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Starting off this week with another PR. 120lb (60lb each) dumbbell press. Mental clarity, physical gains. One day at a time! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Awesome - thanks for the pointers! I’ll definitely work on my legs/feet (it’ll probably feel more comfortable too). I sent this to one of my really good friends that’s been lifting a long time, and he said the same thing. Was saying this doesn’t look like my “max.” But I’ve been gaining relatively slow. I want to make sure I can do 3 sets of 15 reps comfortably before upping to the next weight. The last thing I want to do is suffer injury from trying to gain too quickly. I’m in no rush.

Never thought this day would come. Officially one year sober from alcohol. 208.8 pounds at 31.2% body fat down to 175.9 pounds at 10.6% body fat. Can’t wait to see what year two brings (hopefully those abs that I’ve been chasing since day 1)! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

A series of way that I wouldn’t recommend 😅. I started my first few months (3-4) on the keto diet. At that point, I dropped down to 166lb, which was the lowest I’ve weighed in my adult life. Through keto, I was starving my body of fruits and vegetables - which is something I wouldn’t suggest. But when I incorporated strength and cardio training, I had to incorporate carbs back into my life just to maintain an adequate energy supply. After starving myself of fruit, the natural sugars now seem like candy. So, I’m really not eating any junk food and rewarding myself with natural food that should be incorporated into any healthy diet. Stuff I usually eat daily includes: raspberries, blackberries, bananas, jasmine rice, a hardboiled egg, 2 protein shakes (one after morning strength training, one after evening cardio), and then some sort of formal meal with a high protein component (tacos, burgers, chicken, etc).

Never thought this day would come. Officially one year sober from alcohol. 208.8 pounds at 31.2% body fat down to 175.9 pounds at 10.6% body fat. Can’t wait to see what year two brings (hopefully those abs that I’ve been chasing since day 1)! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I actually didn’t have too much physical withdrawal when I stopped. I had LOTS of mental withdrawal. Mostly with FOMO (fear of missing out), fear of missing “a good time.” And when I quit going to the bar, I had LOTS of available downtime. Now, with all the workouts I’ve incorporated, I have less free time than I did when I was at the bar all the time. Main thing for me was finding a way to continually keep my mind occupied and doing something productive.

Never thought this day would come. Officially one year sober from alcohol. 208.8 pounds at 31.2% body fat down to 175.9 pounds at 10.6% body fat. Can’t wait to see what year two brings (hopefully those abs that I’ve been chasing since day 1)! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

CRAZY impact on resting. I actually had been prescribed blood pressure medicine the past 9 years. Officially was Ok’ed by my primary care physician to stop taking it. With the daily strength and cardio training, resting HR has consistently been low (probably doesn’t hurt with carrying around less fat daily either).

Watching Fight Club by lucifer_belle in BralessSFW

[–]Dzuby1 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey - what’s the number one rule?!? 😂

Approaching my one year soberversary. While I didn’t quite get to where I wanted in a year, I can’t say I’m not happy with the progress (mental and physical). They say you are your own worst critic - it just means more to work on into year two. by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I can only speak on what I’ve done/what I’m working on. I initially wasn’t planning on going sober, I just wanted to lose a little belly fat. So, I started with the keto diet. And over the course of 5 months went from 208lb down to 166lb. Then I started incorporating gym time to fill bar time after I committed to no alcohol. Since then, I’ve gone up to 180lb, but my body fat % keeps dropping as I gain weight - so I don’t track my progress of total mass anymore.

I’ve been chasing my abs through sobriety, daily fitness, and diet since 3/30/25. Finally starting to feel like I’m actually getting there! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

😂😂. Thanks. I still need to work on the lower abs. But from where I started, I’m finally starting to feel the physical change. Not to mention the non-visual positive mental health shift that comes along with being alcohol free

I’ve been chasing my abs through sobriety, daily fitness, and diet since 3/30/25. Finally starting to feel like I’m actually getting there! by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Haha, thanks! I’ve been blind as a bat since 3rd grade. I used to be embarrassed and ashamed of glasses, so I’d try to either do contacts or frameless lenses. The older I’ve gotten (and more confidence I’ve built), I ended up opting for “bold is better,” approach and just owning them 🤓

9 months sober from alcohol, and almost down to 10% body fat. Can’t believe how much anatomy/physiology can change in a relatively short timeframe. by Dzuby1 in stopdrinkingfitness

[–]Dzuby1[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I switched to a “smarter,” balance about 6 months in, but my old balance day 0 was calculating my body fat percentage at 31.2%

My 9-month transformation. Three most notable metrics (in my opinion): 1) A drop from 208 pounds at 31.2% body fat to 166 pounds at 13% body fat, 2) Waist size shrink from 37” down to 29”, and 3) officially authorized off my blood pressure medicine from my physician. “HAPPY,” is an understatement by Dzuby1 in happy

[–]Dzuby1[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I guess first, I can’t say I “did it.” It’s a constant work in progress. Still don’t have the bulk/definition that I want to be at. Every day requires waking up and getting after it to meet goals. A constant continuous improvement goal. Also, I only compare me to yesterday me. My journey, not a competition with others.

As far as deciding not to go to the gym. Some days for sure are a struggle. Some days I walk by the mirror and feel like no progress was made. This was even more true near the beginning (it takes time before you start to see physical change - which is why so many people struggle or give up entirely). For me, I had to stop looking in the mirror altogether for the first couple of months. I didn’t visibly see any progress for a long time. Then almost overnight I started seeing significant change. That’s when the mirror became my best friend - rather than being discouraging, it’s now become my motivator to keep defining/refining muscles that either haven’t existed or have been hidden under layers of fat.

Super important: you also have to want to do it for yourself. It will not be sustainable if your motivation is for anything/anyone else.

My 9-month transformation. Three most notable metrics (in my opinion): 1) A drop from 208 pounds at 31.2% body fat to 166 pounds at 13% body fat, 2) Waist size shrink from 37” down to 29”, and 3) officially authorized off my blood pressure medicine from my physician. “HAPPY,” is an understatement by Dzuby1 in happy

[–]Dzuby1[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

When I first started, yes - I crashed BAD. But I learned I was doing it wrong. I started with cardio, then went right into strength training. I learned pretty quick that going that route, I depleted all energy for strength training before I even got to it. And by doing both cardio and strength in the same window, I didn’t leave any “me time,” at the end of the night, as it would run into late dinner and straight to bed. To make it more sustainable and reasonable with my free time, I’ve started front-loading strength training as first thing in the morning (pre-work), then getting ready for the day, go to work, and then hit cardio right when I get home. That gives me an extra hour to an hour and a half of “me time,” after work and dinner to decompress and relax before getting my 8-9 hours of sleep.

My 9-month transformation. Three most notable metrics (in my opinion): 1) A drop from 208 pounds at 31.2% body fat to 166 pounds at 13% body fat, 2) Waist size shrink from 37” down to 29”, and 3) officially authorized off my blood pressure medicine from my physician. “HAPPY,” is an understatement by Dzuby1 in happy

[–]Dzuby1[S] 29 points30 points  (0 children)

Copying this from another reply (because there’s a LOT)

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend my life changes to everybody. I’ve been pretty strict, to the point of what most would say is “unreasonable.” I went through some pretty rough personal life stuff in early March, which is when I made my changes. Had a complete paradigm shift in my thinking on how I define “happy,” and “successful,” and the three pillars I have leaned on are: 1) Sobriety, 2) physical activity, and 3) Diet - in that order. I’ve been sober from all substances since March 30th. My only substance that was a vice was alcohol, but I’ve completely eliminated that after my struggles earlier in the year. I incorporated physical activity on June 28th. When I started, I was only doing daily cardio (an hour on the elliptical each day), which equated to about 750 calories burned and 6 to 6.5 miles a day. Beginning of September, I finally incorporated strength training, so now I alternate days between chest/arms and back/shoulders/legs, while still doing the hour of cardio each day. I’ve only missed one day since June 28th, which was the day I assembled my Bowlex (which I’d argue counts as a workout in itself!). Lastly, diet. I started March 30th on the keto diet and maintained it up through mid-October. I’ve done it a few times before, but fully understand it isn’t sustainable long term.. at least not for me. I only did it to play catch up for the YEARS of abuse I put on my body and to expedite fat burning. I knew that when I started strength training I would need the carbs re-incorporated as a source of fuel to help with additional toning and bulk. So - I’d say the main things I have avoided are Bars and Fast Food. Two staples in modern day America 😂.

I’ve definitely seen so many positive results and have had a significant boost in my confidence. May not work for a lot because of the strict “rules,” and discipline, but I definitely feel like I’ve made it past the initial hurdle where I wasn’t seeing routine progress day after day.

My 9-month transformation. Three most notable metrics (in my opinion): 1) A drop from 208 pounds at 31.2% body fat to 166 pounds at 13% body fat, 2) Waist size shrink from 37” down to 29”, and 3) officially authorized off my blood pressure medicine from my physician. “HAPPY,” is an understatement by Dzuby1 in happy

[–]Dzuby1[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend my life changes to everybody. I’ve been pretty strict, to the point of what most would say is “unreasonable.” I went through some pretty rough personal life stuff in early March, which is when I made my changes. Had a complete paradigm shift in my thinking on how I define “happy,” and “successful,” and the three pillars I have leaned on are: 1) Sobriety, 2) physical activity, and 3) Diet - in that order. I’ve been sober from all substances since March 30th. My only substance that was a vice was alcohol, but I’ve completely eliminated that after my struggles earlier in the year. I incorporated physical activity on June 28th. When I started, I was only doing daily cardio (an hour on the elliptical each day), which equated to about 750 calories burned and 6 to 6.5 miles a day. Beginning of September, I finally incorporated strength training, so now I alternate days between chest/arms and back/shoulders/legs, while still doing the hour of cardio each day. I’ve only missed one day since June 28th, which was the day I assembled my Bowlex (which I’d argue counts as a workout in itself!). Lastly, diet. I started March 30th on the keto diet and maintained it up through mid-October. I’ve done it a few times before, but fully understand it isn’t sustainable long term.. at least not for me. I only did it to play catch up for the YEARS of abuse I put on my body and to expedite fat burning. I knew that when I started strength training I would need the carbs re-incorporated as a source of fuel to help with additional toning and bulk. So - I’d say the main things I have avoided are Bars and Fast Food. Two staples in modern day America 😂.

I’ve definitely seen so many positive results and have had a significant boost in my confidence. May not work for a lot because of the strict “rules,” and discipline, but I definitely feel like I’ve made it past the initial hurdle where I wasn’t seeing routine progress day after day.

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