Why Big Joe Is Tackling Weight Loss and Healthy Changes with Ideal You

For most of my life, I've been known as Big Joe — in fact, I'm live weekday mornings on the Big Joe Show. I have a larger-than-life personality, but I’ve also been overweight since elementary school. And when I say overweight, I’m not talking about 10-20 pounds. More like 75 to 150 pounds over a healthy weight.

I’ve always been unhappy with being overweight and would use self-deprecation as a way to try to make people like me. After a while, I found acceptance and it became my go-to tactic to deal with how unhappy I was being so big and unhealthy.

That started years ago in middle school and high school. Now I care less about what people might say about me, but I’m stuck with some harsh realities that I can’t banish with a couple of self-deprecating jokes.

I turned 36 in December, and when I stepped on the scale, I wanted to cry. I was at the highest weight of my life, 427.4. Before then I had stopped checking my weight, but I knew things were not good. My body was sore all the time. I was dealing with low back pain. When my wife, Lindsey, suggested going out, I'd make some excuse as to why we should stay in. I was even struggling to put on socks; it's pretty embarrassing to have to ask your wife to please help you put your socks on. I’m 36 years old, not 86.

I wanted to stop living this way, and I wanted to make a change that would last. I heard how you can lose up to 40 pounds in 40 days with the Ideal You program, and I knew if I could come anywhere close to that, I'd be off to a great start. I booked my free consultation online and by the end of the next week, Lindsey and I had finished the in-office consultation and committed to the program.

We officially started Jan. 3, and to my surprise, it’s been really easy so far. With Ideal You, you eat real food you get at the grocery store, not some kind of prepacked meal or shake. They teach you how to make it healthy so you learn how to make long-term improvements.

My biggest fear was that I would constantly be hungry, but I can honestly say that I feel satisfied and don’t seem to have cravings as I did in the past. I love tracking my food and water intake in their app, which also syncs up to a scale to track your weight, your BMI, body fat mass, body water percentage and so many other important things to see how your body is changing from the inside out. I meet with my weight loss coach every two weeks or so.

I’m so thankful that I found the Ideal You program, and I know that as my wife and I continue on this program, our lives will change for the better. I want to start a family, be more active, play rec sports with friends, and in general, wake up each morning feeling good without those lingering aches and pains.

Feel free to follow along on my journey on social media on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok, and if you're ready to change your life, be sure to check out Ideal You. They have two locations in our area, and their weight loss coaches are ready to help you boost your metabolism for long-term changes. Learn more at idealyou.us.