I went off-grid for 7 months to lose 10 stone – when I got home my family didn’t recognize me
A man has revealed how he lost 10 stone after going into the ‘wilderness and off the grid’ where he followed a strict diet and fitness regimen.
Bryan O’Keeffe, 34, from Cork, Ireland, decided he had to do something drastic after reaching 24 pounds by the end of 2021.
After trying “all the diets and exercise fads” — and even gastric band surgery — he knew he had to try something different.
The entrepreneur then spent seven months in Mallorca secretly transforming his body through diet and exercise.
But the move also saw him cut off communication with friends and family – before surprising them with his incredible transformation upon his return home.
Bryan O’Keeffe, 34, from Cork, Ireland, was tired of weighing so much and not feeling happy with his body after reaching over 24th at the end of 2021
In a video on Instagram documenting his weight loss, Bryan shared how he wanted to change clothes and feel confident and happier with himself and his body
Bryn lost a huge amount of weight after going on a wilderness retreat and not speaking to his family for months
For six months in a row, Bryan stuck to a calorie limit of 2,200, which he lowered to 1,750 a day for the last month, and exercised about five hours a day.
On Instagramhe wrote, “So I decided to move to the wilderness and get off the grid where I couldn’t have excuses.
“I called my friends and family and said I wouldn’t talk to them and got to work.”
In a later video, he can be seen showing off his new slim look to his loved ones, weighing in at 14 stone 5 pounds.
He said, “I never took a day off in seven months. I lost count of the number of injuries I sustained, but I refused to stop and just kept training through the pain.
“Every day I was just trying to do one more rep, one more length, one more mile—anything I could do to get one percent better.”
He added, “It’s not easy. There are no shortcuts. It appears every day, no matter what.’
Bryan – who started his challenge in late 2021 – explained how he started his weight loss journey.
Many obese people are happy with their weight, but Bryan was determined to get thinner and healthier
Bryan captured the moment when he showed off his new figure to his stunned family who couldn’t believe the transformation
Bryan is now a weight loss instructor and regularly posts to Instagram about tips he’s learned
He started with light exercise, walking about 90 minutes a day for the first two weeks. That turned into a more grueling five-hour-a-day regimen.
He introduced lifting weights six days a week, swimming three times a week and running three times a week.
Just three months after moving to the Balearic Island, Bryan, then 21 and a half stone, ran his first 5k in just over half an hour.
Weigh later With 20 stones, Bryan completed a triathlon in one hour and 47 minutes.
He also slowly increased his running distance and ran his first half marathon in July of this year.
Throughout his weight loss journey, Bryan tracked “everything,” including his calories, steps, and sleep.
He also stuck to a lower limit of 200 grams of protein per day.
At one point he wanted to give in to a McDonald’s – but he didn’t, as the nearest one was an hour away.
Bryan said, “It was months of absolute suffering. For the first three months I could do nothing but eat, sleep and exercise.
“But after the fourth month, my body got used to the constant thumping and it wasn’t so bad anymore.”
During the seven months, Bryan told only one person, his friend Colm Keenan, about his weight loss journey.
He called home twice a week to talk to his father who suffers from Alzheimer’s when he knew his mother had left home.
Bryan now works as a weight loss coach and regularly posts tips on Instagram and TikTok.
He also insists that he still eats carbs – and that he could never have stuck to a diet where he cut them out.