This man accepts the stretchy excess skin that he has because of his weight loss. He lost 92kg in one year.
Poultry marinator Alex Rubalcada (28) from Siloam Springs, Arkansas, USA, was an emotional eater and keen gamer growing up and often sought solace in food whenever times were tough.
In June 2003, after the sad passing of his grandmother Eulalia from diabetes, Alex turned to food for comfort. As well as this, Alex had little self-confidence and was often jealous of others who he considered looked better than him, something that resulted in him eating to feel better, which lead to him hating himself.
Before his weight loss, Alex would eat up to 5,000 calories a day and enjoyed eating foods such as cookies, crisps and Chinese takeaway food.
At 29st 6lb, Alex had a 48-inch waist and wore a shirt size 4XL but the turning point for him to overhaul his lifestyle came when he was diagnosed as prediabetic with high blood pressure in September 2018.
This diagnosis rocked Alex’s world after his grandmother passed away from diabetes and he decided to take action because he didn’t want to be ‘another person who got fat and died from being too fat.’
Alex started off by walking at his local park each day and went cold turkey from all of the junk food and soda he previously loved. In just six months, Alex lost a remarkable 7st 2lb which saw him gain the confidence to join the gym to lose the remainder of his excess weight alongside cutting his calorie intake to a maximum of 2,200 calories a day.
Now, Alex is a super slim shirt size M and has a 32-inch waist. People approach Alex telling him that they admire his weight loss and that he has inspired them on their own fitness journeys, and Alex says the secret to his success is self-belief.
“I was jealous of others looking better so I ate. I would compare myself so I ate to feel good again.
“I hated myself so much. I really did. I picked myself apart in every way I saw – kept telling myself I’m not good enough. I’m not good looking enough. I’m not enough. I had so much hatred in myself.
“People wouldn’t say much before I lost the weight. I think people just wouldn’t say anything because I was a big funny nice guy. Things changed when I did lose the weight though. People always asked how I did it. I told them that it was important to me to do it with diet and exercise.
“I felt more anger and hatred towards myself but also depressed. I remember thinking to myself at the time, ‘I’m just another person who got fat and died from being too fat.’
“It’s changed my life. It’s changed my view of life mostly. I was able to see what it really took to change something about yourself. With me losing the weight, it’s allowed me to reveal what I was capable of and how great I can be.
“Although, weight loss does come with sacrifices. You lose friends – people who you thought were your friends which is something not many people talk about. This can change your life because when you’re changing yourself, you don’t know your environment is going to change as well so you have two obstacles to deal with – your inner change and your environment.
“You start to lose your identity of you are and I think this is where most people fail and fall back and gain weight again. When you lose weight, your body and mind is grieving.
“I feel extremely proud of myself. Overcoming all those endeavours increased my confidence in myself and I have so much love in myself.
“I just want to test myself on how far I can go in believing in myself to see what else am I capable of.”
Losing weight has given Alex a new lease of life and he is incredibly proud of his journey.
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Alex accepts the excess skin and is now at peace with his body
“I am at a state right now where I’ve caught myself saying, ‘Oh, it’s just loose skin. I’m cool with it’,” said Alex.
“When I noticed this without forcing out positive words, it came out naturally. That is when I knew I reached a higher level of personal growth with my body image.
“Despite the sacrifices, believing in myself was the hardest. I can be consistent on my workout and diet but if I didn’t believe in myself, none of that would matter.
“People say, ‘Damn, man. That’s crazy. How did you do that?’ when they see how much I’ve lost.
“My advice to others, start walking but don’t forget about yourself. Take yourself with you. No matter where you go.
“You can lose all the weight and get the skin surgery done but if you’re still not happy with yourself. You haven’t dealt with yourself. It’s still with you.”
Also read: How to stop winter weight gain
