Transformation Tuesday: Erick Sandoval

 Lost 125lbs     Powerlifter    erickcp.com   Instagram- @erickmandoval

Erick's Story:

My transformation was something that took me about a year and a half. I went from starting at 308lbs (I remember weighing a bit more around 312, but say it’s 308 because that’s the last time I weighed myself and remember) and at my lowest got to 183lbs. Growing up, I had eaten a lot of fried foods and lots of breads because I was from a Hispanic family. I had suffered from depression because I was so upset at how big I had gotten, and never really showed it because I would always try to be the goofball growing up. I tried to use my sense of humor to make up for my looks since I did not have much self-confidence.

My decision to lose weight started when I was going into my senior year of high school because I wanted to be remembered for something different, not for being the over-weight goofball. I also was pre-diabetic by the age of 15 so I HAD to make a difference, I did not want to grow up with type 2 diabetes and suffer from not being able to play with my children growing up. Going into my senior year, during the summer I would work out twice a day with my brothers and the football team.

Supplements Used:

My major supplements that I would use would be iSatori’s bio-gro and their whey protein they had at the time. I would make sludge out of it (protein mixed with a bit of water), and I would also drink Cellucor’s BCAA’s. Not only that, but my pre-workout at the time would be c4, that’s when I fell in love with cellucor’s products. I wasn’t tracking my macros at the time but I tried to eat as healthy as possible during the week and would have a cheat meal (not day, just one meal), on the weekends.

Advice:

My biggest piece of advice is to treat yourself once in a while so you don’t go crazy with this transformation, and to stay consistent no matter what. I plateaued around 260lbs and almost called it quits, but all I did was put more effort into my workouts and never gave up. Not only that, but another piece of advice is to surround yourself with people who are better than you or who have the same goals. It makes working out so much more fun and also motivating. My brothers helped me a lot and pushed me through my workouts and Campus Protein helped me as well because I would ask so many people for advice. The great thing I enjoy about CP now is the community page we have so we are able to ask questions, share ideas and more. I hate to say the word “diet” because that signifies there’s an end to this journey, so I like to say that living the way I do is a “lifestyle”.

Current Status:

I am constantly transforming my body and making as much progress as possible. After the weight-loss I decided that I wanted to bulk up and made a YouTube series of my bulk to show others that it is OKAY to gain weight and your life isn’t always about losing weight. Now I am currently 205lbs and powerlift. I went from barely benching 185, barely squatting 275 and deadlifting 315 to benching 235 paused, 355 back squat, and 410 deadlift. Supplementation is very important especially if you plan on training as intensely as I do, so my stack right now is c4 extreme energy (blue razz) with citrulline malate for pre workout, MAN Sports BCAA’s (sour batch), and iSatoir’s new bio gro whey protein for my pancakes that I make EVERY morning. Transforming my body changed my life, I now have a YouTube channel with nearly 1,000 subscribers, I have over 8,000 instagram followers and I am now a personal trainer. I hope to continue on this journey to help change lives and hope this story inspires you to change yours!