My Story and The Plan

Hi, my name is J Brian (group responds HI J BRIAN). I am FAT. I have been for most of my adult life.

I will be A Fat Boy No More.

Three years ago I started a journey to become A Fat Boy No More. And since September 2007 I have been publishing my success and failures. This Blog follows me from the day I first started my weight loss journey and it focuses on the everyday struggles that people with weight problems have.

Prepare yourself for a very real and very challenging event in my life. I commit to being as honest and as clear as I can be in the webpage to chronicle my ongoing battle with my weight. The pictures can be explicit.

After 12 years of being bigger than I should be... ok lets just be honest. I was not big I was fat. I have been over weight and muscular for most of my adult life. But the muscular part has been over shadowed by a large layer of fat on my body. I've eaten too much and I lived a sedentary life. In December 2006 I weighed 320 pounds. The morning I weighed myself and saw that I was over 300 pounds I essentially went into a deep depression that day and I am sure that I ate another 5 pounds worth of food. But that night I decided that enough was enough. My weight problem had become more than just an appearance problem it became a health problem, a self esteem problem and it was starting to affect my business and income. I had to do something. And I had to be held accountable. Technology is a good thing. I decided I had to put it out there. I started texting everyone in cell phone saying "Officially a fat ass now I weigh 300". I had been lying forever and telling people that I was 250. And no one questioned it.

The first step I took was to hit the gym and cut my calories. I looked on webmd and found out how many calories there where in a pound (3500) and decided to create this formula to determine how many calories and how much extra exercise I had to do to lose 60 pounds by May 27th. My annual trip to Key West Florida. By February I had lost 25 pounds. On a plan that was essentially the same thing that Weight Watchers teaches you. Then life hit me. After being so good I just got tired of it. I had no real support structure. And so I just relapsed because I was on a diet. Not a life change. But between March and August I essentially maintained my weight loss. In April I got a part time job working in a restaurant as a bartender. Everyone thinks I was crazy to do that but the truth is I just needed something to make me active. I needed to get off my lazy fat ass and be active. I gave up sweet tea and I stopped eating beef for the most part. I chose bison. Which taste so similar and has a familiar texture but had half the calories. Nothing else really changed.

But I did not lose the weight I wanted. When I was in Key West I looked like a beached whale and I felt horrible. I have a picture from that trip that show the folds of fat on my back. I was so depressed after that trip. So I essentially just maintained until late July when my best friend Michelle told me that a guy we both worked with a few years back had lost a lot of weight thru some medical weight loss plan.

I kinda brushed it off. I was looking into Lap Band or some other surgery. Then another friend of mine saw Brad as well and said Brad has lost a lot of weight. So I called Brad and he told me about the plan thru Emory Hospital. I went to an info session on the plan and decided to enroll.

Before you consider any type of surgery please look into medically managed weight loss. IT WORKS. Your doctor or the Bariatrics department of your local university hospital can direct you. Too many of my friends had surgery and lost a lot of weight and regained it. Even with a smaller stomach you can eat ice cream all the time and gain it back. I have a friend that just did that.

So this is what I did initially. Follow my blog posts from the beginning and see the transformation.

Remember

Don't give up today because you fucked up yesterday.

06 June 2008

LOTS TO REPORT

Since my last post I went on my annual trip to Key West Florida. That was one of the best trips I have ever had. And the best thing is my fat ass could not fit into an airplane seat comfortably. Its such an incredible difference.

I met some new friends there and became re acquainted with some folks I have met before. I gained 0 (zero) pounds while I was on the island. I never over ate. I did drink a little more than I should have. The good thing about Key West is you walk everywhere so problem with drinking. I also ran everyday that I was on vacation except the day I traveled down. The day I got back before I went home I went to the gym.

I am in the middle of week 5 of my c25k training and that should be completed tomorrow. Its getting harder but I am able to tackle it better than I thought.

Last saturday I joined Weight Watchers as I feel that I need ongoing support with weight management. I do not feel that the plan at Emory has provided as much in the maintenance portion as I have in the past and there is no accountablility with their ongoing support. I decided to follow the Core Plan . I will give updates on this as I go along.

I put on a few pounds in the weeks leading up to my vacation. 7 to be exact. So I was around 239. I have reduced that to 234 this week.

Check back for updatest and thanks for your support.
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20 May 2008

May 20 Training for the 5k continues

I have now completed day two of week three of my c25k training.

Some training sessions are fairly easy and others are not. Today was one of those harder days for some reason. I am two days away from my key west trip and i finally feel that i will have a half way decent "pool body" There will be some jiggle but there will not be any beach whale thoughts.

Hope all is well.
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14 May 2008

5 Training Sessions Complete

Tomorrow is my sixth training session.  My body is sore as hell.  Seriously sore.  Also this training has made me very very hungry.  I have to figure out how to deal with it.  I have one week left til my trip to Key West... YAHOO!!!

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09 May 2008

Run Fat Boy Run- Part 1

I completed my first week of training for the 5 k. I will direct you to the two websites that helped me with this weeks training.

c25k.com and www.ullreys.com/robert/Podcasts/page4/files/category-7.html

The first link tells you about the plan but the podcast that you use while you are actually running is great. Robert's idea for the podcast coach is awesome. I was sweating more than I ever do with my normal workouts.

I completed the first week and now I am getting ready to start on week two. This past week I did the program on Monday Wednesday and Friday but this next week I am changing my days to Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Wednesdays are very difficult from a schedule standpoint for me.



I feel like I did a really bad job of eating yesterday. I just grazed like cattle all day long. With two weeks left to my vacation I am not happy with this. So I am going to have to be extra diligent.

Hope all is well.
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05 May 2008

My next Challenge 5 k Run

Today I started training for a 5 k run.  Atlanta hosts the Peachtree Road Race (10K) every 4th of July.  The registration is and has been closed but I have decided to train for it anyway.  I am following a plan called Couch to 5 K.    c25k.com

I started my training this morning and I feel great.

Updates to come.  
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22 April 2008

I have been a bad Blogger

It has been exactly one month since I have written and that is not a good blogger. The last month for me personally and professionally has been a struggle. Its also a good example of what can happen to your health if you do not make it a priority. I have maintained my weight loss for most of the month without a major issue but in the last week I have put on about 6 pounds or so. Some of this is water weight. Too many carbohydrates and no enough green vegetables. Some of my bad habits are creeping in and it took me a few weeks to start realizing it and to decide to adjust it.

I was at a bike rally this week and healthy eating and bike rallies just do not mix. The general atmosphere is eat, DRINK and be stupid. Alcohol is adding too much to my caloric intake.

Carbohydrates have also been creeping in. To much bread and to many french fries. I have discussed this before. Carbs are not good for ME. They cause a trigger which makes me eat and I have let them in. Not the good carbs but the bad ones have "come a creepin back in".

I have 30 days til my trip. I weigh about 238. In 30 days I want get down to 220. I made that plan originally a month ago and thought I was Ironman. Well Iron weighs a lot. I admit I have an issue with carbs and will cut out the processed carbs... I will also give up my Pizza (oh how hard that will be) and I will give up any trips to diners.

This month will be a clean month. Lean protein. Bison and Chicken- Green and yellow veggies- and I will start using meal replacements to streamline my health.

Physical activity- The gym has always been my friend. The treadmill has become monotonous to me. I have not been good about my aerobic activity. This is hanging as well.

I have seen some great improvements in muscle mass however.
Check back in a week or so for an update.
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