Losing 20 Percent of my Bodyweight
250 to below 200
Sorry for not posting in so long. I’m done with promises of making regular posts, they will just happen when they happen.
One of my first articles I wrote for this substack was about a backpacking trip I did with my dad in summer of 2022, and how out of shape I was. Truth be told, however, this was just the beginning.
Preserving Perseverance
Last week, I took a three day backpacking trip with my dad. It was a familiar route, half of the Pemigewasset loop over South Twin, Guyot, West Bond, Bond and Bondcliff. At this point there are not many hikes left in New Hampshire that Dad and I haven’t tried at least once.
I had not stepped on a scale or tried to run a mile for some time, but I assumed I still weighed around my typical weight of 220 pounds, as I had hovered around that number for roughly the past decade.
The weekend of September 11th of 2022 was a weekend of reckoning for me. My mom and dad were on the verge of finishing their 48 four thousand footer list, a list which I had completed in high school, and asked anyone in the family to join them for a 20 mile traverse across several mountains to their last peak. I begrudgingly joined, along with my youngest brother.
Atop the first mountain about 5 miles in, I was gasping for air, feeling light headed, cramping all over, and knew I wasn’t going to be able to do the whole hike. In misery and defeat, I told them they’d have to leave me behind and that I’d make my way down to the car.
The next day, September 11th, I spoke alongside a few others at a Defend the Guard rally outside the State House in Concord, and the above picture was taken of me. When it was posted on Facebook and I was tagged in it, I was horrified to see how fat I had become. But the combination of these two wakeup calls still wasn’t enough to spring me into action.
It wasn’t until over six months later, following a breakup and a broken heart, that I finally decided to do something about my health. It was then that I stepped on a scale and found I had ascended to a whopping 247 pounds, by far the most I had ever weighed in my life. I could also barely squeeze into a 38 inch belt, and didn’t even want to know how long it would take me to run a mile. The task was daunting, but following the disappointment and devastation of a breakup I decided I could go cry in my bedroom, or use that limitless energy and frustration to make myself better. So I got a gym membership.
I started going to Planet Fitness every day before work, barely being able to run a 10 minute mile. As the days turned into weeks, I started to regain my cardiovascular strength, but the pounds were not dropping. It was obvious my diet was going to have to change too. In the summer, I started intermittent fasting, and cutting out sugar and flour. I replaced crackers in my lunch box with nuts. I stopped getting breakfast sandwiches and started meal prepping. I started eating almost twice as much protein. By the end of the summer, I had lost 30 pounds, was easily running a 7 minute mile, and was feeling much healthier. At this point I decided to add on some more exciting exercise routines like rock climbing, and got my brothers to join in with me.
Today, I’m down to 195 pounds, down to a 33 inch waist, running a 6 minute mile, and in the best shape I’ve seen since high school. I eat a lot, but I eat intelligently now. Every day for lunch I have a pound of steak with rice, two apples, a banana and a slice of watermelon. For dinner I have some similar assortment of protein and starch with a salad, and I skip breakfast. On weekends, I typically have a late breakfast and no lunch.
I wanted to share this in case anyone is thinking about taking a similar leap and finally getting their health under control. It’s not easy to take the first steps, but once you do, you won’t want to go back.
Well done!
Great work!