[Progress] 2 years

So admittedly this is about progress in general. Not all of it is bodyweight fitness. But its been a journey, and this has been a huge part of slowly rebuilding my self confidence.

Two years ago, I was in the midst of my divorce. I was thin to begin with, but when this picture was taken, I hadn't eaten in over a week. This was about 3 weeks after I attempted to hang myself.

Here I am today. I have a long ways to go until I'm happy with where I am, but I've made progress. And my mental health is better too. That's probably an even longer journey, but strides have been made.

Anyway, I don't have any friends, so I have no one to share my accomplishments with. I know its rather small, but I feel like I'm on the right path.

Edit: Progress post details:

Sex: Male
Weight: 130ish initially. 141 now. (seems like such a small increase)
Height: 6'0"
Age: 41

Diet: I didn't really do anything spectacular. I just paid attention to my calories in and out. I didn't want to be too far off in either direction. I wasn't big enough that I could sustain a deficit. But I also didn't want to gain weight. So I used a fitness tracker to estimate my calories burned, and I tried to stay within a few hundred of the result.

Weight lifted: Just bodyweight. Roughly, my program is 5 sets every morning of 5 pull ups, 4x10 seconds of abdominal contractions, 5 one legged squats and calf raises per leg, and 20 push ups. So by the time I go to work, I've done 25 pull ups, 200 seconds of abdominal contractions, 25 one legged squats per leg, and 100 push ups.

Distance Run: About 20k per week. I think a good question is "why is this question important?" If you are asking because you are wondering "how many miles do I have to run to lose weight?" then I think you're asking the wrong question. If you are trying to lose weight, then I think it has a lot more to do with diet than exercise. I can burn about 300 calories in 20-25 minutes of running. It isn't very time efficient. I usually skip breakfast and eat a small lunch, and then I pig out at dinner. As long as I'm under my calories for the day, I'm happy.

Edit: Thank you everyone! This was an amazing thing to wake up to. Thank you for all the support and positivity!
 
@faithwithobedience Really good progress mate, and I hope you're in a happier place than you were two years ago 💪🏻

What's good about your post is that it shows what is achievable with simple consistency. Not worrying your arse off about macros and diet and optimising every little thing. It's all about getting in good and consistent training.

Thanks for sharing!
 
@faithwithobedience That's great progress dude! One idea might be to find a park with calisthenics equipment near you where there will be other like minded people training, not only can you step up the training from just at home but you also might make a couple new friends who you can progress with!
 
@sakura2015 Thank you! And good eye :). Here's my Tara Dactyl: https://www.facebook.com/TinyTaraDactyl

She's been a huge part of my progress as well. Aside from the love she provides, which is invaluable, she also got me out of bed on days when I couldn't find the motivation myself. She gets me out of the house. And she's so stinkin' cute that people just kinda gravitate towards her, which makes social interactions much less stressful.
 
@bibbigo Thank you! I'm really sorry if I didn't follow the rules. I did browse the FAQ. I'll look again. But if you could point me in the right direction, I would be grateful.

Edit: Found it! Should be easy to add. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.
 
@faithwithobedience I’m curious what the community thinks about this routine. I’m still new and would love the kind of results OP has gotten. But everything I read on here talks about overloading and progressions. Are these results obtainable for most of us with a dead simple, daily, consistent routine like this?

Thanks!
 
@anondude123 OP's routine is not "optimal," but he's been consistent with it. Being consistent with a less-than-optimal routine will yield better results than inconsistently performing an optimal routine.
 
@sportmom Interesting. I can pretty easily hit his numbers on everything but the squats. If I can look like this from doing something this simple and easy everyday then that is very encouraging.
 
@anondude123 If you can actually do it to begin with, maybe. Those of us that can’t yet do a single set of 5 pull ups and 20 push ups, let along five sets, probably still need the progressions.

Great work, OP!
 
@faithwithobedience Wow, I’m so inspired by your progress and the simplicity of your approach! Great work! Thanks for sharing, and being so open about your other struggles. Good luck with all of it. I’m glad you’re still around!
 
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