Here is my video update for the year of 2025 and my new year’s resolutions. In 2024, I got the ball rolling. During 2025 I was able to truly dive into this journey for all that it is. I learned a great deal and I hope you enjoy my sappy (and a bit tired) update video. It’s been a very wild ride since getting started in 2024, but I hope I can share how it has been rewarding throughout.

Results

By the start of this year, I’m very close to being below 300 which is a massive milestone that puts me at a size I haven’t been at for almost a decade. I’m able to comfortably do so many things that were quite out of reach at the start of 2025. I’m very grateful for the support and kindness that has encouraged and carried me through what has been a very long and challenging ordeal. Far from the days where I felt completely out of control when it comes to food, I am now at a point where I feel capable and confident when it comes to making dietary decisions.

Getting stronger has been the best part of this journey so far. The quality of life improvements of being strong feel unparalleled. It’s immensely gratifying to drastically expand my capabilities in a relatively short period of time. Ironically, so much of it is getting out of my own way not just physically. But I can say the best part of getting stronger is getting to know other people who are so much stronger. I am in constant amazement at other people who can lift multiples of what I can. It excites me to know that there’s still a great deal of room to improve on that point.

But the biggest gains haven’t been in the numbers. It has been a profound experience to open up about not just how I’m doing, but where I’ve come from. I’ve shared How did I get so big? as a written blog and The bigger picture in a walking audio. It is genuinely nice to be even able to articulate not just what I’ve been able to accomplish, but what I’ve overcome. But even this is just a tiny fraction of how it feels to have experienced these changes.

While I still have challenges, my mind is a remarkably nicer place to reside in. I feel (almost) wholly aligned these days in ways that are very difficult to describe. The best part of it is that mistakes and setbacks are no longer a reason to turn against myself. The ‘inner critic’ has been demoted and the ‘inner planner’ has been promoted to the driver’s seat for the majority of the time. By taking a more proactive approach to directing my behavior, I’m finding myself to be less critical and more analytical. Instead of harshly condemning myself for particular mistakes, more often I’m trying to diagnose and troubleshoot the issue.

2025 was one of the most dynamic years of my life. While I’ve certainly had worse years, I haven’t had one with such a mixture of highs and lows in very long time. A torrent of physical and emotional pain felt almost insurmountable but I was committed to doing the best for my loved ones. The hope that I can be one of many examples to people that we can come back from much more than we usually think really carried me through many difficult points.

Where I found inspiration

I started this project collecting motivational memes but eventually I moved on to just binge listening to podcasts and videos about health and fitness. I gorged on all the information I could find and got very familiar with ‘fitness Youtube’ as a whole. It was very helpful to listen to so much to ‘keep my head in the game’ as I learned to lift and focused on progressing. While Steve Shaw & Solomon Nelson are definitely my favorites, there are many other great sources of information as well:

• Mover’s Odyssey
• The Bioneer
• Picture Fit
• Flow High Performance

I quickly learned that the drama in fitness Youtube is quite spicy. So while I came for the training tips, I am now hopelessly hooked on that particular outrage machine. So much of my online critical thinking guide came from my reflections on the drama of the year.

Transformations

As mentioned in the video overview, I spent a fair amount of time discovering stories of those who have made a similar journey. I can definitely admit to feeling quite alone at my highest, and I had no idea so many people were so successful at transforming teir lives. It is genuinely comforting to see familiar themes, if a bit difficult to watch.

• Mike Pridgen
• Melissa Lamb
• Cole Pochaska
• Jesse Shand
• James Robinson
• Dustin Brown
• Nick
• Many others, even local success stories!

Fan Fiction

I definitely can’t give enough credit to the fan comic 5 Years Later that later became an animated series Which is a fan creation cross-over of Danny Phantom and Ben 10 that takes place in the future where both characters are a bit older. Despite the story not being finished yet, it’s the right combination of nostalgia and coolness that makes it my perfect ‘comfort show’ to watch when I’m feeling low on motivation. I was thrilled when I got to put on the “Hero Time” hoodie that finally arrived quite recently. It feels great to support a project like that which means so much to me.

Highlights from 2025

• Walk with me: Beginning 2025
• Dear Minnesota Mom
• Over 450lb guy shovels snow for over an hour (timelapse)
• 🎉 Major Milestone: Below 450
• Walk with me: 🎉 Major Milestone 150lbs down!
• Walk with me: Below 400 🎉
• 🎉 Major Milestone: Over 200lbs lost!
• Major Milestone: Below 350 🎉
• Walk with me: The bigger picture

Lessons Learned

• 400 to 300 was a radical shift in life experience, much more radical than 570 to 400

  Changes in body composition happen slowly, but compound. So many simple things change. Having changed so much in a short period of time I can definitely notice the stark differences when it comes to staying warm this Winter. It does make some things more complicated, like swimming where I constantly feel like I have to re-learn the strokes all over again.

• Laying the emotional foundation has made things ‘fall into place’ much easier

  My weight loss chart may look impressive, but I’ve been at this for much longer than the last few years. There were many challenges I faced before I even got to that point. Having support made a huge difference. I am very grateful to my other half for making things so much easier for me, especially starting out in late 2024.

• ‘Leaving orbit’ of the old comfortable patterns is MUCH HARDER than I expected, but building momentum does lead to ’escape velocity’

  Building positive momentum is thankfully not as hard as I anticipated. The real challenge seems to be learning to do without familiar comforts that actually hurt us. Even as I write this I’m yet again fighting to keep caffeine out of my life. While some people can handle it in moderation, I find my consumption rapidly escalates to extreme levels. That’s just one of many patterns I’m finding to be a real challenge to break.

• Perfection doesn’t pay, damage control is very valuable

  A very frustrating setback I had was an awful ear infection that made me dizzy with pain. Introducing a bit of flexibility instead of taking an all-or-nothing approach definitely helped keep things within a workable range. I now believe the right approach isn’t to eliminate mistakes, but structure your life to ensure they do not compound, but that’s certainly easier said than done.

• Strength is a massive quality-of-life enhancement

  Getting stronger is awesome, and makes so many things easier.

• Community is a vital resource

  Many people quietly root for you, far more than you can comprehend. In-person feedback is a great way to reassure yourself that it isn’t all for nothing, even when you don’t realize you need it. Connecting with people has been a great way to see other examples of strength and resilience as well as warmth.

• Self-image is complicated

  ‘Nuff said

• The difficulty of maintaining drive

  A very hard lesson was realizing that my indomitable human spirit has it’s limits. To make things even more frustrating, pressure can often corrode positive drives. Being in high spirits all the time feels like an unattainable goal, but so did losing all this weight at a point in time. I think it is very important to recharge and refuel motivation and desire over time.

Memes

These were made throughout the year, and are a reflection of what I’ve been thinking about through this process.

Food for thought

By dipping my toes into understanding nutrition I’ve realized I’m somewhat opposed to the “Whatever fits your macros” approach. That said, I’m realizing that nutrition is a much more complex topic than I can reasonably give justice anytime soon. I should emphasize that these memes are a reflection of my approach while dieting for rapid weight loss, not necessarily advice for every situation.

The emotional side

There are definitely a lot of ups and downs when it comes to the process. Some days it can be genuinely grueling while other times it feels absolutely great.

2025 Resolutions

1. Be more present and connect with people more

I’ve come to realize that retreating from being seen made actually being seen so much harder to experience for real. So I’m realizing I need to meaningfully connect with the people around me rather than being ‘stuck in my head’ (and fears) during conversations. Coming out of isolation has been a slow and difficult process, but things are improving consistently. So with all that said my goal truly is to be a better friend, neighbor and overall person when it comes to interacting with others. I’m working hard to try to be more present with people, and engage more deeply with the things I care about as a whole. This involves being more selective, but it also creates opportunity for much more day-to-day meaning and purpose. It’s a challenging and messy thing, but I’m grateful for the opportunity to improve.

2. Continue weight loss at a decent pace

This year I really get to apply all that I’ve learned and truly put it to the test. Will I reach my ambitious 15% bf target this year? Possibly not, but that won’t stop me from making great progress all the same. I am excited to reap the rewards of years of challenges, and embrace the new possibilities that come into reach. I’m fully expecting to have continued challenges in this area, losing the first 50 has certainly been easier than the last 50 so far. I’m beginning to recognize the additional precision and care needed as one approaches a healthy body weight.

3. Continue to work on strength goals

Building strength has been one of the best parts of this journey. The gratification of betting stronger, and the quality-of-life enhancements make things so much easier. I think everyone underestimates the overall benefits of just becoming a bit stronger in a few neglected areas. For me gaining some non-trivial grip strength has made errands much easier, but I notice that even at my current size of 300, going up the stairs feels like a breeze. Not only that, but I started the year entirely unable to do a single pushup, and now I can do 5 in a single set.

4. Go fast: bike, swim, and sprint

When the springtime comes, I’ll be able to get back on my bike for the first time in almost 8 years. One of my biggest regrets becoming so big was no longer being able to feel the wind as I peddle along. I miss going fast, and I’m very interested in improving my cardiovascular capacity. I’ll have to keep on swimming as I have to re-learn the strokes with my body changes, since I no longer effortlessly float. While it’s still cold out I’ll have to stick to indoor swimming and short treadmill sprints to get a taste of speed.

5. Refocusing on low-stimulation activities

I did quite a bit of reading last year, but that slowed down as this year began. I’m trying to motivate myself to get back into reading regularly. Not only that, but I also want to dedicate time to drawing regularly as well. While not quite low-stimulation, I also consider working on my programming projects part of this as well. While lifting and exercise are incredible, I need to become comfortable doing things when I should be resting and recovering that isn’t just ‘doomscrolling’. But, if we expand the category further we can say I did reasonably well when it came to cooking in 2025, which I have already upgraded to regularly meal-prepping. There’s other things around the home I want to become more competent at, so that very much falls under this resolution as well.