Last Updated on December 8, 2025 by Michael Brockbank
So, I wasn’t able to go “Beast Mode” starting December 1st. Instead, I was sick for a solid week and am only now feeling good enough to get back on the horse. But is 15 pounds in three weeks too much?
After spending more than a month caring for sick people and animals, they finally got me. It was simply too much for my immune system to handle. I don’t get sick that often, but when I do, it’s usually quite bad.
Anyway, the fever is down, I’m not hacking up a lung, and it doesn’t feel like I’m walking around with 10 pounds of snot in my forehead.
Let’s do this!
Is Five Pounds Per Week Logically Achievable?
According to some solid data from back in 2018, I can easily lose 3.5 pounds per week while maintaining my Net 600 Calorie Diet. This is when I burn twice as much as I eat through various physical activities.
On occasion, I’ve been able to drop around the 5-pound mark per week by reducing carbs to 150g or less per day. However, there is one very distinct element between 2018 and 2025…I’m almost 50 years old!
Things have started slowing down on me since my late 30s, and it’s getting more difficult to work toward a healthy mindset and physique. I’m not a spring chicken; more like a burnt piece of jerky on the sidewalk.
I’ve led quite a sedentary lifestyle throughout the last 30 years. And although I’ve had bouts of doing some great physical things throughout those years, I’m still a desk jockey. An aging desk jockey, at that.
So, logically, I should be able to burn five pounds of fat per week by increasing activity and reducing carb intake. Realistically, I just don’t know. But I’m looking forward to seeing the data on January 1st. I’m a geek with a spreadsheet, and I record just about everything I do throughout the day.
That means even if I don’t hit my goal, I’ll have some good data to help shape the challenges afterward. I just need to keep the mindset that I want this more than being cremated in a piano box.
The Plan While Being “Healthy”
OK, the plan to wrap up 2025 is pretty much the same as it always has been. It’s all about keeping myself in a caloric deficit. I won’t have to worry about catabolism or anything like that until after the new year.
After all, I still have a lot of fat to burn before my body starts breaking down proteins en masse.
Also, I’m focusing on a healthy mindset according to my physique. So, things like fasting are off the table, as I am prone to severe cases of hypoglycemia. In other words, it’s physically and mentally dangerous for me to go without eating for extended periods of time…and those are words from my primary care physician. And yes, I tend to trust professionals with degrees more than influencers on social media.
10,000 Steps Per Day Minimum
Before, I was aiming for an average of 10,000 steps per day by the end of the week. However, I’ll need to dial up the effort a bit more if I plan to lose 15 pounds by January 1st. That means I’ll need to push myself to get off my ass and do what needs to be done to rack up the step count.
Virtually every activity will gain you steps throughout the day. The calorie burn depends on your level of effort. For instance, you’ll burn more calories walking at 3.5 miles per hour for 20 minutes than you would by walking 2.0 miles per hour in the same time frame. The more effort you put in, the more fat you’ll burn.
Although the temperature at the moment in Denver is good enough to walk outside, I have a feeling that most of my activity will come from the Oculus. Not only do I burn about 13 calories per minute, but a 30-minute session of Beat Saber will burn between 350 and 400 calories while racking up around 3,000 steps.
Don’t just flick your wrist; move those arms to slice those blocks.
I’m also debating buying a cheap walking pad for my office. I can easily crank out some steps while watching something during my breaks. The miniature treadmill isn’t all that expensive, but I don’t know how durable they are. And if the treadmill works as advertised, perhaps I can link to it and sell a few from the blog. I am an Amazon affiliate, after all.
Aiming to Keep Carbs to the 150g Area
Realistically, I’d like to keep the carbs to around 150g per day. With it being Christmas, however, it’s going to be exceptionally difficult, considering I love holiday goodies. On the flip side, though, I’ve been able to indulge as long as I put in the effort to burn off the excess through walks or playing the Oculus.
Keeping the carbs low isn’t usually a problem. Yes, I’ll have some chocolate goodness or a pastry here and there. But I’ve found that going all in with an exercise usually works to burn off the carbs while still losing about half a pound per day. But as I said earlier, that was eight years ago. I’m much older now, and I find that it gets harder to maintain motivation throughout the day.
Nonetheless, I have some plans for some “lighter” foods for the next few weeks. That includes staying away from fast food and Dutch Bros coffee. Besides, I can’t afford to keep going out like we have been.
Increasing Protein Intake
There is no doubt that I am not getting enough protein in the day. In fact, I should be getting about three times what I normally get on average. So, I suppose I’ll have to start planning my meals and/or my snacks to increase how much protein I eat.
Who knows, it may even solve a lot of problems I have during the day. In reality, I don’t think I’ve ever consistently had the recommended amount of protein. I’m quite curious as to how I feel mentally and physically if I can get what I’m supposed to have throughout the week. It might be a fun case study, now that I think about it.
Since I need to do blood work in a few weeks, I can compare the numbers. I haven’t changed my diet since the last time they drew blood. It won’t be a perfect comparison, but it might be a place to start, and I love seeing the numbers.
Prioritize My Health Over My Job
Perhaps the biggest reason why I haven’t lost much weight this year is that I focus on other projects over my health. So, instead of taking a 20-minute break to walk around the backyard, I’ll focus on trying to get a new blog post written, work on a client’s project, get sucked into doomscrolling on Threads, or get lost in the rabbit holes of YouTube.
I would like to point out, however, that I’ve curtailed the doomscrolling and YouTube diving over the last few weeks. And I have to say, I’ve been getting far more done overall while being less stressed. There is something to be said about avoiding social media.
In any case, I am prioritizing my health over all of the side quests and jobs. I’m worth taking 20 to 25 minutes to walk or play the Oculus, especially if I want to decrease the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
While this might mean that I am taking time away from the blogs, YouTube channels, or client work, I’m no good to anyone if I’m dead. My health has got to come first. Seriously, I am going to be 50 next year, and I would love to see 50 more years.
Balancing Health and Fitness in December
The hard part is going to be balancing my health and fitness with everything else I have going on at the moment. Needless to say, it’s going to be a very busy December. But as long as I prioritize myself over everything else, I should be able to melt quite a bit of fat before January 1st.
Unfortunately, the first week of December was spent suffering through a pretty decent head cold. I am quite far behind in everything, not just my health and fitness.
Still, I am relatively confident I can meet my goals before the end of the year. It all comes down to how seriously I want them. In this case, I am scared to death of going live in my tiger boxers. It was bad enough that I had to go shirtless a month or two ago. But I promised everyone it would happen, and I try my best to stick to my word, as long as I remember.
One of the things I’d like to do before the end of the year is get back to going to the gym on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I miss using the treadmill and lifting a few weights. I just need to remember that I can’t lift what I did six months ago and to ease into my routines.
Yeah…like that’ll happen.
Despite the holidays being full of goodies, stress, and family, I’m feeling good about hitting my goals and look forward to starting the year at 230 or less. It’ll take a bit of planning and adjustment, but I know I can do it. I just need to take my health as seriously as I do my career, if not more so.
It’s a Short Period of Time, But I’m Confident
Three weeks and three days to lose 15 pounds isn’t out of the realm of possibility without starving yourself. Since I want to improve my physical fitness in addition to losing weight, it’ll take a lot more than twiddling my thumbs while sitting at my desk. I need to get my ass up and do something at least two times per day while watching the amount I eat.
As I said, it’s not outside of what I could do back in 2018. Let’s see if the same mentality and process can hold true seven years later.
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