Q&A: Julian Fernandez – 2nd Men’s Weight Loss

We sat down with Julian Fernandez who placed second in the men’s Weight Loss category of our Summer 2022 Sleekgeek 8-Week Challenge. We wanted to find out the secret to his success and he was happy to share it with us.

Please give us a short history of your journey to health and fitness before the challenge.

I have always been incredibly active on the sports fields, but always struggled to lose weight or get in to good shape as I feel like I had plateaued. I wasn’t eating enough protein, even when I was doing healthy eating phases.

What prompted you to join the Sleekgeek Transformation Challenge?

I decided to challenge myself to a SG transformation after seeing a bunch of people in the branded merchandise walking on the beachfront.

Give us a quick overview of the nutrition and eating plan that you followed during the challenge.

A friend from squash helped with a wealth of knowledge on intermittent fasting which I very easily incorporated into my daily routine. I cut out alcohol for the challenge and tried to eat healthier 90% of the time. I didn’t follow any restrictive diets; I simply tried to have a caloric deficit and increase my protein intake. For the most part I ate MORE than I would normally, except it was all good nutritious meals as well as a minimum of 2L of water per day.

Give us a quick overview of the training and exercise plan that you followed during the challenge.

I was quite particular about training whilst I fasted, and my gym routine was 1-hour of lifting weights and 30 minutes on SLOW (4.8km/h) walking on a level 10 incline on the treadmill. In the evenings I played squash, soccer and cricket. I also actively challenged myself to featuring on both the weekly roadblocks and steps, of which I hit all 8 weeks.

If you could give 3 pieces of advice to future challengers, what would they be?

1. The toughest part of the challenge is the courage to commit to the change, once started, the process takes care of itself.
2. Everyone in the gym was once there for the first time too, they too were anxious and wanting to better themselves. Never be ashamed of where you are on your journey.
3. Focus on yourself for the 8 weeks.
4. Stay consistent, not perfect. If you have a big night at a party or wedding, don’t starve yourself to “make it up”.
5. The sacrifice you make today will be well worth it in 8 weeks.

Why should people enter the challenge?

The journey of 1000 miles starts with 1 step, why not join the challenge to have hundreds of people take that step with you, in the same direction, with the same goals.