Transformation: DJ Cardenas Sheds a Jaw-Dropping 115 Pounds!

February 2011 to July 2015  |  4 years, 5 months  |  @dj.cardenas

DJ was 300 pounds by the time he graduated high school. The turn came in a dorm room, over a bowl of ramen he did not finish.

Where he started

Life before the transformation was getting through the day without being made fun of. That was where his head was every day growing up, especially in high school. Being ridiculed was part of the routine, and getting through a day without it felt like a miracle. He was looked at differently and avoided because of his weight.

There was no drive, no passion, no commitment to getting better, physically or otherwise. He spent his days trying to pass by in the shadows so he could get home and do what he wanted, which was eat and play video games. By graduation at 17 he was exactly 300 pounds.

The turning point

February of his freshman year of college. He was sitting in his dorm room eating his usual giant bowl of pan-fried Top Ramen, the meal he looked forward to most days. Partway through he started tasting the salt from the flavour pack, saltier than he could ever remember, almost unsettling.

Without thinking he stood up and threw out the entire bowl, fork included. What had happened was a vision of where the road he was on ended, and he knew it would eventually catch up with him.

Right then and there I made the decision to start going to the gym. DJ Cardenas

With no idea where to begin, he went to the university gym every single day for the next two weeks. Fourteen days, two and a half hours a day.

What he changed

At the start he had no direction. One to two hours of cardio, thirty-minute intervals with resistance training in between. It helped at first, and the plan sharpened as he learned. What worked best was thirty to sixty minutes of fasted cardio in the morning on the StairMaster or an inclined treadmill, then resistance training at night.

He rotated which body part opened each week. If he started a Monday with shoulders, the next Monday started with arms. He felt his muscles responded better to the variation.

On food, portion control came first, then carb cycling: a high-carb day, a medium day, a low day. High-carb meant one clean carb per meal, plain oats at breakfast, brown rice at lunch, sweet potatoes at dinner. Medium was one or two carb meals. Low was little to none. Between meals, protein in six ounces of water. He kept it simple on purpose, which he says helped as much mentally as physically.

The hardest part

The learning curve. Learning how to diet, which exercises to do, everything the gym involved, all through years of trial and error. Portion control was a persistent problem. He saw early changes from the sheer volume of work, then plateaued, more than once. It took real time to understand his own body and what to eat day in and day out.

He names three mistakes. Taking a workout for granted, because you never know how far one skipped session sets you back. Not focusing on his diet early, when he knew most of what he ate was a bad decision and kept telling himself he would start tomorrow. And doubting himself on the bar, staying in a comfortable weight range longer than he needed to.

Where he is now

His biggest accomplishment is that people now come to him for help and advice, and when he helps them he can appreciate the struggle, because he sees a little of himself in them.

Three lessons he carries: never doubt yourself and stay uncomfortable, never be afraid of being weak because everyone starts somewhere, and always be the hardest worker in the room.

It really is a beautiful thing when you can truly envision what it is you want and create it with your own two hands. DJ Cardenas

His advice if you are starting today

Be consistent and do it wholeheartedly. Have fun, and look forward to the next day, because each day you spend learning is a day you grow. Take your time and study not only what to do but yourself as well. His words: anyone out there can turn their vision into reality.

Results vary. This customer's results are not typical and depend on individual effort, training, nutrition and consistency. Statements on this page describe one customer's personal experience and have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. No product mentioned is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.