How a father lost 22kg and got in shape
Once a semi-professional rugby player, 31-year-old Deon Gouws was no stranger to the gym. However, as a veteran of the position of prostitute, the teacher had to maintain his weight. This meant great meals and large weight lifting sessions. But when rugby came to an end, your diet hasn't changed. "I kept getting up, but the intensity was not the same," he admits. "And I continued to eat as I always did." The result: he started packing at sagging at a quick rate.
The wake-up call
Deon can't identify a specific moment when he knew he had to change his life. "I slowly got to the point where my self-esteem and confidence spread," he says. "It got so bad that I didn't even want to take any pictures with my then girlfriend - now a wife - and I would avoid actively looking at myself in the mirror."
The Food
Using the MyFitnessPal app, Deon started tracking his calories. He tried to limit his carbohydrate intake, making sure to mock the highest payload of this energy-laden nutrient around his two exercises scheduled for the day.
Screening for food intake has been associated with successful weight loss, with a study published in the Journal of Diabetes Research revealing that those who consistently recorded their calories were more likely to lose fat than peers averse to the number. To stay in the green, Deon began to prepare meals in advance, spending his Sundays cooking food to freeze and delight in for the rest of the week. Research has shown that this approach is associated with better diet quality, diverse variety of foods and healthier weights.
Fitness and fitness
Fasting cardio - that is, burning calories on an empty stomach - and afternoon bodybuilding sessions helped Deon burn sagging. For the former sportsman, going back to working out was not a challenge: "I've always loved working out, so that was the fun part". The teacher created his own programs, taking advantage of the knowledge he built while studying sports fitness after school.
This commitment to two sweat sessions every day helped Deon build the body you see here. Recently, he discovered CrossFit, a discipline that, according to him, helped him stay struggling in shape (even after becoming a father). To juggle his newly discovered responsibilities, he prepares for CrossFit classes at 5 a.m.
The Reward
Armed with a relentless work ethic, it took Deon only three years to get into the best shape of his life. The biggest advantages: "My self-esteem and confidence are at the top," he says. “I used to be a very shy person, but that has changed now.”
The Motto
"Getting here was a lot of trial and error," says Deon. “You can't be afraid of setbacks; you can test what works for you and eventually you will find the winning formula.”
This article was first published on the Men's Health SA website
