Sirant Is Back - And better than ever!

sirant

sirant

New member
Hi everyone,

It has been some time since I last posted to the group. Things have been rocky, unstable and more than a little bit crazy in the past little while. But let me tell you the quick version of why I haven't been around.

I *#%&@ed up and let my emotions sabotage me, yet again.....

2 years ago I had the best weight loss success in my entire life. I changed my life completely after hitting 310 pounds from an easy life and sedentary job in China. I had a corner office, a secretary and lots of spare time to sit around in my office.

Then I found this group, and I started learning...... Then I started putting that learning into practice. First I started getting off the ubs one stop early and walking home from there. A 15 minute, 2 block walk has never been so difficult. Due to the high humidity and heat, I was soaked with sweat and felt like dying when I got home. Shin SPlints from 15 minutes walking???? It was true. But I kept at it. Soon I didnt hurt as much, so I got off 2 stops early, then 3 stops, and so on, until I was walking home the enitre 5km every night.

Then I started feeling better and tried running. Wow. That was SOOOOOO hard. 265 pounds is a lot to push at any speed. I started off able to run 1km in 30 minutes in 5 minute spurts of running, walking in between... I have never been so much in pain, but I kept going. And I shared my experiences here. Soon I was running the 5km home everynight, in stifling 40+ celcius heat with 95% humidity, often in pouring rain.

That dropped me 60 pounds in 6 months. I was throwing away the old "fat clothes" and already buying new "skinny" clothes that I would be fitting into any day......

BOOOOOM!!!!!!!!

Then comes the trigger. My family back home suffered a loss and this not only brought out grief on my part, but it also turned the family against me for being on the other side of the world finding my own path. I had never been healthy or happier, but my family back home was determined to have me driven by guilt and shame to abandon my family here. Something I simply could not do. This brought on a new and very detrimental relationship, this time with alcohol.

I became an alcoholic. Now I was back taking the bus and getting off one stop early, but that was only to have several beers on the walk home to take the edge off. Even though fit and thinner than I was in my 20's, the beer really took away the desire to exercise. I was sleeping more, exercizing less and letting negativity rule my life once more...... The bag of fat clothes that had never really been thrown away, was unpacked once again, and those wonderful new clothes went unworn....

And that continued for some time, until I found I was back in the "Fat People Store" (thats the actual name) buying an incredibly over priced pair of pants that fit me. That was 3 months ago.....

So here I am now, the fat clothes all happily boxed up and being picked up by charity today. And yes, I am wearing the sexy little clothes I always wanted to but never could. Oddly enough I am not as "light" as I was 2 years ago at my thinnest of 236 pounds, still 5-7 pounds to get there, but I am MUCH MUCH MUCH MUCH more fit than EVER in my life!!! Not only do those clothes fit, but they look damn good! I will be posting before and after pics again in a couple months.

Never again will I let my job, my family or my friends adversly affect my life. I know now I have the power to control everything in my life and though my family back home did not help me, I am ultimately to blame for letting them get me so worked up.

In the past 3 months I have dropped 40 pounds, become amazingly flexible and active and am working hard to be the best husband and dad possible, while still taking care of myself.... I still have another 20-30 pounds to lose I figure, but not really sure. I have honestly never in my life felt so good ro athletic, so don't know what the final result will be till I get there.

Hello to all my old friends here on the site, I will try digging around to see how you are all doing.

If anyone is interested in knowing what I have been doing the past 3 months to achieve my goals and want to know a VERY IMPORTANT WARNING about online forums and websites (yes, like this one), please look at the continuation of this post.

sirant

to be continued....
 
Sirant is Back - Part 2

Ok,

So here I am, sitting at about 240 pounds, previous heaviest in China was 310, all time heaviest, 350 (Size 54 jeans). So what did I do to make it work?

Easy. Stop being comfortable...... Thats it. Seriously...

When you ask my mom why she doesn't exercise, she will tell you she hates to sweat..... Pity. If you aren't sweating you are not losing weight. I LOVE seeing those people on the treadmills at the gym that walk at 1 or 2km/hr while watching tv. I could literally drag myself on my elbows across broken glass faster than they walk. When asked, they say they dont want to sweat. Then they ask me how I can lose weight so much faster than them. Easy, I exercise until every single solitary inch of my body, from forehead to toe tips is drenched in sweat. Period. It is not comfortable, but thats the point.

If you are doing an exercise that is easy, you are not going to have the same success as one which makes you uncomfortable. Bottom line. I hated getting up every morning after walking/running home because I was soooooo stiff and sore I thought I was going to die. But I didnt die. Instead, I stopped making the excuses I had ALL MY DAMN LIFE (Well, I am too sore, better take a few days off to recover) or (I did so much yesterday I can take a break today), etc. Bleh! All crap! It is one thing to exercise smart and not hurt yourself, it is another thing altogether to avoid hard work because it isnt comfy. Being comfortable all my life led my to an unhappy and obese existence.

The most important part of any exercise program is finding one you can stick to, and even better, one you enjoy. I thank god I found running, because for me, and many others, bar none, it is the most effective way to reduce fat. Seriously. When I finally pushed myself to the point I could run, and beyond, I started losing weight like mad.

That said, I do not run everyday anymore. Whereas the running was blasting the weight off me and giving me legs of iron, it was not helping with anything else. At that point I didnt care. Fastest fat loss was best.

More recently I have expanded my fitness horizons. I have decided to invest money, not just time into my health. This means I bought some things like a great MP3 player, some free weights and elastic bands, a stationary bike, good shoes, a heart rate monitor, a skipping rope, an exercise ball, an aerobic step, a gym membership and most importantly a Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit balance board.

Now instead of simply running everyday for a pure cardio burn, I do a wide range of other activities such as aerobics, pilates and lots of yoga. It is amazing how much strengthening the rest of your body can change how you feel everyday. I may have been losing lots of weight when I was running 6km a day, everyday, but my knees and back were still sore and my arms and chest were only getting skinnier......

These days I feel 20 years younger. I use my Wii daily, though not so much with the balance board. I use the My Fitness Coach game with Wii which is great. It has hundreds of different exercises and 6 different focuses. You can choose your own or let the machine reccomend them. I spend 1-1.5 hours a day with this program and while not losing massive physical weight, I am getting MUCH smaller and firmer in all the right places. I have had to buy a 2nd new belt in the past 3 months because I keep running out of holes, weight be damned....

Thats just the exercise end. Another place to avoid convenience is in eating. A strict diet is required in order to be successfull. But strict does not have to mean boring, bland or carrot sticks 24/7.

Let's talk about that in Part 3......

siranr
 
Part 3 - Eating for convenience

Eating healthy is expensive
Eating healthy is difficult
Eating healthy is not convenient

Those three statements are very VERY commonly heard these days in our ever "obesifiying" world (I know thats not a real word, but I like it).

However, 2 of the statements are false, only one is true.

Eating healthy does not have to be expensive.
Of course you could go organic, prepared "diet" meals or replacements, supplements, etc. And yes, that is expensive. But one does NOT need to go expensive in order to achieve the desired results.

I buy fresh produce daily, that is in season at the time and do with it the best I can. I buy apples oranges and bananas, because they are cheaper than plums, peaches and blueberries. I buy carrots, lettuce, white onions and green peppers, because they are cheaper than avacados, broccoli and asparagus. When it is winter I buy the stuff imported from Mexico or California, not the ot house grown tomatos and red pepers. I buy whole wheat bread instead of High Fibre, High antioxidant, all grain, exspensive breads. I buy eggs and seperate the whites from yolks myself, instead of buying the "boxes" of processed egg whites.

Too many people assume healthy means organic specialty foods that ARE outrageously priced. Simple unproccessed foods you prepare yourself are just as good for losing weight and getting healthy. Trust me. If you have to travel across town to a specialty store with a fancy name and BMW's parked out front, don't bother. If it comes "Pre-cooked, Pre-Mixed, or Pre-anything", forget it and make it yourself. Not only WAY cheaper, but in the long run, much better for you.

Eating Healthy is Difficult
Once again, simply not true. What is difficult is getting over our addiction to food and "flavor" and once again, convenience. Yes, it is true, if you buy a head of lettuce, a couple tomatos, a big onion, a green pepper and other fresh veggies, you DO have to wash them, chop them, mix them, coat them in sauce you mix yourself and put them in your mouth. Much easier to just buy the "bag o veg" dump it in a bowl, coat it with "low-fat" ranch and chow down. Buying pre-prepared "healthy meals" (or not) so much easier than actually cutting, cleaning, cooking and the inevitable dishes later... Thats what microwave dinners are for damn it!!

Eating healthy is more work. No doubt about it. But once again, like exercise, if it is too easy, too CONVENIENT, its is not helping you. Sure, A meal replacement plan may help some people lose weight, but what about afterwards? Is it meal replacements for life? Wouldnt it be better to know how to cook for yourself so that you did not need to rely on the convenience of pre-packed and proccessed foods? Ever hear the horror stories about what falls into the meat grinders in Hot Dog factories? Hell, how about the stuff they knowingly put in.... Enough to make a grown glutton shiver. Do you REALLY KNOW what is in those processed foods, other than what the ingredients say? Did the staff preparing your bagged veggies wash the veggies good enough for you? Hell, did they even was their hands in the first place? That is a risk you take anytime you eat in a restaurant, out of a box or can or out of a pre-proccessed bag. When I worked at McDonalds I learned the 3 second rule.... If that bun or burger which just fell hasn't been on the ground for more than 3 seconds, it is back in the box and on the way to you.... Do you watch the way they prepare those frozen dinners, baggied veggies and sauces, and convenient meals??? I didnt think so..... Not to mention the extra goodies you also get, like preservatives on the "fresh" veggies so they take a month to turn brown (thats gotta be good in yer guts), how about the salt, coloring and other food additives most of us cant even pronounce? Eeeeek I say! Eeeeek!

Eating healthy is not convenient

The only true statement of the 3. It is not convenient to eat healthy. Period. These days people are busines than ever with work and life in general. It is a pain in the ass to consider coming home after a long day, first having to wash and prepare dinner for you and your family, then clean up, then begin preparing for the next day so you can have a healthy breakfast and lunch too..... There is not enough time in the day. Wah Wah Wah...... Whats worse? Spending time getting fit and healthy and making time to do it? Or is it better to relax in that spare time, throw a few frozen dinners into the microwave and catch the latest episode of Survivor?

I know the answer I have chosen so often in the past. Here is my current eating regime, and by god not only is it working, but I love it.

Mon - Fri
Breakfast
I have oatmeal or bran flakes with a banana and a cup of skim milk plus coffee
(the fibre is awesome for keeping hunger away till lunch)

Lunch
Half a small loaf of high fibre, no sugar whole wheat bread with chicken breast or lean ham (cooked myself at home the night before on the foreman grill), mustard, tomato, onion, green pepper and lettuce. The sandwhich is HUGE, but mostly all veggies. Again the fiber keeps me full time dinner

snack
A couple pieces of fruit through the afternoon and heaps of green or oolong tea.

Dinner
A large tossed salad with every veg I can find and throw in. A can of tuna or a large grilled chicken breast and olive oil and red wine vinegar dressing. Sometimes I add a boiled egg or some peanuts to mix it up.

Weekends I either follow the same routine or sometimes go to a restaurant for a change. Though it will be a healthy restaurant choice, no McD or Pizzahut.

So with that diet, yes, I do have to do a lot of prep work. grilling chicken breasts, buying bread and supplies well in advance, washing and cutting veggies EVERY SINGLE DAY, and bringing my self prepared meals to work with me, afternoon and evening (meaning I have to carry a big bag to hold my tupperware everyday). And worst of all, healthy eating can taste REALLY shitty if you dont know how to do it. It is well worth doing a little studying or taking a course to find out how to make those veggies and tofu taste better. As a society we are forgetting how to cook for ourselves, instead taking the easy route of letting corporations only interested in profit do the prep for us and then selling it to us in boxes, bags and cans.

And with almost 70% of north america overweight or obese, we can see how well that is doing.....

Once again, convenience is the key. If we lead the lifestyle of convenience, we would exercise when convenient, eat only convenient foods and live shorter and more miserable, yet convenient lives.......

I personal have done that for almost 40 years, and no more. By taking the path of inconvenience, soreness, stiffness and hard work I am becoming the man I always dreamed of. You can too!


And now, a word of warning about this and EVERY online support type group.... Continued in Part 4.

sirant
 
Warning!! Online support Forums can hurt your weightloss!!!

Ok, I know it was a catchy title and some of you may feel defensive already, please allow me to explain.

First off, I love this group. I think this group, more than any other single thing in my life has helped me to achieve my goals. I sifted through the massive amounts of information and inspiration here and learned not only some new things, but just how wrong I was about other things. I got support from others who understood me better than my real life friends ever could. In essence, weight-loss.fitness has already changed my life for the better, thanks so much to all of you.

So what is the warning about?

Well, it is certinaly not about this group in particular, nor in the support genre at all. The warning is about you, let me explain.

At first I couldnt stop myself reading all the great diaries, suggestions and questions here. The before and after photos are massively motivational. The advice being offered here but many of the senior members and admins is worth more than gold.

But.....

The online interaction becomes addictive..... Totally and completely. I recall 2 years ago posting as much as possible to increase my reputation and membership status. Only 2 more posts and I will be a senior member!!! Wooo Whooo!!!! Then I had to follow the diaries and stories of all my online friends, post responses that I uniquely knew the answer to, get into arguments over whose methodology is better and cast out the spammers and vile advantage takers before they affected others with their blatant lies.... I had to post 1-3 diary entries a day to make sure I stayed on track and everyone knew it..... I wanted to be a part of the group.....

I was logging in, reading, replying, answering and suggesting things 5-10 times a day. First thing in the morning, throughout the day, and several more times before bed. It slowly damned on me I was spending more time on the support group than I was preparing food, exercising or in fact implementing the changes I was reading and writing about. I was living vicariously through my online persona and not my real life one....... And I have seen many MANY people here in the same boat. Their goals, like mine, either advancing VERY slowly or not at all. There are many members in this group who are incredibly active online, but the pounds dont seem to be coming off...... I realized this about myself in 6 months. Some others have been here losing the same 3 pounds for years.....

Long story short, use the group for support, for education and for fun. Absolutely. It is a wealth of information and motivation. BUT, dont get sucked too far into the online persona that you start to lose track of the real life one. These 4 posts are my first in almost 2 years. Not because I hated the group or didnt appreciate it, but I needed to take a firm stand against myself and start doing the work, instead of just talking about it online.

And it has worked. I am currently the healthiest I have ever been. My fatty liver, high blood pressure and cholesterol issues are completely gone. I run the equivelant of a marathon every week and can yoga my body into position I would have never considered possible in the past. I can walk outside in the screaming heat without wanting to die, in fact, barely sweating. I can walk up 5 flights of stairs as easy as it is to walk down 5 flights. I have less aches and pains than ever before and I and my family are experiencing a much improved quality of life.

The secret isnt pills, techniques or money. For me the secret to success was giving up the convenience in my life. Fast food is easier, but not better, taxis are more convenient than a 3 block walk to the bus stop, but less healthy and more expensive, preparing my food the day before and exercising before AND after work cuts into my TV and leisure time, but I will live longer to have more leisure time in the future with my kids and someday, grandkids. Once I learned that sweating, cooking for myself and using common sense REALLY worked, it became all downhill.

I am currently 70 pounds lighter than when I started this journey for real. 40 pounds of it in the last 3 months. And I am doing it in China. You think it is hard to get speciality food and weight loss items where you are???? Try here!!!! the worst thing here was always buying clothes. I often had to have my family back home ship me clothes from Canada or have them custom made here. I am happy to say I can now shop anywhere in China, off the rack! Thats a huge achievement all on its own.

And it continues. I will check back from time to time, but I likely wont be posting again for a couple months. I have hundreds of posts here, and I welcome you all to read through them.

I am also interested in meeting any online friends who wish to chat on MSN or facebook about the changes I have made (and am currently making). If anyone wishes to chat please PM me and I will send you the info.

Otherwise keep up the good work everyone. I have never felt better and I know you all can too! I am going to take an in-between photo soon, but will likely wait till summer to post before, inbetween and DAMN SEXY photos.

You can all do it. Impossible is outdated now.... Everything is possible!

sirant
 
Last edited:
Hey there, I remember you!

Thanks for the very informative (and well-written) posts!!!

I had the same experience with the forum, got totally sucked in :)
 
ahh found ya new diary! excellent!

Yeah i did notice before you disappered that you had a lot going on. I think the key thing is that weight loss is somewhat like any addiction, in respects that you can fall off the wagon and get back on, but ultimatly you need to be aware of your triggers and do it for yourself.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top