I’m Christian. I am 24, 5’9”, and on February 1, 2026 I weighed 320 pounds. Today I weigh 249, and I am training for Ironman Jacksonville on May 16, 2027. Started Heavy is the record of the whole thing, written as it happens.
The short version
I grew up obese. Food was comfort. At 12 I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and told I was prediabetic. I powerlifted for two years and woke up in pain every day, tried running in 2023 at more than 300 pounds and quit by summer, then lifted through 2024 and 2025. In 2025 semaglutide got me 12 pounds in three months and no further. A few months living with family in Mexico took me to 320. The morning I had to stretch a 2XL shirt to get it over my head was the morning I decided to stop picking up the fork.
Since December 2025 I have taken retatrutide, which is not FDA-approved. I have eaten clean, walked at least 10,000 steps every single day, fasted, and trained. In August 2026 I hired a coach and signed up for a full-distance triathlon. Everything I have used along the way, including the compounds sold for research that I will never link to, is disclosed in What losing 71 pounds actually changed.
The timeline
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Feb 1, 2026 | 320 lb. Day one. |
| March 2026 | About 310 lb. |
| April 2026 | 290 lb to 275 lb. Gym every day, 15,000 to 20,000 steps a day. |
| May 2026 | 267 lb. |
| June 2026 | 263 lb. |
| July 2026 | 255 lb. |
| August 2026 | Structured Ironman training begins with a coach. First run: a 16-minute mile with stops. |
| September 2026 | 249 lb. First 11.2-mile run. 189 miles across three sports in four weeks. |
| October 31, 2026 | 10K. |
| May 16, 2027 | Ironman Jacksonville. |
How the site works
- Monthly training reports in The Journey: distance, time, weight, sleep, and what went wrong, with dates. The first one is here.
- Pillar articles on running, triathlon, strength, fuel and habits and gear, written from what I have done, not from what I have read.
- A weekly email with one honest week and the training log spreadsheet I use. Join on the newsletter page.
What I will not do
- Post before-and-after pairs. Progress is logged, not staged.
- Sell supplements, coaching or a protocol.
- Give you medical advice. I report one body. Talk to a doctor before you copy anything here.
- Let an affiliate link decide a review. See the disclosure.
Get in touch
Corrections, questions and requests go through the contact page. I read everything and reply personally.