Two-Year Body Transformation

"Til  I die."

Those were the three words that changed everything. For Reddit user jeanbodin, it was two years ago when he visited the doctor and found that his blood pressure was high enough that he would likely need to spend the rest of his life taking pills to regulate it. But it was that part death part -- the finality of it -- that flipped a switch for him. 

It wasn't that he was on Death's door. But even the idea reminded him of his children -- that he wanted to be around for them as long as they needed him. He needed to be healthy. He needed change. He started with his diet. 

He ditched the fast food, the fried foods, the sugar. But he wasn't seeing progress. He needed more work in the gym and when his wife decided to join, he had a partner in the fight and suddenly he was rolling. The couple researched training programs on message boards. They started counting macros. They employed a simple push-pull-legs style weight lifting program and ultimately led to a powerlifting program. He bought a squat rack and a bench and extra weights.

His lifestyle was changing. In the kitchen, diets never worked. He never liked the idea of cutting foods from his menu. But he did need some discipline not to overload his plate. "I stopped drinking soda," he wrote, "and I now think of food as I think of money. I have this amount at my disposal that I can spend as I feel like it." First the priorities, he would spend on protein, fats and vitamins and with the "change," he spend that on what he wanted. 

He kept the ice cream and the cookies and the chocolate. He just had less of it. All the meals were measured and the progress undeniable. He started his story by explaining his before and after photo. He found the old one in a box, on the same vacation two years earlier. He had a new body and a longer lease on the life he hoped to continue with his children. 

He explained his diet like this:

• As soon as I wake up I have a Protein shake (1 scoop with 200ml milk) with 5g creatine and a banana or a protein ball.

• I have a small snack in the middle of the morning (a piece of fruit and a greek iogurt).

• Lunch is usually around 500cal (meat or fish plus rice, pasta or potatoes with no desert).

• During the afternoon I eat 700 to 800 calories (nuts, iogurts, fruit, homemade protein bars, etc).

• Dinner is somewhat similar to lunch but with a small desert.

• Everyday before bed I eat a late night snack which is what keeps me sane :) it's a frozen chocolate greek yogurt, with 10g peanut butter, 1 protein scoop, 1 coffee ts and chocolate breakfast cereals (around 350cal).