“300 Pounds, the Struggle and Survival”

Some things in life are just too hard to see until they literally slap you in the face. In my case, a physical from my doctor and a medical scale was that slap in the face. The day I looked myself in the mirror, following the realization that I had gradually hit 300 pounds, was a look of pure disappointment, confusion and interestingly enough, motivation.

As some of you may know I am a Brand Development Professional & Marketing and Sales Representative at Club Longitude – you may have seen me weightlifting or throwing some serious combos in the boxing studio. The story of my weight loss starting in 2012 is very atypical to those you may have heard. Turning a semi-athletic 300 pound kid into a 185 pound healthy and fit adult was not an easy task but I have achieved this through my own dedication.

My weight loss came in waves, much more unpredictable than I had previously realized. I believe this was the case due to the independent approach I took to losing the weight. Stubbornly, I never consulted a personal trainer or nutritionist, and never had a workout partner or anyone critiquing my eating behaviors. Fortunately, the weight still melted off.

Year one was the biggest loss, consisting of about 56 pounds and a rejuvenation of my motivation. Year two, I was weighing between 247-243 for the majority of the year, however, I began looking into weight training programs geared towards building muscle rather than losing weight. To my surprise, this was what I needed – a program that would drag me through the mud, literally. That year my weight loss consisted of 48 pounds and a change in stature, in which I looked relatively proportional and a bit more athletic. Year three, was a turning point in my weight loss journey because I began to understand the hardships behind the dreaded plateau. Regardless of my efforts, I plateaued at 207 for nine of the twelve months in 2014. It took everything I had and a lot of help from free weight training regimens on Bodybuilding.com to break through the plateau and finally drop weight to 186, a grand total of 114 pounds of weight loss in three years.

Replaying the past four years in my mind absolutely gives me the chills for many reasons. The things I was able to accomplish, the struggles I overcame, the back and forth of wanting to quit, and overall, the maintenance of what I have achieved thus far. Teaching myself about the physical, mental and spiritual attributes of a healthy lifestyle, as well as the science behind effective training and dieting, are lessons I will keep close to my heart for the rest of my life. Although, I am currently back up to a 200 pounds now, I am much leaner and athletically built than I have been before. I consistently strive to challenge myself and push through the frequent plateaus. A story such as this goes to show you that the cliché, anything is possible, is less of a cliché and more a way of thinking.

Thank you for listening, and always challenge yourself. No one is better competition than who you were yesterday.

Brandon M. Arasimowicz