How Daniel Benjamin Lost 60lbs & Raised His FTP In A Year
"This journey started when I graduated the police academy in 2015. I was in the best shape of my life. All we did is run and do body weight exercises for hours every day. Once I got into the job, it got harder for me to keep up that fitness. Over the years, I slowly gained 5-10 pounds a year, until I hit my breaking point in October 2022. I was the only one to blame for this. I am not going to blame the job or anything else. I had the control and just let myself go. I have always ridden bikes and even raced road bikes when I was in my late teens/early twenties. I was the prime example of you can’t outride a bad diet and probably a little too much alcohol.
In October 2022, I started to have some heart issues. It came to a head one day when I was with my son. My wife was away for work. My heart started pounding out of nowhere. It felt like over exaggerated heartbeats. I ended up getting checked out that day and had follow up doctor appointments. There was no clear sign of what it was. At this time I was around 220 pounds at 5’9. This was the time period when I decided I need to change my life to make sure I am around for my family. I was developing medical issues related to my health. I also had severe lower back pain most days and on the bike.
I started cleaning up my diet and riding the bike more. I quickly lost 10 pounds. I then set a goal to ride BWR Arizona in March (wafer). Around this time I found Dialed Health and started using the programs. I also started food tracking with MyFitnessPal. My wife and I finished BWR together and I was hooked on gravel. It was my first gravel event I have ever done. I can tell you right now that my body was a complete wreck during and after the race. My back and hips were seized up for most of the race. I was 199 pounds at the time.
Fast forward to now and I just hit my goal weight of 165 pounds. I graduated the police academy in 2015 around this weight. I knew that it was a safe weight I could maintain. These are some stats from January to now since I started tracking and testing. My resting hear rate went from 60bpm to 45bpm. VO2 max went from 44 to 58. FTP went from 315 to 340. Watts per kg went from 3.4 to 4.5.
I kept to 1g of protein per pound of body weight. I stayed with a 500 calorie deficit per day. I consumed a majority of my carbs before, during and after my workouts/rides. I would take in 60-90g per hour on any rides over two hours no matter what. On some 5 hour plus ride days, I take in 600gs of carbs throughout the day and the ride. Even on these days, I will stay in a 500 calorie deficit. On these long ride days, I could be consuming 4000 plus calories. I always made sure to eat and drink enough carbs and calories on these big ride days. I never got done with a ride feeling super hungry and empty. I knew this could lead to a big food binge.
I am healthier, happier, stronger and faster now. I am really enjoying life with my family more than ever. I also love riding my bike way more than last year. It is way more enjoyable and comfortable to ride. I am really looking forwards to SBT and few more gravel races this year.
Dialed Health and you Derek have played a big roll in this transformation. You been great to talk to and bounce ideas off. I consistently do 2-3 Dialed Health workouts a week on top of riding. Right now I am in the middle of the gravel program. My back pain has completely gone away on and off the bike. Overall, I am in the best shape of my life right now. It is hard to explain how good it feels to be strong on the bike. A lot of it has to do with the Dialed Health programs. Thanks for everything Derek and I look forwards to seeing you more at events."
-Daniel Benjamin
Listen to Coach Derek and Daniel dive into the details of this testimonial on the Dialed Health Podcast: Ep. 161 How Daniel Benjamin Lost 60lbs and Raised His FTP in 10 Months