If you’ve been following Shaq’s weight-loss journey here on the ShaqFu Radio blog, you know the big man is working to get a little less big… at least as far as the bathroom scale is concerned.
Now in a new interview with Entertainment Tonight (thanks to ET for info on this story), O’Neal gives an update on how he’s doing. Spoiler alert: Shaq says he’s only getting started on his new healthy, slimmed-down lifestyle.
For those keeping track at home, O’Neal says at this point, he’s down about 55 pounds, but he’s far from done when it comes to losing the extra baggage.
Shaq: “I’m probably gonna get between 315 and 330. I’ve got a five-pack now, so I’ve got seven more packs to go because I want to take my shirt off on Instagram.”
If you follow O’Neal on the ‘gram, you’ve probably already seen some shirt-free pics. (Check below for evidence.) Apparently, the big man is looking for even more gym-related gains… or should we say losses?
Speaking of bathroom scales, Shaq’s is now reporting a weight of about 350. Big? Yes! But remember who we’re talking about. O’Neal says he’s set some “crazy goals” for himself since reaching that weight.
He’s definitely getting better and better, but it wasn’t always that way. O’Neal told ET there was a time, “I was getting chubby and couldn’t even walk up the stairs. I didn’t like the way I looked in the mirror. I was like, ‘I’m gonna lose 20,’ and then I was trying to lose 20.”
Shaq says it was a friend of his that got him to take weight loss seriously, including talking to a doctor about what a man of his age and size should be doing to take better care of himself.
Entertainment Tonight has been keeping up with Shaq and his weight loss journey for a while now. The magazine originally did an interview with him last December. At the time, he said he knew virtually nothing about healthy eating.
O’Neal: “I was the athlete — I wasn’t a salad eater. I won’t pay attention to any of that. I don’t care about none of that. I didn’t know what the difference between a carb and a protein. And once I just started changing those certain things, it dropped.”
O’Neal added: “Plus [with] the supplements I’m taking, and the shakes I’m drinking, the weight just fell off. I’m not at 100 percent ninja mode yet. I’m still 75 percent.”
Back in December, Shaq said his goal was to “get real chiseled up” so he could do “an underwear ad” with his sons. Well, here it is, months later, and things are going pretty well!
Shaq’s advice for those who don’t have a personal trainer or health coach: “Start off, if you can, by walking 30 minutes a day. A lot of people can’t do that ’cause I know you got the kids, you gotta get to work. But if you can, start off by walking 30 minutes a day,” he added last year. “Put your headphones on, put on your favorite song, 30 minutes a day. Then you gotta eliminate something that you love. Eliminate it. I haven’t had soda for a while. I gotta eliminate bread and soda.”