Former NFL offensive lineman Matt Birk loses 75 pounds, gets jacked, wants to be a model
By Andy Nesbitt, FOXSports.com If you're an NFL fan you probably remember Matt Birk. The former offensive lineman spent 15 years in the NFL before retiring after winning a Super Bowl with the Ravens last season. He played in six Pro Bowls and was a two-time All-Pro. We all know one of the job requisites to be a lineman in the NFL is to be, well, fat. Birk was, to be nice, chunky during his career, as you can see in the photo above. But since retiring he has realized being fat probably isn't that great for your health. He's made some changes to his diet, is working out more, and now looks a lot different:
He's lost a total of 75 pounds and 10 inches from his waist. Now he has a new career in mind as he wants to become a model. The Baltimore Ravens website has the details:
Birk is in the running to be the next Vi Model, which would feature him on the cover of The Challenge Magazine 2014 and turn him into the poster boy for Body By Visalus, a company that has the ultimate mission of ending obesity. Birk needs votes to reach the finals of the competition, and fans have less than four days to cast their ballots here. “I don’t really think of myself as a model. Maybe a glove model,” Birk joked.
Here's more on why Birk has made such a lifestyle change:
Birk discovered Visalus and liked the company’s community approach to weight loss. For example, if somebody in the program loses 10 pounds, they’ll donate 30 nutrition shakes to obese or at need kids. “I really like to help people,” said Birk, who was named the 2012 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year. “I really do think that we have a serious problem in this country and our culture when it comes to our diet. We have a totally wrong approach about how to lose weight.” Birk started the program in March and is down to 235 pounds. Now he wants to become the Vi Model so he can better spread his message about the importance of better nutrition and ways of losing weight to others. “All I knew was being big. Now I’m not so big and I’m loving it,” said Birk, who is not a paid endorser. “I think I’ve really developed a lifestyle that I can sustain now. I feel great physically, and I’ve got tons of energy. It really has changed my life that I used to know.”
