was doomed to be overweight for the rest of my life, but I've turned it around, and now for the numbers:

 

Weight:  Down 30 lbs. (net)

Body fat %:  Down 9 points (I was technically obese in the before picture, but barely)

Strength:  245 deadlift, 235 squat, 155 bench, 105 press (still getting the hang of cleans)

 

I've still got room for improvement, but for the first time in a decade, I'm actually proud of my body.  Thanks, guys.

 

P.S.  These changes have momentum.  I pulled a back muscle and couldn't lift or ride for almost 2 weeks, yet I continued to drop weight and body fat percentage the entire time.