Name: Brian Oh
Age: 34
Occupation: Project Management
Status: Single
Food: I have a structured diet plan with eight meal preps a week to keep my nutrition consistent, whilst leaving room to enjoy meals out. I start my mornings with a full-baked pumpkin breakfast for a wholesome, steady energy boost.
Exercise: My weekly fitness routine includes hitting the gym twice a week and running at least two to three times to build both strength and endurance. It keeps me balanced between power and stamina.
When you were younger, were you active in sports?
I used to play soccer casually with friends, doing friendly matches, nothing competitive. I also took part in a darts league in the past for fun.
How did your routine evolve as you got older?
As I got older, I got into fitness to challenge myself and build discipline. I have a structured programme involving running and gym work to keep me grounded. It’s also a way for me to stay consistent, healthy, and push personal limits rather than compete with others.
Have you struggled with weight?
Yes, when I was fully focused on building iOS and Android apps a few years ago, with little time for fitness, I started to gain quite a bit of weight.
Then last year, when I was running back-to-back marathons in Sydney and Chicago, people questioned and asked why I still looked “fat.” This disconnect stemmed from realising that sheer cardio volume alone wasn’t enough to change my body composition and my efforts were not precisely aligned with my goals.
Thus, I overcame this frustration by making a profound shift: abandoning the generalised effort of just running and implementing a data-driven approach focused on macro tracking, meal prepping, and intense resistance training. This strategic precision rather than the high mileage was the key that unlocked my transformation.
These days, I feel good that I’m taking charge of my health with consistent training, meal prep, and a more balanced lifestyle.
What prompted this transformation?
I decided to start my transformation in late 2023, when my priorities began to shift. Seeing photos of myself from running events made me realise there was work to be done. I wanted to look and feel better in my own skin.
I was feeling really low about myself and even thought I looked ugly at times. I was around 85kg — not my absolute heaviest but close — I knew a transformation had to be done.
Describe the process.
These were the strategic changes I made:
Diet: Disciplined meal prepping with specific, targeted nutrient amounts.
Tracking: Diligently tracked macros using apps to maintain a precise caloric deficit while ensuring high protein intake.
Exercise Shift: Increased the intensity and frequency of gym sessions (made resistance training a priority).
Programme Balance: Reduced running sessions to accommodate more gym sessions.
In total, I lost 16kg and 9% body fat over two years.
Obviously there were challenges as well. My main hurdle was the initial physical strain and fatigue from the intense training volume as the body struggled to adapt quickly. To overcome this, I focused on strategic recovery (especially sleep) and progressive overload. I learned to adjust intensity when needed, but maintained overall consistency to push through the initial adaptation phase.
What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve drawn from this?
The greatest lesson learned is that sustained effort always wins. By mastering the details, true and lasting change begins.
Have you gone through any adversities in life that made you change how you viewed life?
Stepping out of my comfort zone last year to confront my phobia of the open sea by trying surfing and wakesurfing was a major act of courage, even though it resulted in a groin injury during my Bali trip.
Fortunately, this adversity didn’t derail my fitness goals, but it did shift my view on life. I realised that setbacks are an inevitable cost of courageous living, and that the experience of facing fear was worth the risk.
I overcame the injury by applying the same discipline used in my fitness journey: accepting the pause, focusing on targeted rehabilitation, and ultimately gaining a deeper respect for my body’s limits and the resilience needed for true personal growth.
When did you feel the least confident about yourself?
At the start of my transformation, I actually felt the least confident. I was putting in so much effort to change, but all it did was remind me how far I still was from my goal and how “too big” I still felt.
Things only started to turn around when I stopped obsessing over the end result and focused on what I could do each day. Instead of chasing a number on the scale, I found confidence in showing up: ticking off my meals, tracking my macros, and finishing each workout. Those small wins built the momentum that eventually led to real progress.
