Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Day 183 : Goal Attained; Phase 1 Complete

Weigh-In: 214.4 lbs

I'm hereby declaring my original weight loss goal of 215 pounds to have been met. I've been weighing in the 213-215 range for a week now, so I'm going to call it.

Here's a few stats of what was achieved over 183 days:

- Roughly 81 pounds lost
- average 3.01 pounds of weight loss per week over 26 weeks.
- 10 inches lost of off waist, size 44 pants to 34.
- Size XXL Shirt to size L
- 2 inches gained in inseam? Seems weird, but I now wear a 34" inseam as compared to 32". I think the difference is because my pants were forced to reside under my gut, hence the two extra inches.
- I no longer snore
- I no longer get constant heart burn

Here are some of the things I can think of that made me successful so far.

- Persistence. It's in my nature that when I really decide I'm going to do something to give it my all. It just happens to have took me until I was 30 years old to decide to do this. I was getting some form of exercise almost every day. I was watching what I ate ALL THE TIME. Any one not great day I had was ten times better than my best day before I started this lifestyle. I do not give up. Any movement is progress no matter how small. Once you realize that, the pain of working out and being healthy is a lot easier.

- Ease. On some level, however you decide to change your lifestyle, you have to make it fit your schedule and your lifestyle. I was very lucky in that I had a gym in my work building and a schedule that allows me to use it basically when I want. Without persistence and the will to do anything this would be useless, but the fact the facilities where there make it all that much easier to act on them. That said, I did many things that contributed to my weight loss that anyone can do, no matter what there physical location to a gym is. One of them is using a pedometer and simply walking whenever possible. Running. Planning meals. Keeping healthy snacks around. Any of these things anyone can do to make this change easier on yourself. Once you do it for a while it becomes second nature anyway.

- Support. I had full support from Liz, my girlfriend and from my friends and family. I'm sure it was an adjustment at first dealing with me not wanting to eat or do some things that I'd always done before. But overall everyone dealt with it pretty well. These blogs were also one of my main means of support. I can't say I wouldn't have done any of this if I had not happened across my former co worker/friend's blog Billy, but it was a huge inspiration and a big push to get me moving. Hell if Billy could do it anyone could :). The blogs were a big help for info and support for me. Thank you all for that!

In Conclusion:

Moving Forward:
Just because I've declared this goal met does not mean this is over. The first phase might be done, but as I've said in the past, this is a new , healthy lifestyle. In a way it will never end. I will never stop regularly monitoring my weight. I will never stop paying attention to what I put in my body. I will never stop making sure I get some forms of exercise.

As I've mentioned, my next set of goals are to exchange some of my left over fat for muscle. Although I appear pretty slim and fit in clothing, I'm still a bit soft around the middle. I have not reached my full fitness potential in many respects. I want to be able to bench press my body weight, squat my body weight, do pull-ups, etc etc. I guess you could consider those things phase two of my transformation.

I might end up weighing less than I do now, I might weight slightly more, who knows. Muscle after all weights more than fat. The point is that I want to get my fat percentage down and my muscle percentage up. I want to wear a swimsuit and be proud of myself. I've made a hell of a lot of progress, but now it's time to fine tune.

That's all I have for today. Thanks again for everyone's support and for reading my blog over the past 183 days.

11 comments:

Ripx180 said...

congrats on meeting your original goal. You did it in superstar fashion. Your another walking, breathing testament that it can be done. Cant wait to see what you do with this next phase of the lifestyle. I think building muscle is as hard as loosing weight so game on.

billy said...

Bravo.

Well done, sir. In a way, I feel like you're my weight loss child who is now all grown up. (sniffle)

Seriously though, you've done a tremendous, whoop-ass job. I look around and I see all kinds of people struggling and having problems, but you are not one of them.

Part of me wants to say that physically you must have a slightly easier time losing fat than others, averaging 3+ pounds a week for so long is pretty unheard of, even among seasoned veterans.

But really the most important thing was your winning attitude. You weren't a victim, you took responsibility and did what needed to be done. It involved hard work and sacrifice.

Anyway, be proud of yourself today. You still have a long road ahead.

Geoff said...

A maintained weight loss of 3 pounds a week is insane. I'm lucky to average that much a month. Good job. But building muscle is no joke either, so keep focused.

Dave said...

Congrats! Hopefully I can follow somewhat in your's and Billy's footsteps. BTW, how tall are you?

Brian said...

Dave,
I'm 6'3"

Rob Tucker said...

Here is me, standing up and applauding.

Damn, man. Impressive.

Marcol said...

Nice on reaching your goal weight. But as others have said, the next phase is just as difficult if not more. But enjoy this day :)

Brian said...

today isnt really any different for me, and like I've said, that was just phase 1. I'm looking forward to the next set of challenges though!

kyle said...

You definitely don't have to thank me for reading your blog, it should be I who is thanking you for being a constant source of inspiration. You're always spot on with your eyes on the prize, and quick to lend the useful information that you've learned to the rest of us. So CONGRATS on your success, and again thanks for sharing :).

Carrie said...

Awesome. 3 lbs per week, lucky you, but now you've got the next hardest part. There's definitely something to be said for transitioning. I'll be doing that myself come March, and I'm looking forward to it. Keep us updated on the muscle gaining!

layla said...

well done! you thoroughly deserve this. Its great always having something to aspire to, rather than just resting on your laurels. Gaining muscle mass will be tricky since it involves eating more and moving upwards instead of downwards. Also, your nutrition has got to be spot on because you want to keep body fat low and lbm high. i think what lies ahead will really test you but you have a wealth of experience to tap into. you have so much to be proud of and I'll be cheering you on!