RicksWeightLoss.com

Welcome to RicksWeightLoss.com.

I spent a year losing over 150 pounds of FAT the old fashioned way: proper diet and exercise. No fads. No pills. No surgery. No crazy machines.

In April of 2004, I was 31 years old and 340 pounds. With a history of heart disease and obesity in my family, I decided it was time to shed the pounds.

As of March 2005, my weight was down to 185 pounds. My body fat is down from 42% to only 15.5%.

Yes, that's me to the right - before and after. I look better, but most importantly, I feel better. I have lots more energy, I need less sleep at night, and my back pains are all gone.

On the left my weight was about 300 pounds. My heaviest was yet to come... 340 pounds. Check the Pictures page for even more pics... if you like to torture your eyes. A picture of me following my weight loss is to the right of that one. As you can see, the difference was significant.

This web site is here for two purposes. First, to chronicle my journey of weight loss for my own purposes. Yes, it's something of an online diary; something for me to look back on. Second, I'd like to share with the world the information that I have learned while getting fit... my recipes, workout routines, weekly exercise schedules, eating tips, and more.

I'm not out to make any money with this web site. This is purely a personal passion of mine (I'm a computer geek - not a fitness expert). However, I've spent years studying weight control, and I just want to share what I've learned with anyone else who wants to lose weight and be healthy! I've got some small ads running here only to help cover the costs of running the site, and I ask that you support our sponsors (including my excellent 599CD Computer Training products), but aside from that, I'm not trying to sell any products or services here. There are no quick-fix solutions to weight loss. I'm not looking to get rich selling you machines, supplements, or wacky diet plans. I just want to help you get fit!

Almost every day I get people I haven't seen in years coming up to me saying "Wow! You look great!" and then the next question... "What have you been doing?" Well, now I can just tell everyone to come here and find out!

Diet	All about eating: what, how much, and how often.
Exercise	Exercise tips and techniques.
Pictures	Rick's before and after pictures.
Links	Links to other helpful sites that Rick likes.
Contact	Contact Rick.

Now, of course, as a general disclaimer, I have to say that the tips I'm sharing with you here are just from my own personal experience. I'm not a professional health expert - although over the past couple of years I've read dozens of books, and hundreds of articles on nutrition and exercise. I'm not a doctor. You should, of course, seek your own doctor's advice before starting any kind of a weight-loss or exercise plan.

I lost about 150 pounds in roughly one year. I didn't lose it all at the same speed. I started out slow at first, losing a few pounds here and there as I began by just trying to cut the junk food (chicken wings and cookies were my favorites) out of my diet.

What's my point? Well, I just want to let you know that I've seen weight loss from many angles. I started out as the frustrated fat guy who wanted to lose weight but had no clue where to begin. I started by doing a lot of the wrong things - like trying fat-blocker and carb-blocker pills, and like trying to cut all fat from my diet (you need good fat!). I spent many months struggling because I just didn't have the will power or the proper knowledge. I can't give you will power, but I can help to arm you with the right know-how.

I progressed by learning a little bit about eating properly and exercise. I started exercising slowly at first (which is what I recommend for people who aren't currently active). I began with just walking. I progressed to light jogging and some cycling. Eventually I was able to run three days a week, swim three days a week, play softball 3 to 5 nights a week, and bike over 50 miles a week. I could have never started by doing that all at once. You need to slowly progress into it (I'll share more on this later).

Finally, after learning what to do, I planned out a proper workout routine, a proper diet, and I got my metabolism fired up to the point where I was shedding 3 or 4 pounds a week. The weight really melted off at that point.

Now, while everyone might not be able to lose that kind of weight that fast, I firmly believe that almost everyone can lose the weight. You just need to find your comfort zone as far as speed goes. You might not be able to lose 3 or 4 pounds a week. But, with the right diet, and the right amount of exercise, you can shed a pound a week. Do that for a year, and you've lost 52 pounds. Above all else be patient.