MRT2

Sadly, this may be true. Before my first big weight loss at the age of 14, I ate a lot for a kid. As a result, I was about 30 to 40 lbs overweight. (almost 190 lbs and only 5'5" at the time, busting out of my 34" waist jeans) Using a combination of bike riding, martial arts training, and adopting my Mom's weight watcher's diet, I dropped close to 40 lbs in exactly 10 weeks. So the day I went back to school, I was down to 152 and down to a 30" waist jeans. I know this because it was over my summer break, and I weighed myself the day summer break started, and again the day I went back to school. I continued the martial arts and bike riding and mostly kept the weight off for about 2 years before the weight started to come back on, maybe not coincidentally around the time I started to lose interest in martial arts and stopped cycling because I had my drivers licence by then. But the day I graduated high school, I was 5'9" and about 195. Still not bad, given where I was 3 years earlier.

Fast forward another 4 years to senior year of college. I am up to 235 lbs. On a bet with a college friend, I go on a weight loss program based on a book I read by Jane Brody. I counted calories, eliminated most sugar, but ate plenty of fruit and whole grains, moderate protein, low fat. This time, I lost 50 lbs in 4 months. So it took me longer, but I lost more weight. Sadly, I didn't keep it off and went all the way back to 230 in less than 2 years. So I go on the same diet, same 4 months, only this time, I only lose 30 lbs in 5 months before it tapers off.

Fast forward to 2004. This time, my weight is all the way up to 275. So I go back on the program, this time for 8 months, and lost 50 lbs. Actually kept it off for 4 years before the weight came back on, but I had to work out 5 days a week, and monitor everything I ate. And even at that, I still only got down to 220, or just 15 lbs less than what I was when I was pigging out on college cafeteria food, late night pizza, and beer.

So now I am once again watching my calories, trying to do it gradually. Ramping up the workouts, including martial arts once again. But 3 months in, I am only down 10 lbs. So I think there is something to the slowing metabolism theory.

bikingbill

Of all the achievements in my life, keeping almost all of the (close to 150lbs) 1996 weight loss off for 22 years is by far the most unlikely. It is a DAILY struggle.

raria

It's why I weight myself each morning and night. If I see a pattern of increasing weigjt I nip it in the bud.

Milton Keynes

I, too, weigh daily, and I can see the results of indulging the day before.

FrenchFit 

New negative:

I realized my wedding ring fits too loosely, I've been wearing it since 198..3? (About five years ago it was too tight.) I think it might fly off if I swing my arms around...yikes.

Also, my suits are baggy. Suits are expensive to replace or alter correctly, I guess I'll just buy thick underwear.

RubeRad

Jewelers can re-size rings. That might be worth the price.

I'm glad I don't have a life where I have to wear suits! And I like baggy T-shirts, so at my peak of ~255 XL shirts were getting snug, now down to the 220s they're feeling much better, and if I actually make it down to 200 I'll still be able to wear them. Wearing a lot more belts nowadays though...

MRT2

Next time you have a special occasion, reward yourself and buy a new suit. You earned it. I still have some suits from when I was thinner. Hoping by the fall I will fit into them.

RubeRad

lol maybe FrenchFit (I like that handle by the way), but I would never 'reward' myself with a new clothes-prison.

My idea of rewarding myself is usually in the form of food (which, obviously, is part of the problem). Or bike stuff.

bikingbill

ColonelSanders

1997 or 2007?

kingston 

I travel a lot for work and go out 3-4 times a week with clients and co-workers. Too many years of that got me up to around 220, so I made some big lifestyle changes to get back down to my college weight of around 160. The two biggest changes besides a more healthy diet are that I exercise almost every day and I don't drink alcohol anymore. The combination of these two things have made it so that I don't enjoy myself nearly as much as I used to going out with clients and co-workers. It's not that much fun staying out late with people who are drinking and having a good time when I'm drinking club soda, so now I leave early so I can get up in the morning and exercise. I like riding my bike and I like being fit, but I do miss staying out late drinking beer and eating bar food. I'm not sure if that's a negative effect as much as a lifestyle choice. Everything's a trade-off.

bikingbill

RubeRad

1. I think you spelled it wrong. It's not s u i t it's s l u t. Easy mistake
2. Looks like you got two
3. $1000 is a steal

Milton Keynes

It took me about an hour, but I did finally find the suit in that picture.

cyclist2000

I don't bother with daily weights anymore. I see my doctors 5 or 6 times a year and get weighed at each visit.

cyclist2000

I reward myself with clothing, bike clothing. after loosing some weight this year some of my jerseys and shorts are too baggy.

gios

I stopped taking my statin weeks ago.

I started a lot of reading lately on health, diet, chronic disease - from Dr. Dale Bredesen, to Dr. Jason Fung, Gary Taubes, and many more. Many studies that show total cholesterol is not a marker for heart disease, as we were led to believe all of these decades, and in fact high cholesterol is actually linked to longevity / a decrease in mortality.


^ at 1:12:24 Q & A

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bikingbill

Well, when my Triglycerides were north of 340, I was nowhere near as sharp mentally as I am today ... and that was 32 years ago.

raria

You spent $1000 on whose suit?

this

bikingbill

This is a most awesome pic.

Back to the suit. I literally spent over $1k at Nordstorms in 1997 after I lost the weight. I figured it would be motivation to keep it off.

Oh, and my wife took that pic:

RubeRad

Same event? Same suit? Same tie, same flipped-up right collar, same beer bottle held at same rotation in same hand, similar-looking dark-brown painted walls...

Just engaging in a little photographic forensics...

raria

Great wife!

Two more photios.
Your wife in the lingerie models outfits

KraneXL

Except that's not the (every) American man's desire. Its just that conservative gentlemen don't discuss such things in public.

Milton Keynes

I think what's more important is a good ratio of good to bad cholesterol. But cholesterol in your bloodstream is absolutely NOT affected by the amount of cholesterol in your diet. There are many studies which show this. You may be able to reduce your cholesterol by eating more vegetables, but it still mainly comes down to genetics.

Of course that doesn't mean I advocate eating greasy fast food all day long. A healthy diet is still important.

Milton Keynes

I finally made it into fitting a 1XL T-shirt. I still have a little ways to go but I'm happy that 1X shirts are comfortable on me now. I plan to get a couple of new jerseys soon as a reward.