My Weight Loss Journey

[KahrMan]

For those that have not met me I have always been a pretty big guy.  One of my favorite sayings was I was not recoil sensitive.  I have been over 300 lbs for the last 15-18 years.  At my heaviest I was 419 lbs but for the last 5-6 years I have been around 380-390 lbs.  

 

With the help of my wife I finally decided to have weight loss surgery.  So last year I started working with Vanderbilt to get ready for the surgery.  Then I find out that my insurance will not cover it.  I can still do the surgery but it would be 21-23K out of pocket.  That was kinda a kick to the nuts so I stopped thinking about weight loss for the rest of last year. 

 

I was talking to my doctor at my annual physical in February of this year and he suggested I try the weekly shots like Mounjaro or Ozempic.  These would have 2 benefits for me.  One it would help control my A1c(blood sugar) and help with weight loss.  So I took my first shot on February 15^th.  For the first 2 months I was on Mounjaro.  Then there was a national back order and could not get it.  So no shot for month 3.  He then switched me to Ozempic for month 4 and I have been on that since then.  This has been the only medicine I have taken that has made me not want to eat.  This medicine works differently for everybody.  I have been pretty lucky because I have had only minimal side effects and have lost a lot of weight.  In the last 10 months I have lost 150.6 lbs.  I went from 380.2 lbs 2/15/24 to 229.6 lbs 12/12/24.  

 

I have been seeing my doctor every 3 months while I have been taking this medicine.  One other benefit beside the weight loss is that the doc has taken me off my blood pressure medicine.  He is also considering taking me off most of my other medicine because my bloodwork is coming out so good.  The hard part is going to be starting soon though.  Maintenance.  I have finally gotten in the habit of eating less.  I just have to make sure I do not revert back to my old habits once the doctor starts reducing my dosage.  One of thew worst side effects of lasing weight is being constantly cold.  I use to rarely wear a coat.  If it was above freezing I was in short sleeves.  Now I wear long sleeves in the house.  I bet I have worn more sweatshirts and coats in the last 2 months than I have in the last 10 years.

 

For visual reference I went from this: 

 

 

To this:

 

Edited Thursday at 06:56 PM by KahrMan

[BHunted]

Wow... I don't have to lose that much but the Ozempic was too costly.... Fantastic... 
My side effect was heart burn.  Keep up the great work.... 

[Scotty]

I noticed it immediately when you posted your hunting thread and picture. Nice work!

[gregintenn]

17 minutes ago, Scotty said:

I noticed it immediately when you posted your hunting thread and picture. Nice work!

Yeah. Me too. I was afraid to say anything as I didn’t know if it was intentional or due to illness. Glad to see it was the former.

[TGO David]

DUDE!!!!  You look GREAT!!!

That has to feel wonderful on so many different levels.

[Whisper]

Damn.  That's impressive weight loss.  Congratulations.

Cheers,

Whisper

[KahrMan]

12 minutes ago, TGO David said:

DUDE!!!!  You look GREAT!!!

That has to feel wonderful on so many different levels.

Thanks.  My ankles, knees and back really appreciate the weight loss.  Let me tell you it is a lot easier climbing into a tree stand at 230 lbs vs 380 lbs. lol

[KahrMan]

58 minutes ago, gregintenn said:

Yeah. Me too. I was afraid to say anything as I didn’t know if it was intentional or due to illness. Glad to see it was the former.

The pics from the Texas hunt were the first time I had really seen the difference in a pic.  I thought damn I look sickly.  Luckily my health has never been better.  The weight loss may be extending my life span but it sure has made me look older.  l'll take it though.  lol 

[TripleGGG]

Great job my friend. 

[pop pop]

You have Ozempic face. Weight loss in the facial area due to taking the Ozempic shots. I have the same. I went from 295 to 232 this morning. Still on it but weight loss has tapered off. Way to go. Once you stop the shots you must be careful, or you will gain some weight back. 

[BHunted]

36 minutes ago, KahrMan said:

The pics from the Texas hunt were the first time I had really seen the difference in a pic.  I thought damn I look sickly.  Luckily my health has never been better.  The weight loss may be extending my life span but it sure has made me look older.  l'll take it though.  lol 

Rough with all that extra skin too. Ugh... 

[FUJIMO]

Had you not posted a pic and we met up I would have just figured you started running rails

Looking good brother

I wish you the best of luck on your continued journey because as you said the tough part is about to begin. As a former big guy myself getting into a routine and sticking to it is key.

[Sleep profit]

Congratulations  

[Danger Rane]

That’s awesome man! I can only imagine how much better you must feel in just about every conceivable way!

[TennesseeCamper]

Congratulations! You are doing great! That is amazing progress!

[Erik88]

Great work!

[Johnny Rotten]

Good work

[BigK]

Very impressive!! I may have to go see my doc to ask about that.

[Garufa]

Outstanding!  Keep up the great work and commitment!

[peejman]

That's fantastic! Might be time to start into some exercising. I'll bet you'll be surprised by how strong you are. You can't be a weakling carrying nearly 400lbs around all day. 

[res308]

Well done!

[papa61]

Congratulations! I've been on Ozempic for a while now, My blood sugar was ok on my old meds but I was having issues with it. Ozempic has controlled my A1C and I've dropped 60 lbs. Of course part of that was thyroid. I do feel better, amazing what shedding a little weight does. 

[jeremiah]

You are an inspiration .

Great job my friend !

[221 Fireball]

Awesome Bill! 

Being your bean pole buddy, let me tell you I totally understand the long sleeves and sweatshirts.

You should see me on a cold morning in the stand ... I look like the Stay Puff marshmellow man. 

 

[Handsome Rob]

I know from experience how much better (and colder) you feel! 

I did the same thing with compounded semaglutide at my doctor's recommendation (no insurance) & dropped from 285 to 205, 44" waist to 34.

I'm sure your doc already told you, but before you reduce your dosage, start making a food journal. Literally write down every single thing you eat. As you come down, refer back to your journal & treat it like a recipe book. It's really, really easy to add an extra ounce or two of food, here & there without even realizing. 

Stay strong Bill! The effort is absolutely worth it! 

It does get kinda spendy buying new clothes though, doesn't it?!