I have literally worked my ass off in order to lose weight and stay healthy.
It was a lifestyle change that I was determined to make after receiving a major health scare last August after my weight had ballooned significantly from early 2015 to the summer.
I was at my biggest in my life as my sweaters were at XXL, my waist size went up to size 40, my dress shirts were 18 3/4 and I gained a tremendous amount of weight.
No doubt 2014 was a tough year, after seeing one of my good friends pass away (due to depression during the downward turn of the economy, he started turning towards food for happiness). The result was he gained a lot of weight, to the point he could hardly breathe, he started becoming narcoleptic and diabetes struck.
I never thought I would be in his shoes as I worked out, I was always conscious about myself but I felt my life was going through a dark patch and I found myself turning to food as a form of happiness. Not giving a care in the world…
Until I got sick.
Pre-diabetes (blood sugar was over 200), fatty liver, body pains, couldn’t sleep, digestion was terrible, blockage in my intestines, major acid reflux, my skin complexion changed for the worse, I was at the worse point of my life.
And what was sad was that I was always telling my friend to take care of himself and workout, if he wants to live longer.
I became the hypocrite. I followed his footsteps and was always eating out, purchased processed foods and it was bad.
After being diagnosed and having undergone tests, I changed my lifestyle which I have detailed on my blog. Changed my eating habits, worked out, doing meal plans daily and keeping to the plan.
While part of my lifestyle change was to decrease my carb intake, no breads, no pasta and no rice, I began to shed the pounds quickly.
During my last lab tests in February, I manage to lose 58 pounds, my blood sugar is now often at 80, my waist size dropped to a 33, my shirts are now 16 1/2 and I wear size Large.
I am still determined to lose another 15 pounds but the challenge right now is that I did hit a plateau, I still try to stay under 210 pounds and am trying to get back to 195. I’m running, cycling, rowing and just keeping healthy by eating well and focusing on the workouts.
Many people call what I have done a diet. I call it a “lifestyle change” that I intend to focus as long as I live.
Never again will I allow myself to let myself get as big as I was in 2015. I have to give credit to Dr. Davis and his Wheatbelly website, which helped me get on track.
His instructions of what to eliminate and eat, was a big help and I can vouch that it does work!
David wrote the following:
Eliminate:
All wheat-based products (all breads, all breakfast cereals, noodles, pasta, bagels, muffins, pancakes, waffles, donuts, pretzels, crackers), oat products (oatmeal, oat bran), corn and cornstarch-based products (sauces or gravies thickened with cornstarch, prepared or processed foods containing cornstarch, cornmeal products like chips, tacos, tortillas), sugary soft drinks, candies.
Avoid processed foods containing wheat, such as soy sauce, Twizzlers, Campbells Tomato Soup, salad dressings, taco seasoning–examine ALL labels and avoid any food with mention of wheat. (It’s not a bad idea to avoid foods with labels! Cucumbers and spinach, for instance, generally don’t come with labels.)
All other grain-containing products–especially those with corn, rye, barley, and rice. Corn, like wheat, is contained in many processed foods.
Overall, I am quite happy that I changed my life and became more healthier. I know if I continued on the same path like my friend, I would end up dying.
While becoming healthy has allowed me to make really good friends who are healthy or are becoming healthy, I also have a few friends who are now where I was at last year and feel they are stuck or lost the morale to push themselves.
But it may seem daunting to eliminate the foods that you enjoy, but when you get to the point like I did, causing damage to your body, you need to wake up and do whatever is necessary to lose that weight. To eat well and along the journey, you start to see those ailments that were plaguing you, starting to disappear.
So, if you are reading this and are also on the journey to losing weight… I wish you the best and if I can do it, you definitely can do it as well!
