January 24, 2011

• Weight Loss

  Weight loss has been a pretty intense part of my life these past couple of years. After I graduated from college in 2005, I pretty much lost all control. By the time I was ready to leave for the Caribbean to begin medical school, I had reached a maximum weight of 194 lbs. But via substantially decreasing my intake, and by exercising every other day for the next four months, I was able to lose a lot of weight in a short period of time. My workout consisted of stretching, running an average of 4 miles on the treadmill (my rate was about 1 mile every 10 minutes), doing situps, and doing upper body machine weights (never maxed out, but rather I emphasized reps). Up until then, exercising simply had no impact on my weight, but I decided to begin again (especially the cardio) for the sake of my heart, knowing that weak hearts ran in my family. And what do you know, the fat began to burn right off, and the more results I saw, the more motivated and encouraged I became. I also cut out fried foods and chocolate from my diet, and substantially decreased the amount of rice I ate. I lost an average of 10 lbs. per month, and by the time I came back to NJ for my semester 1 break, I was 147 lbs., losing a total of almost 50 lbs. in 4 months (47 lbs. to be exact).

  
  .:: Left = August 2006 = 194 lbs. :: Right = December 2006 = 147 lbs. ::.

  I was able to maintain a weight that remained mostly in the 150s for the next 2 years, which is basically equal to the rest of the time I spent in Dominica (in the Caribbean). I maintained my diet and workout, but every time I went home to NJ during a semester break (every 4 months), I'd gain anywhere from 5 to 10 lbs. But then once I got back on the island, I'd lose that weight in no time. During my 5th semester in Miami, FL (from January 2009 to April 2009), I started gaining a bit more, as I did not have the time to exercise as much. I maintained a weight in the 160s range. After that semester, I moved back to NJ indefinitely, and the serious weight gain began slowly but surely. Despite trying to make time for the gym, I kept gaining weight, and I believe a part of that was due to being at home, where I am fed well, and the lack of control when it came to eating kicked back in (this was also probably why exercising had never worked prior to medical school). In about 1 year, I was back to my maximum weight of 194 lbs. In June of 2010, I looked down at the weighing scale and saw this, and decided I needed to do something about it.

  I began running consistently again- first 2 miles every other day, and then 3 miles every other day. I made a real effort to control how much I ate, and once more seriously cut back on my rice intake. It was working again, and the more weight I lost, the more motivated and encouraged I became. The weight loss this time, however, was much slower that back in 2006, and I think it was because I still allowed myself to overeat every so often. When December 2010 rolled around, I had lost a solid 20 lbs. By this time, I was running less (only once or twice a week), and this was because I started practicing (breakdancing) again. I was at the NBK studio here in Jersey City 2-3 times a week, with each session lasting at least 2 hours. There really is no workout like breaking, engaging your entire body and strengthening your core. In December, I also had the opportunity to go to the Philippines with my family, and though I did not try to lose weight while I was there, I came back having lost about 8 lbs., and because I came home to NJ earlier than the rest of my family, living by myself for a while allowed me to lose even more weight. Just after the 2011 New Year, I was back down to under 160 lbs., meaning that I was able to lose 35 lbs. in 6 months.

  

  
  .:: Left = June 2010 = 194 lbs. :: Right = December 2010 = 160 lbs. ::.

  My metabolism has really sped up once again, and I am really happy because I've since been able to maintain a weight of 160 lbs. That was the minimum target/goal for my wedding in March, and you only get married once. I am very confident that Alana and I will be able to maintain a healthy lifestyle once we get married, and I am really excited about that. I guess I just wanted to do a little documentation of this part of my life, for what it's worth. There are a whole lot of other pretty heavy things going on in my life at the moment, but I won't get into them right now. If you can keep me in your prayers, I sincerely need it, and I'd greatly, greatly appreciate it. Grace, peace, and God bless you.

  -Ro
  

  • 6:05 pm
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