Has anyone achieved a total fitness transformation?

[8 Bit WWBG]

I'm just curious whether anyone has successfully adopted and maintained a long term fitness transformation.  Whether it was losing a tremendous amount of weight, or say building up muscle, or whatever.

Besides the obvious (actually DOING the exercise) what was it that you really "did".  Did you adopt a specific regimen and/or diet?  What was your goal?  If it was to lose weight, did you do it by adopting cardio and/or strength training?  Did you buy a home machine (bike, treadmill...) and just get on it 6 times a week?

Specifically for anyone who built muscle, I'd love to hear whether there was a particular routine you followed.

Damn, I wish cawiau was here to elaborate.  I remember him saying he went from beanpole to bodybuilder.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Hmmm...depends on what you mean by total transformation...
Either way, not me personally. 
I've only personally seen one perosn who was 300+ pounds drop to a healthy weight. He goes to the pool now, and he doesn't wear a shirt. The amount of excess skin is amazing in a weird way. I'm glad he is healthier now. He has two kids in my daughter's age group, and he probably would have had a heart attack before they made it through high school. 

Last August, my husband started running and watching his calorie intake. He has lost 35 pounds, and he still runs every day. He is almost to his high school graduation weight, which, at the time he thought made him chubby. We'll see how far he takes it. He looks great now, but he wants to lose another 15 pounds. 

[Deleted]

I was in a comfortable rut about 5 years ago: worked out every day, ate reasonably healthy, but had gone from 130 lbs. at HS graduation to 147 lbs. at my last checkup. (I'm female, 5'7", age 61.) Hardly obesity, but I didn't like feeling fat jiggle. Two factors really changed things for me. One, I stepped up my exercise from 45 minutes a day to 55, but also got a heart rate monitor so I could tell when I was slacking off. I also upload the workouts so they're displayed on a "Training Load" chart, which is measured based on length and heart rate patterns. I like keeping myself in the yellow zone ("further training not recommended") and love zooming up into the red zone when I do a 50K bike ride every month or so during good weather.

The other factor: I blundered into a pattern of eating that later turned out to be the subject of a book: "5/2 Fasting". Two days a week (typically Tuesday and Thursday for me), I eat almost nothing but fresh fruits and veggies, with a dish of Greek yogurt sweetened with honey at night so I don't wake up hungry. I also still enjoy my nightly glass of wine. I estimate that I take in about 1,000 calories on those days, and my workout burns up 500-600. This has changed my relationship with food; I've learned to ignore minor hunger pangs, or eat baby carrots when I want a snack. That spills over into the days when I'm eating regularly.

I now weigh 131, and when I did a triathlon last year, my bicycle time (same 9 mile course, same bike, same conditions) was 2 minutes less than 2 years before.

Not a "beanpole to bodybuilder" story- my shape is more beanpole than it used to be and I'm happy about that!- but a happy result from small changes applied with discipline.

[whoisjohngalt]

Well, I got fat and so far am staying fat - is that what you are talking about?

[Sunnyday]

I once lost 60 lbs and kept it off for 8 years. I put it back on with my back to back pregnancies though.

But, how I lost the weight is beyond me. I just got really into life that had no time for food, and then a bad breakup polished off the last 15lbs and I was slim for about 8 years.

No exercise though. But I've found that when I was trying to lose weight through exercise, I would never lose it. There is some false belief out there that believes that if you work out that you can eat anything. This is not true! Calorie restriction is the only real way to significant weight! And of course, you can combine that with exercise! But exercising seemed to rev up my appetite, so it was always a wash on the weight loss but a plus for general overall health.

[NancysSummerSip]

Lost 75 pounds but still working on more.

I work out every day, sometimes twice a day if I can. Running, biking, swimming, some walking and I just started water polo. I do use small weights and tension rope as well.

Eating habits - I didn't give up anything entirely, other than soda. Most everything in moderation, some things more moderate than others. I did add a daily raw fruit/veggie smoothie to my daily intake. Anything can go in it, as long as it's either fresh or frozen plain.

[Cookies Galore]

I guess I did something of a nearly total transformation. I lost ~40 pounds two years ago (going from a size 14 to a size 8) and I developed a love for running.
I spent the first 30 years of my life being relatively inactive but I've always been into food, healthy and otherwise. I only had to do some small modifications to my diet (I already didn't eat meat, wasn't a soda drinker, and didn't have a sweet tooth) but my attitude toward physical activity completely changed. Now, I hate it if I go more than a day without running on the trail.

[Peace Of Mind]

Jul 25, 2014 12:56:54 GMT -5 whoisjohngalt said:

Well, I got fat and so far am staying fat - is that what you are talking about?

Not liking that you got fat and are staying fat but for cracking me up!


When I had Grave's disease (misdiagnosed until early 30's) I lost way too much weight and muscle mass.  I averaged 128 lbs. (I'm 5'6") before and was down to 113 while really sick and I was freaking out because I was eating like a pig and weight was just melting off of me. The doctors kept saying nothing was wrong with me but I was also losing my hair, had an accelerated heart rate, night sweats and tons of other issues.    When I finally got diagnosed (it took 9 drs. before they figured it out) and had my thyroid removed I had to get my muscles back in shape and it took forever to get my weight back up a bit.  Yes, I could eat crap but that just went to my belly (doc told me to drink beer.  Ummm, no).  To do it right and have it be distributed properly took forever!  Luckily I move around a lot naturally and I just walked and used hand weights and did jumping jacks - stuff like we did in school.  It worked!  I was able to get up to 124 lbs. by my early 40's and it was distributed properly.

Then menopause showed up and the belly along with it.  After going on hormones I got up to 133 lbs.  I love having the weight in my butt (Yay!  I finally got a good butt!) but too much went right to my belly and boobs which I don't need at all.  I'm now down to about 127.5 (last I checked) and the belly is getting down some by doing the same things I did when I got sick.  I like this weight but just need to work on toning some more.  That takes too much effort so I may just accept the way things are at this stage in life.  <<drinks from my cup of f___-it-all>>    

Oh, I forgot the most important part - I now eat leaner and I crave more fruits and veggies.  While DH has been working out of town I've been training myself to eat more fish/Seafood, fresh veggies and fruits and nuts... stuff like that and now that's all I mostly want.  He won't do that with me but I have news for him when he starts working locally again.

[Sam_2.0]

Jul 25, 2014 12:56:36 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

I was in a comfortable rut about 5 years ago: worked out every day, ate reasonably healthy, but had gone from 130 lbs. at HS graduation to 147 lbs. at my last checkup. (I'm female, 5'7", age 61.) Hardly obesity, but I didn't like feeling fat jiggle. Two factors really changed things for me. One, I stepped up my exercise from 45 minutes a day to 55, but also got a heart rate monitor so I could tell when I was slacking off. I also upload the workouts so they're displayed on a "Training Load" chart, which is measured based on length and heart rate patterns. I like keeping myself in the yellow zone ("further training not recommended") and love zooming up into the red zone when I do a 50K bike ride every month or so during good weather.

The other factor: I blundered into a pattern of eating that later turned out to be the subject of a book: "5/2 Fasting". Two days a week (typically Tuesday and Thursday for me), I eat almost nothing but fresh fruits and veggies, with a dish of Greek yogurt sweetened with honey at night so I don't wake up hungry. I also still enjoy my nightly glass of wine. I estimate that I take in about 1,000 calories on those days, and my workout burns up 500-600. This has changed my relationship with food; I've learned to ignore minor hunger pangs, or eat baby carrots when I want a snack. That spills over into the days when I'm eating regularly.

I now weigh 131, and when I did a triathlon last year, my bicycle time (same 9 mile course, same bike, same conditions) was 2 minutes less than 2 years before.

Not a "beanpole to bodybuilder" story- my shape is more beanpole than it used to be and I'm happy about that!- but a happy result from small changes applied with discipline.

My dad does the 5/2 diet and has gone from 195 to 165 and kept it there for several years now.

[Sunnyday]

Jul 25, 2014 14:45:47 GMT -5 Sam_2.0 said:

Jul 25, 2014 12:56:36 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

I was in a comfortable rut about 5 years ago: worked out every day, ate reasonably healthy, but had gone from 130 lbs. at HS graduation to 147 lbs. at my last checkup. (I'm female, 5'7", age 61.) Hardly obesity, but I didn't like feeling fat jiggle. Two factors really changed things for me. One, I stepped up my exercise from 45 minutes a day to 55, but also got a heart rate monitor so I could tell when I was slacking off. I also upload the workouts so they're displayed on a "Training Load" chart, which is measured based on length and heart rate patterns. I like keeping myself in the yellow zone ("further training not recommended") and love zooming up into the red zone when I do a 50K bike ride every month or so during good weather.

The other factor: I blundered into a pattern of eating that later turned out to be the subject of a book: "5/2 Fasting". Two days a week (typically Tuesday and Thursday for me), I eat almost nothing but fresh fruits and veggies, with a dish of Greek yogurt sweetened with honey at night so I don't wake up hungry. I also still enjoy my nightly glass of wine. I estimate that I take in about 1,000 calories on those days, and my workout burns up 500-600. This has changed my relationship with food; I've learned to ignore minor hunger pangs, or eat baby carrots when I want a snack. That spills over into the days when I'm eating regularly.

I now weigh 131, and when I did a triathlon last year, my bicycle time (same 9 mile course, same bike, same conditions) was 2 minutes less than 2 years before.

Not a "beanpole to bodybuilder" story- my shape is more beanpole than it used to be and I'm happy about that!- but a happy result from small changes applied with discipline.

My dad does the 5/2 diet and has gone from 195 to 165 and kept it there for several years now.

. There are other variations of the 5:2.
I naturally do an intermittent fasting diet 16:8.
But I do it naturally, as I'm not hungry in the morning. Everyone told me that you HAVE to eat breakfast or you are going to DIE of hunger, so I tried that. Forced myself to eat breakfast. It made no difference in what I ate the rest of the day, which would be lunch, dinner and large late night snack, but now I was eating a breakfast too. So I was forcing myself to eat a breakfast and I gained 15 lbs over a year of starting my day right by eating a good breakfast! I think I'll stick to listening to my body!

[Bob Ross]

Jul 25, 2014 12:47:02 GMT -5 8 Bit WWBG said:

total fitness transformation  

That sounds like a term that some douche with a higher number in his pack than his IQ point count would use to sell you something.

I prefer fitness the old fashioned way:  with anabolic steroids.

[Ryan]

I was around 170 pounds when I was in college and around 180 when I got married. Over the next 7 years, I got all the way up to 260 pounds roughly. Actually, I would fluctuate between 240-265. I was tall, so I did an ok job of hiding it but I looked huge compared to where I was.

My big drop was over a 4 month period where I went from 260 to 215. Then over the last 12 months, I've basically very slowly went from 215 to 205 (where I am now). Here are the big things I did:

1) I pretty much cut out anything that was too calorie dense. No fast food, no ice cream, no twizzlers, no French fries, etc. Too easy to go overboard with foods like that.
2) My goal was to stay under 2200 calories. First priority was clean stuff like chicken, nuts, veggies, and fruit. Secondary stuff was moderately processed stuff like protein bars, sandwiches, etc. And my “cheat” stuff that I ate was popcorn, crackers, etc. Usually I ate all this stuff every single day and if I wanted to pig out on food, I would do it on popcorn/crackers and stuff.
3) My primary rule for working out was that I’d train with weights 3 days a week. Worst case scenario I would do bodyweight stuff at home, but I always worked out for at least like 15 minutes.
4) My cardio plan was to try and walk 10K steps at least 4 days per week. The other days I wanted to be in the 8k range.

I think the keys, for me, were to remove the “all out” cheat days because I just went overboard. I also removed the idea of having to eat 100% clean or the day was ruined. I think it’s easier for me to basically eat good for 90% of the day and then treat myself at the end of the day with some carbs. And I pretty much eliminated all that food that was just really really bad for me. That stuff has gotten to the point with me where I actually feel kinda lousy after I eat it.

[Nazgul Girl]

     My DD, who used to be quite thin, had gained about 80-90 lbs about 4 years ago.   She was on medication which made it hard for her to lose weight, because it increased her appetite so much. 

   Since she came home to our state, she's spent 3 years modifying her diet, given up smoking and drinking, has lost 85 lbs, is now swimming 2 days a week, running 2 days a week, and biking 2 days a week, or a combo of these exercises every day.   She's been running 4-6 miles a day for quite some time.   

   She's now training for her first triathalon.   

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Yeah, I did and maintained it until my hips went south.  Since about 2005, it has been a battle that I've lost.

I have to wonder if the 10+ years that I worked out so freaking religiously helped already compromised joints go south faster.

[morrisr2d2]

I've been on a transformation for two years now. Nothing like a good ole fashion health scare to motivate me! I had terrible blood pressure that was cause heart attack and stroke like symptoms. Docs ran all kinds of test but could only diagnosis the high Bp. I was convinced my heart was clogged somewhere too as my cholesterol wasn't good.

At that time I weighted 202 and I am six foot. I radically changed my diet. Went pescatarian. Cut out dairy except egg whites and Greek yogurt. No snack or sweets. All fresh produce. Net 2200 calories a day. In three months I dropped to 175 and cholesterol went from 230 to 150.

Also started working out religiously 6 days a week. For a while it was mostly cardio focused to help my heart and Bp out ( I will prob always be on a beta blocker the rest my life though)

When I got things under control I loosened my diet a tad. I wil nibble on sweets here and there and eat an occasional turkey burger. But I still try to follow the pescatarian diet mostly.

Now I am currently trying to put on muscle, slowly but surely. Not in a body builder way though more like nice definition for a guy. I am an ectomorph so have trouble putting on lots of muscle anyway. Added more protein to diet (no meat except fish though-also shakes, soy, egg whites, Greek yogurt). Increased daily net calories to 2500. Put more emphasis on weight lifting, pyramiding, and just do spin twice a week for cardio). I am noticing a difference. I've crept back up to 180 And have nicer definition.

I plan to keep this up for life. I've gotten addicted to it. I hope to stay at 180, maybe 185 as long as it's muscle. Oh, and I buzzed my hair and grew a trimmed beard. I think I'm turning into that 40 year old daddy I use to chase :-)

So no new secrets to share, just need the will and drive to commit!!!

[chen35]

I'm envious of all of you who try to keep calories under 2200 to stay in shape. I'm short, and I have to stay between 1200 - 1300 to keep at the weight I want. I'm currently 20 pounds overweight, because it's just too difficult for me to stay at that level for long. 

[ZaireinHD]

Jul 25, 2014 12:47:02 GMT -5 8 Bit WWBG said:

I'm just curious whether anyone has successfully adopted and maintained a long term fitness transformation.  Whether it was losing a tremendous amount of weight, or say building up muscle, or whatever.

Besides the obvious (actually DOING the exercise) what was it that you really "did".  Did you adopt a specific regimen and/or diet?  What was your goal?  If it was to lose weight, did you do it by adopting cardio and/or strength training?  Did you buy a home machine (bike, treadmill...) and just get on it 6 times a week?

not this guy!!!

[resolution]

So those of you that were married when you did your transformation, how did you get your spouses to buy in to the process? I started a diet and fitness routine while DH was out of town for a couple of months. So far I have lost 7 pounds, but I need to keep up the routine to continue to get in better shape.

Now that he is back home it is a bit of a struggle. One of the things I gave up was wine, since that was just empty calories and easy to cut, but he misses drinking wine in the evening. I stopped buying desserts like cookies and ice cream and he misses them. I told him to go ahead and drink and eat them without me, but he says it's not the same. I told him I would probably need another four months on the diet, but even when the diet is over I won't be able to relax everything I gave up or I will just go back to square one.

[morrisr2d2]

Kari I haven't gotten my spouse on board with my health kick so in that regard we just agreed to diverge. He still drinks 3 to 6 drinks a day, I drink on or two drinks 3 or 4 days a week, which has helped with the weight loss. During the week we both work long hours and I workout after work so we don't eat dinner together. It's a protein shake, some fruit and or Greek yogurt for me, etc. he's bad in that hell do pizza, subway or just snack. On the weekends we eat out so I get salad and salmon he get steak or burger or pasta. I've tried to get him to be healthier but he always says "I haven't had health issues so don't push your health kick into me". I try to look past the fact I am getting in better shape and he slowly in worse but it's hard on the relationship. He has yo yoed off and on health kicks in the past so I just hope when he gets on his next one he will be motivated to stay on since I've been doing it. But well see.

I should clarify my partner is supportive of my health kick, he just hasn't wanted to be part of it at all over the past two years and he thinks I went all extreme in him but he's supportive. I guess extreme means not as fun.

[Deleted]

I started at 390.  I am down in the 270s now.  This is the FIRST time I have weighed this low since I was prego with my first son, who will be 22 next week...

I weighed 230 the day I graduated HS and that has been my goal weight.

For me, it is all about mental health management, and movement. What I eat doesn't seem to be as important as how much I move. The more I move, the more I lose weight.

I can now do 4 miles on up/down trail without feeling like I am going to have a heart attack or die.  Hell, I hike with my kids and they are sucking wind, and I am just walking along.  Honestly, it is GREAT and motivates me to move more.

I found some nice areas to rock hound in my area and have been spending my days doing that with my dogs.  Old copper mine tailings is my favorite place to play right now. 

[8 Bit WWBG]

Yeah I guess "total fitness transformation" is the type of thing guys like Sean T or John Basedow stand there in muscle shirts and promise you if you use their products/regimens.

I haven't tried to "get my spouse" on a kick, but if you both aren't in it, I can see how it would be tough.  Maybe one person can't stand the thought of a life without bagels/pasta/pizza, or the other has no desire to spend what little free time one has after work at a gym -- on top of still being expected to mow lawns and take out garbage and so on.

[Deleted]

Jul 26, 2014 11:49:16 GMT -5 @atsahsreborn said:

I started at 390.  I am down in the 270s now.  This is the FIRST time I have weighed this low since I was prego with my first son, who will be 22 next week...

I weighed 230 the day I graduated HS and that has been my goal weight.

For me, it is all about mental health management, and movement. What I eat doesn't seem to be as important as how much I move. The more I move, the more I lose weight.

Congratulations! You'd mentioned awhile ago that you were working to lose weight and I'm glad to read that you're getting results. I also firmly believe physical activity helps mental health, too. One of the volunteer activities I enjoy most since I retired is working in a garden our church started to provide fresh fruits and vegetables for the local soup kitchen. It gets me outdoors and in the sunshine and the results are so tangible. I always come home feeling better even if the mosquitos made dinner out of me.

[Deleted]

Jul 26, 2014 12:43:49 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

Jul 26, 2014 11:49:16 GMT -5 @atsahsreborn said:

I started at 390.  I am down in the 270s now.  This is the FIRST time I have weighed this low since I was prego with my first son, who will be 22 next week...

I weighed 230 the day I graduated HS and that has been my goal weight.

For me, it is all about mental health management, and movement. What I eat doesn't seem to be as important as how much I move. The more I move, the more I lose weight.

Congratulations! You'd mentioned awhile ago that you were working to lose weight and I'm glad to read that you're getting results. I also firmly believe physical activity helps mental health, too. One of the volunteer activities I enjoy most since I retired is working in a garden our church started to provide fresh fruits and vegetables for the local soup kitchen. It gets me outdoors and in the sunshine and the results are so tangible. I always come home feeling better even if the mosquitos made dinner out of me.

I have always, since I was a child, wondered how people felt "good" from exercise. I almost asked here how people exercise in the morning before work. To me that would have meant feeling horrid for the rest of the day...

When you aren't in shape, exercise is more like torture than something that makes you feel good.

However, one day a few months ago, I put in about 5 hours of hard labor in my yard. Went in and took a bath and felt FAB! 

I was tired, but no longer exhausted and unable to move for days after. I went in and cooked dinner that night and it was fine. I finally got past that barrier of exercise making me dead tired and hit the place it makes me feel better!

I keep pushing it and now I crave the movement and sunshine. And, the more I do things, the faster it has become to accomplish things that require being physical.

I did an amazing hike recently that I would have never been able to do before. Honestly, I don't really care that much about the number on the scale. I am more concerned with what being more fit allows me to do.

[violagirl]

I have always viewed working out like medicine. I call my twice weekly workouts with a trainer my "insulin" because I have to view them as that important or I won't do it. 

I have recently taken up jogging and I am starting to find that there is a place when I get into the zone where time and distance just zoom by and my mind is cleared and the stress I had been carrying disappears. I had been very stressed at work, came home with a headache. Didn't really feel like going out for a run, but I did and by the time I got home, my headache was gone and the tension I had been carrying was gone too. 

I don't have the same feeling when I am downstairs on the treadmill, I really prefer being outside. 

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Jul 25, 2014 19:07:53 GMT -5 resolution said:

So those of you that were married when you did your transformation, how did you get your spouses to buy in to the process? I started a diet and fitness routine while DH was out of town for a couple of months. So far I have lost 7 pounds, but I need to keep up the routine to continue to get in better shape.

Now that he is back home it is a bit of a struggle. One of the things I gave up was wine, since that was just empty calories and easy to cut, but he misses drinking wine in the evening. I stopped buying desserts like cookies and ice cream and he misses them. I told him to go ahead and drink and eat them without me, but he says it's not the same. I told him I would probably need another four months on the diet, but even when the diet is over I won't be able to relax everything I gave up or I will just go back to square one.

I had tried on my own starting Jan2013. My goal was to lose ten pounds by the end of the year   By Aug2013, I had out on another seven pounds. I finally said to my DH, who didn't know that was my goal, that I had gotten to a weight that made me sad and upset .  My clothes didn't fit at all, and I was positive that if I went much further, he would not be attracted to me. 

I told old him I needed his help. The best help would be if he tracked calories with me, but I at least needed him to respect when I said I couldn't eat more food at any particular time of the day. 

He jumped on calorie tracking and exercising full board. By thanksgiving 2013, I had lost 15 pounds and he had lost 25. We lost steam during the holidays, realized that by mid-Feb, and got back on it until about mid-March. We had an abysmally busy spring, and I didn't keep up with the exercise well. At this point, we are both tracking again and I'm exercising more consistently. He's back to two or three cardio events each day instead of one. He's down 35 pounds total. 

I'm not quite sure what made him go full board. He turned 50 in 2013, and that may have had so getting to do with it. It is much easier when he's in it with me. 

[morrisr2d2]

I'd be curious to hear if anyone has had "trouble" psychologically putting weight back on in terms of muscle. I dropped from 202 to 175, and I've now crept back up to 181. I think half has to be muscle since my pants still seem to fit fine (even thought they do feel a little fuller in the butt and thighs). And I can see some results in the mirror. But's its still mentally hard to see the scale creep back up. I keep telling myself 185 is ok as long as I am putting on muscle.

Just curious how others have managed that transition!

[kjto1]

Jul 28, 2014 6:38:38 GMT -5 morrisr2d2 said:

I'd be curious to hear if anyone has had "trouble" psychologically putting weight back on in terms of muscle. I dropped from 202 to 175, and I've now crept back up to 181. I think half has to be muscle since my pants still seem to fit fine (even thought they do feel a little fuller in the butt and thighs). And I can see some results in the mirror. But's its still mentally hard to see the scale creep back up. I keep telling myself 185 is ok as long as I am putting on muscle.

Just curious how others have managed that transition!

I did.  I was working with a trainer - and they would measure inches as well as weight.  I was working at it for quite a while - 6-8 weeks?  I think I lost 1-2 pounds - I was losing inches and building muscle.  It was depressing to me.

[Deleted]

Jul 28, 2014 6:38:38 GMT -5 morrisr2d2 said:

I'd be curious to hear if anyone has had "trouble" psychologically putting weight back on in terms of muscle. I dropped from 202 to 175, and I've now crept back up to 181. I think half has to be muscle since my pants still seem to fit fine (even thought they do feel a little fuller in the butt and thighs). And I can see some results in the mirror. But's its still mentally hard to see the scale creep back up. I keep telling myself 185 is ok as long as I am putting on muscle.

Just curious how others have managed that transition!

I took pictures of myself in front of a full length mirror in just my underwear and labeled them with the date and the weight.  Boy, that will get you working out!  LOL  But it really showed me that I was getting smaller even if the scale didn't reflect it. 

[Cookies Galore]

Jul 26, 2014 20:50:14 GMT -5 violagirl said:

I have always viewed working out like medicine. I call my twice weekly workouts with a trainer my "insulin" because I have to view them as that important or I won't do it. 

I have recently taken up jogging and I am starting to find that there is a place when I get into the zone where time and distance just zoom by and my mind is cleared and the stress I had been carrying disappears. I had been very stressed at work, came home with a headache. Didn't really feel like going out for a run, but I did and by the time I got home, my headache was gone and the tension I had been carrying was gone too. 

I don't have the same feeling when I am downstairs on the treadmill, I really prefer being outside. 

Same here. Twenty minutes on a treadmill is equivalent to a medieval torture device. But an hour running on the trail? Totally okay.

[morrisr2d2]

Duh, yes I should also start measuring my waist and taking pics. Talk about holding yourself accountable! I should have take a pic back when I was 202, but never thought of it.

It's funny, as a 6 foot guy the BMI index would say I start being overweight at 179. But when I was 175 I thought I looked pretty skinny for a guy, and I think people usually like a little more muscle on a guy, myself included. So I gotta get that BMI crap out of my head, even though I know it's totally off for athletic people.