18 July 2023 , 13:14
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Former Seattle Seahawks and Super Bowl winning star Russell Okung is continuing in his incredible weight loss journey - but is now doing so with a bizarre diet.
The former lineman looks to have lost well over 100lbs since his playing days, when he weighed in at over 330lbs as one of the better players at the position in the league. But in the last 40 days, Okung claims to have lost 50 more pounds after not eating at all - but only consuming water.
On his Instagram page, he posted a picture of himself on day one of fasting and where he's at now - clearly losing a substantial amount. He wrote on the caption: "Long term water only fasting is one of the best and hardest things I’ve ever done."
Okung has not been in the league since 2020, after an 11-year career, spending most of his time with the Seahawks will having stints with the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers and Carolina Panthers.
After retiring, Okung revealed why he wanted to lose weight. He told GQ : "For me, as I reflect back on my career, there were a couple of issues.
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"I went through a pulmonary embolism, I had lacerated lungs, a series of surgeries, ligament and tendon damage — getting up every day was hard.
Russell Okung looks to have lost well over 100lbs since his playing days"I magically, that when I finished playing it would be easier. But it actually got harder. I had completely depleted testosterone. I have two kids, a wife, and a life which has demands. I couldn’t meet those demands.
"When I was playing, I didn’t think of these things. When I took a step back, I could see the reality. I was in my youth, but I didn’t feel vitality. That’s what led to the change.”
He now drinks six bottles of water a day, while fasting and just drinking water. On his diet, he said: "Oh my goodness, I feel alive!"
In his last year with the Panthers, Okung asked to be paid in Bitcoin - reportedly converting most of his $13 million (£9m) into the cryptocurrency. It is unclear whether he mined that, with Bitcoin crashing in 2022, with that money now likely to be worth around £1.5m.