My story part 1

I don’t think my story is that different from a lot of guys out there.

I was always a bit on the chubby side — especially during my teenage years. In my early 20s, after moving out on my own, I started working out and actually got into decent shape. I was tall (2 meters), reasonably slim, kind of buff — not bodybuilder material by any means — but in lack of better words, a good-looking guy.

Then life happened.

I started working as a bouncer in nightclubs — not exactly the healthiest lifestyle in terms of rest or nutrition. My typical shift would last 7 or 8 hours. The only fuel? Coffee and nicotine. After work, I’d usually crush an insanely large shawarma and go straight to bed. (Pro tip: sleeping with 2,500 kcal of shawarma in your system does not improve fat loss.)

Then came the kids — two of them in a short time. Then came the divorce. Then a rough period filled with poor food choices and too little exercise. I kicked off a career as a mechanical designer, which eventually gave me the opportunity to start my own business. I often worked 80+ hours a week.

Then came the business travel, more junk food, restaurants with clients, late nights, bad habits.

The business did well. And being a guy, I liked the usual stuff — big cars, boats, gadgets. Here’s a picture of me at 45, weighing over 160 kg. Nice boat though….

Needless to say, that was not healthy.

Honestly, I still don’t know how my body managed to keep going. Over the previous 10 years, I had tried just about every diet under the sun. I was convinced there had to be some “easy fix” out there.

Let me be 100% honest right now:
There. Is. Not.

What there are, though, are lifestyle diseases. Chronic bronchitis from smoking. Low testosterone from being too fat and drinking too much. High blood pressure. In my case, I’m pretty sure the only reason none of these hit me full force is because they were all too busy fighting over which one would finish me first.

While some people treat their body like a temple, I treated mine like an amusement park.

But as every good story goes — there’s a turning point.

Due to a non-compete clause after leaving my business, I suddenly found myself being paid to do nothing for six months. I couldn’t work, legally. So I started studying how the body works.

As an engineer, I’m used to diving deep into complex topics. But after just a few days of reading books, watching videos, and digging through scientific research, I looked up and said out loud to myself, “Is that it?”

So I started going to the gym. Seven days a week.

Here’s why:
I’d tried going to the gym before — the classic 3-times-a-week approach. But it’s easy to skip one session, then two, and suddenly you’re off track. This time I decided that if I was going to do this, I had to do it right.

From experience, I knew that if you do something every day for 3–4 months, it becomes a habit. If you do it for a year, it becomes an addiction. And that’s what I wanted. I wanted exercise to become something I couldn’t live without.

I made a deal with myself:
I had to go to the gym every single day. No matter what. Even if it was just for 10 minutes on the days I didn’t feel like it — I had to show up. Every morning.

And then…

Nothing happened.

More to follow.