Doug lost 14.8kg

And now he’s back ‘bending it like Beckham’!

Doug stats

Start weight	106.8kg
Current weight	92kg
Weight loss	14.8kg
% Weight loss	13.9%

 

 

Finally fed up with the way he looked and the way he felt, Doug Bowden decided enough was enough around the time that his first baby was born. The 33-year-old soccer-loving IT salesperson from Glenwood, NSW, says, “Welcoming our son Caden into our family made me realise that I really wanted to be able to keep up with him; I wanted to have fun playing sports with him and have the stamina to be a big part of his life.”

Doug’s soccer standards were not as ‘Premier League’ as he would have liked, either. He says, “As an avid soccer player, I was beginning to notice that my weight was beginning to slow me down a bit (it could have something to do with getting a bit older, too, I suppose!). That was another reason; I was determined to keep up with the youngsters and improve my game by being fitter.”

Not the picture of health

Unflattering photographs from a recent European holiday and his uncomfortably tight-fitting clothes were more cues that Doug needed to take action. He had dabbled with Weight Watchers for Men before with some success. He says, “It worked OK but it didn’t inspire me.” Doug also booked himself into a gym ‘boot camp’ but didn’t see huge results. That was when he got acquainted with The Biggest Loser Club, saying, “I started to watch The Biggest Loser at the end of 2007 and that was it – I was hooked! I investigated The Biggest Loser Club and then signed up for a year.”

Playing with Club features such as the food and exercise diary, Doug learned that both diet and exercise had to go hand in hand; in other words, the results don’t come unless you watch what you eat together with how much you exercise. Doug realised that not focusing on both might have been a reason for the disappointing boot camp results.

Click to enlarge photos

Doug before

Doug after

Family man

A good example

Make me accountable!

Already an established healthy cook, Doug chose not to use the menu or exercise plans, but he really enjoyed interacting with Club members on the forums. The progress charts were another hit and helped focus his food and exercise choices so that he would see success. Most of all, Doug appreciated the accountability that is encouraged by The Biggest Loser Club. He explains, “For me, it was all about accountability, and the person I had to be accountable to was myself. So, during a business lunch, I might have a big steak with a glass or two of wine but using the diary, I knew I would have to eat light later on. The weekly weigh-in also kept accountability always in my head and this kept me going in the right direction.”

Doug is currently in week 28 of his twelve-month membership and just one kilo off his ultimate goal. He says, “Things slowed down a bit recently due to a back injury but I will get there! With half a year to go as a member, I am determined to keep learning how to lose it and, perhaps more importantly, learn just what I need to know to keep it off for always.”

Sharing his success

Doug’s Biggest Loser journey began when he was 106.8kg. Having dropped 14.8kg, the soccer fan now weighs an athletic 92kg. He puts his success down to: “Tracking my intake and making small changes to lighten things up. So, this could be switching from my normal cranberry juice to a lighter version; instead of having a large coffee with sugar, I now opt for a regular long, black coffee without sugar. Soft drinks include things like Coke Zero and when I drink alcohol, the choices tend to be low-carbohydrate options.”
 
Doug is active in The Club forums and knows the value of support. “When I reached a mini goal,” he says, “I would celebrate it in the forums and get lots of congratulations and good words from forum friends. And, when others were a little down or disappointed, it was good to provide a listening ear and a little motivation, too. I would also say that it’s not all about the scales and would encourage everyone to take regular measurements – sometimes you lose centimetres but not grams. I call it the ‘tale of the tape!’ and for me, it is as important as the weekly weigh-in.

“If you are taking the same journey as me, I encourage you to make the most of the website and the people behind it; the support staff are great and happy to help with any problems or challenges, too, you just need to send them an email. It is not always easy, but, whatever you do, don’t give up! The Biggest Loser Club program does work but you have to put some effort into it. I love the saying, ‘It’s not how many times you get knocked down, but how many times you get back up!’”

Loving life

Friends love the fitter Doug and have been very encouraging and supportive. Doug says, “I asked my wife (who is five feet tall and just 50kg) to find some ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures of me for this story and she said, ‘Oh my God, you won’t believe this picture when you see it!’”

There is one problem with the slimline Doug, though. He explains, “My trousers keep falling down and I keep having to have them taken in 5cm or more or I have to buy new ones. Being fitter is costing me money – but it is money I am happy to spend!”

Doug is not missing all the colds and flu that he used to catch regularly. He says, “I love being fitter and faster. I am having the best season on the soccer field I have had in years. In fact, we had our ‘players player’ vote recently and this year I got 98 votes – which isn’t bad as last year I got a third of that, 32 votes! If you feel it is time to lose weight and feel great, go ahead. It’s your life, it’s waiting to be lived!”