Sure, Robert Treglia was at all times a bit obese. As a child, he shopped within the “husky” part for his faculty garments. However as a pupil athlete he was additionally extremely energetic, which gave his life stability. That’s, till his teen years arrived, and his weight turned so problematic he didn’t make the reduce for the staff anymore.
By the point he reached his 30s, he may not stroll down the road with out experiencing ache. He lastly hit his breaking level at 602 kilos. However with just a little perseverance and lots of work, Treglia is formally out of the husky part after dropping almost 400—sure, 400—kilos.
“As I received older, my consuming habits by no means modified. They really received worse,” Treglia says. “There was at all times a brand new merchandise out from a quick meals place I needed to attempt, or some superb meal at a restaurant. I used meals as a technique to make myself glad. I couldn’t discover happiness in myself, so meals was my escape.”
Treglia, who hails from Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, defined that via his melancholy he felt “ugly or unattractive,” however that the “plate of pasta with meatballs and garlic bread wouldn’t choose me.” He did, actually, really feel higher after consuming it, however knew even then it was a downward spiral.
So, he tried dropping pounds via loads of diets together with Weight Watchers and Atkins. Although he discovered success with Weight Watchers—dropping down about 80 kilos—he felt the system was too costly to suit his wants. That, and he had different issues he wanted to spend his cash on.
Robert Treglia
“At virtually $15 every week, it turned too costly,” he stated. “It’s dangerous sufficient to must pay much more cash for clothes, furnishings to carry your weight, that now they’re charging you some huge cash to even lose the load.”
Following his success on the weight loss plan, Treglia was nonetheless extraordinarily obese, experiencing physique pains, sleep apnea, and certain staring down the barrel of significant sickness. Issues received so dangerous that the gap from his desk at work to the toilet was lengthy sufficient that he started to restrict how a lot he would drink so he didn’t must stand up to go to the toilet.
His life, merely put, was passing him by. “I wasn’t in a position to stroll various hundred toes with out my decrease again feeling prefer it was on fireplace and being stabbed with a knife,” he says. “I additionally was not in a position to assist with chores round the home. My spouse would do the grocery purchasing whereas I sat within the automobile ready for her. I couldn’t do any yard work with out being in horrible ache, so I might make excuses on why issues couldn’t be achieved. My spouse received used to my reply being no for every little thing.”
One evening, nonetheless, Treglia discovered his reply. It wasn’t a magic tablet, or regardless of the Kardashians are hawking on Instagram as of late. As an alternative, it was Reddit. Sure, everybody’s favourite meme manufacturing unit saved Treglia’s life.
“I discovered a number of subreddits on reddit that assist individuals drop some pounds. I learn so many tales of people that misplaced 100 to 200 kilos that I felt I may attempt it too,” he says, referring to communities like r/loseit.
Upon studying stranger’s updates on their very own weight reduction Treglia found most—if not all—of the profitable weight reduction topics have been utilizing the MyFitnessPal app, which is free to obtain. “I watched movies on YouTube that defined how you can use the app and meal prep meals,” he defined. “I used that as a springboard into how you can drop some pounds and learn to eat accurately.”
Robert Treglia
At greater than 500 kilos, Treglia had a tough lesson to be taught as soon as he opened the app and began inputting his meals. “I needed to relearn what was wholesome and what was not,” he stated. “Rising up I at all times thought that if we cooked it at residence it was wholesome. After placing a few of these meals into MyFitnessPal I realized what I believed was a wholesome meal was virtually 2,000 energy.”
At one level, Treglia realized he was doubtless consuming 5,000 energy a day. So he wanted to choose: Get onboard with the app’s advised calorie consumption, or proceed down the trail towards a extra grim consequence. “I didn’t need my spouse to search out me useless in mattress one morning as a result of I had a coronary heart assault in my sleep. I didn’t need her to really feel guilt that it was her fault this occurred. I needed to get wholesome so I may give her the life she deserved,” he says.
He started counting his energy with the app. It rapidly become a recreation for Treglia, who occurred to like math anyway. Subsequent, he upped his know-how with a Fitbit to trace his steps. “After I first began sporting a Fitbit I might common round 3,000 steps a day,” he shared. After a number of months he began to see outcomes. His clothes was unfastened and he had misplaced about 10 p.c of his physique weight.
“I used to be so excited when my first digit went from a 5 to a 4,” he stated. “That basically confirmed me that I may accomplish this journey.” After a 12 months and a half, he determined to affix a fitness center. Fortunately, his cousin occurred to have a level in train science and is an ACSM licensed train physiologist. “He has helped coordinate with my physician an train routine for me,” Treglia says.
His walks become cardio and resistance coaching three to 4 days every week. All that helped him drop 394.8 kilos to satisfy his new weight of 207. “The adjustments to my physique have been large. After I look within the mirror I see definition; particularly in my arms, neck, and shoulders,” he says, including that resistance coaching has helped scale back his unfastened pores and skin a bit.
That’s to not say it’s at all times been straightforward for Treglia. “I’ll always remember the second the place I used to be driving residence from work. I actually needed to get quick meals. All the journey residence in my thoughts I used to be going backwards and forwards on whether or not or to not get quick meals. Like on autopilot, I simply cruised proper into the quick meals parking zone and parked my automobile,” Treglia recalled. “I sat there speaking to myself about whether or not or not I need this. I opened up MyFitnessPal and noticed I solely had sufficient energy for a wholesome dinner. I didn’t have sufficient for a whole meal from the place. I sat there and cried as a result of I needed that burger and fries so dangerous. I felt like an addict who couldn’t get what they have been after.”
However nonetheless, he endured, and continues to push ahead even right this moment to drop a number of extra kilos. And now, Treglias stated, every single day is an incredible day: “There may be at all times one thing new I can do this I couldn’t do earlier than. I not really feel like I’m the item of everybody’s consideration. After I enter a room I not really feel just like the ‘fats man’ within the room,” he stated. “I don’t really feel like I’m judged by individuals for my weight.”
As for what’s subsequent, Treglia is happy to be taught to journey a motorbike once more, proceed strolling hand-in-hand along with his spouse on trip, and simply waking up each single day with a brand new lease on life.
“Don’t change every little thing without delay, particularly if you’re very sedentary,” Treglia says, when requested what different individuals can be taught from his story. “Make small adjustments and allow them to snowball into larger adjustments. This isn’t a race to hit your weight reduction objective, so why deal with it like one? All of us didn’t achieve this weight in a single day and we aren’t going to lose it that means.”
He added, “You don’t must do a lot; simply do one thing. Cease placing it off or making an excuse. Simply get on the market and do it.”
