Chaos, Genius, and Reality. Just a normal day.

[BruteSquad]

I have been reading NF for quite some time. LOVE IT. What got me was how much of the exact same stuff I had figured out the hard way only to find it here in an organized form.

So here I am. Where am I?

I was actually pretty healthy and active. All state wrestler in high school. Later, as an adult, became Virginia State Judo Champion and East Coast Brazilian Jiujitsu champion. (I am old, this was beginning days of UFC) I have traveled most of Europe, UK, and even most of the Ukraine. Then I started chasing a career. Slowly, as the time spent driving in my car grew longer and longer, the amount of fast food containers piling up in the car grew, so did my waist and my weight.

Now I am not a small guy. I am 6'4" ~ 6'5" depending on what convenience store I am walking out of, and I was competing in Judo at around 300lbs training 6 days a week and on a pretty brutal diet. (Although I now see where I could have improved that diet quite a bit) My weight then was between 305lbs and 295 lbs. Looking back I would have probably been ripped up at around 280 - 285 lbs. But again, I was working out 6 days a week. Hard workouts 4 days, and two cardio or "light" days.

Fast forward from 30yrs old to 40 yrs old. Editing a video of a get together with friends I see a fat guy in a blue shirt. He turns around and I am face to face with some guy that looks like me but way fatter. I paused that video and looked at it for a while. Thinking about how I got there. Realized I had only the mirror over the bathroom sink in my house, realized how many fast food containers were on the floor of my car. So the next day I went out and bought a full length mirror and scale. I had to return the scale because it only went up to 400 lbs. I was devastated. But came back home and ordered a scale that went to 440lbs and hoped that was enough.

425 lbs. Think about that for a minute, I will wait................... I was heavier than NFL linemen. (That is two and a half times the weight of Staci.) And then I realized that I was also starting to have issues walking. I could walk, but my knee was complaining. OF COURSE IT WAS! So I worked with a nutritionist. From what I have read, I was lucky, this guy's goal was to get me to a point where I didn't need him after 6 months. I worked with an online trainer, she was awesome. I lost 80 lbs. Then my job got REALLY insane. I got back up to 407lbs. So, it was time for extreme measures.

I changed jobs. I am now making less money than I did a year ago. But I am getting rid of a bunch of junk I didn't need. Selling all my crap. I actually have a job where I am working 40 - 50 hours a week instead of 70. I am working out 5 days a week with HIIT workouts. I AM HAPPY! (put a price on that!)

I had messed with what I ate until I found the sweet spot for me. It is pseudo primal. I eat toast several times a week. Once in a while I have rice or pasta. I think I had rice about a month ago.... but I digress. I don't have cable or satellite TV...My boxer is glad of that, we do more together now. I have a garden, I have learned to can veggies, I have also started a weekly video blog on my journey to fitness. The vblog keeps me focused. I care less and less about weight, more and more about various fitness goals. That said, I am down to 370lbs since January. I really wouldn't mind weighing 400 lbs if I were at 8% bodyfat.....I would be kind of like a hairless Wookie then.....well mostly hairless.

I am on track, but part of that is using resources that help, like NF. Another big part of it, for me, is being able to wave pom poms and cheer others on to their goals. I am so NOT wearing the cheerleader outfit! You should thank me for that.

I am always evolving or leveling up. Just now I am bring my body along for the trip.

[maggerson]

This is basically awesome, thanks for sharing this with us here! And also, welcome to NF!

[unicornassassin]

Welcome! I can totally relate to the driving weight gain. I used to drive taxi, and ugh, I packed on some pounds!

[yadz]

Go you! losing all that weight is a helluva accomplishment. and it takes a lot of guts to just up and change jobs like that. you kick ALL of the ass.

[RaeVynn]

Welcome!

With your attitude, I'm gonna stand back and applaud your progress, cuz nothing is getting in your way!