Left: Oscar James Frazier, Jr., at 440 pounds. Right: Frazier, today, at 262 pounds. (Photos courtesy of Oscar James Frazier, Jr.)
Oscar James Frazier, Jr., from Bluffton, South Carolina, is 35, 6′1″ tall, and currently weighs 262 pounds. But less than two years ago, he weighed 440 pounds. This is the story of his weight-loss journey.
The Turning Point
In June 2013, I went to Florida and met some old military buddies. Everyone looked to be in good shape besides me. During the trip, I decided to take my two kids to Universal Studios. In the Harry Potter section, there was a ride we tried to get on where the attendant had me sit in a test seat to see if I could fit. I couldn’t. I stood there, in front of a crowd of people, as my children asked me to join them on a ride I couldn’t get on. I had never been so embarrassed in my life. At that moment, I decided that nothing would ever happen to me like that ever again.
The Changes
I began paying more attention to, and limiting, the calories I was taking in. I stopped eating out, gave up fried foods, quit drinking alcohol, and ate more vegetables like spinach, kale, and broccoli. I also drank a lot of water. I ate a lot of chicken breast, ground turkey, and salmon. I chose egg whites instead of eggs and even almond milk instead of skim or whole milk. I evaluated everything I ate and tried hard to cut out unnecessary calories.
For months, I walked twice a day for a total of seven miles. I learned that gaining muscle would also help my body burn fat, so on top of walking I was working out with weights. On days off, I was doing three to four hours of exercise.
I told myself in the beginning that I was going to lose 100 pounds — and I accomplished that. By June 2014, I had lost 151 pounds. In that year of losing weight, I graduated from the police academy and also became a certified fitness instructor. I created a fitness brand called Beast4Fitness so that I could help others struggling with their weight like I had.
The fact that I set out on a mission and that I stuck to it feels so good. The ability to focus and stick to what I said I was going to do gives me the feeling that I can do anything I set my mind to. Now, I have more energy. I also really like not having to special order my clothes anymore.
Related: Weight-Loss Win: Sara Lost 147 Pounds And Feels Better Than Ever
The After
By the time I lost 100 pounds, I had moved away from Kansas, so not a lot of people knew about my transformation. When friends and family learned about my weight loss, many people reached out to me telling me how proud they were. A lot of them have even started working out and changing their eating habits because they were inspired. I didn’t expect that to happen, but I’m so happy it did.
The Struggles
I’m currently working two jobs, now that I’m a trainer, so finding time to work out is hard. To make sure I get movement in where I can, I’ll stop what I’m doing on my job and do push-ups, park my car father away in the parking lot, and sometimes even jog to the door for no reason other than to raise my heart rate. When I know I can’t make it to the gym, I create ways in my daily routine to exercise.
Advice
We all know what it feels like to start something and then quit, but what does it feel like to set a goal, stick to it, and finish it? Write down your current weight and the weight you wish to be, and start working toward that today. Keep in mind, though, that since you didn’t gain it all overnight, you won’t lose it all overnight, either. There will be days when you eat poorly or you miss a workout; we all have setbacks or fall down. The key is not staying stagnant or beating yourself up. Forget it and move forward.
The scale can feel like it’s working against you sometimes. Going two to three weeks and not seeing the difference we expect on the scale can be disheartening. What I’ve learned is that just because your weight isn’t changing, doesn’t mean you’re not losing fat. You’ve got to continue to work hard and push through those small plateaus. The results will come.
Weight-Loss Win is an original Yahoo Health series that shares the inspiring stories of people who have achieved healthy weight loss. The series is authored by Andie Mitchell, who underwent a transformative 135-pound weight loss of her own. Have a success story of your own to share? We want to hear it. Tell us at YHTrueStories@yahoo.com.
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