Hey Pete, It's been a while since I last wrote in. Back in April I wrote you about my progress and how I had lost 112 lbs at that point. Here is a quick recap of my stats: I am now 23 years old. I am 6 feet tall, weighed in at 400 pounds at my heaviest, was borderline diabetic, had blood pressure, sleep apnea, suffered from chronic fatigue and was just not happy or healthy by any means. All by the way have completely gone away and my resting heart rate is now at 56 bpm. Currently, it is December and 8 months later weighing in at 235 pounds. To date I have lost 165 pounds and feel absolutely amazing. I owe a great deal of credit for my success to you. THANK YOU! I am getting closer and closer to my goal. I have another 35 pounds to go. My body fat was at a scary rate of 54.8%. Today I stand at 22.2%. I look at my photos from back then and look at myself and am still in disbelief as to how far I've come: physically, emotionally, mentally. When I wrote back in April I was confused and irritated, feeling like an idiot at the gym with weights. I am gaining confidence in the gym and around other people. Sure, I feel a little self conscious still at the gym at times but compared to where I was I cannot complain. I've followed everything you said in that post religiously! High reps all the way. My arms are pretty lean now, muscles are starting to popping out. My chest and gut are still shrinking and those are my problem areas. I'm not concerned about loose or hanging skin on my arms and legs because I can already tell I won't have an issue with those.I wear a compression shirt that has helped me with my skin and have taken quite a bit of supplements, both topical and stuff I can actually ingest. But to be honest my stomach isn't that bad considering all the weight I have lost. These last 35 pounds are being stubborn. I'm becoming irritated and more impatient each day that the scale doesn't move. My question is ... Where do I go from here? Do you have any tips on how to lose these last 35 pounds? I want to be ready for the pools in Vegas by this next upcoming summer. (haha) Or at least be as lean and defined as possible. My diet is very clean. I am eating 6 times a day and an extra protein shake post workout. I stay away from processed foods and definitely away from artificial sweeteners. Protein consists of nuts, chicken, turkey, lean meat, tuna, and other clean lean fish. Carbs consist of veggies, brown rice and sweet potatoes. By the way ... I HAVE BEEN SODA FREE FOR 1 YEAR NOW! :D I know I've come a long way in the last 12 months but these last 35 lbs just won't budge. Do you have any tricks up your sleeve? Supplements, workout tips, or anything that can help boost me out of this plateau? I'm trying to be patient but I'm going nuts here! Also, how much protein and calories should I be eating on a daily basis? Is there a formula or something I can use to adjust this as I go? I am taking quite a bit of supplements:

12/17/2010

Sal Meltzer: Congratulations to Peter for inspiring him and JCVegasBoy for losing the 165 lbs! I've lost 30 lbs myself by following this blog.