Kiko was a consistent runner since 2023 when he started at around 95kg. For the first year, he managed to drop to around 84kg but eventually gained it all back by the end of 2024. Around early 2025, he continued the same routine, but his weight continued to shoot up to 93kg and that was when he decided it was time to seek professional help.

Given his assessment, it was clear that his running was becoming a detriment to his goals and that if he retained the same level of activity, it won’t be long before injuries would start to pile up as his body is overcompensating for the excess weight. It was a good thing that Kiko kept an open mind and decided to change things up by focusing on his nutrition alone, for now. That change allowed him to lose 22.9 lbs in just a span of 3 months which also flattened his midsection as you can see from his front view photos. His side profile too would show the huge change in his tummy protrusion! On top of this, it won’t be long before we hit Kiko’s goal of being in his healthy weight range and by then, will be allowed to run again! Not only will he be healthier, but his runs will be safer as his risk of injuries will be much lower without the excess weight!

Kiko’s case might seem counter-intuitive with us advising him to remove his runs, but results do not lie. His runs were overwhelming his body back then, causing his cortisol levels to remain elevated. This caused his body to store more fat on top of a whole host of other cortisol related issues. Most people would like to do everything in one go, lose weight, build muscle, improve on endurance all at the same time, but this is impossible as they’re on the opposite spectrum. This is what most people don’t understand. You must progress in phases. There are certain goals which can be bundled together such as lean bulking and strengthening or lean bulking and endurance improvement but not when it comes to weight loss.

If you find yourself in a similar hurdle and you’re trying to DIY your fitness journey but with little to no results, then perhaps it’s time for you to reach out to the right professionals. For a NO BS, honest guidance with realistic results, please do visit https://thearchitect.ph for more info!