Heavyweights: Thicc Boys of the Refuge Unite!

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725

Long time first time. 6’3" and stayed between 180-190 throughout college. Played lots of pick up hoops, flag football, volleyball, walked to class, etc. Things started to go off the rails my senior year (2011). I moved far enough off campus that I had to drive to class/gym/etc. Started dating my (now) wife more seriously, opted to spend time with her, lots of meals out, less time for sports, etc. Coupled with turning 21 and going to bars, weight started to creep up. I was about 205 when I graduated.

Went to law school and things really started to get out of hand. I was going to class, then from there to study, then to law review office or moot court. Eating my stress, getting virtually no exercise. Would jump into a “gonna fix this” mood every once in a while, but never stuck with it.

In December 2013, got engaged. Weighed 238, by far the heaviest I’ve been and really hated myself but loved eating and doing nothing far more. Stayed about that weight til graduating law school in 2014, but went on a mission to lose weight for the wedding. By April 2015, I was down to 209. It still wasn’t ideal, but it was a lot better. I felt better, had more energy, didn’t snore as much, didn’t get heartburn as much, etc.

Well, here we are in 2020 and I’ve slowly crept up to 225 again. I have a kid, she wears me out, and I want to be around long enough to see her grow up. Heart issues on both sides of the family history, as well as diabetes, kidney stones, etc. I’m only 32 and not ready to have that be my reality.

So I’m back on the bus. Running/walking daily, counting calories, a few hundred jumping jacks during the work day. Cutting way down on carbs, throwing in some intermittent fasting (shoutout @Lazstradamus) and trying sincerely to get down to 199 by the end of the year. We’re about 3 weeks in and I’m down to 221 from a starting weight of 226. I recently got an older model apple watch and I’m really liking the accountability it provides. Having goals for calorie burn, exercise length, and steps throughout the day makes a huge difference in how much I give a shit.

Anyways, long post, but this is now part of my journey and typing it all out has given me more perspective and accountability. I’ll check in occasionally. If I do get down to 199 by Jan 1, I have something special in mind as reward, but I’m keeping it to myself for now. If it looks like it might become reality, I’ll reveal as it gets closer.

Love this thread, thanks to all, and appreciate the space to vent.

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726

Checking in with this thread

Turning 50 in December and figuring it’s time I finally got serious about dropping some weight before then. My problem has never been the exercise side (though I do need more cardio). I walk probably close to 5 miles a day on average. My problem has been on the eating and drinking side.

Getting serious means I’ve cut out wheat (really most grains except brown rice and occasionally sushi rice), dairy, red meat, sugar and alcohol. Allowing myself one cheat day a week but even then I’m trying to keep that cheat day more reasonable than I would have been before.

Still early days but down over five pounds in the first week is encouraging.

Goal is to be under 200 by my birthday (shade over 225 at the moment).

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727

Anyone carb cycle and had success with it? I’ve just started looking into it and not really sure where to begin with it.

728

I lost 60lbs in 3 months on keto and got really burned out. I started eating super low carb during the week and allowing myself cold beers and junk food on weekends. My weight loss definitely slowed, but I dropped another 20lbs over a period of a few months. I know carb cycling can mean a bunch of different things, but that’s how I did it.

After going off the rails a few months ago and gaining 40lbs back, I am not losing any weight by cycling. It’s back to keto for me.

I’m not a diet expert by any means, but that is my experience. Good luck!

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729

Been a member of the Refuge/Nest since Nov of last year but this is my first post. If I’m not doing it right, oops. First of all thank you for whomever started this thread.

The TLDR version is this: I know what a lot of you have been through and/or are going through. 2020 has been a nightmare and more than anything it certainly helps me to know I am not alone in a time when isolation is now a part of life. Ultimately life boils down to personal choices and accountability I’m hoping to turn a corner.

The stark reality - I’m fat. I have been fat since, judging by school photos, 1st grade. Throughout my life I’ve been self aware enough to know that if I owned that and was self deprecating enough that I could not be hurt if people called me fat. So like a lot of fat people I used self deprecation as a weapon and it worked/works. I have a quick wit, a desire to be liked/valued, and determination that’s developed into a work ethic and empathy enough to be a good leader. People like me (shout out Stu Smalley).

We’ll skip the part about growing up feeling less than constantly because of how much more of me there actually was relative to my peer group. Tale as old as time.

College (~12 yrs ago, yikes) was the first time in my life where I took the desire to change and paired it with that independence and personal responsibility to actually change. I treated the gym and nutrition like it was a different class and got to my all time low weight of 210. I was strong as hell and finally found confidence. Girls noticed me.

It was all downhill from there. After I graduated I got dumped. I entered what was a horrendous job market ('08) after getting a degree in a creative field. And so above all else the pursuit of career took over.

It’s been 10 years and I’ve put on 100 lbs. I’ve worked hard enough to get a job that should be good enough to build up a damn good nest egg. And I’ve also let it consume me. Inactivity and stress have also led to deteriorating mental health. Anxiety and depression are taking a toll.

I have had enough. Today is the second day in a row I have done some type of aerobic exercise. I just set myself up with a meal subscription service to take those bad decisions on food choices out of my hands. It’s already made for me. My initial goal is 50 lbs. Once that is done we’ll see where else that goes.

Also I love golf.

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730

Hell yeah man. Great first post. Find someone to keep you accountable or just check in with updates or whatever to keep it on the front burner.
If you don’t have somebody in mind, hit me up or I’m sure any number of guys around here would be happy to do the same.

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731

Yeah echo @HaveOuimet on all accounts. Great first post and hope you get more involved here. More importantly, feel free to use any of us for support. @HaveOuimet has been failing me lately as my accountability coach but I’m sure it’s for good reason (I kid, I kid Adam)

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732

This group and this thread specifically got me off my ass and inspired me to actually do something about it. Sounds like you have the right mentality at the moment.

I’m happy to give you notes on what worked for me via PM if you’re interested.

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733

Thanks, man.

734

'Preciate it!

735

218 this morning, from 226 starting over 5 weeks total. So averaging 1.6 lbs per week, which I’m reading is a healthy weight loss rate. Noticing my wind getting better on runs, my knees hurting less on jumping jacks and burpees, sleeping better and havent taken a zantac in about 2 weeks.

14 weeks left to reach my goal, and assuming I continue at roughly a 1.5 pound per week average, I am right on track to hit that 197-199 goal by the new year.

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736

Good work - keep it up! Just don’t get frustrated when you hit that inevitable plateau. Power through it and “trust the process”

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737

Maybe I just missed it but any other units on here waiting for some 4XL merch to drop?

738

Another check in. 211 this morning. Down 15 pounds since I started roughly 8 weeks ago. I definitely plateaued last week at 214-216. Part of it was self inflicted bad eating, the other part was some soreness in my right achilles that prevented me from running. I was still doing lengthy walks but the calorie burn isn’t there. The soreness has alleviated and I’m back to being able to do 2+ mile jogs.

We’re getting close to a major milestone. I was 209 on my wedding day in April of 2015. I came back from my honeymoon at 214 and haven’t sniffed sub-210 since. Once the wedding was over, I lost all motivation to work out and the pounds started creeping back up. Well, if I can break 210 next week, I’m counting on a big psychological boost.

I’m also starting to adjust my goals. 199 on Jan 1 will still be considered a success, but 190-195 is an even better weight for my 6’4" frame and will give me some leeway to make sure I can maintain without breaking 200 again. I’ve also got my average mile down to 10:30, and I’m trying to get down into the 9s by the end of this experiment. I think I’m going to commit to the Gate River Run 15k, assuming they have it, in March. I’ve never done anything close to that and I have a LONG way to go, but with every pound I shed, I feel lighter on my feet and extend my distance I can keep my heart rate up without taking walking breaks.

Last thing I’ll say is that calorie counting is becoming second nature now. I’ve never been one to look at labels for nutritional information, but now after logging something like 50 days in a row of food intake, I’m getting pretty good at predicting a caloric range for foods and beverages. That feels empowering, and as I get down to my maintenance weight of 195, I think it will be easier to keep the weight off just by making smarter choices about the foods and portions I’m eating, even as I can allow myself to go back to 1500-2000 calories a day rather than the 900-1300 range I’m in now.

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739

Nice work!

I’ve crept back up just over 210 due to a relaxing of what was helping me get and keep the weight off. Also 3 golf tournament outings & a trip in the last month or so. Time to get back on my grind. 199 was my goal as well - I was so close (204).

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740

You can do it man. I know the last few pounds are going to be the hardest. After the first 10, each additional pound seems to take more effort and discipline than the one before it. My wife has been super encouraging, as have my friends and co-workers who have started to say things unsolicited about my appearance, which drives home that its working. Find your sources of motivation and power through!

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741

For sure. I got from 260 to 205 in about 6 months this past Dec-May on pretty much just dietary changes. Then relaxed the diet a bit but maintained pretty well during the summer when it was hot and I was doing a ton of yard work, walking 18 holes once or twice a week, etc.

Lately the diet has continued to be relaxed and much less exercise/physical activity to offset it. Just gotta commit myself to it again.

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742

Just found this thread and need some motivation.

Always a big gui, but since breaking my neck in 2015 have been trying to fight off the weight gain rather unsuccessfully. (skip to bottom for tl;dr)

Was always around 225 through college and was rather active (lifted 3x weekly, played beer league ice/inline hockey, pick up hoops/backyard football games with the bois, walked 95% of my golf rounds, etc). Fell in love with weightlifting after college and weight went up. Considered competing in 105kg but ended up being more comfy and stronger in the 105+ class. Trained and ate my way up to 255 and was very happy there for years. Broke my whole neck then lost 30+ lbs in the hospital for a few months (s/o to shitty hospital food) but packed it right back on plus some after (s/o eating like a competitive weightlifter even though you could barely move).

Have had luck with low carb/higher fat intake and intermittent fasting but always get derailed with pizza or pasta. My will power is good but italian food is my kryptonite. Finally back on the keto-ish wagon and feeling good again. Just gotta keep on going and not look at pizza/pasta.

Just got botox injections in my leg to help my muscles not be so tight and hopefully allow me to regain a somewhat normal gait. So far, it seems as though the results are positive. Now I need to get my ass walking on a regular basis for exercise.

Current big goal in life is now to lose some weight and improve my walking enough to be able to walk for golf again. That is one of the biggest things I miss from my “past life”.

tl;dr – I’m fat. Have always been a husky boi. Broke my neck, beat paralysis. Trying to get back to walking for golf again.

Moral of the story: Enjoy your strolls around the course. Be careful in the ocean.

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743

Hey man, just catching up on this thread. Great job with the weight loss; mine has helped immensely with my acid reflux, too. But toss that Zantac!

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744

Thanks, and thanks. I should have been clear that I was mostly using zantac as a fill-in for “heartburn meds” in general. My wife made sure I hadn’t been taking Ranitidine for quite some time due to what you posted above. I went to look at the bottle, I was taking Famotidine which is the generic Pepcid. I think that’s still safe. Either way, haven’t had to take one in a loooong time now.

To catch up on this thread, I’m down to 205-206 and each pound still seems to take more effort than the last (which is how I was feeling the last time I posted in this thread, apparently). However, I’m so close to the sub-200 goal that I’m going to do it. Now that the weather is getting a little cooler, it’s really enjoyable to run outside here in Jacksonville!

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