GK's Super Weightloss Journey
Hey guys,
This post may get a little more personal than usual, but who ever scoffed at getting to know each other a bit better? :) Today I wanted to tell you guys a bit about my history, as Im sure some of my readers have struggled with the topic of weight loss as well.
Lets preface that I've been overweight my whole life by up to 100lbs or so.
Wait, what weight?
When I was young, I had a pretty crappy self image. Not uncommon I didn't know about calories and my family was not overly health conscious. We ate great food, but calories and portion sizes was never top of mind. What I learned is that food is something to be enjoyed with others. Food is meaningful but only if you value it, and the people that make it for you.
While my diet was pretty poor, I also spent a lot of my time on the computer. I was an early mIRC user in 2001. I joined the Napster craze and used to burn CD's for friends. I also learned at a young age how to design my own websites, use FTP and other very useful tricks that have lead me into a healthy career in technology.
As it turns out, internet users have similar frustrations. Being overweight is one of them. Many of them self-educated and created communities around techies getting fit. This provided a lot of camaraderie and education around the topics. I learned what I thought was proper lifting form.
Then: Low bar squats, high fat/protein diets, squats every day. A lot of bro-talk.
Now: High bar squats, I eat very little dairy, and mainly eat eggs, chicken and veggies.
Education isn't the only factor. At this time, I had been over weight for 15 years, I was set in my habits.
Habits
When you have spent your whole life enjoying what you want and eating with people you love, its easy to get into bad habits if you do not priorities healthful eating. I didn't! I ate what I wanted when I wanted, and it lead me to consider that I'll always be overweight regardless of how much I eat.
I categorized myself as "Overweight" It didn't matter if it was 20lbs or 100lbs. I made the non-mental decision to ignore it, because losing it seemed too difficult.
Other Factors
While my education and habits on weight loss weren't great, I had a few other things come up that made life difficult. I had HUGE tonsils. When I would get sick, I had to sleep sitting up against the wall so I could breathe.
It sounds stupid but when you're young, its easy to think "I'm normal, everyone probably sleeps in the fettle position sometimes." No, just people with blocked airways
Speaking of blocked airways, another issue stemmed from the fact that I only had 50% of my nasal airway. A previous orthodontic procedure changed the structure of my face a bit, causing my nose to shift, blocking the airway.
At 23, I had my tonsils out. At 24, I had a structural nose surgery, and shortly after I lost 70 pounds.
Dude, I loved this post.
So glad to see your journey.
I can only imagine what it feels like to have those HUGE tonsils...
One of my aunt had those!
Glad you have "fixed" most of your problems.
You look fit.
Thanks @sidwrites Having huge tonsils was pretty terrible. I used to not be able to eat and breathe at the same time. Now when I jump in the pool water shoots in my nose. Good trade, I'd say.
Man, I can't imagine what you went through.
Just SO GLAD you took care of it. <3
Fitness is definitely a problem for those of us in the computer age, and it's not getting much better. Thanks for being so honest about how the problem for you got started, and specifics on how you took it off and kept it off.
Finding the root of the problem is always the best place to start. Thanks so much @jenncapestany
I couldn't have put it better. Finding the root of the problem is KEY to true healing. It's my focus with every client of mine. You can throw pills at a problem, or ignore it, but you'll have no healing unless you strike at the true causes. Thanks! See you on chat!
Wow. I can't help but wonder if 90% of it all comes down to genetics.. cuz I've got a similar lifestyle, eat whatever I want and sit hours together in front of the computer daily, and I'm a skinny fuk.
I think it does @josephd, I have a very large frame. I also spent a lot of time, since losing weight, doing powerlifting. I might do a bit more blogging in the gym, but I promise it wont be douchey gym-bro stuff. That aint me. ;) Thanks for reading!
Congrats on making progress, 75 lbs is a lot to lose! and side note I do miss the days of napster :)
Thanks very much. It's been a bit of a battle these last 4 years, but I feel like Im on track again. Thanks for reading :) I miss napster too ~
Happy your all better and you lost all that weight you must be so happy I'm very overweight after a few very major surgeries and I just started my new way of eating this week high protein low carbs wish me luck!
I'm sorry to hear that. Its tough after a major event. I'm glad to hear you're at the root of it all and changing your diet. We are what we eat, after all :)
Yes but can I ask you something like today for breakfast I had two pieces of bacon and two eggs over medium, can I eat bacon every day and can I eat four eggs a day?
Good for you man! Upvoted and followed you ;D