Hello all, my name is Jason and I am 27 years-old. I have been 'dieting' to lose weight. I went from 380 to 279, unfortunatly the diet I was on was all ephedra and they hid that from the clients. Getting off of those pills really sucked and when it was all said and done I found myself 8 months later back up to 335! :( Now I have been dieting again since the new year and am down to 315, but I was wanting something more than a diet. I was wanting a LIFE CHANGE!! I do not want to be skinny, I am 6'6" and I will need some muscle to look proportionate. My dad sent me a link to John's site and that was all I needed. What a great resource of info and inspiration!! I have been researching like a fiend these last few days and am hoping you all can help guide me.

I have never lifted before, actually I did for a few weeks when I was 14. I tried to start using the weight machines last year, but got discouraged when there were no results (now I know why! :) ). So here I am looking for some help. I figure I still have at least 90 pounds to lose, and I have some lower back problems so I want to be safe until I lose another 40 pounds.

Based on my weight, and lack of history in weight training, what do you all recommend? I have researched the MAX-OT system and would like to start that, but they suugest you get a few months under your belt first. Learn the form of the lifts, and find your 'heavy weight' (which I am also clueless on how to do properly). I saw SCHTEEVIE's post and I am going to go read it after I post.

Any and all help/ ideas for a program to start and a cheap place for weights and bells near Kansas City would be GREATLY appreciated.

First, you need a realistic goal. You've got more than 90 pounds to lose. If you're 6'6, your lean muscle mass is around 170lbs. At 10% BF, which would be a good point to stop cutting and start bulking, your weight would be around 190lbs. So you've got around 125lbs to go. That's the bad news.

The good news is that because your've got so much fat to lose, each individual pound will be a lot easier to lose than it would for someone who's closer to their ideal weight. So you don't have to dive into the advanced stuff and start killing yourself just yet. For lifting, start out with a 3-day split of back/biceps, chest/triceps and legs, for monday/wednesday/friday.

On the other three days, do moderate intensity cardio. Do as much of it as you can, and a few months down the road you can start doing short HIIT sessions. But make sure to get physicals regularly, as being overweight causes more strain on the heart, and HIIT might be unsafe for you until you've reached a certain weight.

As for the diet, do a 40/40/20 carb/prot/fat split with around 3000 calories. Weigh yourself every week and when you see the fat loss slowing down, start dropping. By the time you're at 10%, you'll be eating 2000 cal/day tops. You should be able to reach this point in 10 months tops, but maybe even 7-8 if you try really hard.

In conclusion, it works like this. First, set a clear and realistic goal. Second, create a plan to achieve it. Third, get started! Good luck, you're not gonna believe what a difference this will make in your life.