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Just found this website today and it seems really nifty so thought I'd sign up and use it as even more motivation!
Anyways, my name is Ryan and I'm a 25 year old college student living in Houston, Texas. I've always been one of the heavier kids but it never really phased me til recently.
Last year for my birthday/Christmas present I asked my parents for a stationary bike and they went ahead and got it for me. I was so excited because now I could finally exercise in the comfort of my own home (and air conditioning, and if you've ever been to Houston you know what a blessing that is from about May til October). Sadly, like many other people it became one of those gifts that I just never used. It sat there from August til just recently collecting dust and providing an extra seat.
As I mentioned I'm a student, and this quarter at school my schedule is a mess. I go to class all day on Monday, from 8 in the morning til 10pm at night, and Saturday afternoons from 1pm til 530pm. With all this new free time just staring me in the face I had no clue what I was going to do with myself. I would get a part-time job, but with the economy being what it is right now it isn't exactly the best job market out there right now. So I decided that it would be fun to start using that dusty birthday present.
A few weeks ago I went to the doctor and stepped on the scale, and that is when it hit me. I knew I was heavy, I'm not that naieve, but I didn't realize just how heavy til those digital numbers stopped spinning like a slot machine. I weighed in at 308.4 lbs. I was absolutely devastated.
I always figured that I was around 275 lbs., not ideal by any stretch of the imagination, but 300 lbs was like a glass ceiling that I didn't want to break. It was then and there that I decided that I needed to do more than just utilize my exercise bike. I had to make a lifestyle change because the older I get the more difficult it will get, not to mention the long term health consequences of carrying around all that extra weight.
I've never been on a diet in my life, so I did some snooping around to see what was out there and a number of friends of mine have used the Atkins Diet with great success in the past. I started reading up on it and said to myself "Self, this sounds like a diet I can stick to."
So I started slowly cutting carbs out of my life. The first thing to go was the cans of Pepsi. I used to drink anywhere from 2-4 cans of Pepsi a day. After a few days seeing that I hadn't shriveled up and died I decided to take it all the way.
I officially began my first day of Induction last Saturday. I weighed in at exactly 308 lbs. I began riding my bike for 1 hour every day as well. Since making the lifestyle change I've noticed that I have more energyy (which is kind of surprising to me because I had heard that a lot of people tend to lose energy on the Atkins Diet because of the lack of carbs), I am sleeping better...I feel great overall. I know it hasn't even been a week yet, but I am excited about this. It doesn't feel like a diet at all, which is the greatest thing. I was laughing with a friend the other night cause I said "this is a real man's diet!!!" I can actually eat this stuff and not worry about counting calories and such. I have been keeping a food journal though, just to keep track, but knowing that all I have to do is watch out for carbs I'll be okay.
That isn't to say cutting carbs has been a piece of cake. It hasn't. Most people need their cup of coffee in the morning; I was always a big orange juice drinker. THAT has been the most difficult thing for me to drop.
The one thing I've noticed is that for the past few days I've had a rather mild but persistant headache. I know this is something that many people have experienced on the Atkins Diet before, so I'm not all that concerned with it. It is just a minor nuisance.
Anyways, I've enjoyed my short time on this message board so far and I look forward to being able to share my future success with you all as well as hear about all of your success as well!
Anyways, my name is Ryan and I'm a 25 year old college student living in Houston, Texas. I've always been one of the heavier kids but it never really phased me til recently.
Last year for my birthday/Christmas present I asked my parents for a stationary bike and they went ahead and got it for me. I was so excited because now I could finally exercise in the comfort of my own home (and air conditioning, and if you've ever been to Houston you know what a blessing that is from about May til October). Sadly, like many other people it became one of those gifts that I just never used. It sat there from August til just recently collecting dust and providing an extra seat.
As I mentioned I'm a student, and this quarter at school my schedule is a mess. I go to class all day on Monday, from 8 in the morning til 10pm at night, and Saturday afternoons from 1pm til 530pm. With all this new free time just staring me in the face I had no clue what I was going to do with myself. I would get a part-time job, but with the economy being what it is right now it isn't exactly the best job market out there right now. So I decided that it would be fun to start using that dusty birthday present.
A few weeks ago I went to the doctor and stepped on the scale, and that is when it hit me. I knew I was heavy, I'm not that naieve, but I didn't realize just how heavy til those digital numbers stopped spinning like a slot machine. I weighed in at 308.4 lbs. I was absolutely devastated.
I always figured that I was around 275 lbs., not ideal by any stretch of the imagination, but 300 lbs was like a glass ceiling that I didn't want to break. It was then and there that I decided that I needed to do more than just utilize my exercise bike. I had to make a lifestyle change because the older I get the more difficult it will get, not to mention the long term health consequences of carrying around all that extra weight.
I've never been on a diet in my life, so I did some snooping around to see what was out there and a number of friends of mine have used the Atkins Diet with great success in the past. I started reading up on it and said to myself "Self, this sounds like a diet I can stick to."
So I started slowly cutting carbs out of my life. The first thing to go was the cans of Pepsi. I used to drink anywhere from 2-4 cans of Pepsi a day. After a few days seeing that I hadn't shriveled up and died I decided to take it all the way.
I officially began my first day of Induction last Saturday. I weighed in at exactly 308 lbs. I began riding my bike for 1 hour every day as well. Since making the lifestyle change I've noticed that I have more energyy (which is kind of surprising to me because I had heard that a lot of people tend to lose energy on the Atkins Diet because of the lack of carbs), I am sleeping better...I feel great overall. I know it hasn't even been a week yet, but I am excited about this. It doesn't feel like a diet at all, which is the greatest thing. I was laughing with a friend the other night cause I said "this is a real man's diet!!!" I can actually eat this stuff and not worry about counting calories and such. I have been keeping a food journal though, just to keep track, but knowing that all I have to do is watch out for carbs I'll be okay.
That isn't to say cutting carbs has been a piece of cake. It hasn't. Most people need their cup of coffee in the morning; I was always a big orange juice drinker. THAT has been the most difficult thing for me to drop.
The one thing I've noticed is that for the past few days I've had a rather mild but persistant headache. I know this is something that many people have experienced on the Atkins Diet before, so I'm not all that concerned with it. It is just a minor nuisance.
Anyways, I've enjoyed my short time on this message board so far and I look forward to being able to share my future success with you all as well as hear about all of your success as well!
X16 
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