- Former Baltimore Ravens offensive lineman Marshal Yanda lost 64 pounds in the first four months after retiring from the NFL.
- While many former athletes struggle to gain weight after their careers, many NFL players lose a ton of weight after retirement, revealing the tremendous and dangerous efforts they go to to maintain their oversized bodies.
- A common theme with many of these players is the position they played. Most of the players below were offensive linemen, suggesting that these players are doing more to push their bodyweight to the limit, develop dangerous habits like consuming massive amounts of calories to maintain their game size.
- Below is a look at 24 players who lost a ton of weight after their careers ended.
Joe Thomas, 10-time Pro Bowler and future Hall of Famer, is considered one of the greatest offensive linemen of all time. He spent most of his playing career at 310 pounds and said he was “more eager to lose weight than almost anything in retirement”.
Source: NFL Network
He is now an analyst for the NFL Network and it took him less than nine months after his last NFL game to lose 50 pounds. When asked how he did it, he laughed and said, “You don’t eat until you feel like you’re going to vomit with every meal and all of a sudden the weight drops. right away.”
Source: NFL Network
Eight-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman Marshall Yanda played his final NFL game at 312 pounds, retiring after the 2019 season and 13 years in the league, all with the Baltimore Ravens.
Five months after retiring, Yanda had dropped to 248 pounds by exercising and eating less, telling “The Pat McAfee Show,” “I didn’t really know at the time how much I was doing to keep that weight off, but obviously he came out really fast, and shooting, I feel so much better.”
See more at the Pat McAfee Show.
Mike Pouncey, who played 9 seasons as a center for the Dolphins and Chargers, lost 70 pounds after retiring. He recently told the media that he and his twin brother “ate like pigs” as players and now eat like rabbits.
Okung last performed in 2020. He recently shared a photo of his body transformation with the caption “Reborn.”
David Pollack weighed up to 297 pounds as a defensive lineman in college, and he last played in the NFL in 2006 as a 260-pound linebacker for the Bengals.
After a career-ending injury, Pollack is now a 220-pound college football commentator for ESPN. Pollack says he’s gotten smarter about what he eats and when he eats it.
SOURCE: @davidpollack47 And MensFitness.com
David Carter was a 300-pound defensive lineman for the Cardinals and Cowboys.
Carter lost 40 pounds in 6 weeks after going vegan and is now a model.
Source: Independent
Brad Culpepper (#77) was a 275-pound defensive tackle for three different teams and retired after the 2000 season.
Source: @monicaculpepper
Here’s Brad Culpepper with his wife on “Survivor.” He says losing 80 pounds was pretty easy because he just stopped eating all the extra food needed to maintain his player weight.
Source: sptimes.com
Will Montgomery was a 305 pound offensive lineman with a height of size 42 who played for 5 teams in 9 seasons.
Montgomery now weighs 225 pounds — her lowest weight since high school — and has a 34-inch waist. He did this by cutting out sugars, eating no more pasta and bread, and drinking more red wine and less beer (Montgomery is at left).
Source: Washington Post
Mike Golic played for 3 teams in 8 seasons, mostly as a defensive tackle for the Eagles’ dominant defense in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was listed at 280 pounds during his career.
Golic is now a podcast/radio host and college football commentator. He has lost considerable weight.
Alan Faneca was a 320-pound offensive lineman for the Steelers, Jets and Cardinals, and he last played in 2010.
Alan Faneca has lost 105 pounds since quitting playing and completed his first marathon in 2014.
Source: @lianefaneca And washingtonpost.com
Nick Hardwick was a 300-pound center for the San Diego Chargers who retired after the 2014 season. He said he had to eat “lots of ice cream, burritos, pizza” and “everything else [he] could get [his] hands on” to maintain its size.
After retiring, he lost 85 pounds in four months by cutting calories, using intermittent fasting and yoga.
Source: Los Angeles Times
Matt Birk was a 310-pound center for the Vikings and Ravens who retired in 2012.
After retiring, Matt Birk lost 75 pounds after joining Body By ViSalus, a company dedicated to ending obesity, and Birk is now a model.
SOURCE: Challenge.com
Jeff Saturday was a 295-pound center who spent most of his career with the Colts and retired after the 2012 season.
Jeff Saturday, left, now weighs 238 pounds and runs a program to help former players learn about healthy lifestyles.
SOURCE: ESPN.com
Longtime Patiots star Vince Wilfork weighed 325 pounds during his playing days, but the last time he played for the Texans in 2016 he was likely much heavier than that.
But despite being a well-known food lover and becoming a barbecue ambassador in retirement, he has clearly cut back on his eating habits and now appears to weigh less than at any point in his career.
Jordan Gross was a 3-time Pro Bowler as a 300-pound offensive lineman with the Panthers.
Just seven months after retiring after the 2013 season, Gross looked much closer to 200 pounds when he visited training camp.
Former Steelers center Maurkice Pouncey was never the tallest lineman, but he still weighed over 300 pounds during his playing days.
Just two years after his retirement, he now looks more like a linebacker or a safety.
Antone Davis (#78) was a 330-pound offensive lineman and moved up to 475 pounds after quitting playing in 1997.
Antone Davis was a finalist on NBC’s “The Biggest Loser,” where he lost over 200 pounds.
Damien Woody was a 320-pound offensive lineman for the Lions, Patriots and Jets.
After seeing his weight soar to 388 pounds in retirement, Woody went on “The Biggest Loser” and lost 110 pounds.
Nate Newton (#61), a 320-pound offensive lineman, played most of his 14-year career with the Cowboys before retiring in 1999 and dropping to nearly 400 pounds in retirement.
He was able to drop to 220 pounds in 2010 after surgery to remove 75% of his stomach.
Source: Dallas Morning News
JaMarcus Russell struggled with his weight with the Raiders and more before attempting to return to the NFL.
In 2013, JaMarcus Russell dropped 51 pounds hoping for another shot in the NFL.
SOURCE: @TEST_Football
Tom Nalen was a 290-pound center for the Denver Broncos, last playing in 2007.
A slimmer Nalen was inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame and credited with continuing to train after retiring for weight loss.
Source: TheSunChronicle.com
LenDale White weighed up to 260 pounds as a running back for the Titans.
Before his final NFL season, LenDale White lost 30 pounds, a result he attributes to quitting tequila.
SOURCE: SI.com
Mark Schlereth was a 290-pound offensive lineman for Washington and Denver and last played in 2000.
Tony Bergstrom, an offensive lineman who played for 5 teams in 10 years has yet to retire, but already has a plan for when he does.
Bergstrom told WaPo“I’ve already written the diet plan. Offensive linemen go two ways: either you bulk up or you shrink to nothing. I’d rather shrink to nothing. Three months later, you’ll see a completely different person. I’ll come in and you’ll say, I don’t know who it is.”