Franco Varona, 44—a father of three daughters, fund manager, and watch shop owner—conquered his weight loss issues as he shifted his focus from just losing weight to gaining strength and achieving his best health every day.
And he did so to be fully functional in attending to his family’s needs, to face work demands, and to enjoy what life has to offer. As a bonus, he lost almost 50 pounds and is now gaining more muscles, further improving his metabolism and fitness performance.
He had a total of seven weight loss attempts between 2008 and 2023, involving crash dieting with outdoor run workouts, with his weight fluctuating between 180 to 220 pounds. Once he reached 180, his unhealthy eating habits would always go back (regain weight, lose again), so the vicious cycle continued.
It all started with lifestyle coaching
He was referred to me by one of his closest friends and also my client, Paolo Martel last September 2023. As a lifestyle coach, I asked him to send me a daily lifestyle journal (including food, sleep, exercise, social media, thoughts, etc.). Initially, I asked him to focus on small changes, such as eating fewer high-calorie foods and reducing his alcohol consumption.
Then, he began focusing on improving his sleep habits, increasing his intake of vegetables and protein, and maintaining consistency with his daily walking and home strength training routines. When he noticed consistent weight loss results and improved energy levels, he became more motivated to continue the process. We became more detailed with lifestyle strategies on exercise, eating, recovery, and anticipated challenges every week when we met via Zoom for coaching sessions.
Initially, Franco Varona’s goal was to lose 30 pounds (from 210 to 180 pounds), but once we reached that goal, his objectives progressed further
Initially, his goal was to lose 30 pounds (from 210 to 180 pounds), but once we reached that goal, his objectives progressed further. Aside from continuous weight loss, his goals shifted to reducing body fat, increasing strength, gaining more muscle mass, and improving fitness performance by performing more pull-ups and lifting heavier weights (his first time in 2023). Everything has resulted in amazing physical and lifestyle transformations to date.
In our little chat, Franco shares more about his weight loss journey and what other dads out there can pick up from his experience:
What are your significant learnings in the past 20 months?
Fitness and health are crucial for effective stress management. And it’s the best thing a dad can do for the family. Initially, when I started, my goal was to lose 30 pounds (from 210 to 180). Then it was to eat fish only, then cut out red meat completely, then eliminate carbs, then reach 160 pounds, and then work on muscle-ups. But it all started small.
Can’t live life crash dieting! And I cannot “run” away from the fat—I ran two marathons while doing this vicious cycle of crash dieting and gaining weight. The right thing to do is to consider a variety of different things and make it a lifestyle: Food intake is now not thought of as having an end date but rather as a sustained life choice that I enjoy. Exercise is not just about losing weight but also about being stronger for my family and using it as a tool for focus and stress management. In short, I only learned in middle age that weight management is a lifestyle decision, not a short-term goal with a defined end date.
What are your current fitness goals?
I’d like to be at least below 170 pounds for maintenance with 15 percent body fat. I want to be stronger—to lift 2.5 times my body weight for deadlifts, two times my body weight for squats, 1.5 times my body weight for bench presses, perfect my muscle-ups, and do walking handstands. I think, in short, I’d like to be the strongest I’ve ever been. On average, 40- to 50-year-olds lose eight percent muscle, and I’d like to be gaining muscles.
“Exercise is not just about losing weight but also about being stronger for my family and using it as a tool for focus and stress management. In short, I only learned in middle age that weight management is a lifestyle decision, not a short-term goal with a defined end date”
What are your biggest tips for dads like you?
1. Sleep and recovery are the most important. Lack of sleep will lead to laziness and hunger the next day. So, focus on that primarily.
2. More exercise means more energy, not the opposite. Also, exercise has helped with stress management and focus.
3. Food intake should be thoughtfully considered—which foods your body reacts to and which ones are essential for maintaining high energy levels throughout the day. Macros are not particularly important; however, tracking protein and fiber intake is necessary to ensure optimal muscle gain and satiety.
4. Significant changes can occur if all the above steps are applied. I went from pre-hypertension, pre-diabetes, high cholesterol, high uric acid, and on two maintenance meds in 2023 to zero maintenance in 2025 with clean bloodwork.
The best strategies and results
Here are the 10 significant changes he made over the past 20 months since I first met him while applying various healthy lifestyle approaches we both agreed on to incorporate into his program:
1. Setting health-focused goals will result in improved overall health and weight loss (as a bonus)
Franco’s focus on health as his primary motivation led to improved energy levels, moods, control over his food intake, and better sleep. He lost almost 50 pounds (from 210 to 160 pounds) in one year, with improvements in his blood sugar, cholesterol, and uric acid levels. After that phase, he modified his goals, lifted heavier weights, and increased his protein intake, resulting in increased strength and muscle mass while reducing more body fat, which significantly improved his workout performance. His weight is now at 175 pounds, with 18 percent body fat (coming from 31.5 fat percent).
Franco Varona’s focus on health as his primary motivation led to improved energy levels, moods, control over his food intake, and better sleep
2. Self-monitoring and self-awareness leads to sustainable healthy habits
Daily journaling and using a fitness tracker made him deeply understand the complete process of his journey (like how sleep, eating, and exercise affect each other) and made him the most consistent he has ever been.
3. Prioritizing recovery will positively affect exercise and eating habits the next day
He devotes a lot of effort to getting settled in bed by 9:30 p.m. to ensure that he gets seven to eight hours of sound sleep, which provides a strong foundation for quality workouts and a well-controlled appetite for his meals the next day.
4. Constant workouts even while traveling for effective weight maintenance
For the first eight months of the journey, Franco focused on daily morning walks and weight training on his own at his home gym. He focused on fundamental strength and core exercises, working hard to achieve one repetition of a pull-up using his body weight. This one pull-up goal motivated him to push himself harder in all his workouts.
Exactly a year ago, he enrolled in Kinetix+ and continued to make progress, further aided by having a personal trainer (once or twice a week). During the rest of the week, he worked out on his own, following the trainer’s list of exercise programs.
Earlier this year, he joined a friendly intra-gym competition at Kinetix+ for all ages that had a variety of six stations to test strength (like half of body weight squats and barbell bench press AMRAP for one minute), and he came in third. It was a significant milestone in his journey.
Earlier this year, he joined a friendly intra-gym competition at Kinetix+ for all ages that had a variety of six stations to test strength (like half of body weight squats and barbell bench press AMRAP for one minute), and he came in third. It was a significant milestone in his journey
His current workout routine includes an hour of daily outdoor walks, five to six days of strength training that focuses on various body parts per day, and occasional golf on weekends. He recently incorporated three- to five-kilometer outdoor runs and has tried several workouts for a few sessions, such as Pilates with his wife and CrossFit (which he started just last week).
He still managed to lift weights consistently and walk during long vacations and impromptu out-of-town work trips.
5. A well-balanced meal should match one’s food preference, fitness/health goals, and daily workout load
Franco takes a protein-packed breakfast right after his workouts—a plant-based protein shake or yogurt with granola on some days. For lunch and dinner, he eats fish, chicken, or tofu with vegetables, shirataki, and fruits. On some days, he would have plant-based or chicken salad wraps. He takes one more serving of protein shake and/or yogurt with granola (when hungry) for an afternoon snack. He doesn’t eat after-dinner snacks because he ensures that his last meal occurs three to four hours before he goes to sleep. He decided to stop alcohol ever since he learned from his fitness tracker how drinking negatively affected his sleep energy levels and cravings the next day.
6. A support system is crucial to overall success
Aside from having me as his lifestyle coach, Franco had his other solid support system along the way: “My wife has helped craft the diet at home to ensure that we both continue to eat delicious food that hits all my health and fitness requirements.”
“Coaches Miguel Baldovino and Gab Trinidad helped me put my fitness into perspective—how to gauge myself against the average, and how to build muscle and greatly progress in strength without injuries.”
“My wife has helped craft the diet at home to ensure that we both continue to eat delicious food that hits all my health and fitness requirements”
7. Having a healthy, consistent routine for a high energy level performance for daily activities
Here’s Franco’s routine on weekdays:
-Wake up (5:30 a.m.)
-Body composition check (5:45 a.m.)
-Early morning 5K walk (6 to 7 a.m.),
-Gym workout (7 to 8 a.m.)
-Post-workout breakfast (8:30 a.m.)
-Work (9 a.m. to 6 p.m.)
-Lunch (12nn)
-Afternoon snack (4 p.m.)
-Dinner at home (6:30 p.m.)
-Lights out (9:30 p.m.)
On weekends, he spends more time with his family and socializes. Still, he has zero drinking since it affects his sleep and exercise negatively.
8. Regularly evaluating progress and setbacks for renewed motivation
We always discuss the significant achievements he made during the week in terms of the goals he set the week before as well as the challenges he faced and how he overcame them. This weekly evaluation motivated him to exert more effort for the week ahead.
9. Setting weekly goals and anticipating challenges to come up with the most effective game plans
We constantly renew his weekly lifestyle goals. We discussed the upcoming high-risk situations (social events, eating out, heavy work days, out-of-town work trips, and vacations). We applied the most appropriate game plans, such as:
-Starting the day with at least 30- to 60-minute workouts and having protein shakes or low-sugar protein bars instead of breakfast buffets during vacations
-Eating healthy food ahead (at home or buying from healthy restaurants) before an event on some occasions
-Incorporating at least 30- to 60-minute walks in any free time during the day in case there’s an early work schedule
10. Learning how to bounce back right away in case lapses occur
Franco’s most significant challenge during the process is his sweet cravings. He acknowledges that it’s part of life, and strict or perfect diets will backfire. What’s important is learning how to reset the next day or as soon as possible to avoid the all-or-nothing thinking pattern, empowering him to always move forward and not fall back into his old stories of yo-yo dieting.
Shot at Kinetix+, 3rd Level, The Shops at Ayala Triangle Gardens, Paseo de Roxas, Makati City, Metro Manila
Special thanks to Marlon Lugue
