"My family is proud of me and I am proud of me and it makes a world of difference in my life."
Jesse's Progress
Before
4 Months
8 Months
10 Months
How many months’ progress do your pictures represent? What were your stats for each picture?
These pictures represent 10 months of weightlifting with very little cardio. When I bought Bigger Leaner Stronger I got a Golds Gym Membership and a free body scan. The Body Fat Percentages were from a Body Scanner at Gold’s Gym so they should be accurate. Here are the statistics I could get for the photos:
1. “Started Bigger Leaner Stronger Strength Dec 2017″: 255 lbs at 36.3% Body Fat From Scan
2. “2 Months Progress Feb 2018”: 234 lbs No Body Scans Yet
3. “4 Months Progress Apr 2018”: 220 lbs No Body Scans Yet
4. “8 Months After Aug 2018″: 201.4lbs – 21% Body Fat From Scan
5.”10 Months After Oct 2018 Front/Side/Alternative Front”: 193lbs 19.5% Body Fat.
These are three After Bigger Leaner Stronger pictures which are from today.
What has happened so far on the program?
Since December 2017 I cut with Bigger Leaner Stronger for 10 months. I lost about 60 pounds. There were fantastics months where I was losing 1lb every 3-4 days! However, I discovered my body was very frail and inflexible because I never trained strength/mobility for more than 2-3 months at a time in my life or dieted very much in my life.
My left shoulder, in particular, was very weak. This was also my first gym membership. I had to lift very light and still was very sore after workouts at my starting weights. Here are my strength gains in 10 months:
Starting Weights
Benchpress: 65lbs @5 Reps
Deadlift: 95lbs @5 Reps
Squat: 95 lbs @5 Reps
Dumbell Shoulder Press: 60 lbs @ 5 Reps
After 10 months (60 pounds down!)
Benchpress: 155 @5 Reps
Deadlift: 145 @5 Reps
Squat: 180 @5 Reps
Barbell Military Press: 105 @5 Reps
What workout split from the book did you use?
Here is an odd thing. From the audiobook, I couldn’t figure out how to organize my weightlifting workouts so I started with just progressing the major lifts and modified what I heard in the Bigger Leaner Stronger audiobook. That means before I got the physical BLS book my workouts were focused on the major lifts.
When I finally got my hands on the physical copy I and a gym membership I switched to a body part split because push pull legs sounded too complicated to turn into a habit. I used a 5-day body split with only the workouts “approved” exercises by Mike Matthews in Bigger Leaner Stronger with a focus on principles of diet and exercise Mike Matthews teaches like compound movement and the big 4 lifts.
4/5 workouts start out with a major lift and are composed mostly of compound movements. I do cardio Saturday Sunday.
What, if anything, almost kept you from buying the book or starting the program?
Money and obscurity were my biggest obstacles. I had to fit a new diet into a $750 monthly budget for rent, food, gym membership, and college transit fees. My financial reliefs which allowed me to begin Bigger Leaner Stronger were my college grants and my parent’s support. Obscurity was overcome with the Audible trial which confirmed the quality of Mike Matthews Bigger Leaner Stronger guide. If you’re on the fence with Bigger Leaner Stronger/Thinner Leaner Stronger come to the better side where you have the book in your hands.
What do you like most about the program?
The best part about Bigger Leaner Stronger is that it transfers the knowledge of a personal trainer into your mind! You become your own trainer with your own knowledge and your own capability to make yourself lose weight and gain strength. BLS gave me the ability to control my body and added to my philosophical makeup.
The results of Bigger Leaner Stronger were astounding. Here is why. I started weight loss with clean eating and cardio and yes I lost 40+ pounds without much weight lifting but I was running/Hiking vigorously 1-2 hours a day and starving myself with hungry days and nights, praying for God to make me healthy and lean.
After learning from Bigger Leaner Stronger I weight lifted 1 hour 5 days a week found similar weight loss results without the strenuous effort of running and starving. Weightlifting with 2-3 minute rests in between compound sets is waaaaay easier than running for your life for 1-2 hours. Calorie counting is waaay easier than simply clean eating and starving and you can take that to the bank.
How does this program compare with others you’ve tried?
I have only done 1 other program. It was when I was in Highschool and it was called P90X. I did that program twice and my body became a lot healthier but I didnt understand those were just newbie gains. I was still ~200lbs at the time.
After that, I decided to do a lot of running to lose weight. I began running 5-10 miles a day for a few months and got down to 170lbs back then but had a very skinny fat look when I graduated from highschool.
How has what you’ve achieved with your body changed other areas of your life?
A healthier body made me emotionally stable, confident, more proactive and physically stronger in everything I do. My family is proud of me and I am proud of me and it makes a world of difference in my life.
Who would you recommend this program to and why?
EVERYONE! I bought my mother Thinner Leaner Stronger and have been showing people Bigger Leaner Stronger a lot! Too many people are suppressed by the myths listed in BLS and I want them to know these myths so they can progress.
When I show most obese people this book they just roll their eyes. But the only thing different between me and most obese people is the knowledge given to me in books like BLS.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Getting healthy does not have to be expensive. As a college student, I have a very limited income. I spent under $500 a month on food and supplements most months including restaurants and protein powder. One month I spent only about ~$300 on food overall. I generally only eat home made foods. $8 on a book that can change your life is sooo worth it.
Additionally, when I hit about 203 lbs I got stuck in a plateau and was only losing about .5lb a week compared to the 2lbs/week I had in my previous weight loss weeks. I started to do HIIT Saturday & Sunday and kept my calories the same and now im losing 1-1.5lbs a week again.
Bigger Leaner Stronger was not the only thing I read and listened to either. I read other health books like Beyond Bigger Leaner Stronger, The Power Of Habit, Sleep Smarter, Why We Get Fat(Gary Taubes, ew), 13 Morning Habits & The Slight Edge. I recommend all these books because they give you a motivated mind to excel in everything you do.
Did you use any Legion supplements?
No, I haven’t used many supplements. I used the cheapest protein powder at my local grocery store mostly. My barrier to supplements is finances.
