Whether you’re in lockdown right now and struggling to summon the will to lift at home, or whether you have the gym at your beck and call but your fitness journey is not where you’d like it to be, a bit of Monday Motivation can sometimes come in handy for us all.
Enter: a recent video posted by American man Anthony Lopez, which is currently doing the rounds on Instagram.
Posted two weeks ago but still racking up likes and comments, the clip shows Mr Lopez’ transformation from 600 pounds to 265 pounds – and him looking back on an old video and reflecting.
“Looking back at this clip notice that I still had a smile on my face,” Mr Lopez captioned the video. “I loved myself at that size. I just needed to realize that I had a problem and had to fix it.”
“I had to fix years of bad habits, years of using food as a crutch losing over 100 pounds, then using the sleeve as a tool. I’m busting my butt daily in and out the gym to show that it’s never too late to fix a problem you caused.”
The video attracted comments like the following:
“My man did what most people can’t. He put in the hard work to make his life better instead of using any of a 1000 excuses and that deserves the most respect.”
Another Instagram user wrote: “You always had a smile on your face even remembering you in high school. You seriously never had a sour mood. That’s why everyone loves you!”
“Haha so awesome to see your journey and can’t wait to see where it surpasses even your own expectations!”
Other comments included: “My respects bro” and “Hard work beats talent.”
“Keep up that smile and keep going.”
Finally, one Instagram user asked: “Did you change eating habits first or both simultaneously eating habits and started working out?”
Though Mr Lopez has not at the time of writing responded to that question, the Mayo Clinic has some useful information in regards to it (though to sum up, the answer is basically: ‘Do both’).
According to the Mayo Clinic, “Cutting calories appears to promote weight loss more effectively than does increasing exercise.”
“The key to weight loss is to consume fewer calories than you burn. For most people, it’s possible to lower calorie intake to a greater degree than it is to burn more calories through increased exercise.”
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“That’s the reason cutting calories through dietary changes is generally more effective for weight loss,” Mayo Clinic adds.
“But doing both – cutting calories through diet and burning calories through exercise – can help give you the weight-loss edge.”
“If you lose weight by crash dieting or by drastically restricting yourself to 400 to 800 calories a day, you’re more likely to regain weight quickly, often within six months after you stop dieting.”
“Exercise can help you maintain your weight loss. Studies show that people who lose weight and keep it off over the long term get regular physical activity.”
Speaking of maintaining weight loss, Mr Lopez has posted numerous videos in recent weeks, too, showing how he does just that – as well as dropping advice like, “There is no such thing as the perfect time” and, “Do it for yourself, not the approval of others.”
Well said.