A few weeks back, I got an email from a Nerd Fitness reader who told me about a website that really inspired him, 344pounds.com.
I went and checked out the site. I was blown away by the amount of success the site’s creator, Tyler, has had in such a short amount of time (see his transformation pictures here). In 8 months, Tyler has lost over 110 pounds, and plans on losing another 40. Considering how motivated he is, I have no doubt he’ll get there. I reached out to Tyler asking if he’d answer a few questions for my readers, because I bet a lot of you guys might be in the same boat. Hopefully this will show you what’s possible when you use common sense and stay dedicated!
Nerd Fitness: Hey Tyler, thanks for answering some questions for my readers. Let’s talk about a typical day for you before you decided to change your life.
Tyler: Sedentary all day. I’d either skip breakfast or get a large french toast combo from Burger King (near my work). This consisted of french toast sticks, hashbrowns, and a coke — probably nearly 1,000 calories. For lunch I’d eat out again and have some sort of sandwich with fries and a coke, followed by a large afternoon snack when I got home from work around 4-5. Dinner was meat and potatoes with 2nd and 3rd helpings, and of course, several sodas to wash it down. I’d end the day by playing Xbox 360 (now sold) or watching television.
NF: I know a lot of people that can relate to that. What was your motivation to make that change? What put you over the edge?
T: No one event put me over the edge — but I do remember the day I decided to change. I was at my desk at work and it just “clicked” — I was tired of being fat. I still had some of my breakfast from Burger King that I was eating and threw that away, went to the mirror in the bathroom and was simply disgusted. I vowed to change and I did.
NF: Describe a typical day now.
T: Morning consists of either Raisin bran and fruit or a cooked meal consisting of toast, bacon, and eggs, depending on my time. I also take a multi-vitamin every morning. I’ll also have a mid-morning snack of fruit or some vegetable, followed by a lunch with a sandwich and very fries or chips. On some days I’ll just have a couple of tuna sandwiches or PB&Js, but again, I don’t like eating rabbit food. I like to eat good food. Dinner consists of meat and potatoes still, but hold the seconds and the several refills of soda. A couple of hours after dinner, about 8-9 PM, I’ll go to the gym and work out for 30-60 minutes.
NF: I like that your transformation wasn’t a complete 180, just a sensible diet and exercise. Alright, if you had to pick one thing, what had the most impact on your weight loss?
T: 344Pounds.com being talked about by the media — but that answer doesn’t help most people, so I’ll say losing the soda [NF note: I agree, soda is a real killer]. You definitely need to moderately drink soda and drink water as much as possible. You don’t have to eliminate, just moderate.
NF: Moderation ftw! Had you tried losing weight in the past? If you had failed then, what has made you succeed now?
T: Like most people, I have. Dozens of times. However, I’ve never lost more than a few pounds before this attempt — and this time I’ve lost more than 100. It’s funny the way things work out sometimes. And my success this time can be attributed to my accountability. You don’t need a blog, you just need to tell family and friends. It’s scary, but that’s the idea.
NF: I actually recently wrote an article about accountability, so your success makes a lot of sense. Alright, onto the nerd stuff: favorite videogame of all time?
T: I’m pretty involved in my company, a father and a husband, so I don’t have a lot of free time these days. By far though my favorite video game of all time would be Command and Conquer on PC — Red Alert 2: Yuri’s Revenge, specifically.
NF: Man, I always sucked at C&C. Starcraft was more my thing. Are you playing any game right now?
T: On the Wii, the new sports game Wii Sports Resort.
NF: If you could have one superpower, what would it be, and why?
T: Flying. I tried my hardest to fly one night in the backyard when I was like 8 years old. I had a cape on (towel) and I had a brick to jump off to give me some “momentum.” That night didn’t end well and that was the last time I tried to fly.
NF: Hahaha, glad you survived that. What’s your movie to live by?
T: Boogie Nights.
NF: Fair enough. Thanks again for passing on your story to the world. Before you go, do you have any specific advice for other guys in the same boat, trying to lose a large amount of weight?
T: Don’t follow a diet — just count your calories and you’ll lose weight.
So there ya have it! I think my favorite thing about Tyler’s success is that he really didn’t make too many drastic changes. You can find stories about people who give up everything they love to eat and start exercising eight hours a day, but those goals are unrealistic. If you’re a big guy or girl, here’s legitimate proof and motivation of what you can accomplish in a short amount of time if you use common sense and STICK WITH IT!
You can follow Tyler’s journey over at 344pounds.com and on twitter at Twitter.com/344pounds.
-Steve
Related Posts:
- The Big Nerd Manifesto: 15 Tips to Guaranteed Weight Loss
- Baby Steps: build on small successes to get healthy
- Computer Programmer loses 33 lbs in 12 weeks
- Fat man to Ironman: my friend, who hates dieting, lost over 100 lbs
- Couch to 5k: A Running Guide for the couch potato
- 45 Year-Old Loses 200 lbs. in One Year
