shrinkingLeon's Journey so far

[Bestbud420]

Great job leon..very inspiring.. Keep it up : )

[maritacatrina]

Wow, you look amazing! What a transformation! I bet you feel like a million bucks!

[maritacatrina]

I sent this picture out to people today, and my mom called me talking about "You're thin enough!"

I know just what you mean there, I have family telling me I'm getting too thin, scoffing at my new eating habits or my refusal to have a beer or junk food at family functions, giving me nutrition advice that they themselves don't heed or understand, etc etc etc. It's like, just be happy for me or keep your comments to yourself!

[B3N]

Wow! Man you have dropped some weight. Congrats, I bet you feel amazing now being able to run and enjoy physical activities!

[Trish0102]

Very wonderful weight loss progress. Congrats to you!

[shrinkingLeon]

Well, a lot has happened in the last year...including me getting laid off and having to join a cheaper gym that doesn't have as many free weights, but I've managed to finally get out of the 230's, and weigh around 225. It's been hard because I've been dealing with depression on one end, and my social life has impproved due to some personal changes in my life. Truth be told, it's a miracle I didn't blow the hell up again.

This was a pic I took last week:




Compare that to this past summer, when I had ballooned back up to 245:



^^That pic was taken in July 2012 BTW...

Be that as it may, old habits die hard. Sometimes I can go by two weeks without a major cheat, and then I have a weekend like I did last week that started off with a trip to the Indian Buffet and culminated in a plate of fried scallops, shrimps and French Fries and a bunch of vodka. Yeah...So I know not to complain and whine that I'm not losing weight like I wanted to.

I will say that a hybrid 4 Hour Body/Primal/Last Mile approach has helped me quite a bit. I only eat lentils with my meals before my workout versus eating them all day. I've also discovered miracle noodles and glucomannan supplements. Which work great in terms of staying satiated, but take forever to pass through your body O_o.

Long story short? I'm not where I want to be, but considering the circumstances surrounding my life over the last year, I could be in a much worse place. There were days where I would eat a whole box of cookies because of being down in the dumps. You'd think that after being on this diet for the most part for the better part of almost 4 years, I'd be a lot more disciplined.

I gave up candy, cakes, and pies for Lent this year, and that's definitely helped.

But almond butter. I love almond butter. So I know I had to cut that out! And I've limited cooking ghee only for breakfast from time-to-time.

I've tried intermittent fasting from time to time, and I've learned that I can get by extended periods of time without food, but I do want to make it a more significant part of my lifestyle, especially on days after cheat days/meals.

Also, my exercise routine needs some sprucing up. I've been lifting heavier, but I still love my cardio. Due to my body type, my fat sticks to me like a magnet, so cardio is actually okay for now...at least that's what's been told to me, but there's so much conflicting information. I try to limit it to about 30 min/day High Intensity for now. Eventually, I want to train for a half-marathon. I ran in a 5K last year and loved it!



So yeah, I want to lose at least 40 more pounds. I'm freelance writing right now, but I haven't wrote anything on weight loss yet because I feel my journey is so incomplete, but I do want to sit down one day and write about my experiences and how my weight loss has affected my life personally (I realized I was eating my pain away for many years because I wasn't true to myself).

So onward and upward and all of that crap...I'm approaching my 4-year anniversary of my initial weight loss and this has definitely been a time of reflection and reorganization.

[Boss Man]

Big man, good to see you again .

The bottom line is, you've come a heck of a long way since you started, so be proud of yourself.

It was never going to be a straightforward process, but by continuing to believe in yourself, you have continued to make it happen. I'm proud of you man and it's taken a lot of steps to get here, but you have had what it takes to make those steps.

As long as you keep believing in yourself and recognising what you are capable of on the inside, you WILL make it.

GOOD LUCK and remember that you ARE worth it, so don't stop trying .

[Alinshop]

WOW!!!!

I am impressed and inspired. You are the man!!!