How did I lose 100 lbs.?

I know that this is the part that people are most interested in reading, so I will begin here.  Actions I took to lose the weight were:

• Learning to cook healthy food
• Cooking more-or-less daily
• Cooking in bulk and storing my food in Tupperware
• Lifting weights 3-5 times per week
• Developing a passion for hiking
• Swimming whenever possible
• Quit smoking
• Quit drinking alcohol… with some rare exceptions ; )
• Sleeping well
• Associating myself with people who shared my interests and goals
• Consistency!!!

So basically… I ate healthy, exercised regularly, avoided drugs and alcohol, and rested sufficiently. That’s it. I would say that this was a lifestyle change and not a diet. My vast experience leads me to believe that diets are useless, and the only way to go from obese to healthy is to change your way of living and to keep that change permanent!

Background – The Low (High?) Point

Growing up in Ireland I was a fit (not fat) little dude.  When I was about six years old my family moved back to the USA and from there I began putting on weight rapidly. I always played sport, which certainly helped, but I often injured myself and spending months in a cast over and over again is not conducive to staying in shape.  I also clearly did not eat very healthily, and I jokingly blame Angelo’s Pizzeria on McLean Ave. in Yonkers, New York for making me obese… I still think it is the best pizza in the world, by the way!

I entered high school at 13 years old and about 240lbs or more.  To change that I joined the wrestling team, and after only one season (about 4 months) I dropped down to around 190lbs or possibly even less!  Unfortunately, I also injured my shoulder and eventually quit wrestling in favor of chess and other less physically taxing hobbies.  After only two years, and with very little physical activity, and had ballooned up to my maximum weight of 296lbs!

Homer Simpson Moment

For those of you who remember, there was a Simpson’s episode where Homer deliberately tried to gain weight to get on disability. When I stepped on the scale and saw 296 lbs. I was understandably concerned, and I thought about that Simpson’s episode… I could either gain that extra 4 lbs. and break the 300 lbs. mark, or I could get my act together then and there to make sure that would never happen. Fortunately for me, I chose the latter.

An Up-and-Down Road

My weight loss journey was not linear by any means.  I entered university around 280 lbs., got down to a low of about 235 lbs., and eventually graduated at approximately 260 lbs. This trend continued for the next 8 years. I would lose weight, then gain it back, etc…

Looking back, I would say that much of this yo-yoing had to do with my mental state at the time. When I was stressed and unhappy I ate more, drank, and was less motivated to exercise. Much of this had to do with work or relationship stressors. On the contrary, when I was happy I pushed myself to exercise, eat right and live a healthier lifestyle. While in Australia in 2010, for example, I discovered that exercising alone was enough to make me happy, and the fitter I got the happier I became.  It was in Australia that I actually lost the 100 lbs. for the first time, and I believe I was able to do it because I was genuinely happy and I was super active. I worked hard, ate right, discovered a passion for hiking and had very little stress in my life in general.

Sustainability

That success did not last forever, however, and I eventually put the weight back on.  This was especially true while I was in Mexico.  The food there was delicious and cheap, which did not help, but mostly it was the stress which did me in!  The city I was living in at the time was not especially safe and I was stuck in a job which I did not care for much.  I eventually returned to food as a comfort source, got unmotivated and ballooned back up to about 250 lbs. by around Christmas of 2012.

It took a change of scenery for both my mind and body to get back in shape.  I moved to Guatemala and devoted myself to personal interests/hobbies, specifically learning Spanish. When I became happier in general I got more motivated to exercise again. I hit the gym hard, hiked a ton, and ate pretty healthily.  By the time I left for Peru I had a pretty good condition despite not having what you might call a beautiful body.

Peru – Losing 100 lbs a 2^nd time

I am happy to say that since moving to Peru 10 months ago I have been much happier in life and more motivated to being healthy.  I cook almost every day and eat pretty nutriciously. I also rediscovered a passion for the gym and most recently for swimming.  Since arriving I have lost probably 40 lbs. and can now happily report that I weight 194 lbs as of the date of publishing… for a total weight loss of 102 lbs. from my heaviest!

Advice

My best advice is to stay consistent, learn to cook, find a type of exercise that you actually enjoy doing, and resist drugs and alcohol. Most importantly… stay positive and remember that exercising is as beneficial for the mind as it is for the body.  It’s not easy, and there are certainly sacrifices to be made, but at the end of the day I feel so much better now that I have felt since I was in Australia.  Exercising my body has not only improved my body, but also my confidence, energy levels, concentration and happiness in general.

Connecting with Others

Right now health and fitness is my top priority in life. I view every day as an opportunity to help me reach the goals I have set out for myself. I hope other people feel as motivated as me. I would love to hear from others who have also changed their lives, lost some weight and gotten healthier. Feel free to reach out to me to share your experience.

All the best!