hi fatsecret. My friend told me to join so I could view her stuff. ABOUT ME!

I am about to turn 32. I started trying to lose weight when i was 29. When I was 29, I weighed (mass wise) exactly 5 lbs more than I do today (at my maintenance mass). But I was pretty overweight. Easily 20 % body fat. I have pictures to prove it!

When i turned 29 I didn't want to turn 30 and still be overweight, so I resolved to lose the weight. I stopped eating fast food, ate a normal diet (3 square meal), and went to the gym to lift weights and to rock climb. Thankfully the gym I went to had an indoor rock climbing wall, because I simply did not like to do cardio and calisthenics are boring (ever try just doing push ups and jumping jacks?)

After 6 months of this I managed to lose 15 or so lbs, putting me at 150 lbs. All of my pants stopped fitting, and I had to replace a great deal of my clothes. I still have some shirts, and they all fit oddly - same shoulder and neck, but my proportions are not flattering for those clothes.

I continued to diet down, hoping to see a visible six pack. I managed to go as low as 135 before I realized that it was not going to happen with the amount of muscle I had, and so I started to gain weight, with the goal of having the majority of the mass be in lean body mass rather than fat. Two years later, here I am.

My suggestion for everybody regardless of their goal is to train for strength. Whether you are 100 lbs or 200 lbs, unless you have some sort of personal aesthetic ideal to maintain that does not require strength, (NOT muscles!) building on your strength is good - you stop becoming tired all the time, it is a convenient and easy to achieve goal, it is EASIER THAN JUST LOSING WEIGHT, and you will actually become more healthier.