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Andres

Why?

I decided to lose weight because I didn’t like my appearance. I felt OK but I wanted to look better, especially to look better on the beach. In 2009 I weighed 225 pounds. I weigh 172 pounds now. I used to wear pants size 40. Now it is size 36.

My method?

I use exercise and diet. I still eat what I like. I cut the portions significantly. I don’t experience hunger. I just don’t overindulge. When I was 225 pounds I would eat what I wanted and how much I wanted. I added healthier foods and I don’t eat fried foods. I cut sugar, too. I weight myself every morning.

Most difficult?

Reaching a goal of 182 pounds was challenging and it took me a while. I went down to 180 pounds in 2006, maintained 180 for the most part but then I went up to nearly 200 pounds in 2009. At one point I was not exercising as much. When I got on the scale and saw that I was 200 pounds it was a reminder of how heavy I used to be, and that’s when I decided to take control of my weight again. First I lost 20 pounds to get to 180 pounds again, then I set a new goal of 170 pounds.

What worked best for me?

Free weight exercise did.  On the motivation side it was a power of imagination. I imagined what I would look like and that helped me be motivated, disciplined to stop overeating. It was challenging to control eating, but what motivated me was that I kept thinking about my goal, what I wanted to accomplish and that kept me motivated.

My advice to others?

Just keep imagining how good you will look and feel. When you feel hungry and you want to overeat think about how attractive and good-looking you will become.