Archive for the tag - transformation

Davey Wavey’s Before and After.

On more than one occasion, I’ve mentioned that I grew up overweight. Many of you have asked to see a picture - and so, the accompanying photographs illustrate my transformation.

But don’t be fooled: It wasn’t easy.

For many years during my childhood, I struggled with weight problems and an inactive lifestyle. Hell bent on looking like the Abercrombie & Fitch models at the mall, I tried to control my weight through anorexia. Like so many of you, my journey to a healthier lifestyle wasn’t without its challenges.

Built into difficult situations are important lessons - and I learned a lot through my transformation. Over the years, my relationship with my body, food and exercise has evolved. In fact, it continues to evolve.

But this is how I’ve come to understand it.

If you’re passionate about cars, you’d keep your car in good working condition. You’d change the oil, bring it in for inspections and treat it with love and care.

Our bodies are the vehicles through which we experience life. And if you’re passionate about life, you want to keep that vehicle - your body - in optimal condition. A healthy body helps extend longevity, increases your energy and helps guard against debilitating diseases that can hold you back. It makes sense to treat it with love and care.

In other words, a healthy body helps you maximize your life and realize your full potential.

My before and after pictures show the change but not the process; it wasn’t easy. There were challenges, roadblocks and setbacks. There’s no magic solution. But, if you aspire to be the best version of yourself, no endeavor is more deserving of your time, energy and effort.

Davey Wavey Was Fat.

A lot of people are surprised the hear that I was once overweight.

I casually mentioned my own fitness transformation in a recent post, and a number of people expressed interest in knowing more - and learning how I released my excess weight.

So here it goes.

As I very young child, I was healthy and active. But somewhere around second grade, I started really adding on the pounds. As many of us know, pounds have a way of adding up - and I was significantly overweight within a year.

Children can be very mean, especially if you’re an overweight gay kid. But of all the torment, it’s my mom’s teasing that I remember the most. Whenever an obese person would appear in a movie, nearby on a street or on television, my mom would say, “Look! It’s David!” I still remember that, and often still hear those words when I see someone that is significantly overweight.

Such things have a way of eroding self esteem in a young person, and so I decided to change my body in a very unhealthy way. By sixth grade, I was quickly losing weight through anorexia. Looking at pictures of myself in middle school, it’s very clear that I had an eating disorder; my face was gaunt and pale and I looked quite sickly.

As a male, it’s easy (though perhaps less so today) to get away with an eating disorder; many people associate eating disorders with women. In a single year I grew 4 inches but lost 10 pounds, and so the doctor expressed concern. “Are you eating?” he asked. “Yes,” I said. And that was that.

It wasn’t until age 15 or 16 that I finally took a much healthier route. I started exercising and adding muscle mass to my frail and malnourished body. I began to eat again and repair my relationship with food. Step by small step, I became healthier.

When I talk about the challenges of being healthy, I don’t do so theoretically. I’ve been there. It’s the driving reason that I write this blog and develop fitness products to share with you; it gives me great purpose to help others find strength to transform their bodies and their lives. There’s nothing that brings me greater fulfillment than sharing what I know to help others better themselves.

And even today, I’m still learning new things. My body and its needs continue to evolve. My fitness journey and transformation isn’t over. It never is.