As someone who was obese for the majority of my life, and now, even my BMI, a widely inaccurate metric, is normal I lack a lot of empathy for the whole "It is hard to lose weight." I was never this big, but I had a medical condition where eating certain foods was causing me obvious pain constantly. If I ate breakfast, I probably couldn't go to school. If I ate too big of a lunch, I would probably go home.
And it was chronic body pain. It felt like I was digesting glass while I would break out in a cold sweat, become nauseated, and get terrible migraines. So, I was afraid to eat unless I was home. And, living in the South, home meant sweets which didn't trigger the same reactions, and when it did, I could go to bed or something. So, the majority of my food intake was from high calorie and sugary foods.
Eventually, it got so bad I was scared I couldn't work once I graduated from college. First doctor I went to did a battery of tests and took my gallbladder. That kinda worked, but not as much as I hoped. I moved, met new doctors and a dietician who tried to say I had Celiac. Put me on a diet for 6 weeks that was killing me. I couldn't go to work at all. Went to a better doctor who did a Celiac test, and I was all clear. The final results with the new doctor was "something is wrong with you, but we have no idea what. I am sorry." Whatever. It was only a few grand right?
In February 2014, weighing at about 220, I started the keto diet. Admittedly, I have strong willpower, and I realized I was doing it wrong. Rather than staying at around 20 net carbs (total carbs minus fiber if you were curious), I did under 20 total for about two or three weeks. The most freaked out I was when I went to work, are breakfast, lunch and snacks without any single pain. I couldn't remember the last time I wasn't in daily pain.
I stuck with the diet with only a few, drinking related hiccups since losing that much weight will kill your alcohol tolerance. In May after a full three months, I hit 178. I had a beach trip, and for the first time, I wasn't trying to figure out a way to wear shirts on the beach and in the pool.
That was two years ago. I hit 159 at some point, but after a month of trips and such, I am at 171 and not currently dieting. I am partially sick a lot of the time, thanks to carbs.
The point of this long story (sorry) is anyone can change if you want to. I made excuses for years. I would allow any discomfort because I was "starving myself" when I was just eating A LOT less calories than I was used to.
It can be done, and the higher quality of life is worth it. I appreciate this guy doing what I couldn't and taking responsibility for his weight. I was also in that healthy at any weight mentality, and it is insidious. I was "in shape" in I could run and workout without issues, but now, I am even better.