DaveRVD's weight loss transformation log (pics)

[DaveRVD]

Brief Backstory

Almost 10 years ago I joined the BB forums as a 27 stone (nearly 400lbs) fat teenager. I did my homework on fat loss, read about other peoples' struggles/transformations and for the first time in my life it had given me determination, knowledge and immense hope to drop the fat and preserve muscle as best as I possibly could manage to. Fast forward a year later and I was in the best shape of my life, I owed it all to the motivation that these boards gave me ..For the first time I had self confidence and felt damn good about myself! ..

A few years later, I had slipped in to my old ways, slacked off with lifting and began to rest on my laurels ...fast forward up to now, and I recently decided that enough was enough and I wanted more from myself, no more excuses or self-pity. Once again I am sick of being categorised as obese and I see myself as a shadow of my former self. I can't believe that I have let so many years pass before getting back on track again, this journey has already started and continue it shall.

Starting stats
(1st June 2015)
Age: 28
Height: 6ft 3in
Weight: 353lbs (25st 3lbs)

The above stats were taken at the start of this month, and since then I have been counting calories/macros and lifting heavy. I have not yet introduced cardio but I will be.

After calculating TDEE, I put myself on a 1800 calorie per day limit, I have been very strict and have managed to stay within this target for nearly a month (I had one major 'cheat meal' in that time which pushed me way over my 1800 ....a 12" pizza, what else! Since then I am strict about fitting cheat meals within my calorie/macro allowance). I wanted to create a log this time so that I have a record of my progress. Above are my starting stats and below are todays stats.

I will be posting my "weigh in" every week, my goal is to have dropped 50lbs by Christmas Day (this will mean a 2lbs per week loss).

My Goal
(by: 25th December 2015)
Goal weight: 300lbs

I will then set a new goal to drop further fat.
Once I am happy with my body fat, my next goal is to clean bulk to gain muscle mass (I know, I'm a long way off yet, but I know what I want!)

Workout Routine

Monday, Wednesday, Friday
3 x a week I lift heavy (Equipment: Dumbbells, Bench).

My main staple upper body excercises include:
- Side Deltoid Raises: 3 sets of 8-10 (5kg)
- Tricep Kickbacks: 3 sets of 8-10 (5kg)
- Upright Trapezius Rows: 3 sets of 8-10 (7.5kg)
- Bicep Curls: 3 sets of 8-10 (7.5kg)
- Skull Crushers (Flat Bench): 3 sets of 8-10 (5kg)
- Flyes (Flat Bench): 3 sets of 8-10 (5kg)
- Military Shoulder Press (Upright Bench): 3 sets of 8-10 (7.5kg)
- Lunges: 3 sets of 8-10 (7.5kg)
- Calf Raises: 3 sets of 8-10 (7.5kg)

Tuesday, Thursday
- Crunches/sit ups: 5 sets of 20

Soon I will be splitting up my muscle groups/days, I have only been consistently lifting for 4 weeks. The weight is increasing as I get stronger and I make notes for each workout to ensure I'm not losing strength.

Todays weigh in
(Day 33)
Weight: 347lbs (6lbs loss)

I have luckily been blessed with some decent genetics - although I am overweight, I have great height and some decent muscle underneath my fat tissue. I carry the majority of my fat on my upper body, My calves are excellently muscular and are rock solid when flexed, once I have shifted the fat, they will look unreal ..I have linked a picture below of how I stand today, I'm not confident enough yet to show full front so have compiled certain shots together.

I will post my macros and other requested information in the upcoming days.

I'm open to any advice, encouragement or questions. On the other side of my journey I hope to inspire others.

[NoCarbsNoSugar]

Good luck to you

[DaveRVD]

Thanks!

I've been reading your log to for a while now - keep up the good work man!

[Gigi999]

you got this! mirin the calves

[DaveRVD]

you got this! mirin the calves

Haha, thanks!

I guess the calves are from a day-in-day-out routine of walking with the extra weight I've been carrying ..can't wait to see them when the body fat lowers!

[NoCarbsNoSugar]

Thanks!

I've been reading your log to for a while now - keep up the good work man!

Thanks!

[Smartlifts]

Im in!
Some similar stats.
just a few years age difference, same height and I'm in the county over from you (the one with the bad rep!)
I started at just over 20 stone at my max you can do it brother!

[DaveRVD]

Im in!
Some similar stats.
just a few years age difference, same height and I'm in the county over from you (the one with the bad rep!)
I started at just over 20 stone at my max you can do it brother!

Thanks! Great stuff, congrats on the progress so far man!

[tombaron]

Good luck mate! That's a killer deficit mind, it must be like 50%? Every forum needs a Dave so you've filled that niche perfectly lol.

[cherrygarcia80]

Seems your off to a great start! Wishing you all the best!

[DaveRVD]

Good luck mate! That's a killer deficit mind, it must be like 50%? Every forum needs a Dave so you've filled that niche perfectly lol.

Thanks man! On the face of it, it certainly looks like a big deficit for a guy of my size - but I work for myself from home, so I'm nowhere near as "real world active" as I would be if I left the home and went to work each day. Don't get me wrong, I still get out and about during the week but it's nowhere near as enduring as having a journey to work and being up and down stairs every day and so on.

When I first began counting my cals to 1800 (Over 4 weeks ago), I was worried that 1800 calories would leave me hungry/tired ...But I never go hungry and genuinely feel just fine. My last 3 weekly weigh ins have shown a 2lbs drop each week, so for now it seems to be working as expected. If I feel myself getting lethargic then I will definitely up the calories and see how the scales take it.

Being the "Dave" works for me, brah!

Seems your off to a great start! Wishing you all the best!

Thanks! I was reading your log earlier, congrats on the 4lbs drop! keep it up!

and Happy Birthday, also!

[DaveRVD]

Breakfast

A light breakfast today as I will be lifting soon, so this is also (part of) my pre-workout meal.

Mission Deli wrap
116g of Chicken
5g of Light Mayo

255 cals, 35g protein, 16g carbs, 5g fat

(Side note: Can't wait until I can post HTML img links in to my posts)

[DaveRVD]

Just completed my workout for today, it felt awesome (just like Wednesday's did).

Going in, I was still sore from Wednesday (I got a bench earlier this week and hit my chest pretty hard with Flat Bench Flyes on Wednesday).

Today, when I took position for Flat Bench Flyes, my chest flat-out refused and wasn't fully recovered to take the weight before I'd even begun the first rep ...I didn't want to strain my chest and risk injury, so I gave them a miss today and threw in some extra reps on my Military Shoulder Press. Hell, I even threw in some different exercises because I felt guilty about not being able to do flyes ...

I have posted todays workout on my BodySpace if anyone cares ..If I'm honest I feel a little embarrassed about the weight I'm lifting, for example: my Side Lateral Raise (to hit my shoulders) I'm only lifting 11lbs (3 sets of 8) .. It's mild-to-hard work for me but should I push myself further and up the weight on the dumbbells? It's been bugging me a bit lately if I am honest about it ...maybe I'm expecting too much, I've only been lifting regularly again for 4/5 weeks.

[kojiiko]

You are the same weight that I was.!!! I'm just a wee bit taller Oh and a Brummie >.<
I guess u are workout at home with only a dumbbell and bench??

Are u doing at cardio?

I would also some walking to ya regime. It's easy on the knees

If you are counting macros then I would highly recommend myfitnesspal. U can get the free app on any smartphone or tablet. For me this is a godlike gift. U can even scan the barcode of most foods and it will give u the data.

[DaveRVD]

You are the same weight that I was.!!! I'm just a wee bit taller Oh and a Brummie >.<
I guess u are workout at home with only a dumbbell and bench??

TALLER!? Haha, I don't hear that often! That's awesome man - what are you, 6' 4"? (Edit: just seen you're 6' 5")
At the moment it really is just dumbbells and bench. I'm not entirely against going to the gym or anything, I just want to nail the routine/commitment before shelling out the cash for a membership. Also, I want to give myself a strong head start before going to the gym ...Sooner or later, when these 15kg dumbbells (16.5lbs x 2) aren't heavy enough any more I will have to buy more plates or go to the gym (to be honest, I will probably end up doing both).

Are u doing at cardio?

Not doing any cardio as of yet, but I certainly will be looking to (I will ease in to basic cardio, then HIIT, which I know from the past is a killer but is ideal) ...

Do you think I should introduce cardio asap? If I did, I would have to up my calories on those days (not that it would be a big problem, but I feel that I'm doing ok for now without it)

I would also some walking to ya regime. It's easy on the knees

Admittedly, I could get some more walking in to my week ...but I don't struggle to walk in the least (despite my weight) so don't tend to see it as a necessity (maybe I'm wrong?)

If you are counting macros then I would highly recommend myfitnesspal. U can get the free app on any smartphone or tablet. For me this is a godlike gift. U can even scan the barcode of most foods and it will give u the data.

Ah man, way ahead of ya! MyFitnessPal is awesome ...my friend showed me it in late May and I have used it day-in-day-out since. I wish I had that 10 years ago on my first ever cut, I wrote down calories, protein, everything in a little pocket book! Love MFP~

[kojiiko]

Yeah I think u can do some cardio. No need to do HIIT at the moment. Just get out and go for an hour walk or so. get your iPod out or ya iPhone. Listen to some music or go find some ipodcasts about health and fitness and listen to that.
I still going walking from time to time, if my legs are aching from the gym then I'll walk than jog.

Another good app is a runkeeper its records where u walked, jogged, cycled, then it's tells u how fast u were, and how many calories u burnt. U can incorporate it with myfitnesspal too

I started riding my bicycle to work once a week. Cycling is also easy on the knees. Thou the first week your ass will be sore as!!!!

I didnt start jogging till I got down to the 250 lbs mark and the only reason I started that was just to keep up with my 3 sons. I wouldn't advice doing jogging now, u don't need the stress on the knees and ankles at the moment just take it easy so to speak.

I hope that helps . . .

[DaveRVD]

Yeah I think u can do some cardio. No need to do HIIT at the moment. Just get out and go for an hour walk or so. get your iPod out or ya iPhone. Listen to some music or go find some ipodcasts about health and fitness and listen to that.
I still going walking from time to time, if my legs are aching from the gym then I'll walk than jog.

Another good app is a runkeeper its records where u walked, jogged, cycled, then it's tells u how fast u were, and how many calories u burnt. U can incorporate it with myfitnesspal too

I started riding my bicycle to work once a week. Cycling is also easy on the knees. Thou the first week your ass will be sore as!!!!

I didnt start jogging till I got down to the 250 lbs mark and the only reason I started that was just to keep up with my 3 sons. I wouldn't advice doing jogging now, u don't need the stress on the knees and ankles at the moment just take it easy so to speak.

I hope that helps . . .

Yeah, thanks for the advice - makes a lot of sense when you put it like that. I think I'll push myself to get in some dedicated walking ..

Now that I think about it, doing no real cardio (at all) is making feel like I'm missing out on something (and a tad guilty) ..I was just talking to 'nosirrahx' on his log about HIIT, it's made me realise that I would like to get back in to that soon/eventually, without killing myself

[DaveRVD]

With Kojiiko's suggestions in mind, I did a fair amount of walking today!

Must have been at least 2 hours (Ok, I wasn't strictly walking for 'walkings sake' ...My gf wanted to go shopping/browsing around town for some things for the home (and I wanted to pick up a standing fan, hot weather is picking up, hot out there today!). Very easy for me to walk for a prolonged time, but certainly worth doing as it all helps as I'm not doing any routine cardio yet (walking has never been a struggle for me in the least, my joints hold up fine despite my weight - so it didn't feel like I'd really done anything today even though I have).

Today being Saturday (Sometimes AKA: Cheat Meal day), we hit Subway for lunch (I had over 1000 points on my Subcard) and cashed that bad boy in for a Footlong Italian BMT (Italian Bread, Regular cheese, Light Mayo). It fits in todays calories/macros without going over my deficit (as expected and pre-planned this morning on MyFitnessPal).

I've got chicken/rice later, 90g of BROTEIN!!!!!

Still feeling slightly sore from the full body lifting (Wednesday/Friday) ...But I'm confident I will be good to go and hit it hard on Monday all over again (with my chest allowing me to complete Flat Bench Flyes this time!)

Wednesday will be my 5th weigh in and I will be sure to post my results (I'm currently 353lbs). Hopefully another 2lbs down, after all I don't see why it shouldn't be!

[Smartlifts]

hot weather is picking up, hot out there today!.

Man it was roasting today. I was at a BBQ and ended up playing some cricket and football too. Shattered now.

Today being Saturday (Sometimes AKA: Cheat Meal day), we hit Subway for lunch. Footlong Italian BMT (Italian Bread, Regular cheese, Light Mayo). It fits in todays calories/macros without going over my deficit ).

It's awesome when you fit in foods like this into your diet. Doesn't make this dieting stuff seem so hard!
What was the macros on that sub if you have them to hand?

[Gigi999]

With Kojiiko's suggestions in mind, I did a fair amount of walking today!

AKA: Cheat Meal day), we hit Subway for lunch (I had over 1000 points on my Subcard) and cashed that bad boy in for a Footlong Italian BMT (Italian Bread, Regular cheese, Light Mayo). It fits in todays calories/macros without going over my deficit (as expected and pre-planned this morning on MyFitnessPal).

I've got chicken/rice later, 90g of BROTEIN!!!!!

Still feeling slightly sore from the full body lifting (Wednesday/Friday) ...But I'm confident I will be good to go and hit it hard on Monday all over again (with my chest allowing me to complete Flat Bench Flyes this time!)

Wednesday will be my 5th weigh in and I will be sure to post my results (I'm currently 353lbs). Hopefully another 2lbs down, after all I don't see why it shouldn't be!

Oh man. Subway is amazing. I've never tried the enchilada or Fritos sandwiches they released but they sound amazing. And I could drink that chipotle sauce it's so good lol.

[DaveRVD]

It's awesome when you fit in foods like this into your diet. Doesn't make this dieting stuff seem so hard!
What was the macros on that sub if you have them to hand?

Yeah, I've always been a very fussy/limited eater and truly struggle with eating clean/wholefoods all of the time. No doubt I will need to try harder as progress/loss slows up down the line, but during this early stage - this is working well for me.

I have only (seriously) committed to cutting once before in my entire life (10 years ago) and lost 80lbs in a year with the same eating methods I've employed this time round (along with calorie counting, high protein, heavy lifting of course). I felt and looked fantastic thanks to the maintaining of muscle tissue that was lying underneath. Hoping to have similar results this time in round 2!

I logged the Italian BMT macros straight from the MFP database, I have attached a screen shot of yesterdays MyFitnessPal log with the macros in (I usually get more food in than this on a typical day, but to make Subway fit my calories limit I didn't eat as much as I usually would have, obviously).

Oh man. Subway is amazing. I've never tried the enchilada or Fritos sandwiches they released but they sound amazing. And I could drink that chipotle sauce it's so good lol.

Here in the UK we don't have enchiladas/fritos at our Subways (not that I know of anyway!). Italian BMT is my favourite ..and to have it in moderation/on occasion feels better than having it every week whenever I wanted like I used to! (that's without mentioning the weekly Dominos/Papa Johns binges! Which I'm glad to say are now a thing of the past).

...Can't wait until I hit 50 posts and I can start embedding food pictures/progress pictures!

Glad to say that most of the DOMS has disappeared today, I'll be ready to hit my full body lifting hard tomorrow ...If DOMS is harsh on me again during the week then I'm definitely going to be drawing up a split routine and ditch the full body 3 x a week lifting routine - thoughts anyone?

----

Edit Time to be brutally honest - although I said that the DOMS has eased, it is still pretty uncomfortable today, more than I was expecting ..I guess I was trying to be a warrior earlier and put on a strong front/block it out of my mind. Have taken some Ibuprofen to help ease the soreness.

It doesn't help that I slept terribly last night (mind was too active). I only got a patchy 6 hours (5am - 11am). Hopefully I will sleep well later and wake up better on Monday morning ...

[DaveRVD]

It's Monday morning ...

Feeling a little tired today, but that's not stopping me - Breakfast is down (also acts as my pre-workout) and I'm ready to do this for another week!

Weigh in is Wednesday, got high hopes for another 2lbs down.

[Gen1GT]

Italian BMT FTW.

[justinlando]

Definitely in to support this. Dave your calves are pretty beastly! How are you handling the caloric deficit you're at right now? I found adjusting to the deficit harder than eating healthier or going to the gym in my own fat loss journey.

[Smartlifts]

It's Monday morning ...

Feeling a little tired today, but that's not stopping me - Breakfast is down (also acts as my pre-workout) and I'm ready to do this for another week!

Weigh in is Wednesday, got high hopes for another 2lbs down.

Time to go and smash another week brother!!

[DaveRVD]

Just finished my Monday full body lifting ...

I felt very motivated and focused during it (the loud music always helps). I'm obviously expecting some DOMS again in the next day or so, as some of my exercises aren't even a week old yet (since getting the bench and doing certain presses/flyes). But hopefully the DOMS isn't as bad as it was last week (prays).

I will be taking and posting some better pictures of myself shortly to show where most of my body holds fat and how far I've yet to go (spoiler: it's a long way yet), I know I should have done this at the start but I just didn't have the nuts.

Italian BMT FTW.

OH, HELL YEAH!! *toasts protein shake*

Definitely in to support this. Dave your calves are pretty beastly! How are you handling the caloric deficit you're at right now? I found adjusting to the deficit harder than eating healthier or going to the gym in my own fat loss journey.

Thanks for the comments man! I appreciate it -

I'm handling the deficit really well, working from home means I'm not as active as some would be who get up and leave the home everyday for work (I still make time during the week to get out and about, but it's obviously not the same as a wake-up and travel to work routine etc.). My MFP log (link in sig) shows that some days I can miss 200 or so of uneaten calories from the 1800 deficit (not good, but I'm working on closing that gap so I'm not in a further deficit than I already am).

You say that you found adjusting to the deficit harder than eating healthier? - it's the complete opposite for me, I really struggle to eat 'better' (I struggle with whole foods/hate 99% of fruit & veg, I even hate fish) ..But I love the lifting, and what's more, I feel like I'm getting plenty of food each day, rarely going hungry for too long.

Talking of whole foods - I am pushing myself to work on discovering at least some "whole foods" to add to my weekly intake (ones that I've never tried, such as asparagus - which I will be trying in the next week or so ...wish me luck as I will need it knowing me and my inability to eat such things!). As you will see in my MFP log, a lot of the food I eat isn't the best (but I always makes sure it fits my macros), I'm sure it isn't ideal for me in the long run to keep eating what I am at the moment (despite it working for me).

Time to go and smash another week brother!!

Thanks smart! Truth be told, I feel more pumped now than when I started this whole thing over a month ago!

I will do my best to post those photos that I mentioned, this really will be a big/brave deal for me to actually post them (I genuinely hate certain parts of myself when I look in the mirror).

[GravyVeins]

Good luck man. You will make progress if you consistently update your log.

[Smartlifts]

Post up pics now and when you finish this log and are shredded you can look back and be like and feel good about yourself!

Just realised you work from home. Me too. It can be hard as sometimes I do feel like I'm quite sedentary and just sitting around a lot. I'm going to look at investing in a standing desk in a few months. I remember seeing one in ikea that was adjustable so you could ease yourself into standing all the time.

[DaveRVD]

OK, here goes ..I know in some snaps I'm covering up, but that's just how I am and have been for some years.
Damn, it's not easy to get a good flex while holding a phone and framing yourself (especially the back shot).
I hate my nipples so have brushed over them.

Taken 5 weeks in - 347lbs (24st 11lbs)









I like to think that I have retained a semi-decent muscular chest/biceps for the 7 years of full neglect I've put my body through.
Obviously the majority of my fat is in the torso/chest, I'm hoping that the slow fat loss will help the skin not to hang (it tightened real nice last time, although that was nearly 10 years ago).

Obviously down the line I will have some stubborn loose/jiggly skin, which I'm not too worried about as I can work on that ...My worst fear is unsightly overhanging/excess skin. Hoping that my belly "pulls in" to more of a bump than droop as the fat drops ...

[DaveRVD]

Good luck man. You will make progress if you consistently update your log.

Thanks for looking in Gravy! I'm planning to do exactly that~

Post up pics now and when you finish this log and are shredded you can look back and be like and feel good about yourself!

Just realised you work from home. Me too. It can be hard as sometimes I do feel like I'm quite sedentary and just sitting around a lot. I'm going to look at investing in a standing desk in a few months. I remember seeing one in ikea that was adjustable so you could ease yourself into standing all the time.

Heh, yeah - luckily I don't get distracted too much. But I hear ya on the 'sitting around' part when work is slow going. What do you do? Are you self-employed? One man band Web Designer here.