Meet the old Shawn.
Growing up I was always the classic chubby kid, not morbidly obese or anything but definitely one of the biggest kids in the class. During high school after getting a pretty active job at a sweatshop car wash and living off a liquid diet of free soda consumed when time allowed, I lost 50 pounds and was at a pretty healthy weight but didn’t exactly look awesome in a swimsuit.
As I graduated high school and went off to college, lack of sleep, increased stress and a few too many times going in for pizza at 10pm the weight came back on and stayed there until our second child was on the way and I decided to make a change. This time I opted for the more conventional method of weight loss with low impact exercise (stationary bike while playing video games) and calorie restricted diet counting every calorie.
My diet was something similar to the following:
Breakfast: Banana, peanut butter, and chocolate protein shake
Snack: fruit (apple, pear, etc.)
Lunch: Subway sandwich (lots of meat and veggies)
Snack: Granola bar
Dinner: Moderate portion of whatever my wife was cooking
This diet roughly followed the normal USDA recommended guidelines with a few things missing and I consumed about 1800 calories per day on average, while not including exercise I typical would burn 2300 calories on an average day.
This worked and resulted in 60 pounds of weight loss though I felt like crap and was hungry all the time and of that weight at least several lbs. were lost in muscle. When my second daughter was born she had some medical problems and was hospitalized for one month so fitting in work along with visits to the hospital whenever possible the workout and the diet (hospital cafeteria which is ironically unhealthy and fast food) went out the window.
Fast forward a few years and I tipped the scales at 251.4 pounds at my last physical, though this is the highest number I had ever seen for myself looking at some pictures over the past few years I had probably even been heavier. I was concerned at this moment but the turning point was when I went to get some supplemental life insurance that I came back as “Standard” and given I do not smoke, drink, skydive, swim with sharks, etc. The only reason for my higher chance of statistically dying early was my weight and heart disease risk which was my inspiration and turning point for me.
This led me to my weight loss journey for my third and final time. This time I did a little more research and conducted some simple experiments on myself. This helped me discover what foods kept me satisfied (not being hungry at all) with the least amount of calories. After some trial and I found that if I significantly reduced my carbohydrates (25-50g), increased my protein intake to 180g, and then included the rest for good quality fats I felt great was not hungry and only ate about 1800 calories while including minimal exercise (1.5 miles a day walking during my commute). I later began targeting foods that were more nutrient dense which did not change my diet that much just started trading some fruits/nuts/dairy for more vegetables and meat.
My diet was something similar to the following:
Breakfast: Sausage and spinach omelet
Lunch: 7-8 oz. meat and veggies (double cheeseburger w/o bun, salad piled with chicken, bacon, and blue cheese dressing, etc.)
Snack: Protein shake (1-2 scoops Muscle Milk and water), 2 oz Beef Jerky
Dinner: 7-8 oz. meat and veggies (in a pinch will return to Sausage and spinach omelet)
Over a 6 months I lost 50 pounds and hit my first goal which is where I should not have any heightened risk for cancer, heart disease, etc, I also renewed my life insurance now with a premium status.
I remember hearing somewhere if you keep your weight loss off for one year it is there to stay…not sure how much truth to this there is but seemed like a good exercise in weight maintenance and kept off the 50 pounds lost for exactly one year until deciding to see if I could reduce my weight even further. I lost 10 lbs during the first month and total weight loss of 65.1 pounds at the time of writing while still not feeling hungry.
As I graduated high school and went off to college, lack of sleep, increased stress and a few too many times going in for pizza at 10pm the weight came back on and stayed there until our second child was on the way and I decided to make a change. This time I opted for the more conventional method of weight loss with low impact exercise (stationary bike while playing video games) and calorie restricted diet counting every calorie.
My diet was something similar to the following:
Breakfast: Banana, peanut butter, and chocolate protein shake
Snack: fruit (apple, pear, etc.)
Lunch: Subway sandwich (lots of meat and veggies)
Snack: Granola bar
Dinner: Moderate portion of whatever my wife was cooking
This diet roughly followed the normal USDA recommended guidelines with a few things missing and I consumed about 1800 calories per day on average, while not including exercise I typical would burn 2300 calories on an average day.
This worked and resulted in 60 pounds of weight loss though I felt like crap and was hungry all the time and of that weight at least several lbs. were lost in muscle. When my second daughter was born she had some medical problems and was hospitalized for one month so fitting in work along with visits to the hospital whenever possible the workout and the diet (hospital cafeteria which is ironically unhealthy and fast food) went out the window.
Fast forward a few years and I tipped the scales at 251.4 pounds at my last physical, though this is the highest number I had ever seen for myself looking at some pictures over the past few years I had probably even been heavier. I was concerned at this moment but the turning point was when I went to get some supplemental life insurance that I came back as “Standard” and given I do not smoke, drink, skydive, swim with sharks, etc. The only reason for my higher chance of statistically dying early was my weight and heart disease risk which was my inspiration and turning point for me.
This led me to my weight loss journey for my third and final time. This time I did a little more research and conducted some simple experiments on myself. This helped me discover what foods kept me satisfied (not being hungry at all) with the least amount of calories. After some trial and I found that if I significantly reduced my carbohydrates (25-50g), increased my protein intake to 180g, and then included the rest for good quality fats I felt great was not hungry and only ate about 1800 calories while including minimal exercise (1.5 miles a day walking during my commute). I later began targeting foods that were more nutrient dense which did not change my diet that much just started trading some fruits/nuts/dairy for more vegetables and meat.
My diet was something similar to the following:
Breakfast: Sausage and spinach omelet
Lunch: 7-8 oz. meat and veggies (double cheeseburger w/o bun, salad piled with chicken, bacon, and blue cheese dressing, etc.)
Snack: Protein shake (1-2 scoops Muscle Milk and water), 2 oz Beef Jerky
Dinner: 7-8 oz. meat and veggies (in a pinch will return to Sausage and spinach omelet)
Over a 6 months I lost 50 pounds and hit my first goal which is where I should not have any heightened risk for cancer, heart disease, etc, I also renewed my life insurance now with a premium status.
I remember hearing somewhere if you keep your weight loss off for one year it is there to stay…not sure how much truth to this there is but seemed like a good exercise in weight maintenance and kept off the 50 pounds lost for exactly one year until deciding to see if I could reduce my weight even further. I lost 10 lbs during the first month and total weight loss of 65.1 pounds at the time of writing while still not feeling hungry.
Meet Shawn Today.
What was the biggest challenge to adopting a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet?
Eating out can be tough, but just trading the starches for veggies or just skipping the starches can make it a bit easier.
What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
If you are skeptical, try it for one month if you don't lose weight and feel great go ahead and give it up but I really do not think that will be the case.
Eating out can be tough, but just trading the starches for veggies or just skipping the starches can make it a bit easier.
What advice (if any) would you give to someone interested in trying a carbohydrate-restricted or paleo diet? Were there any obstacles that you overcame that could help future dieters?
If you are skeptical, try it for one month if you don't lose weight and feel great go ahead and give it up but I really do not think that will be the case.
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View our Marketplace of paleo and low carb experts that compete against eachother to help you lose weight and get healthy!
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