Deep enough brother. I was at 212lbs at 39 yrs old and I’m 5’ 8”. I have pretty good genetics so I wasn’t like one of those guys you see on biggest loser, but I was way off of where I should have been.
The years of eating badly did a number on my hormones, and also insulin resistance issues.
Been a long road, but I see light at the end of the tunnel now!
Man, glad you had those genetics to keep you from looking too overweight – but so cool to see how you turned things around! Sounds like you were a pretty big dude. What would you compare your build at that time to – like a defensive lineman? Strongman? What was your diet like? And did you ever exercise?
Thanks for sharing your experience with us younger guys. It really is a huge help and an inspiration. I’m learning a lot from you!
Ha ha! Thanks for being kind lol!
Not quite. I’ve never seen a 5’ 8” lineman (well maybe in high school)! I would say at best I looked like a running back that let himself go. Stats at that point were…
212 lbs
~28% BF
I’ve posted pics a few months back of where I started trying to turn things around and my progress at the point of that posting.
I’ve made more progress since then (currently at 187 lbs and ~17% BF) and I’m going to post those pics before too much longer. I’m in the middle of a 12 week routine now and will update at the end of it.
Nice, brother! I looked through your thread but am having a hard time finding those before/progress photos. Would you mind linking me? Looking forward to seeing how far you’ve come along of late and hearing the results of that 12-week routine, too!
Sure thing. Here is a progress pic / update post from back in December.
I did keto for a while but that wrecked my cholesterol. I eat eat around a 40-30-30 split now at around 2400-2600 calories/ day.
Looking super swole, man! Very impressive transformation. Keto got me pretty fat (low 20s BF) and wrecked my cholesterol, too.
It’s funny how it’s hailed as a miracle diet. It definitely can be amazing for some things – people with epilepsy, obese people, mental clarity, etc – but can also be terrible for others. I definitely don’t think it’s optimal for normal “gym bros” (like yours truly) who just want good overall health, longevity, and aesthetics. Carbs (the good kind) can be a vital supplement!
Thank you brother. Like I was saying before, it’s a lot harder as you get older. In my 20’s I could have seen that progress in 6 months, not two years.
It’s a great tool to put in your tool box for a really quick cut, it’s just not great for a lifestyle choice. I’ve read that the cholesterol issues will work themselves out over the course of a year or so, but with a family history of heart disease, I’m not willing to take that chance.
Yup I’m 40 now and get it 
Here is my personal issue with keto - I’m one candy bar away from being out of it, and then I have a fukked up high fat diet and I am not in keto.
I’ve done it, and done well on it, but am unable to stay on it for long. For me, low carb and carb cycling is better - along with 16:8 IF.
Yeah, it doesn’t leave much if any margin for error. I agree with you when fat loss is the explicit goal. I think for muscle gain/recomp – at least for me personally – it’s better to have more carbs. They do a lot for my workouts (even if it’s psychological, it still works!).
How long in life did it take you to figure it out? When did things ‘click,’ and what did it?
I’m curious: what is it that got you to take command of your health? Was there one specific inciting moment that sparked the change?
I was talking with my wife this week about my long-term goals for my body. She has been making a lot of comments lately about how much my body-comp has improved and jokingly said, ‘what if you get so big (jacked) you explode?’ She really is loving it, though – she can’t get enough of my body these days!
I told her my goal is to eventually be as lean as I am now (~10%), but at 200 lbs. Considering I’m 6’2", I think that would put me in elite condition while still not making me look like an absolute freakshow.
What do y’all think of that goal – attainable, unreasonable? Anyone you can think of – in sports, bodybuilding, etc. – who has similar measurements, who I could look at as inspiration? I’m built like a speedy WR right now, but would like to be more in the athletic-but-buff TE/LB mold one day.
Obviously, it will take a long time to get there (I’d need 25 more lbs of muscle mass), even with the assistance of exogenous T, but it’s what I’ve had in mind as my dream benchmark for a while now.
Interesting post. Not sure you are aware of this, but I’m big into spirituality and woo woo shit - check this thread
It’s possible to walk around at 10% and maintain it, but difficult. You’re in love with the changes right now, and that’s great, but you’ll get bored, or tired of the routine, find other interests, and move on - probably.
I looked best at 196 and about 14%, but wanted to get leaner, so I dieted down to 174 and 11% and just looked skinny. So, check the mirror rather than the numbers, and focus on optimizing your health.
As far as the woo woo aspect, enjoy today brother. Don’t look forward to 200 and 10%, enjoy the process. You will want to mix it up at some point, maybe do some power lifting, switch up the split, maybe get into something else like strong man. Just enjoy the journey.
When I was in my best shape, my buddy would make me take off my shirt at parties because he thought I was a freak at 53 years old with abs and muscular. He loved it. I was kind of embarrassed about it because I knew it was the TRT. But my T levels were normal, so… And I wasn’t even really jacked.
I got bored with it and got into yoga. Got off T, dropped down to 174 a second time, looked even worse, lol.
Point being, albeit poorly made, this too shall pass. Enjoy it and be present.
Peace.
This is awesome. One of the more interesting and thought-provoking posts I’ve ever seen on T-N. So cool to hear about your journey. Thanks for sharing, brother.
At 27 I got sober and at 30 I got sick of being skinny fat, smoking and not being able to do what I loved . Which is running and cycling.
My stomach was half pregnant I had to wear two shirts . I had fat sagging under my biceps and etc.
I just decided one day to start working. I ended up in Houston and wasted time with bros telling me what and how to lift. For two years I tried to lift and wasn’t getting anywhere.
Around 30 I hired a good trainer and once a week he’s push me and give me a plan for the month. He ended up teaching me everything I know. Gave me a three month plan for muscle confusion and to work my entire body.
I dropped and stayed at 185. Started cycling and lost all my muscle mass and got down to 165. That’s 4 years of cycling only.
Anyways now I’m trt I have an even better appreciation for my diet as well.
30 to 40 flew by. I’m. Sure 40-50 will. So I’m not going to slack and let time fly by again. I don’t want to wake up in ten years beaten down , exhausted and out of shape.
I worked out off and on for most of my adult life, but never what I would call consistent. I moved my family to Montana in 2015 in search of a better quality of life.
Yes there was. Without going into too much detail, the jest of it started in 2016.
In that year my marriage fell apart, my then 16 year old son fell in with a bad crowd and overdosed on hard drugs nearly losing his life, and I lost my job at the end of that year.
In Feb 2017, I got a new job and decided that I could either let the previous year define me, and destroy me in the process, or pick myself back up by the bootstraps and rebuild who I was. I chose option 2. My wife and I went all in on our marriage, and my son went through rehabilitation and eventually wound up getting a job with the same company I work for. He has turned his life around and now has his own apartment and a GF that is looking like will eventually be my daughter in law. He’s really got his head screwed on right now and deals with life in a productive way. My wife is now my best and only friend in this world, and the one person that I know that will be there, no matter what.
My wife and I decided that we wanted to make this newfound lease on life and our marriage last as long as we possibly could. It’s hard to grow old if you destroy your body, so in early 2017 we started building our home gym and cleaning up the diet. Various failed attempts at dialing in and countless hours of research and experimentation (with very underwhelming results) led me down the path TRT in October of 2018.
I turned my life around some time ago. I started giving my body what it needed to make the most of that decision (TRT) about 8 months ago.
That’s fantastic man! Glad to hear you guys worked through the problems. It’s amazing how much better a marriage is if you simply make it a priority like anything else in your life. Good on you man!
