The Honest Truth About Gaining, Losing, and Living in a Body You Actually Like

When I first set out to lose weight, the goal was clear: I wanted to be thin. I wasn’t doing it to be healthy, or because some doctor told me to. I did it because I didn’t like how I looked or felt. And guess what? That’s not a bad reason.

We’re allowed to want to like how we look. We’re allowed to want to feel confident in our own skin. The trouble is, nobody teaches you what comes after the weight loss. Nobody prepares you for the mental game of maintenance—or for what it feels like when you deliberately decide to go up in weight again.

Right now, I’m in a bulk phase. I weigh more than I have in years. And let me tell you, it's messing with my head. The mirror isn't lying, and it isn’t flattering. But this is the cost of building muscle mass, especially after extreme weight loss. You gain fat with the muscle. For me, it’s going straight to the gut—and thanks to loose skin, it doesn’t exactly sit well with my self-image.

So why do it? Because growth requires discomfort. Because I’ve waited years to start this phase, and I want to do it right. I committed to an eight-week bulk. No turning back. After that, I plan to cut again—trim the fat, keep the muscle, and approach it differently: slower, cleaner, more sustainable.

Why am I telling you all this? Because people think the hard part is losing the weight. It’s not. The real challenge is managing your body long-term and confronting how your identity shifts in the process.

That’s why I stopped coaching weight loss the way everyone else does. I used to do 1-on-1 sessions. I learned that everyone needed a different approach, different timing, different language. But you can only work with so many people 1-on-1. So I went bigger. I launched a community called The Guild.

And even then, I saw that traditional plans weren’t cutting it. People don’t just need meal plans or calorie goals. They need a reason.

They need to know what they actually want: To be thin? To be healthy? To be in shape? Or to just feel happy in their body? Most people want all four. But we live in a world that tells you to only say one of them—and quietly feel bad for the rest.

I won’t play that game.

This journey—to becoming thin, healthy, happy, and in shape—isn’t something you do once and forget. There is no finish line. Like running a business, managing your body is a never-ending responsibility. You are the CEO of You, Inc.

Would you hire yourself to manage your body based on how you've been running things? If not, good. That's your wake-up call. Step back in and lead.

My mission going forward is to build a framework—a real, structured approach to weight loss and maintenance that is:

1. Effective (it works),

2. Efficient (it doesn't waste your time or energy), and

3. Adaptable (because life changes, and your body will too).

This isn’t about perfection. It’s about ownership.

So if you're tired of starting over, if you're done waiting for the "right time," and you're ready to become the kind of person who stays thin, healthy, happy, and in shape...

Welcome to the real work.

Want support? Join the Becoming Thin Facebook community or check out the Guild waitlist at guildofchampions.com. You can also sign up for my free newsletter, The Thin Line, at becomingthin.com.

Stay accountable. Stay in the game. And stop settling.

Let’s build the life you actually want.