All or nothing: Tim's weight loss philosophy

Date: August 8 2007

Tim

-City & country: Jacksonville, Florida, USA
-Age: 40
-Weight before diet: 349 lbs.
-Weight now: My brother tells me I don't weight myself every day for a reason! Probably ~300 lbs.
-Target weight: 250 in 2007

Tim doesn't follow any of the commercial weight loss plans, but monitoring his calorie intake and exercising are working for him. So does keeping himself accountable to his Internet readers. Read on for some of Tim's story, tips, and how he tries to help others with their diet and exercise lifestyle change.

-What finally made you decide to start with a weight loss program?
Primarily health concerns. I have the usual stuff for an obese person - hypertension, GERD, and Sleep Apnea. Plus, I'm sick of looking like this.

-What type of weight loss program are you following?
I can't seem to stay on a "program." I prefer a bit more exercise than most people and try to keep the calories around 1800/day, along with making sure I get a lot of lean protein. But, I am not a low-carber.

-Why did you choose this weight loss program?
It works for me.

-How long have you been on your weight loss program?
I was strict for 6 months in 2006 and made it to 289. Job changes limited my ability to exercise, and I restarted in the spring only to be sidelined by gallbladder surgery, followed by a severe ankle sprain.

-What kinds of physical activities do you like doing to help you lose weight and stay fit?
Walking and body-weight exercise.

-What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome or are still overcoming?
Eating when bored.

-How do you keep yourself motivated?
With my web sites. I try to be open so my readers can help hold me accountable.

-Do you have any weight loss tips for our readers?
Walk and water.

-Do you think it will be easy to fall back into your old lifestyle pattern? How do you prevent this from happening?
It's too easy. Happens all the time. For me, I have to be in "all-or-nothing" mode. I can't cheat, even a little, on diet or exercise, or I go right back to the behaviors that got me here.

-Do you have a favorite Web site or blog that helps or inspires you to lose weight?
I started a web site last year that sort of foundered until this past spring when I put a lot more energy into it - http://hundreddayheadstart.com. The premise is to not wait until after some arbitrary date like New Year’s to start a diet and exercise lifestyle change. I want to really push the site hard in the coming weeks, because September 23rd is 100 days before New Years and I'd like to see a bunch of people get their head start this year.