A father-of-three has revealed his dramatic body transformation after he was spurred on to ditch junk food because keeping up with his children left him out of breath.
Jeremiah Peterson, 39, from Missoula, Montana, weighed 280lbs (20 stone) just six months ago after regular fast food binges and a nightly beer drinking habit.
Now sporting a sculptured physique an athlete would be proud of, Peterson’s weight-loss is even more remarkable because he’s done it all in just six months.
Dad bod! Father-of-three, Jeremiah Peterson, 39, from Missoula, Montana has transformed his body in just six months after he kicked carbs to the kerb and began an intensive exercise regime
Antiques dealer Jeremiah’s weight ballooned to 280lbs (20 stone) after he stopped exercising. However, an intolerance to carbs and his inability to keep up with his active kids made him change his lifestyle
Ripped! Jeremiah adopted the keto diet, which majors on lean meat, no carbs and plenty of vegetables. Right: Jeremiah’s muscle quickly reappeared and his physique is now transformed
His descent into obesity began when he gave up exercise and his weight quickly spiralled as his frame expanded.
However, he was left with aching joints and a worrying change in bowel habits prompted by his carb-heavy diet.
After learning he had an intolerance to carbs, Jeremiah switched pizzas and processed food for a keto diet that is high in fats, lean protein and carb-free apart from vegetables.
Alongside an impressive two-hours of hiking each day and one hour in the gym, helping him to lose an impressive 82lb (5st 12) that people comment makes him look up to two decades younger.
Jeremiah, an antiques store owner, said: ‘I went from having a real dadbod to having a college kid’s physique.
‘Since going from fat to lean it’s made everything better, my hair and skin look healthier, you can see my jawline instead of chubby cheeks and I have abs.
‘I’m really proud of my stomach, my belly used to be a real beer gut but it’s going down and even my waist is slimming down too.
‘It’s the difference between looking like a dad and a son, I get told I look 15 to 20 years younger.
‘When you see the results, you get so much more motivation week by week when looking in the mirror, it’s made me want to continue to try harder.
‘My transformation happened so fast because I did the workout programme every day without any time off, which helped cut the fat so quickly.
A two beer-a-night habit took its toll on Jeremiah’s frame and he was left with ‘a real gut’ and worrying changes to his bowel habits as his intolerance to a carb-heavy diet took hold
Unrecognisable: Hiking has become the antique dealer’s way of de-stressing, with two hour walks every morning
‘While I’m spending up to three hours exercising, a hike doesn’t really feel like working out, before I would go home and drink beer to de-stress, but now hiking relaxes me in the same way.
‘Going out in the mountains has made exercising so much better for me, I definitely couldn’t have gone to the gym in the morning, then back at noon and the evening.
‘I’m on a keto diet, there are a lot of aspects to it but I have a diet that’s high in fat with lean protein and I’ve cut all carbs besides vegetables.
‘Since the transformation I feel a lot more confident too, I have more energy to work not only on my body but having the drive to get more done to help make our family’s businesses more successful.’
Jeremiah credits his three children with initially inspiring him to make changes to his lifestyle – along with health problems.
Inspiration: Having a wife and three kids that Jeremiah wants to be around for spurred him on to keep his healthy regime going
‘I’m full of energy all day long’: The fitness fan says he now wakes at 5am to go walking before the working day begins
College bod! Friends and family say they hardly recognise the new Jeremiah
He said: ‘We have always been an active family but when we were hiking, my young kids were going right up the mountain while I was catching my breath and couldn’t keep up.
‘Then my bowels weren’t processing food properly, so I would eat then have to go to the bathroom five-minutes later.
‘After having a colonoscopy, it came out that I was allergic to gluten and having reactions from all the processed food.
From drinking two beers a night and having sugary desserts, carbs and processed foods on the weekend – my weight kept adding up…
‘Getting into shape and exercise was my only alternative, plus having three children and a wife who I want to be around as long as I can made me all the more determined.’
The dad believes his lifestyle drinking at least two beers a night and carb-heavy lifestyle left him exhausted in the past.
Now he’s able to work out three times a day for up to three-hours without feeling fatigued during the day.
Jeremiah said: ‘The from drinking two beers a night and on the weekend having sugary desserts, carbs and processed foods my weight kept adding up.
‘I’m full of energy all day long despite waking up at 5am and going to bed at 10pm, when I was overweight I was tired all the time and needed to nap.
New wardrobe: Jeremiah has dropped from a size 42 in jeans to a size 33
Financial incentive: A website that promises cash if you can stick to healthy regimes also kept Jeremiah motivated
If I can do it, anyone can! Jeremiah is now hoping his six-pack shots will help others lose weight
‘When you’re that big you wear sweat pants and things that make you comfortable as your jeans get too tight, but now I’m wearing different clothing again which is exciting.’
Jeremiah enrolled on the site, mytransphormationstartstoday.com – who helped him develop a meal plan and workouts.
He admits he was spurred on by the site’s regular transformation competitions that awards cash prizes.
So far, he’s won $2,500 for the first month and a 150-day-challenge earned him an impressive $50,000 – in addition to the health benefits of dropping to 13st 8 (190lb) and sculpting a chiselled figure.
Jeremiah said: ‘I had the motivation to do it for health reasons for my family but the $50,000 didn’t do any harm either.
‘I’m way leaner, I went from a size 42 in jeans to a 33, that’s a tonne of inches off my waist.
‘It transforms not only your physical self but the way you think and feel, as well as the future you want for your family.
‘I know if I can do it anyone can.’