FAMU student Bryant Floyd, before and after his weight loss.
Photos Submitted by Bryant Floyd.
Bryant Floyd changed his life for the better last summer – 110 times, to be exact.
Each time he got closer to his weight-loss goal, he would get closer to a new life. A new life that would later cost him his old wardrobe, his way of thinking, and the way he saw himself.
After noticing last spring that his overall health had started to decline, he started to reflect. He admitted to himself that there were certain things that he wanted to change.
He wanted to lose weight and was determined to do so. Before his weight loss journey, Floyd weighed nearly 400 pounds.
Prior to his breaking point He was happy, he said, but deep inside he knew that he wanted to change. He noticed that he had become complacent with his health and that he had gotten lazy.
Certain everyday things were more of a challenge for him. When it came to shopping, he found that XXX Large clothing was more expensive and harder to find in the Tallahassee area.
According to his close friend Latia Styles, before Floyd’s weight loss he was careless about his diet and wasn’t mindful about what he was eating.
It was May 1 when he started working toward a healthier life. He was more than 390 pounds.
“Sometimes we know we need to make decisions for ourselves that we don’t want to make, just because we don’t want to go through the work and do the things that we need to do to get there,” Floyd, a senior at Florida A&M majoring in social work, said. “I knew if I wanted to change those things that I didn’t like, I would have to put in the work."
One of the first things that he did was change his eating habits. He cut out meats like beef and pork. He began a low-calorie diet.
When he cut his calories, he took into consideration little things like snacking. He would replace salty snacks with fruits and vegetables.
It wasn’t easy at first, but friends like Latia Styles kept him on track. When he would go off track, she would say things to correct him.
“Keeping his diet was a struggle for him and I would have to hold him accountable,” she said.
He also got a personal trainer who gave him meal preps and healthy meal advice. He started working out two times a day, once during the day and once at night with friends who shared a common goal with him.
Floyd would look at pictures of where he was on a scale and where he wanted to be. He started to fall in love with working out when he recognized certain changes.
It reduced his stress, it lowered his blood pressure, and he slept better at night. His friend Jordan Sheppard noticed a difference in Floyd.
“I can tell that he is 10 times happier,” he said.
After a summer-long journey Floyd had lost 110 pounds. He said he is still adjusting and getting used to the weight loss.
“Losing weight is a process,” Floyd said. “It was something I wanted to experience. It’s better that I went through that.”