My Interview with Tara Servatius on WTMA in Charleston

Bryan Ganey in the Charleston Post and Courier

A story about my employer's Health and Wellness center and the role it played in my weight loss journey.

Check it out here! 

Book Review at LiftingRevolution.com

My friends over at the LiftingRevolution.com blog have done a great write-up about my book.  Check it out!

400 Pound Weight Loss? My Excuses Have Run Out

Welcome ABCNews4.com Readers!

There's a great article on the ABC News 4 website about my book and my weight loss journey from my friend Victoria Hansen. If you haven't read it, check it out!


Click here to purchase my book in paperback or e-book format from Amazon (Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Android, etc.)

Check out my latest YouTube video! 3 1/2 minutes of motivational inspiration!

The Case Against BMI

I shared on my Facebook page several days ago an article from my local newspaper about how South Carolina had become the 7th fattest state in the nation.  Before I even clicked the link to read it, I went into orbit. Because I knew that the entire "study" would be based on the outdated, worthless statistic known as BMI.

What is BMI?

BMI stands for Body Mass Index. Here is the definition, straight from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's website:

"Body Mass Index (BMI) is a number calculated from a person's weight and height. BMI is a fairly reliable indicator of body fatness for most people."

Allow me to share my own definition: "Body Mass Index (BMI) is a worthless number calculated from a person's weight and height. It is an unreliable indicator that is so insane and unrealistic, its very existence contributes to an unhealthy body image and serves no purpose."

To illustrate what I am talking about, I will use myself as an example.  I am just under 5' 8" tall and weigh 199.5 pounds. What says BMI and the government about my weight?  Let's visit the online BMI calculator, again courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

Click to enlarge

I have lost going on 400 pounds and have people telling me I look too thin.  Yet according to the dunces at the CDC, I am still "obese."  Furthermore, I need to lose 35 pounds to achieve a BMI of 24.9, so I will no longer be "overweight."  The stupidity is breathtaking, isn't it?

If I lose 35 more pounds,  I would be malnourished and probably scare small children at the store.  This is why BMI is idiotic and useless. Here's the truth about BMI: I am not obese, this chart is unrealistic and stupid and anyone who uses it as a guide is dumb. Perhaps the saddest casualty of BMI as a measuring stick for weight is someone's body image.

When I weighed 577 pounds, I used to look at the BMI calculator. 164 pounds! That's impossible.  At my highest weight, my head probably weighed 164 pounds.  So I just gave up.  BMI causes people to strive for unattainable perfection.  The message is clear: unless you're in the normal range, you're a failure and a terrible person. You're fat.  BMI has the same effect as a fashion magazine with a Photoshopped supermodel on the front of it.  It contributes to an unhealthy body image and causes eating disorders.  BMI is dangerous and destructive.

Who are you calling "obese?"

It turns out I am not the only one who is starting to realize this.  Researchers are finally beginning to accept that BMI is useless as well.

So what is the solution?  I have it right here, right now...and I will tell you for free (lucky you.)  Here it comes....wait for it...wait for it....wait for it....

Common sense. 

Blasphemy! Shocking! How dare I?

Here's how doctors should decide if someone is overweight or not: look at the person.  Look at their history.  Encourage them.  "If you would just get 50 pounds off your knees, it would make a difference."  In other words, if you weigh 500 pounds, 450 is better.  300 would be a fantastic goal. Stop striving for perfection.

And here is the ultimate indictment of BMI: the more society uses it, the fatter we all get.  It simply has no place in our society and is absolutely not part of any solution to our weight problem.

BMI sucks. End of story.


Bryan Ganey is the author of "Impossible: How I Lost Nearly 400 Pounds Without Surgery,"  now available from Amazon.com.

Another Milestone: Below 200

Yesterday was a great day.

It was time for my monthly weigh-in, but I had put it off a few days for superstitious reasons. I really wasn't sure what the scale would say.

People who lose large amounts of weight experience what I like to call "fat paranoia."  This is a condition with no known cure.  Despite all the overwhelming evidence, you become convinced you are getting fatter. The shirt becomes a little more snug. The pants are tighter. "I'm getting bigger, I just know it."  The mind plays tricks on you like that.

So finally I decided enough was enough and I was going to face the music. If it was a few pounds more, I was not going to overreact. I would just exercise more. Tighten up the portions.  I weigh on an old-fashioned balance beam scale, the kind you find at most doctor's offices. These are the most accurate. Digital scales are very inaccurate, I have found.

For more than a year, the large bottom weight was on 200. I slid the top weight all the way to zero and the beam still did not rise.

It was time to move the bottom weight to 150. I couldn't believe my eyes. The scale balanced between 199 and 200.

I finally did it. I was under 200. I couldn't believe it. After all this time, here I was. I remember for years thinking how ecstatic and satisfied I would be to just get under 400. Under 300. Around 250. Anything.

But under 200? It didn't seem possible. Everything I had ever been told by the naysayers wasn't true. I'm not starving. I'm not "too skinny" (at least I don't think so) and loose skin is not hanging off of me to the point that it's a problem.

But I do know one thing: this is not the end, this is just the beginning. When you reach the end of the weight loss rainbow like I have, nothing has been achieved. I can't just sit back and be satisfied with what I have accomplished.  I now have to maintain it. I must do exactly what I have been doing for the last 3 years, 2 months and 4 days. Because if I don't, the weight will come back. All of it, plus more.

I don't often celebrate anything having to do with my weight loss, but for now, I will say...here's to getting under 200!


Bryan Ganey is the author of "Impossible: How I Lost Nearly 400 Pounds Without Surgery,"  now available from Amazon.com.

My Latest YouTube Video

Check out my latest video on YouTube. Share with your friends...and get inspired!

My Book Is Out! [update] Print version too!

My book is now available in paperback!

e-Books may be outselling print books, but some people still like to hold the book in their hand and read it. Now you can have your very own. Click here to order from Amazon.com. You can also read a free preview. Shipping is free if you spend $25 or more! 

My book is also available for download from Amazon.com for your Kindle, iPhone, iPad, Android phone or Android tablet.  The special introductory price is $7.99 and a free sample is available.

Celebrate Making the Impossible Possible!

In the last 3 years, I have been on a journey that has changed my life forever. I have made a video to celebrate reaching my goal weight. Share it with your friends to show the whole world that anything is possible. Thanks!

Happy 3rd Birthday to my Lifestyle Change!

3 years ago today, my life changed forever. I will never forget June 20, 2010.

It started like any other day, except I had been experiencing shortness of breath for about 24 hours and had not gone to the hospital. That stupid decision would nearly cost me my life.

I went to work, and while walking through the parking lot...it happened.  The best way to describe what happened to me was I started to suffocate. I couldn't breathe. Or rather, I could breathe just fine, but absolutely no oxygen was making it into my bloodstream.

After I collapsed in the very hot South Carolina sun in the middle of a parking lot, I remember thinking I was having a heart attack. I was certain this was the end. I remember the feeling of disappointment at only getting to live for 37 years.

After 8 hours in the emergency room, they guessed that what almost killed me were several blood clots in my lungs. They had no way of knowing for sure because I didn't fit in any of the machines to find out.

Modern medicine couldn't even help me. I was too big.

No more.

Every few hours when they went to draw blood from me in the hospital for 6 long days, they couldn't find a vein.  Because I was so heavy.

No more.

Because of my size and condition, my mobility was severely reduced. While I was in the hospital, I had to have someone help me go to the bathroom.

No more.

Doctor after doctor treated me like I was a hopeless individual who was so far gone, I would need to either have weight loss surgery or sadly I would just eat myself to death.

No more.

Once I realized I was going to live (for the time being,)  I realized I was being given a gift.  A second chance.

The pulmonary embolism that almost took my life would keep coming back unless I changed my lifestyle.

No more.

When I was finally released a week later, I put on the same giant, almost 80-inch waist pants you see in my before picture and walked out of the hospital, head held high.

I am never coming back here, I told myself. No more.

One doctor I saw after I left the hospital told me weight loss surgery was my only option. "To do it on your own would be impossible. It would take 3 years just to lose 300 pounds."

Well doctor, I'm here today to say you were wrong. It only took 2 1/2 years to lose the first 300 pounds. It took 3 years to lose 371 pounds.

I've never really celebrated my weight loss, other than enjoying the benefits and the new life it provides me.  The reason is because I know that the only thing that matters is that I go back out and do the same thing every day.

I don't get to be this weight without earning it every day. Anything else is a lie.

Glad I made it to 3 years. Here's to many more!

Answers To Your Questions

Thanks to CNN, I have gotten deluged with e-mails and Facebook messages. I appreciate all of them and up to this point, I have answered every one. So for the benefit of everyone, here are some answers to your frequently asked questions:


1.) Why does the caption under your picture on CNN.com say "He says he's lost 370 pounds," which makes it sound like you aren't telling the truth about your weight loss?

This is unintentional. I know the people at CNN that wrote the piece and they meant nothing by it. The writer likely was looking for a way to link to this blog and that is how they chose to do it.

2.) You must have had weight loss surgery. What you are claiming to have done is impossible. I don't believe you.

You can either choose to believe me or not.  However, there is not one single shred of evidence in existence on this planet that I have ever had any form of weight loss surgery.

3.) I had weight loss surgery, I must be a bad person for doing it.  I cheated.

Even though it wasn't the route I took, I do not judge anyone. You have as much right to have that surgery as I did not to have it. That decision should be made between you and your doctor. Still, in the end, we both have to do the same thing to keep the weight off. That's all that matters.

4.) What do you eat? Send me a meal plan. Tell me what to do. I want your success. 

I used to ask the same thing of people who lost a lot of weight. I can't do it for you, no one can. The journey is too long and the work is too hard. That said, I eat 6 times a day. 3 large, healthy meals and 3 snacks. Lots of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans, rice, lowfat dairy, lean meats and a lot of water. I have said goodbye to fast food, restaurants, pizza delivery, vending machines, diet soda....forever. There is a price to be paid and a sacrifice to be made, but it is worth it.

5.) Have you had/will you have skin removal surgery?

Not at all. Because I have taken 3 years to lose this weight and because of the exercise I do, the loose skin is there, but it's not that bad. Besides, I want that skin to hang there, every minute of every day, to remind me of where I came from.  I am also not going to undertake life-threatening surgery for cosmetic reasons, when it is just not that bad.

6.) Have you read the reader comments at the bottom of the page?

No, and I never will. People who comment on news stories on the Internet are mostly good, well-meaning people.  However, there are a number of people like this who are the lowest form of life on Earth.  I don't have time to bother with reading that nonsense.

There were more questions and keep them coming, but that hits the most frequently asked ones. Thanks!

Welcome CNN readers and viewers!

CNN ran an update on my weight loss journey today. I really appreciate it, even if they did use a 7-month-old "after" picture. Here's what I actually look like now.

New YouTube Video: Everything In Moderation

Check out my new YouTube video I just made and posted. Enjoy!

Impossible? I don't think so.

Weight loss surgery is back in the headlines lately. The governor of New Jersey Chris Christie has had the lap band procedure. Before we get started, I want it to be very clear where I stand on two issues:

1.) While it is not something I would ever do, I make no judgment on anyone who has or has had lap band weight loss surgery. I wish everyone the best in their weight struggle. Please, no hate mail. I know you'll send it anyway, though.

2.) Chris Christie can do what he wants, it is his body. He has as much right to have weight loss surgery as I have not to have it. To each their own.

Now on to what I want to say.

The Today Show online ran a story about Christie's procedure. It's typical run-of-the-mill stuff. The weight loss surgeons throw in their two cents. But then I came across this quote from Dr. Mitchell Roslin, chief of bariatric and metabolic surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York:

“When people get to the size of people like Gov. Christie, it’s absolutely impossible for them to maintain weight loss that’s significant without surgery,” Roslin said. 

Oh really? Impossible?  Incorrect.

Not only is it possible, but I am living proof. I am not sure how much Christie weighed before his surgery, but I would say he probably didn't weigh the 577 pounds I did when I started.

You can tell me it is extremely difficult.

You can tell me I will probably fail.


But don't you dare tell me it is "absolutely impossible," because you are wrong, Dr. Roslin.  This is the mindset of the weight loss industry, of which he is a part. The message is simple: the heavy person is doomed and surgery is the only way out.

But doing it the hard way is always an option, if you choose to do it. And it's not impossible.   What is somebody who weighs 500 or 600 pounds and doesn't have health insurance, or can't pay the money to have weight loss surgery to do? Are they just supposed to give up because some doctor says it's impossible? Are they not supposed to try anything?

Are they supposed to just eat themselves to death, because some idiot somewhere says it's impossible? How about eating better food? How about walking 5 minutes a day? Is that impossible? That's how I started. These doctors promote the idea that it's all hopeless, that the only way out is to file nutritional bankruptcy and go under the knife. We shouldn't even give people the information to try for themselves. We shouldn't help them. We shouldn't encourage them.

I remember one doctor 3 years ago told me that it was impossible to do it on my own because "losing 300 pounds would take 3 years."

He was wrong.

It only took 2 1/2 years to lose the first 300 pounds.

Here is a video I made over a year ago, after I had lost the first 280 pounds. Enjoy the impossible.

Product Review: Brooks Adrenaline GTS 13 Running Shoes

Being overweight for the first 37 years of my life, I was always very hard on shoes. Most shoes would last me 6 months...tops. And trying to find anything wide enough for my feet was nearly impossible.  Eventually, I settled on 4E wide New Balance shoes and I wore those for probably 20 years.

But, now that I have lost 370 pounds, I can wear whatever shoes I want.  Or can I?

The Feet Transformation
With all that weight being lost, I have discovered my feet have changed dramatically. It's hard to describe, but they are very sensitive. A shoe that rubs my toes or doesn't have a wide enough toe box might be a minor inconvenience for some, but it means excruciating pain for me.  I have tried on at least 100 pairs of shoes in the last year or so and have finally settled on one pair.

My quest led me to my local running store to try out proper running shoes. I had heard these were the best of the best. I also was warned I would pay a lot for a good pair...over $100. But I was prepared to shell out the bucks.  You get what you pay for, right?

The salesman at the store had me run on a treadmill and made a video of the way I ran. It was discovered that I overpronated when I ran, meaning my foot rolls inward. This is also because I am knock-kneed, meaning my legs bend outwards from the knee. It was decided I needed a stability shoe.

Enter the Brooks.

All I can say about these shoes is this: where have you been all my life?  From the moment I put them on, I felt a level of comfort and support I have not felt in a shoe in years.  Comfort is important because I walk 10-15 miles per week and bike about 15 miles on the weekends.

I could go on and on about what I like about these shoes, but I will hit the high points.

Pros:

The support has a lot of cushion, but is a little firm in its support. I love this. The shoe doesn't feel too "mushy," like a lot of the gel or air type shoes. It's just right.

The toe box on the Brooks is really superior to any others I have tried on. It is a wide toe box, so a 12 D fit me perfectly. In some other more narrow brands, I would need a 12 EE.

Lastly, the construction of the shoe. One problem I really have since I walk so many miles in my shoes is seams on the inside of the shoe rubbing my toes raw. This has happened in so many other shoes, including other $100 running shoes. It's a problem...the shoes rub your feet, so you get wider shoes, right? But then...they're too wide, and your foot slides around inside. Not so with the Brooks. The fabric of the webbing is very soft and comfortable.

Any impartial review would also show the cons. There aren't many.

It would be nice if there were more color choices. The Andrenaline GTS 13 in a 12D comes in either blue or red. Also, the style is typical running shoe style...really bright and eye-catching. It would be nice if there were some additional styles.


Brooks Adrenaline GTS 13 Running Shoes
Cost: $110 
www.BrooksRunning.com

Rating: 4 1/2 stars out of 5

7 Habits of Healthy People

As I approach the third anniversary of my lifestyle change, it's become obvious to me that there are certain behaviors and certain things that healthy people do that we could all stand to follow.  Some of these I do, some of them I should do more of.

So with apologies to the late, great Stephen Covey, I present to you the 7 habits of healthy people:

1.) Healthy people eat all the time. It's true, I've seen it in action...and now I do it.  Healthy people realize that the body is a machine and the machine needs fuel.  You can't treat your body like a car, driving around on E all the time and only filling up at the last possible minute. If you don't eat often, then you become very hungry and desperate, which leads to poor decision-making and binge eating on unhealthy foods.

2.) Healthy people are prepared.  You have to eat every day, several times a day...day in and day out, week in and week out.  Healthy people stock up and have food on hand. My health and wellness coach at the gym I go to sits at his desk eating peanut butter out of the jar with a banana. He wouldn't dream of not packing his lunch and neither would I.  The food has to come from somewhere and healthy people don't get it from vending machines, the drive-thru or the pizza delivery guy.

3.) Healthy people don't kill themselves in the gym.  The people I know who stay in shape do not work out 4 hours a day in the gym 10 times a week.  They have a regular schedule where they go 3 or 4 times a week, about an hour a day. Nothing crazy. This allows the healthy person to maintain a healthy weight, stay in shape and not burn out.

4.) Healthy people work exercise into their daily routine. Whether it's taking the stairs, parking far away from the store entrance, going for a walk or something else, healthy people integrate physical activity into their daily lives somehow. That way, "working out" is not the only source of physical activity. The healthy person does not drive around the Walmart parking lot for 20 minutes waiting for the magic parking spot by the front door to open (which I used to do.)

5.) Healthy people keep it simple. I love technology. But in my observations, most healthy people I know don't scan bar codes into their phones at the grocery store or walk around with a tracker all day long adding up their movements.  You don't need a special machine to work out and you don't need a smartphone app to track how much you eat. I use a pen and paper.

6.) Healthy people don't avoid the doctor. I did it for years.  I would never go to the doctor until the last possible minute.  I was always flirting with disaster and my stupidity almost cost me my life.  Healthy people go to the doctor, get checked out, get treated for any problems and keep it moving.

7.) Healthy people grocery shop a lot.  Every healthy person I know, whether it be a personal trainer, a running enthusiast or a body builder...they load up at the grocery store once in awhile. The healthy person realizes that there is nothing healthier than the food they prepare themselves, because they know what's in it.  Since healthy people get most of their food from the grocery store, dining out becomes the exception rather than the rule.


Got some to add to the list? Send me an e-mail. 

An Open Letter To The Weight Loss Industry

To the weight loss industry:

I am never sponsoring, accepting advertising from, or promoting any diet pills. Ever. There is no such thing as a "fat burning pill."  Green coffee beans are not going to do anything to make you lose weight. Ever. You should all be shut down and arrested for fraud. You are deceiving the public and promoting a quick fix that is a lie. I hate you all. Every time I see or hear an advertisement for a weight loss pill, it is an insult to me and everybody else that has worked so hard to keep weight off.

To the diet food companies. You sell a product that pretends to be something like food, except it isn't. How is somebody supposed to live on frozen dinners the rest of their life? They can't. But the dirty little secret is you don't want people to keep the weight off. It's bad for business.  The weight loss industry is a multi-billion dollar cartel of companies that siphons billions out of people's wallets while promising them the world and doing nothing.

To the commercial fitness industry. Really? Pizza day at the gym? News flash: most people don't even need the gym.  Maybe one day they will figure it out. You sell the lie that you can go to the gym and look like a movie star. The truth is, most people never will. And if everybody that signed up for your gym actually went to it, it would be so crowded you would be run out of business. There are legitimate gyms like the one I go to, but most of them are a scam. If you want to "work out," go for a walk. And then do it again.

To the home workout equipment industry. What a sweet scam you're running. You sell people workout equipment that winds up collecting dust and being used to dry laundry.  And what exactly does that shake weight thing do? Yet another big lie.

To the restaurant industry.  No, I am never coming back.  And no, I will never run your ads. Why? Because your "healthy options" almost never are.  Sure, it's only 500 calories...but it's loaded with enough sodium to give a rhinoceros high blood pressure. All you care about is making as much money as possible.  There's nothing wrong with that, but you don't care about anyone's health and never will.

To the big diets.  South Beach. Atkins. Sugar busters. Whoever. Your diets are all a scam.  Because the truth is the truth: you will lose weight when the total number of calories you are consuming is less than the calories you are burning.  Not before.  There is no secret plan that will fix it all for you. And no, carbohydrates do not make you fat, you idiots.

And finally, Dr. Oz.  The greatest snake oil salesman of the century. Dr. Oz brings new meaning to the phrase "there's a sucker born every day."  Dr. Oz profits from low-information TV watchers who watch his show and believe the nonsense he is pedaling. How on Earth somebody who is a medical doctor could promote so many lies day in and day out blows my mind. And yet, he knows what sells. Because people sitting at home watching TV, desperate to lose weight at all costs, will go buy whatever he is pushing. 

I don't believe in conspiracies. But what I know is that all of these thieves and scoundrels have a horrible track record and I want nothing to do with it. I have not worked for 3 years...and will have to continue to work for the rest of my life....to keep off the 360 pounds I have lost just to sell my soul to these scumbags. 

Go away...forever.

The 2013 Cooper River Bridge Run Wrap-Up

So for the third time in as many years, I participated in the Cooper River Bridge Run, a 10K race in the city where I live, Charleston, SC.

The first year, in 2011, I weighed 400 pounds and walked it.

The second year, in 2012, I walked/ran it at 285 pounds, shaving almost an hour off my time.

This year, I had fully planned and was ready to completely run the entire thing. I had trained for it. I have run a 10K easily in my training. I have run over the bridge and back without stopping.

And then disaster struck.

3 miles into a 5 mile practice run a few weeks ago, I felt my right knee pop twice. I went to a sports medicine doctor and got the news: a torn meniscus. I am also knock-kneed and have osteoarthritis in both knees.

I was told I should not run again and if I continued, knee replacements were in my future. So. What to do?

I had three choices:
-Ignore the doctor's advice and run the bridge and run it hard, going out of my running career in a "blaze of glory." This would allow me to fulfill my dream and get a good time. This was also the worst option. In all likelihood, I would've injured myself and made my knees worse.
-Drop out entirely. Just give up, don't do it.
-Go anyway and walk. So I chose option #3.

My final time: 1 hour, 53 minutes and 5 seconds. My goal was under 2 hours and I made my goal. I did it and my knees felt fine afterward!

So where do I go from here? My running career is over, because I have to preserve my knees. I am going to hit the bike. This was always my goal. I would walk until I lost enough weight to be able to ride a bike. But along the way, I became fascinated with the idea of running. Of being able to do it. So it was a nice diversion over the last year or so.

I'm glad I did it, if for no other reason to give The Bridge Run a proper farewell in my life. Now onto other things!

Walking Will Set You Free

People often tell me they either can't find the time to exercise, aren't capable of doing it or don't know where to start.

My advice: walk.

That's right. Walking is the perfect exercise. Why, you ask? Because almost anyone can do it. It's free. You can do it almost anywhere. And best of all: you can work at your own pace.

There's also a hidden dimension to walking that most people don't realize.  It is liberating.  Especially when you're really heavy like I was for so long and it's all you can do. You are making a statement and taking a stand.  You are moving your body.  You're not taking it anymore.  You are fighting back.

It is no secret that countries and societies where walking is a major mode of transportation have fewer overweight people and lower rates of heart disease, etc.

And yet, people put walking down.  The results don't come fast enough.  It's not hardcore enough.  But these people are wrong.

The secret to a walking regimen is persistence. Once your doctor clears you for walking, you start where you are.  If you can only walk 5 minutes before your feet start hurting or your back gives out, then start there.  5 minutes a day, 3 times a week.

Then, gradually, after a few weeks, increase it to 10 minutes. And so on. That is what I did. I started at 5 minutes a day and I now walk 3 miles a day.  When it comes to staying in shape and keeping the weight off, more than anything, walking is the secret to my success.  There is also an emotional, spiritual well-being side to walking. It's like you are in a march to free yourself from an unhealthy lifestyle.  Again, you are taking a stand. 

Don't think you have to have an expensive gym membership to "work out" and "do cardio" just to get started losing weight and staying in shape.

You don't. Walk.  You heard it here first.

Chapter 2: Time To Change Your Lifestyle

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Chapter 2: Time To Change Your Lifestyle

What exactly is a "lifestyle change?"

You've probably heard the following saying many times in your life: "It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change."

What comes to mind is the idea that not only are you changing what you eat and how much, but you're also exercising.

But as I've discovered over the last 2 ½ years it's much, much more than that.  You don't get to be 577 pounds without having several serious problems going on around you. But when it comes to changing that lifestyle, here are just a few things I changed that aren't necessarily just diet and exercise.

1.) Your friends. That's right, your friends.  In much the same way that a recovering alcoholic gets rid of their drinking buddies, a food addict has to ditch their "eating buddies."  If all you do with somebody is go out to eat, then that relationship is destructive.  If the people you hang out with have become a bad influence, time for them to go.

2.) Grocery Shopping. If the junk food isn't in your house, you can't eat it. If you swing open your refrigerator and look inside it, what is available? Is it full of crap? If it is, time to throw it all away and fill it with healthy food.  Or the absolute worst, is there nothing in it at all?  Time to start grocery shopping...stat.  As far as eating out in restaurants goes, this is out of control.  It used to be dining out was reserved for special occasions. Now it's turned into 3 and 5 times a week.  I believe in order to change your lifestyle, a large percentage of your food has to come from the grocery store.

3.) Your schedule.  Part of my cycle of self-destruction included working a night schedule.  I would get off work, then stay up all night watching TV and binging on junk food. By the time I fell asleep at 4 or 5 in the morning, I was stuffed with thousands of calories.  For me, it took switching to an early morning shift to help jump-start my healthy lifestyle change.  It is true what Benjamin Franklin said: "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."  Except for the wealthy part, all of that has come true for me.

4.) Television. I almost never watch TV anymore. In fact, I've thought of giving it away. What's on TV, anyway?  Non-stop food commercials. I used to watch the Food Network all the time.  But I have discovered that I can't anymore.  Everything they show is one gigantic eating trigger. I used to think I had to watch certain TV shows...that there is no way I could live without the TV.  Turns out I don't need it at all. 

Your lifestyle is your life.  If you want to change your lifestyle, you're going to have to change your life.  After 2 years of doing this, I can tell you this: it is very hard.  But as the saying goes, it is difficult, but not impossible.

Think of it this way: if you want to lose weight, all of your habits, behaviors, food that you eat, body movements, all of it contribute to your current state of health.

To make that change, to improve your health, requires the modification of habits, behaviors, food that you eat and body movements.

What makes this a very tall order is none of it will last unless you do it forever. The problem with all of that is that for many of us (myself included, before June 20, 2010) food has become a reward.  Food has become entertainment.  Food has become happiness.

That all has to go out the window.  Food is fuel.  Nothing more.  The thin person does not have a problem with this.  They are perfectly capable of (for now) celebrating with food, eating foods high in sugar, fat, salt and calories in small portions and getting by.

But not us.  Not me. Not other heavy people.  We've gone too far.  We can't do it.  We can't stop.

Which is why we can never start.

Back to changing the lifestyle.  There are so many traditions and things that we do where unhealthy food is ingrained into our routines.  To be successful, long-term, I believe it all has to go.

Used to eating concession food at the movies?  Bring your own healthy alternatives.

Used to eating hotdogs and nachos at the baseball game?  Bring your own better food.

Eat out of the vending machines at work?  Don't.  Pack your own lunch and snacks.

That's what has to happen.  Those key behaviors have to be changed. And that's why it's hard.

But you can do it!  If I can, anyone can.  And that's the truth.

I get asked all the time: "How can I lose weight like you did?  How do I find the motivation to lose X number of pounds?  Will you tell me what to eat?"

As well-intentioned as those questions are, they all miss the point completely.  Simply losing weight should never be the focus.  As a matter of fact, it's a counterproductive way to think.  Being overweight is a symptom of an unhealthy lifestyle, it is not the cause of it.

Before you start thinking about losing weight and trying to add years to your life and life to your years, you have to be in the proper frame of mind. You need to think about how you can make your lifestyle change permanent.  If all you're going to do is temporarily change what you do in order to lose 50 pounds for a wedding and then put it all back on, you may as well not bother.

No, dear reader, what you want is a total lifestyle change.  Nothing less will do.  That is the best chance you have at getting healthier, losing weight and keeping it off and staying out of the doctor's office.  So what are the steps that go into this?  First, you have to analyze your own behavior.  You know yourself better than anyone else, right?

Identify what your demons are and stay away from them....forever.  For me, one of my biggest demons is restaurants.  When I am being served food in a restaurant, I cannot control myself.  It is very much like an alcoholic in a bar.  So I stay far, far away.  For you, it might be something simple like mindless eating.  Whatever it is, identify it and don't do it!

You can do it.  You know you can and so do I.  Take your life back.  Take it back starting right now.

When it comes to a lifestyle change, how you approach it, the expectations you set are almost more important than the journey itself. I'll give you some examples.

"I need to lose weight"  needs to become "I need to adopt a healthy lifestyle, one of the benefits of which is having a lower body weight."  See how that works?

"I need to lose 20 pounds by July" needs to become "I'd like to be in shape in time for July. By adopting a healthy lifestyle, that will help me."

Again, if just losing weight is the focus, then give up  now.  The failure rate on weight loss-based dieting is about 95%. That's 95 out of 100 people gaining it all back. A terrible track record.

Don't put yourself through that.

Instead, try this.  Don't put a time limit on your lifestyle change.  Don't weigh yourself all the time.  Stop wanting it all now, now, now.

When I started my journey, I had a doctor tell me it would take 3 years to lose all this weight.  And he might be right.  He then suggested weight loss surgery.  But I knew, for me, that weight loss surgery wasn't going to fix my problem.

It wasn't going to fix my food addiction problem, only I could do that.

It wasn't going to teach me how to eat right, only I could do that.

It wasn't going to teach me to exercise, only I could do that.

Instead of "I need to lose weight," focus on "I need to maintain a healthier weight."

Because I can tell you from experience, there is *zero* point in losing a bunch of weight if you can't keep it off.  Absolutely a waste of time.

How to Handle Negativity

There are going to be people that are not going to want you to change your life. Negativity is everywhere.

We're all guilty of it.  You've heard the phrase "misery loves company?"  It's very true.

But when it comes to saving your own life and changing your lifestyle, negativity has no place.  It must be banished forever and not be tolerated in any way, shape or form.  Your mindset on a daily basis is critical to your success.

So what kind of negativity am I talking about?

Sabotage. Face it, some people like us the way we are.  People don't like change.  Perhaps your partner thinks you'll leave them if you lose weight.  Maybe somebody close to you enjoys putting you down because they can't do it themselves.  Either way, watch out for sabotage.  People always offering you food, for instance, trying to tempt you and enable you into failure.  I've run into it before and I simply confront it head-on: "I appreciate the offer, but I am never eating that. Thank you though."

Put-downs. Don't stand for it.  This takes many forms, but the basic thrust is the person putting you down doesn't think you can do what you're doing.  Or perhaps they can't do it themselves, so they put you down to make themselves feel better.  The code words and phrases for the putter-downer are things like "you need to be realistic" and "you can't do this on your own." Again, just like with the sabotage,  shut them down: "I am changing my life and I would appreciate you being more supportive."

Fatism. It is an absolute irrefutable fact that the last acceptable form of discrimination in our society is the mistreatment of the overweight.  I will debate this issue with anyone who cares to try.  It isn't right, but a large portion of society sees big people as less than a human being, if they see them at all.  I've experienced this first hand.  When I weighed 577 pounds, many people wouldn't even say hello to me.  Now they're my best friend.  But what they don't realize is I have a mental list and they're on it.  So don't tolerate it from your friends and family. You are due the same respect any other person is and don't tolerate the jokes, the put-downs or the comments. You are on a mission to change your life and you will leave the doubters behind.

And one more note about people.  Early on, I realized that just like an alcoholic has to ditch their drinking buddies to get clean, I had to do the same thing with my eating buddies.  I don't mean to sound drastic, but it had to be done.

When you change your lifestyle, you are changing your life.  You are becoming a different, healthier person.  That goes for the mind and the body.  Your transformation will be the result of your own positive energy and anyone that is not on board with that 100% has to go.

Chapter 1 - Changing Your Mindset - You are the 5%

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Chapter 1 - Changing Your Mindset - You are the 5%

This is not a diet book. I am not offering you some special plan you can follow to lose 30 pounds in 30 days.  I am not going to insult your intelligence by telling you how easy it all is.  It isn’t.  Losing weight is actually quite easy.  Keeping it off is the very, very hard part.

You may have heard the statistics, which vary depending on the source.  Between 9 and 10 people that lose weight gain it all back.  I’ve read 90%.  I’ve read 95%.  It doesn’t matter.  What really matters is that we have a plan to lose weight that includes another plan to keep it off. If you approach your lifestyle change correctly, you will be the 5% and not the 95%.  Say it out loud: I am the 5%.

Early on in this journey, I realized that there was no point to losing weight if I couldn’t keep it off.  I have been through the depressing emotional trauma of losing a large amount of weight and gaining it all back. It’s a terrible feeling. It’s also humiliating.  There was no way I was going through that again.

Think about that for a minute.  That point of view will absolutely change how you approach your lifestyle change.  From the outset, think not about losing weight.  Think about keeping it off and maintaining a lower weight.  If you apply that as a standard, you see why everything and everybody else fails.

Diet food.  This is what everybody eats to lose weight and what happens when they stop eating it?  They gain all the weight back.  Unless you are going to eat boxed dinners you buy off the TV the rest of your life, don’t bother.

Pills.  At best, diet pills do nothing for you and at worst, they cause very serious health problems.  No matter what some doctor on TV says, there is no such thing as a “fat-burning” pill.  None of it works, none of it will ever work and your money is going to be wasted.  Don’t do it.

Low-carb diets. Are you really, honestly going to live on mostly meat the rest of your life?  Doubtful, since if you did, you wouldn’t live very long.  Again, there is no point to attempting any diet plan that you cannot commit to the rest of your life.

So that is the first step.  What can you realistically do?  Everybody is different.  This is where you have to look inside yourself and assess the situation.

Here are a few good first steps to follow.

1.) Get all of your health problems out in the open, on the table.  Men especially, I am talking to you.  Pretending you don’t have high blood pressure doesn’t make it go away.  Go to the doctor.  Get a full check-up.  If you are prescribed medication, take it as directed.  If you have problems sleeping, go see a doctor and get a sleep study done.  If you’re diagnosed with sleep apnea, follow your doctor’s orders and use your CPAP nightly.  It will save your life.

2.) Make an appointment with a registered dietitian. Learn about portion control, proper nutrition and eating a balanced diet.  Go to the appointment.  Take notes and ask lots of questions.

3.) Talk to your doctor about what you’re wanting to do.  If at any point along the way, any doctor or health professional belittles your desire to better yourself and tells you it can’t be done, find another doctor with a better attitude.  Yes, 95% may gain all the weight back, but remember...you are the 5%.

4.) Set your expectations correctly. This is going to take years.  That’s right; I said it.  If your goal is to lose 20 pounds by your family reunion, don’t buy this book.  I don’t want your money.  There are plenty of other gimmicks and diets on the bookshelf for you to try.  The Ganey way is simple: long-term weight loss is not only the goal, it is the only goal. You would be better off losing 50 pounds in the first year and keeping it off than you would be losing 100 pounds the first year and gaining back 200.  Studies have shown the longer it takes to lose weight, the more likely the person is to keep that weight off. 

5.) Weigh once and then put the scale away.  Yes, you need a starting weight. If you’re extremely overweight like I was, there may not be a scale that can accurately weigh you.  I had to weigh at one point on a truck scale.  But I wanted that starting weight.  But after you get that beginning weight, put the scale away for 1 month.  That’s right, I am telling you not to weigh on a scale for a month.  When most people begin a diet, they race from one weigh-in to the next, worshiping at the almighty scale.  They become obsessed with pleasing the scale.  It all becomes about moving that number at all costs.  No consideration is given to your health, new habits being formed or your lifestyle being permanently changed.  That is the diet mindset.  The problem is eventually the diet will end, you’ll lose interest and be unable to keep up that extreme approach.  So don’t do it.

Again: weigh once and put the scale away. Your goal here is to improve your health and live a better life, not win a weight loss contest.

6.) The food that you will eat will come from the grocery store.  If you haven’t been in awhile, you might have to ask somebody where it is.  Take a friend, learn how it works. Once you park your car, there will be a grocery cart you can use to collect your items.  In some parts of the country, this is called a “buggy” or a “shopping cart” or if you live in the UK, a “trolley.”  Some of you haven’t been to the grocery store since you were 14 years old.  You’re going to be spending a lot of time there, so familiarize yourself with it.  Warning: the grocery store can be a dangerous place as well.  It is loaded with as much junk food as a fast food restaurant.  However, I will teach you to know the difference and only buy the good stuff.

7.)  Say goodbye to restaurants, vending machines, drive-thrus, pizza delivery, coffee shops, donuts at the office...all of it.  This is the new you.  Do whatever you have to do: have a funeral, write a letter to yourself, whatever.  But it’s over.  These are not healthy sources of food for you and won’t be in the future.

8.) But wait...no more restaurants...ever?  Before I lose you completely, hear me out.  A long time ago, perhaps when you were a child, restaurants were considered a treat.  Dining out was reserved for special occasions only.  Then sometime in the last 20-30 years or so, it became the alternative to cooking at home.  Now it has turned into the only way to eat for a lot of people.  This is a disaster.  You cannot surrender your lifestyle change to a restaurant, whose only goal it is to sell you as much food as possible, as cheaply as possible. 

So will you be able to go to a restaurant again someday?  Yes, you will.  But not for now.  More on that later in the book.

9.) Yes, you are going to need to exercise.  However, unless you are a qualified personal trainer, all you know about exercise is what you’ve seen on TV and that is the incorrect way to exercise.  Do not be one of these people that joins the gym, goes for 2 weeks straight, works out like a maniac, hurts themselves and then is never seen or heard from again.  That is, until you run into them at the buffet.  Ever wonder how gyms make their money?  The majority of the people who belong simply donate their dues monthly and do not use the facility. Joining a gym is probably not something you will do for awhile.  More on that in the exercise chapter.

10.) Prepare to eat and eat all the time.  Food is not a reward, food is not a celebration, food is not for pleasure, food is not happiness, food is not comfort.  Food is fuel.  Nothing more, nothing less.  You eat because you have to.  And to be healthy, you need to eat healthy food regularly.  Whether or not you are hungry has nothing to do with it.  You need a lot of food when you wake up in the morning, then a few hours later, then lunch, the more food a few hours later, then dinner, then an evening snack.  You are going to eat 3 meals per day and 3 snacks.  Starvation is not an option.  You are what you eat.  The 95% that gain the weight back, ride the rolller coaster of frozen diet dinners, meal replacement shakes, protein bars, diet pills and other assorted nonsense.  Again, you are the 5%.  You are only going to make changes you can live with for the rest of your life.

10 Weight Loss Myths

1.) “I don’t eat that much.”

This used to be one of my favorites. Truth is, you may not eat a large quantity of food, but if what you’re eating is very high in calories, you will be overweight. We are what we eat.  I used to regularly eat 10,000 calories a day.  It’s no wonder I weighed 577 pounds.  Denial is a powerful force that will only hold you back.  Just admit to yourself: if you are overweight, you really are eating that much.

2.) Eating in the car, eating in front of the television, or eating in front of the computer is wrong and you're a bad person for doing it.

I always enjoy reading this one. I am pleased to report it is complete nonsense.  In the last 2 ½ years, I have lost 350 pounds committing the following sins according to the "experts:"  I eat breakfast every day in front of the computer.  I snack all day at work in front of a computer.  I eat dinner and watch TV at the same time,  Sometimes I eat dinner, watch TV and surf the internet all the time.  That's talent, right?

I eat in the car.  I eat and drive at the same time.  Sometimes I eat in the grocery store parking lot, right from the package.  This whole idea that we should only eat at the dining room table is a complete fantasy in this day and age.  I don't even have a dining room table (that I know of.)

It's not where you're eating your food, it's what you're eating and how many calories you're consuming.  Trying to follow unrealistic rules about where you should eat takes your eye off the ball.  It's a popular rule, however, because humans are addicted to making things more complicated than they need to be.

The bottom line: Mindless eating can occur anywhere.  As long as you know how much you're eating and you keep track of it, you can eat anywhere.

3.) Eating at night is bad and will make you fat.

If eating at night made you fat, I would still weigh 577 pounds.  The truth is, I eat around the clock.  As long as the total amount I am consuming is right for me, it doesn't matter when I eat it.

Sometimes I eat dinner at 5pm.  Sometimes I eat it at 9pm.  I've had dinner at 11pm. 

Once, I woke up at 2 in the morning once so ravenously hungry, I could've eaten the wallpaper off the walls.  I made myself a bowl of oatmeal with a piece of fruit and ate it. And you know what?  I still lost weight that week.  I just added it to my food diary for that day, ate the food and went back to bed.  And lived to tell about it.  Imagine that!

But...doesn't everything you eat turn to fat if you go right to bed after you eat it?  No, it doesn't.  Think about the nonsense of this oft-repeated statement.  If I eat an apple, which has practically zero fat, how is that going to turn to fat in my stomach just because I am asleep?  Please. 

The bottom line: As long as the total calories of what you're eating doesn't exceed your requirements for that day, eating at night will not make you fat.

4.) To lose weight, I have to starve myself.  I can eat no more than 1,500 calories.

I don't know about you, but I could never get by on 1,500 calories. The truth is, everybody's calorie requirements are different. It all depends on how much physical activity you engage in during the day.  Somebody that sits at a desk all day won't be able to eat as much as say, a delivery driver who runs up and down stairs all day.

Starvation is one of the biggest reasons I believe people fail at weight loss.  They completely overdo it trying to pursue a quick fix, get discouraged and quit.  This is very sad. Only eating 1,500 calories a day is as extreme as trying to work out in the gym 20 times a week is.  It's not sustainable.

There are different calorie calculators available online and there are differing methods for determining the appropriate number of calories you should consume.  Factors such as your desired goal weight, age, height, activity level, etc. all play a part.

For myself, in the beginning, I was eating 1,500-1,600 calories a day.  When I boosted that to 2,400 calories, I started losing weight faster.  I believe it was because my body was in starvation mode, conserving resources instead of using them.  It worked for me.  Everybody is different.

The bottom line: you need food to live.  You can starve yourself or stop eating to lose weight temporarily, but only for so long. 

5.) If I work out twice a day, 14 times a week, I can eat whatever I want.

Exercise is very important and is absolutely essential to your lifestyle change.  However, working out has a very lousy return when it comes to weight loss.  For example, for every 100 calories burned, you have to run a mile.  One bad trip through the drive-thru is 1,000 calories.  The bottom line: you cannot outrun your stupidity in the gym.  Exercise is central to a healthy body and a healthy mindset.  Unless you’re Michael Phelps, weight is lost at mealtime, not in the gym.

6.) I know someone who eats like a horse and magically still stays skinny.

Sorry, no you don’t.  And here’s why.  Yes, you may see this mythical thin person eat a large amount of food.  But do you really know how much they eat all day?  Are you tracking their calories and their exercise?  What do they do for a living?  Perhaps they just eat one large meal per day and that is what you witnessed.

The bottom line: the math is the math.  No one escapes it.  There is no magic, mythical skinny person that defies the laws of nature.  They don’t exist.  This is what we tell ourselves to make ourselves feel like victims and feel better about overeating.

7.) Everything In Moderation

It has been said that you can eat anything you want as long as you just eat it in moderation.  There are a few problems with this.  If you are significantly overweight, it is safe to say that you cannot do anything in moderation and this strategy has failed you.  A famous commercial for a famous snack food product says you can’t eat just one.  There is a reason for this. The “food” is engineered to make you want it.  As a food addict, I can tell you that for many things, 1 is too many and 50 is not enough. 

The bottom line: “everything in moderation” doesn’t work because everything is not moderation.

8.) There Are No Bad Foods

You can have anything you want, right?  I will answer that question with a question: how has that strategy worked out for you so far?  Consider this: a banana is approximately 25 calories per ounce.  A popular candy bar that claims to cure hunger is 135 calories per ounce.  What is going to fill you up more?  A half a candy bar or a large banana?

The bottom line: some foods simply offer no nutritional value and should be avoided.  You cannot reprogram your taste buds to like healthy food by continuing to have “just a little” of the processed garbage that made you overweight in the first place.

9.) I know what works, I’ll just do it again.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.  If you have lost weight before and have not kept it off, that approach is a failure.  It should not be repeated because the failure will be repeated.  Unlike the stock market, past performance is indeed an indicator of future results.  You must study your failures and not repeat them.

The bottom line: the goal is not to lose weight.  The goal is to keep it off. There is a difference and we will talk about that more later.

10.) Eating Healthy Is Expensive.

This myth got started by people buying diet foods at the grocery store. The “light” and “fat-free” versions of processed foods do indeed cost more than the full fat versions. But that garbage isn’t going to be what you’re eating.

In addition, people who eat in restaurants 5 and 10 times a week will then get on a health kick, go to the grocery store, spend $200 and then proclaim that “eating healthy is expensive.”

I am here to tell you it isn’t and that is a myth.  If you stop eating at restaurants, stop buying mostly processed food and buy fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats and low-fat dairy, you will discover eating healthy is quite inexpensive.

The bottom line: Not all food comes in a box with a picture on the front of it and a bar code on the back of it. Eating healthy is not expensive.

So there you have it.  This chapter has been an overview of what I am about, my approach and how I lost 350 pounds in 2 ½ years on my own with no special diets, pills or surgery.

Are you ready to change your life?  If so, read on.