PEERtrainer - Success Stories

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dwillard, 83
Kansas City Suburbs, KS
United States

I have been a PeerTrainer member for 4 months now. Last fall, when the days started getting shorter and colder, I started getting a bit panicky about the upcoming holiday season. My weight stays within a pretty narrow range most of the time, but always goes up a bit when the days get too cold and dark to get in much outdoor activity. This past autumn, however, my weight was already two or three pounds higher than normal, and with the holidays approaching, I was very concerned about adding several additional pounds.

Exactly one week before Thanksgiving, on November 17th, I came across an article on PeerTrainer in the New York Times Online. I immediately joined. To make a long story short, I lost a steady pound per week over the holidays, with the exception of the two weeks that included Christmas and New Years. In this two-week period, I gained 1/2 pound. The second week of January, however, I took this off, along with another pound.

Moreso than weight loss, however, I think the improvement in my overall physical condition and the loss of body fat are better indicators of success. On December 5th, at a body weight of 155.5 pounds, my body fat was 11.4%. On March 10th, at a body weight of 148.5 pounds, my body fat was 7.3%. I have been replacing fat with muscle.

I did this with a combination of diet and exercise. I try to be active year-round, but generally have difficulty making the transition from bicycling and other outdoor activities to weight lifting, yoga and similar indoor activities. This year I added walking to my winter activities. Walking soon became a walk-jog, then a jog, then running. On January 29th, I participaed in the "Groundhog 5K", a run that takes place entirely within a man-made cavern---meaning it is out of the cold, ice and snow. This is something I would not have done without the impetus of on-line conversations with other PeerTrainers.

Some 6 weeks later, on March 11th, I competed in a powerlifting tournament. I was awarded the first-place trophy in my age/weight group, and also the trophy as the "Outstanding Lifter" for the overall meet. It had been 10 years since I competed as a lifter, and, again, the daily on-line contact with other PeerTrainers had a lot to getting me back into competition.

The photo below is of me with my final lift of the competition on March 11th. Note the bloody shins. The lift starts with the bar against the shins, and the lifter stands up with it. The knurling on the bar acts like a file on the shins. Real lifters don't notice such things.

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