A Nerd who lost a lot of weight, you can do it too!

[newt]

Inspiring....I am gonna do that too.....

 

[ArmyInfantry]

I'm a nerd that went from 140 lbs benching around 150lbs to 165lbs flat bench pressing 315lbs...this took 6 years of hard training...but it's worth it.

 

[AznMaverick]

man, right now i'm somewhere around 115-125 (weight is fluxuating because of finals), i've got to figure out some way to gain muscle mass (so that i can be around 135-140), don't want to look as cut up as john does, but maybe about 3/4 the way wouldn't hurt...hehe. damn when i first saw your page i thought it was a fake, then i looked at all the gradually changing pictures of you and WOW, truly amazing, at least i think.
edit: oh yea, and it always seems that these great stories are happening to white or black people, i'm obviously (from my s/n) an asian, think i can pull something even close to this off?

 

[sxr7171]

John Stone, What do you think about Power Bars or exercise bars? I believe that getting 5 small meals a day (like you did) is a very good idea, and I just don't have time for breakfast or even to make the protein mix that you make and drink in the morning. I usually leave home with OJ and bottled water, and I think getting a powerbar in the car (with water) will help in so many ways. One reason is to get that protein that they say wakes you up in the morning and another is to not be half dead from starvation at lunch time so I don't eat like a pig at lunch time.

I just went and got some Balance bars today and I think I'm going to go for the metamucil tablets for the same reason you do, apart from trying to eat more raisin bran because I think naturally consumed fiber (along with food) is supposed to be better - but I also think it is next to impossible for a busy student to get the RDA of fiber in their food - so metamucil it is.

 

[JohnStoneFl]

AznMaverick, Hey man, the fact that your Asian doesn't mean anything when it comes to building muscle and/or losing fat. There are some very ripped up Asians out there. I think the reason you don't see so many transformation success stories from Asians is because, in general, Asians eat well and are not fat to begin with. Go for it man...


sxr7171, I am not a big fan of protein bars, but they are better than eating nothing (I guess). Just be careful what you buy. I don't like them for several reasons. First of all, many of them are loaded with sugar. Most (if not all) of the bars that are low in sugar contain sugar alcohols (glycerol, maltitol, mannitol, et. al.). Sugar alcohols don't have to appear in the nutritional information as carbs, fat or protein but they count as calories and can cause all kinds of gastric problems such as bloating and loose stools. The reason sugar alcohol calories are not required to counted as carbs is because they don't significantly raise blood sugar levels, but they are still only one metabolic step from being converted to fat. Consume enough of them and you WILL get the insulin spike and you WILL store fat. Additionally many protein bars use garbage protein like hydrolyzed gelatin and hydrolyzed collagen which is absolutely useless nutritionally and useless for building mass.... and if that's not bad enough you should realize that those kinds of "proteins" come from "throw away" animal parts like bones, skin and feet, which are ground up and soaked in lime to remove the hair and grease. After that, the glop is then given an acid bath so it can be molded into your bar and consumed. No thanks.

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: AznMaverick
man, right now i'm somewhere around 115-125 (weight is fluxuating because of finals), i've got to figure out some way to gain muscle mass (so that i can be around 135-140), don't want to look as cut up as john does, but maybe about 3/4 the way wouldn't hurt...hehe. damn when i first saw your page i thought it was a fake, then i looked at all the gradually changing pictures of you and WOW, truly amazing, at least i think.
edit: oh yea, and it always seems that these great stories are happening to white or black people, i'm obviously (from my s/n) an asian, think i can pull something even close to this off?

Um yeah if you work out. I was a stick when i was a teenager. And i don't know what being asian has to do with it. If you workout, you're going to get bigger. Just do it seriously and not half-assed.

EDIT: BTW, i'm asian, and i workout... heck, EVERY SINGLE ASIAN guy i know works out.

 

[ProviaFan]

Originally posted by: JohnStoneFl
...After that, the glop is then given an acid bath so it can be molded into your bar and consumed. No thanks.

Eww, yuck! :disgust:

I'm going to show that to my mom, so hopefully she will be convinced to stop picking those things up occasionally when they go on sale at Wal-mart. She coerced me to consume one, and IMHO it tasted fvcking awful. :frown:

 

[jsbush]

He looks healthier before.

 

[StageLeft]

I'll add to the protein bars. Some are crap. In fact most are. The only ones I've seen a walmart worth buying are the powerbar brand (powerbar makes protein ones as well). Among the best protein bars in my opinion at least are the MET-RX ones and also designer whey is a solid brand and they make bars.

If you buy muscletech bars I seem to remember that they have a large number of the "glycerin" calories. So they say perhaps 30 g protein, 5 g carbs, and let's say 0 fat but 35 X 3 is 140 and these really may have 250 calories - the rest is glycerin. Metrx on the other hand has the same composition but they specifically state glycerin is in it.

Avoid the cheap protein bars especially ones heavy with lower quality protein like soy. The designer why bars use only designer whey and the metrx uses their own "metamyosyn" which is just their name for their protein composition which is made up of whey and some other crap (I don't think it's actually crap since metrx is a good name).

Designer Proteins has recently come out with detour, uturn, and nextup bars. They are basically chocholate bars with protein. They taste awesome but you get a lot of crap sugars in there too. The standard designer whey bars are not like this.

Metrx are my favorite because they are filled to the brim with vitamins while maintaining low fat, good protein (30+) and calories around 300 (not super low but they taste good). If you get metrx bars fudge or peanut butter are the best. Cherry vanilla is ok. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED: DO NOT BUY MALTED BALL FLAVOR YOU WILL WANT TO DIE.

---

Don't like bars? Get a meal replacement powder. Metrx (no I don't work for them) as well as labrada and EAS and others all make meal replacement drinks and you just put them in a container and shake with water for a few seconds and you have a very high protein very low calorie meal high in vitamins which is a perfect start to your day.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: jsbush
He looks healthier before.

You can't believe that! A doctor might tell him to gain weight now, but a doctor surely would have told him to lose it before and with a bodyfat of around 11% he's far from starving to death. I'm sure he's significantly healthier!

 

[trikster2]

Originally posted by: sxr7171
and I just don't have time for breakfast or even to make the protein mix that you make and drink in the morning. .

Here's my trick:

I premix my protien mix (mostly Myoplex but also whatever is cheap at GNC this week).

I do it in a blender so it gets mixed swell, and then poor it into old plasitc 16 or 20 oz diet coke bottles.

I do this on the weekend and make enough for 2 protien drinks a day.

Looks kinda gross maybe I'll switch to diet mountain dew bottles as they are not as see through.

Also for your morning mix, if you are a cafeine freak like me, instead of water use some cofee. Goes great with any of the chocalate or vanilla flavors.

For me, the key to controlling caloric intake is pre-planning. If I am thinking about what I am going to eat when I am hungry I've already lost the battle.

For the non-liquid breakfast/lunches:

Buy lots of small containers either rubbermaid or those ziplock disposables. Make a ton of small meals on the weekend.

Anything you make has to be better for you then those bad tasting candy bars and it can be almost as convenient.

Anyone ODing on the tuna worry about mercury? Read somewhere that salmon has less so I've been leaning towards salmon even though it is more fatty.....

 

[trikster2]

Originally posted by: draggoon01
what's the easiest way to measure your body fat% ?

I had a tanitia and did not like it too much. Too all over the place, get on once and it says one thing 2 minutes later it changes it's mind.

This scale works a lot better for me

"We tested a variety of body fat anaylsers, scoring them for accuracy, consistency, and ease of use, and this model emerged as the overall winner, with an accuracy that far outshone its competitors. We compared the results from this analysis to those obtained from a hydrostatic scale in a university laboratory. This model?s average came within less than half of one percent of the hydrostatic scale reading; no other tested unit came ne arly that close"

But don't get it from hammacher, bed bath and beyond had the same thing for $10 less and they regulary have 20 percent off coupons.

EDIT: LoL just saw it at sharper image for $99

Also tape measurements can be VERY motivational even if you do not use them as another way to calculate body fat.

The best soft tape I have found so far (which is not saying much, I was using string before) is the myotape which can be found for $4.95 at www.bodybuilding.com

http://tinyurl.com/c054


John:

FOrgot to say it in my last post: GREAT JOB

Not just on your body tranformation but on putting up the information, based on personal experience, to help others do the same.

 

[weezergirl]

wow, i just checked out your page and am SO amazed!!! congrats.
i am just wondering how your social life has changed after all this? do your friends treat you differently? do you find it easier to get dates?

 

[JohnStoneFl]

trikster2 Thank you very much. I agree with 100% about the myotape. Its worth its weight in gold.

weezergirl Well, I'm very happily married so I don't have a social life. Seriously though, many of my friends started working out and eating better, while muttering things under their breath like, "if that fat slob can do it, so can I!" I hope they stick with it.

--

I just did something I swore I'd never do and shaved my legs. I'm actually glad I did it because now I can really see the muscle that I've built. My calves in particular surprised me, they are looking better than they ever have. It must be all the leg training I've been doing + the stair climber.

Anyway, I put some new pictures up on my transformation site of my calves and shaved legs. Please be gentle. http://www.twowiresthin.com/wl2003/

 

[Ameesh]

Originally posted by: Gobadgrs
From 80 pounds? Thats going up over 120 pounds in 4 months... a pound a day, or 15 pounds every two weeks, no Fin way

i went from 3x12 sets of 80lbs to 3x12 of 175 in 4 months, thats almost 100lbs so i think 120 pounds is doable.

the only suplement i am taking is a centrum every morning.

 

[PowerMacG5]

Originally posted by: Gobadgrs

Originally posted by: Tot lol, guys its photoshop. And very bad at it, one thing to note, your arm dont get longer as you lose weight.

Good call!

Look at his hands. They are in the exact same position for the "fat" pictures, the in the "skinny" pictures, they are in a different position than the fat, but the same for all of those.

 

[slackerinabox]

Quick question John:
How did you take the pictures? I mean, how did you make sure that they were EXACTLY the same angle, distance, etc. every, single day? I'm picking up a digital camera soon and would love to know how you did it.. Thanks!

 

[JohnStoneFl]

Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Quick question John:
How did you take the pictures? I mean, how did you make sure that they were EXACTLY the same angle, distance, etc. every, single day? I'm picking up a digital camera soon and would love to know how you did it.. Thanks!

For my pictures, consistency was an important goal because my original plan was to one day take all the photos and create an animated .gif or maybe an mpeg of my fat melting away. I may still do this. Anyway, what I did was place the camera on a tripod which never gets touched. I'm lucky enough to have a spare room that sees little traffic, but just to be sure I put tape marks down where the tripod legs should go. I also taped my "mark" on the floor so I'm always standing in the exact same place. I use the auto-timer on my digital camera to take the shots. That's basically all there is to it!

At one point the height of the camera was raised slightly (I think after picture #71), which is why my arms appear a little longer in every picture after that. Other than that little error, it's worked pretty well.

 

[ProviaFan]

Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Quick question John:
How did you take the pictures? I mean, how did you make sure that they were EXACTLY the same angle, distance, etc. every, single day? I'm picking up a digital camera soon and would love to know how you did it.. Thanks!

Just guessing, but maybe he used a tripod, or set the camera on a table in the exact same position each day...

Edit: he was too quick.

 

[slackerinabox]

I figured that much but I wonder how he got it EXACTLY right every time without being able to look at the LCD screen.. Like I've tried that before - putting my camera on timer mode and getting in front of it but I've always been either a LITTLE or totally off (I step into the frame but the top of my head is chopped off, etc.)..

Originally posted by: jliechty

Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Quick question John:
How did you take the pictures? I mean, how did you make sure that they were EXACTLY the same angle, distance, etc. every, single day? I'm picking up a digital camera soon and would love to know how you did it.. Thanks!

Just guessing, but maybe he used a tripod, or set the camera on a table in the exact same position each day...

Edit: he was too quick.

 

[slackerinabox]

Thanks so much for the quick reply! Your experience really inspired me - I converted my room to a mini-gym this weekend so lets see how this goes! Since I have larger "man-boobies" than you did I figure that I won't be posting my progress online - well, maybe once I'm an A-cup
Thanks again and congrats!

Originally posted by: JohnStoneFl

Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Quick question John:
How did you take the pictures? I mean, how did you make sure that they were EXACTLY the same angle, distance, etc. every, single day? I'm picking up a digital camera soon and would love to know how you did it.. Thanks!

For my pictures, consistency was an important goal because my original plan was to one day take all the photos and create an animated .gif or maybe an mpeg of my fat melting away. I may still do this. Anyway, what I did was place the camera on a tripod which never gets touched. I'm lucky enough to have a spare room that sees little traffic, but just to be sure I put tape marks down where the tripod legs should go. I also taped my "mark" on the floor so I'm always standing in the exact same place. I use the auto-timer on my digital camera to take the shots. That's basically all there is to it!

At one point the height of the camera was raised slightly (I think after picture #71), which is why my arms appear a little longer in every picture after that. Other than that little error, it's worked pretty well.

 

[Howard]

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: aphex

Originally posted by: Fausto1

Originally posted by: Dual700s

Originally posted by: DevilsAdvocate
dual700s -

I'm in When do we start?

Great! Right away, I suppose. My question would be more of HOW do we start?

I actually have a Private Topics thread going that's essentially a fitness and "getting my ass back in shape" forum for a bunch of like-minded persons. I and others have been using it as a training and progress log as well. I'd be happy to include you and DA if you're interested.

Can i get in on that too?

Sure.

i want in!

 

[JohnStoneFl]

Originally posted by: freedomsbeat212
Thanks so much for the quick reply! Your experience really inspired me - I converted my room to a mini-gym this weekend so lets see how this goes! Since I have larger "man-boobies" than you did I figure that I won't be posting my progress online - well, maybe once I'm an A-cup
Thanks again and congrats!

You're very welcome, go for it man!

Regarding the man-boobs: that was the most shocking thing for me when I saw my photos. I mean, I knew I had a belly, but somehow the fact that I needed to be wearing a bra (a "bro"?) escaped my attention until I saw my first profile picture. Talk about an-eye opener...

 

[JohnStoneFl]

So how's everybody doing? Quite a few of you seemed pretty motivated and were going to start getting cut up for the summer. I hope everything is going well...

Fatloss-wise I'm pretty much where I want to be at this point. I still have a tiny bit more fat to lose, but nothing major. Here's a before/after picture that I took yesterday. Unlike my daily pictures, I'm smiling, oiled and posed in this one. http://www.twowiresthin.com/john_wl_4_f.html

I also added an FAQ page to my website that addresses some of the more common questions I get asked: http://www.twowiresthin.com/wl2003/faq.html

Anyone who's been hitting the gym wanna give us a progress report?

 

[NewSc2]

Originally posted by: JohnStoneFl
So how's everybody doing? Quite a few of you seemed pretty motivated and were going to start getting cut up for the summer. I hope everything is going well...

Fatloss-wise I'm pretty much where I want to be at this point. I still have a tiny bit more fat to lose, but nothing major. Here's a before/after picture that I took yesterday. Unlike my daily pictures, I'm smiling, oiled and posed in this one. http://www.twowiresthin.com/john_wl_4_f.html

I also added an FAQ page to my website that addresses some of the more common questions I get asked: http://www.twowiresthin.com/wl2003/faq.html

Anyone who's been hitting the gym wanna give us a progress report?

Been working out a bit and dieting, but as it's first week for me not much progress, although I do feel a good bit healthier.