I Dropped 56 Pounds and Stayed Lean for 4 Years — Here's What No One Tells You.

A simple framework that very few even discuss.

Photo of me — down from 223 pounds (101 kg) to 167 pounds. A 56-pound drop that changed everything.

I write primarily about modern finance, but increasingly more and more folks are asking about my fitness journey, which has been a work in progress for some time now. I hope this guidance helps you with your journey. Please leave a comment after reading.

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Before the pandemic, my fitness journey was a dog's breakfast.

I'd bounce between false starts, half-hearted gym sessions, and eating plans I never stuck to. I was clinically obese, and every time I tried to build momentum, I'd end up slipping further in the opposite direction.

Most mornings, I'd snooze my alarm until the last possible minute, rush to get ready, and head out the door without a gym bag — or even a packed lunch. That small oversight would snowball into another day of skipping the gym, grabbing takeaway, and promising myself I'd start again tomorrow. But tomorrow always turned into next week.

Somewhere between those broken promises, I'd binge eat, drink until I blacked out, and lie in bed the next day for ten, maybe twelve hours. I hated my body, I hated my job, and I hated that the opposite sex didn't even glance in my direction.

Until, like a flick of a switch, everything changed.

A bat virus outbreak cascaded around the world, and while most people were stuck indoors, I was still being marched into the office. Eight hours a day stuck in a corporate fishbowl — where ambition slowly drained out of me, and my anxiety chipped away at whatever confidence I had left.

The only way I could stay sane was by avoiding my desk and the office, and by getting outside for a walk. I did it to clear my head, with no association to it being an exercise.

That was my most significant unlock: detaching fitness from a physical outcome, like losing weight, and searching for joy in getting active.

It's like neuroscientist Andrew Huberman says about sourcing stimulation from the process rather than the outcome:

“Access reward from the process and associate dopamine release from friction and challenge you are in during effort instead of only once the goal is achieved — convince yourself the effort part is the good part. Tell yourself the effort part is the good part. I know it’s painful. I know this doesn’t feel good, but I’m focused on this. I’m going to start to access the reward. You will find the rewards, meaning the dopamine release inside of effort if you repeat this over and over again.”

Begin with this one mental switch.

Treat fitness like play, not performance.

For most of my life, I thought exercise was just a tool for weight loss.

Every run I went on, every gym session — I'd mentally tally the calories burned like some twisted accounting spreadsheet. If I lifted this, ran that distance, maybe I'd shave off a few hundred calories.

It doesn't work (long term).

Burning calories is slow. Weight loss is slower. When you're dragging yourself through a challenging workout, drenched in sweat, heart pounding — and that number barely moves — it messes with your head.

What pulled me out of the gutter wasn't some motivational quote or Rocky-style training montage. It was anxiety.

My chest would get so tight at work that I had to step out just to breathe. So I walked. No goal, no fitness plan. Just sunlight and silence. I never once thought of it as "exercise." And that's precisely what made it stick.

Those walks turned into a consistent habit. Eventually, they bled into evening strolls after work, weekend hikes, and the occasional run that flopped.

Momentum was brewing — not from some six-pack fantasy.

Naturally, I started drinking more water to stay hydrated from all the movement. And without even realising it, I was swapping out sugary drinks for a water bottle and leaning toward healthier choices.

Then I started craving better food, not out of guilt, but because my body wanted it.

I knew nothing about nutrition at the time. But I followed one rule that changed everything…

Follow the one golden rule of nutrition, which solves all (mostly).

I adopted a protein-first mindset.

For years, every meal I ate was driven by one thing: taste. Nothing wrong with loving food. But I was taking it to the next level. Takeout two or three times a week. Zero clue what was in it. Didn't care. I just wanted the dopamine hit.

It all showed up in how I felt.

I don't miss those heavy carb crashes — afternoons where I could barely keep my eyes open without downing a coffee, a Red Bull, a fizzy drink, and a chocolate bar to stay functional. It felt like my whole day ran on sugar and caffeine.

No one ever stopped me to say, "Mate, maybe think twice about what you're shovelling into your body." If I'd been racking up lines every afternoon, someone would've staged a full-blown intervention. But sugar and caffeine? No worries — just crack on.

Then one day at the gym, this jacked mate of mine casually dropped a line that stuck with me:

“Jay, lead every meal with protein. Make it the main thing. You’ll hit your targets faster, feel full longer, and your snack cravings wont be as bad.”

It sounded almost too simple to work.

But it did.

Now, first thing before any meal, and even when I eat out, I still stick to it. Whatever the main protein is, that's where I start. Steak, chicken, fish — doesn't matter. I don't overthink it. It's just second nature now.

As fitness and nutrition expert Jeff Cavaliere says, leading with protein first in every dish you eat can help change your body if you mentally prioritise protein as the cornerstone of your nutrition.

“When I’m eating, I’m always going to lead with fibrous carbs as the largest portion on the plate, then protein as the second-largest, and starchy carbs as the smallest portion — but I make sure the protein is the anchor of the meal, keeping it clean and simple, because that’s what drives muscle growth and keeps me full.”

Frame your lifestyle around this.

The trick is finding something active you actually enjoy — especially if there's a social side to it.

When it feels less like a workout and more like something you do with people you like, it sticks.

A 2012 review found that joy-driven (intrinsic) motivation leads to far better long-term exercise adherence and well-being, while guilt-driven (controlled) motivation results in high dropout rates and poor sustainability.

When it feels good, it sticks. When it feels forced, it fades.

“The 2012 SDT review analyzed 66 studies and found that intrinsic motivation (joy-driven exercise) strongly predicted long-term exercise adherence, with participants achieving 80–99% of recommended doses, alongside improved well-being (e.g., vitality, reduced anxiety). Controlled motivation (pain-driven, e.g., exercising out of guilt or obligation) showed no positive association with adherence, with dropout rates of 25–80%, limiting long-term results. The review highlighted that joy-driven exercise satisfies autonomy, competence, and relatedness, making it sustainable, while pain-driven exercise leads to avoidance and burnout.”

When you find something active you enjoy — and plug it into a social setting with like-minded people — it becomes jet fuel for consistency.

Training on my own never really worked for me. I wasn't naturally good at it. I'd start strong, fall off, then start again. That cycle of inconsistency just kept looping.

But once I connected fitness to something social — even loosely — it changed everything. That old saying, "birds of a feather flock together," hits harder than you think.

What keeps you coming back isn't just the exercise. It's the people. The conversations. The energy. The stuff that happens outside the workout.

If you're into CrossFit, lean into the culture. If you enjoy walking, join a walking club — or drag your mates out. Like running? You already know what to do.

For me, I joined a top gym with a coworking space, a decent coffee bar, spa, sauna — the works. It feels more like a hangout than a gym. I actually look forward to going. It's become my third place.

Now, my conversations revolve around progress. Someone will say, "Looking lean", or "That session looked brutal", or we'll chat macros in the sauna. Compare that to my old work crew, where every chat ended in "Fancy the pub later?" The contrast is night and day.

You stay in shape without even realising it — because your environment does half the work for you.

I once heard Raoul Pal offer career advice to a young intern who was choosing between a job in banking and marketing. He said, "If you work in marketing, they'll give you free merch. If you work in banking, they'll give you free money."

The same goes for fitness.

Get as close to the centre of the sun of the thing you want most.

Immerse yourself in the space because the people around you will influence your habits more than you think.

Habit stack non-negotiables.

There's not a single person I know who forgets to brush their teeth or shower — doesn't matter if they're on holiday, working late, or hungover on a Sunday.

Some things are just non-negotiable.

That's exactly how I think about a few core habits in my health and fitness. They're locked in. Not up for debate.

For me, it's:

• 3 litres of water

• 10,000 steps

• 150 grams of protein

That's my baseline. Like putting on clothes when I'm out in public — these things just happen.

Even on a recent stag weekend in Frankfurt (which, side note, was in an area that looked like the set of a low-budget crime drama), I still hit my steps, nailed the water, and came close on protein.

I realise it's because these aren't goals anymore — they're defaults.

They are not dependent on mood, motivation, or context. That's been the most significant shift for me. Turning effort into autopilot.

Or as Andrew Huberman says:

“The best habits are context-independent — they’re the ones you can do no matter where you are, no matter how you feel, no matter what’s going on around you. You build them by attaching them to a simple, repeatable trigger that you can always control, and then you reinforce them by making the habit itself the reward.”

Hack your weaknesses, rather than trying to solve them.

One of the underrated perks of being a writer is that you're constantly training your brain to notice the subtle stuff — the invisible threads between cause and effect.

As Michael Lewis, the famous writer, once said, it teaches you to spot "the gap between perception and reality."

For me, that gap was glaringly apparent in one area: my relationship with sugar.

I've always had a brutal sweet tooth. Not the kind where you fancy a biscuit now and then. I'm talking industrial levels. If there's chocolate in the house, I won't just have a square or a bar — I'll Hoover through three slabs without blinking. What follows is always the same: a dopamine high drenched in guilt, then a crash that made me want to power-nap my way through the rest of the afternoon.

A study published in Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews found that sugar lights up the brain in the same way addictive substances do, triggering the same dopamine response system as drugs like cocaine. Lol.

Instead of going cold turkey (which never worked for me), I found ways to hack around the craving. One of the best swaps I've ever made is some low-calorie hot chocolate powder with a splash of almond milk, perhaps a touch of sweetener. Comes in at 50 calories, hits the spot, and feels like a treat without the sugar crash of a Dairy Milk demolition job.

If that doesn't hit the spot, I've got my go-to slushy. A bit of ice, water, and a scoop of flavoured BCAAs in the blender. Tastes like a fairground slushy, only 10 calories, and gives me that sweet fix without the crash. I take BCAAs mainly for recovery, but they're also a solid hack for keeping my sweet tooth in check.

The trick is to outsmart your impulses without waging war on them. I no longer keep multi-packs in the house. If it's not there, I can't inhale it. Simple. Obvious. But ridiculously effective.

Healthy fats are another jujitsu godsend.

Avocado, Greek yoghurt, and peanut butter. They keep me fuller for longer and take the edge off those random sugar spikes. Studies prove that fats help regulate appetite and keep you satiated.

Add some protein and fibre to that mix, and I've outmanoeuvred the binge monster before it even shows up.

Everyone's trigger is different.

Some people crack open a wine, others reach for crisps or ice cream. You don’t need to shame yourself for it — it's about awareness. Know your default, and create friction around it.

Then swap in an alternative.

Have a calorie-counting framework.

I've pegged myself to this for four years.

I get messages all the time saying, "It's not about calories," or "It's about controlling cravings," or my personal favourite, "It's just my slow metabolism." And while yes, managing cravings does matter — let's not get it twisted.

• You don't have a slow metabolism.

• You're not too old to lose weight.

• You're just not tracking your calories.

That's the unsexy truth.

And once you face it, everything gets a whole lot simpler. Because the second you start logging what goes in your mouth, reality hits you like a cold shower. The handfuls of snacks, the licks of peanut butter off the spoon, the random energy bar you grabbed because it "looked healthy" — it all adds up.

Now, of course, nutrition quality matters.

You can't live off Pop-Tarts and rice crackers. But when you combine calorie tracking with a protein-first mindset like we talked about earlier, you're off to the races.

• Satiety goes up.

• Cravings go down.

• Your awareness through tracking shoots through the roof. And suddenly, that "mystery" of why you're not losing weight isn't so mysterious anymore.

It's not about perfection.

It's just having a basic measure you can fall back on.

Quit this one socially acceptable drug.

I'm not sure how else to put this.

I grew up in a sporting circle where having a beer after the game was a ritual. Turning one down felt like you were disrespecting the jersey. It's wild when you think about it: alcohol is the only drug where people treat you like a weirdo for not taking it.

But it messes with you.

For me, it wrecks my sleep. Slows my recovery. Lowers my willpower. Sends my appetite through the roof because I lose all inhibitions. And the next day? Training's a write-off. I end up half-recovering all week, telling myself I'm just tired, when really, I'm still dragging the tail end of a few too many pints from Saturday.

Instead of going cold turkey, I treated it like my sweet-tooth hack: I found a swap.

These days, if I'm out socially, I might grab an alcohol-free beer. Some of them are actually decent now. Or I set non-negotiables — like a glass of water between each. It's not militant. It's just a rule that keeps me further away from self-sabotage.

The data backs this all up.

A study of nearly 600,000 drinkers found that even moderate alcohol consumption was associated with reduced life expectancy and higher risk of heart disease and stroke. It showed that alcohol disrupts REM sleep, one of the most vital phases for brain function and physical recovery.

We spend so much time trying to optimise calories and training plans, but if you're getting hammered every weekend, it's like trying to build a skyscraper on sand.

The truth is, you don't need to quit entirely.

Just manage consumption with a solid plan ahead of time.

Commit yourself to getting one thing that never leaves.

It's paid help.

I'll say this straight up — most people need another human in their corner, not just for their knowledge, but for the accountability. When someone has skin in the game and actually gives a damn about your progress — and when you like them enough that you don't want to let them down — it's like strapping a rocket to your goals.

There's no way for you to get out of it (especially with skin in the game).

During the pandemic, I had some spare cash and was stuck at home. I'd started walking daily. Upped my water. Cleaned up my nutrition. My face was slimming down. I could see little signals that the tide was turning.

So I asked myself — what else can I do?

Turns out a mate of mine just happened to be AJ Ellison — three-time world body fitness champ and one of the best online coaches on the planet. So I signed up. I won't lie, it stung to pay the fee. It was something like $1,500 for 3 months. I knew I needed to take the plunge.

What I got from it was a completely life-changing mindset shit.

I didn't just get abs — something I never thought was possible — I got a whole new framework for how to live. I finally felt like I was in control.

The real breakthrough wasn't the plan. It was the accountability. I didn't want to let AJ down. I wanted to be his standout transformation story. And that aspiration lit a fire in me.

Fast forward to now — I've been working with Chris James

for over three years. We check in every week, sometimes I miss occasionally, but he's the guy who makes sure my ocean liner doesn't steer off course. He ensures I stick to my daily habits simply by checking in and monitoring an online dashboard.

It's not some boot camp punishment. It's just become my new normal.

That's the cheat code no one talks about: find someone who won't let you coast. Then show up for them like it matters.

Because it does.

Final Thoughts.

Notice how I never once mentioned the strategy behind the diet or the training.

You have a far better chance of improving your health and fitness level by making deliberate adjustments to your environment.

It's the simple stuff no one ever seems to want to tell you, but it's what helped me stay lean for all this time.

Like my buddy AJ Ellison used to say:

“Fitness is a metaphor for life, what you look like on the outside directly reflects the effort you have put in, and it never lies to you”.

My outer image told me everything about the effort I was putting in, but what I needed to do was change my environment by being closer to Raoul Pals' banking analogy and slightly further away from marketing.

Some key things that changed for me were not chasing results when it comes to exercise.

I treated it more like play than a search for elite performance and found joy in an alternative reason to work out, whether it be the social aspect, the mental health benefits, or the opportunity to see new places. I removed the association with calories burned and weight lost.

I lead with a protein-first mindset, and everything else followed. Fewer slumps, more energy, better recovery and the definition in your body will show up, which creates this self-perpetuating cycle.

I layered in the three daily non-negotiables: water, steps, and protein, which are now as routine as washing myself or brushing my teeth.

Walking a certain number of steps, drinking a certain amount of water, and having a protein target is the best place to start because you will over 24 hours inevitably do those things, so you may as well have control measures in place to do them every day.

To lose weight, you must perform some restriction — calorie counting is the simplest and most effective way. I use MyFitnessPal to track it all.

Identify your weaknesses, don't try to solve them, work with them. Get creative, if it's booze or cake or whatever, don't deprive yourself, look for a substitute or alternative.

Regularly drinking booze will not help you on your journey, so figure out a way around the social pressure, whether it's drinking 0% beers, wine, or having a filler buster of pints of water between.

The final boss of every successful workout program that even the pros follow is to commit yourself to someone else. Get some skin in the game so they have a professional obligation to support you. Lock it in for a few months and steal their tips and tricks, then decide if you can move forward solo from a much better footing.

It's how I dropped 56 pounds and stayed lean for four years.

It all worked for me, so why not you?

Special note from (me) the Author:

Chris, the online fitness coach who completely transformed my fitness journey, is offering a FREE discovery call exclusively for my readers.

If you're ready to take control of your fitness and create a personalised plan that fits your lifestyle, don't miss this opportunity. Click here to book your FREE call now.