Bariatric Beast, 1 Year Later

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If you read my post from the Summer of 2017, you would know that I saw the Body Beast workout on an infomercial while I was vacationing in the mountains of West Virginia. After that trip, I completed the 3 month program, and then decided to make custom adjustments to the program to continue doing it indefinitely. Prior to Summer 2017, I lifted weights with personal trainers. It was like taking the training wheels off when I decided to do the program all by myself in my basement. It took a level of knowledge with weights that I owe my prior personal trainers, and it took a level of dedication and commitment that I had to find within myself. Nevertheless, I have done 52 weeks of workouts since that vacation, and I wanted to share the results.

Me in 2017 during the West Virginia Trip, just before Body Beast started. Note the extra body fat in my mid-section.

First and foremost, I can tell that I have gotten stronger. When comparing the heaviest weights I could do when I started the program, and when I compare them to now, in some cases I doubled the amount of weight I can lift. As I go along, if I’m not struggling at the end of each set, I write a note to go up 5 pounds for the next time I do that particular exercise. This has always kept the workouts challenging, and ensured that I was building strength and keeping the level of effort high with each workout.

This was me in June 2017 immediately after the West Virginia vacation, and the day I began Body Beast.

Body Beast intelligently recommended that before-pictures should be taken prior to starting the program. Thankfully, because of this, I have before and current pictures to share in this blog post. In them, I can certainly see the difference, especially in my shoulders. Prior to this process, I never really knew the strongest and weakest parts of my body. However, I have learned that the strongest parts of my body are are my shoulders, abdominal muscles, and legs. One major disappointment is that I still have some loose skin and fat on my belly that makes it difficult to distinguish my abdominal muscles. I’m sure I share every man’s dream of a six-pack, and I clearly have a way to go until I get to the chiseled physique that would be nice to have. My greatest weakness is my arms, which were way behind in handling the amount of weight that I should be able to handle. They have improved over the past year, but still need a lot of work.

Me in Summer of 2018, 52 weeks of workouts later from starting the Body Beast program.

All of that aside, I’m still happy about the progress that I’ve made. The aesthetics are nice, but I cannot overstate how much better and stronger that I feel. In recent months, I have received numerous compliments from those that haven’t seen me in a while about how I clearly have been working out. That tells me that it’s becoming visible to others as well, which is always helpful feedback.

If you have some experience with dumbbells and know the basic form of lifting, I highly recommend checking out Body Beast. It has certainly not disappointed me, and I look forward to another year of my modified program to see what the results are. If you have any questions, comments, or would like to recommend other successful programs, I would love to hear your input so please be sure to leave a comment.

Disclaimer: The information contained in this blog is based entirely upon my experiences and observations. I am not a medical professional and you must do your own research and consult your doctor before making any changes to your eating, fitness, medication, or supplements. This general information is not intended to diagnose any medical condition or to replace your healthcare professional.

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