As promised, I wanted to continue to share some of the people that I’ve gotten inspiration from! So here it is, another story about an awesome transformation from a college friend, Lerell Richards. Weight loss is not a gender specific problem and there are guys out there who want to make a change and this guy did. Look below to read my interview with Lerell and how he made his lifestyle change.
1. How did you get started on your healthy lifestyle change?
Honestly, coming to college I had gained around 30-40 pounds between freshman and junior year. I knew, eventually, I wanted to lose the weight that I had gained. So this past summer I decided that I finally was going to be proactive in losing weight and becoming a healthier me.
2. What is your motivation?
Seeing the change is definitely my motivation. Going shopping and having to buy a smaller pants size definitely is a confidence booster. Also, the people that are always around me telling me how much better I look is motivation.
3. Do you follow a strict diet regime?
I don’t really have a strict diet regime. For me it was more about cutting out the bad stuff in order to make room for the good. I decided last Spring to no longer eat pork because of all the negative health benefits it caused. I also recently, cut all red meat from my diet. I decided to limit the amount of “junk food” I consumed (Let’s be honest, I’m in college I couldn’t completely cut out junk food. Also, my alcohol consumption has decreased severely.
4. Do you follow a strict workout regime?
Not really. This summer when I got home from my internship I would jog for about 2.5 miles everyday. Coming back to school, I still jog but not as frequently as I did in the summer, I’ve wanted to go to the gym more and focus on muscle gains.
5. How long have you been on this journey?
Since mid-May 2014.
6. What would you say has been the hardest part?
Food and alcohol is definitely the hard part. Being in college you’re always up all times of the night doing work making you hungry more often. We’re also always going out on the weekends and being surrounded by alcohol.
7. What are some routines that you swear by (whether that be something physical, mental or something you eat etc.)
Not eating pork or red meat.
8. Do you have any advice or words of encouragement for those out there looking to get started or to get back on track?
Once you start, don’t stop. Jogging everyday was a struggle but once I kept consistently doing it, it became a part of my daily routine. It felt weird the days that I didn’t go for a jog.
9. How much progress have you made thus far? (Either starting weight to current weight or pant size changes or how much weight you’ve lost or combination of any measurements)
At the beginning of the summer I wore a size 36 pant and now I’m a 32/33. Thus far, I’ve lost like 15-20 pounds.
10. What was your goal? And how did you set it?
I didn’t really have any goals in mind I just knew that I wanted to lose weight.
11. Is there anything else that you want to share?
Lose weight and become healthier for yourself not for the satisfaction of others.
Check out some of his transformation photos below.
Weight Loss. Travel Gains 