One of the reasons that professional athletes are able to stay in such incredible shape during their playing days is by the mere fact of how many calories they burn during their week of practice, in addition to the games they play against opponents; just think about how much of a toll that must take on their bodies. And that’s often why you see so many athletes “balloon” up in terms of their weight after their career is over, because their respective levels of activity are so greatly reduced.
But then there are those athletes who went the opposite way, looking like completely different people after their careers were over. And as you’ll see in the following list, all of them did so very much for the better.
Here’s our list of 20 NFL players who got in incredible shape after their professional football days were over.
Tom Nalen celebrating the Denver Broncos Super Bowl victory with head coach Mike Shanahan.
By linemen standards, Tom Nalen was a lean 287 pounds during his 15 seasons as a center for the Denver Broncos. With five Pro Bowl appearances and two Super Bowl rings along the way, Nalen had a nice career for a lowly 7th-round pick out of Boston College. But what he accomplished in his post-playing days might be even more impressive.
NFL weight: 287
Rookie year: 1994
Retired: 2008
Nalen had lost 72 pounds by the time he was inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame.
After retiring in 2009, Nalen quickly dropped close to 75 pounds, getting his weight down to about 215 pounds. Nowadays, not even the Mile High faithful would recognize him without a name tag. In 2013, Nalen was named to the Broncos Ring of Fame (pictured above).
Heaviest: 287 pounds
New weight: 215 pounds
Weight loss: 72 pounds
Joe Thomas during his playing days with the Cleveland Browns.
Joe Thomas will go down one of the best left tackles the NFL has ever known, after being selected to 10 consecutive Pro Bowls. He had a near-perfect blend of size and mobility, not to mention the longevity to play more than 10,000 consecutive snaps until getting hurt in his final season in 2017.
NFL weight: 312
Rookie year: 2007
Retired: 2017
Thomas, now an analyst for the NFL Network, dropped 50 pounds in nine months.
Thomas weighed in before the draft at 312 pounds and spent much of his NFL career around the same weight. Yet, it took Thomas less than nine months after his final NFL game to lose 50 pounds. When asked how he did it, he chuckled and said, “You just don’t eat until you feel like you’re gonna throw up at every meal and all of a sudden the weight falls right off.”
Heaviest: 312 pounds
New weight: 262 pounds
Weight loss: 50 pounds
Will Montgomery during his playing days with the Carolina Panthers.
As a 7th-round draft pick, Will Montgomery forged a nice career for himself, spending 10 seasons in the NFL, making 75 starts. Naturally, he tipped the scales at over 300 pounds and had a size 42 waist.
NFL weight: 305 pounds
Rookie year: 2006
Retired: 2015
Will Montgomery has dropped more than 80 pounds since retiring from the NFL in 2015.
But roughly two years after retiring, Montgomery had reportedly lost 80 pounds and had downsized to a 34-inch waist. Montgomery says the key to his weight loss was cutting out pasta, bread, and sugar. Also, he says that he started drinking red wine instead of beer, which was a small sacrifice he made to lose weight when he was done playing.
In a 2017 interview with The Washington Post, Montgomery talked about purging his closet of his size 42 jeans and XXXL sweatpants, “Bags upon bags upon bags,” Montgomery said. “At least five humongous, oversized jumbo trash bags — like the big contractor bags — just filled to the brim.”
NFL weight: 305 pounds
New weight: 225 pounds
Weight loss: 80 pounds
During his playing days, offensive linemen Matt Birk weighed in at a whopping 310 pounds.
Despite being a 6th-round pick, Matt Birk put together an impressive NFL career, spending 11 seasons with the Vikings and a few more with the Ravens, going to six Pro Bowls and winning a Super Bowl ring along the way.
After his retirement, he became involved with a company called Body By ViSalus, which provides people with products and a plan to live healthier lives.
NFL weight: 310 pounds
Rookie year: 1998
Retired: 2012
After retiring, Birk lost 75 pounds and is now modeling for a weight loss company.
Dedicating himself to nutrition and maintaining an active lifestyle, Birk lost 75 pounds from his 310-pound NFL body, not to mention 10 inches from his waist. He’s even been known to do a little modeling work for Body By ViSalus.
Heaviest: 310 pounds
New weight: 235 pounds
Weight loss: 75 pounds
Offensive lineman David Carter weighed in at 300 pounds during his brief time with the Arizona Cardinals.
You may not remember David Carter much as an NFL player. He spent a couple years with the Cardinals and then bounced around as a reserve or practice squad player with a few other teams. In fact, Carter might’ve done far more for his career after he left the NFL.
NFL weight: 297 pounds
Rookie year: 2011
Retired: 2013
The unknown offensive lineman turned himself into a vegan fitness model.
Toward the end of his career, Carter made the radical change to become a vegan. In his post-laying days, he’s also become a vegan advocate and helped lead a mini-crazy of current NFL players who have gone vegan. Oh, and after he retired, Carter dropped 40 pounds in just six short weeks. He’s slimmed down enough to do even some modeling work.
Heaviest: 297 pounds
New weight: 215 pounds
Weight loss: 82 pounds
Brad Culpepper was a member of the great Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defenses of the 2000’s.
Brad Culpepper played nine seasons in the NFL, weighing in around 275-280 pounds, which would have been light for a defensive tackle nowadays. But if that’s considered “light,” check out what he looked like after retiring.
NFL weight: 275 pounds
Rookie year: 1992
Retired: 2010
With the help of a good diet and a reality television appearance, Culpepper looks like a totally different person.
Once his playing days were over, Culpepper was able to lose 80 pounds. He says he cut out extra eating and also went heavy on the cardio with running and work on a stationary bike.
Also, you may remember seeing the slimmed-down version of Culpepper on a couple seasons of Survivor. Of course, going on that show is also a good way to lose a little weight.
Heaviest: 275 pounds
New weight: 195 pounds
Weight loss: 80 pounds
Alan Faneca (320 pounds) was a six-time All-Pro with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Alan Faneca was one of the best offensive guards in the business for a long time. He went to nine straight Pro Bowls, primarily as a member of the Steelers. He did all that while weighing around 320 pounds.
NFL weight: 316 pounds
Rookie year: 1998
Retired: 2010
The beefy Steelers legend lost over 100lbs, and is now a svelte marathon runner.
But when his career was over, he recognized some of the health problems that come with being that heavy. Since his retirement in 2011, Faneca has lost 110 pounds, primarily by limiting himself to 1,800 calories per day. He took up running as a hobby, and in 2014, he finished a marathon in just under four hours.
If you saw him today, Faneca would almost look frail compared to the behemoth of a man he was with the Steelers all those years.
Heaviest: 316 pounds
New weight: 206 pounds
Weight loss: 110 pounds
Damien Woody played 12 years in the NFL, with 3 NFL teams.
Damien Woody spent 13 seasons in the NFL, played every position along the offensive line and won two Super Bowl rings. He did so at better than 320 pounds, which is a lot, even for a lineman. After retiring, Woody admittedly let himself go a little and reached as high as 388 pounds.
NFL weight: 330 pounds
Rookie year: 1999
Retired: 2010
Woody lost over 100lbs after appearing on “The Biggest Loser” reality television show.
Woody would eventually became a contestant on season 16 of The Biggest Loser. The show helped him to drop 110 pounds in a four-month span. He’s not what you would call a thin man, but he definitely doesn’t look like a former lineman.
Heaviest: 388 pounds
New weight: 220 pounds
Weight loss: 168 pounds
Antone Davis was an All-American tackle at the University of Tennessee
For Antone Davis, losing weight after his football career wasn’t so easy. He tipped the scales at around 330 pounds during his seven-year stint in the NFL but continued to gain weight after retiring. Davis weighed as much as 476 pounds at one point. That was the tipping point for him to get serious about losing weight.
NFL weight: 330 pounds
Rookie year: 1991
Retired: 1997
Davis went on “The Biggest Loser” and lost the weight of a large adult male.
Davis became a contestant on the 12th season of The Biggest Loser. While on the show for 10 weeks, Davis lost 201 pounds, finishing as the runner-up that season. At the end of the show, Davis was back down to a more reasonable 245 pounds.
Heaviest: 476 pounds
New weight: 245 pounds
Weight loss: 221 pounds
Nick Hardwick played (and started) in 136 games with the San Diego Chargers.
During his 11 seasons in the NFL, all with the Chargers, Nick Hardwick recalls eating large quantities of burritos, pizza, and ice cream to help him say above 300 pounds. However, he retired amidst a myriad of health concerns.
NFL weight: 305 pounds
Rookie year: 2004
Retired: 2014
Hardwick used the popular fasting and yoga to drop over 80 lbs in less than half a year’s time.
Determined to live a healthier lifestyle, Hardwick dropped 85 pounds in four short months. With a little bit of fasting and plenty of yoga, the pounds appeared to melt right the former center.
Heaviest: 305 pounds
New weight: 220 pounds
Weight loss: 85 pounds
Jeff Saturday spent 13 years as Peyton Manning’s trusted center.
As a six-time Pro Bowler who spent more than a dozen years in the NFL, Jeff Saturday was one of the best centers in the NFL for a long time. He hovered around 300 pounds for much of his career, but would go on to drop a healthy portion of that number not long after leaving the league.
NFL weight: 295 pounds
Rookie year: 1999
Retired: 2012
Saturday now weighs less than most quarterbacks!
Saturday lost more than 50 pounds in a few short months after retiring in January of 2013. When he visited Colts training camp in 2013, he was down to 225 pounds (down at least 70 pounds). Saturday and his slim figure now work as both a high school coach and an analyst on ESPN.
Heaviest: 295 pounds
New weight: 225 pounds
Weight loss: 70 pounds
Jordan Gross became one of the best linemen in Carolina Panthers’ history.
Jordan Gross had an 11-year career with the Carolina Panthers, making three Pro Bowls and one All-Pro team. He did so while weighing in excess of 300 pounds. But when he retired after the 2013 season, Gross said he was able to start eating ” “like a normal person.”
NFL weight: 305 pounds
Rookie year: 2003
Retired: 2013
Within one year post-retirement, Gross looks more like a pro golfer than a former football player.
With smart eating and a little bit of exercise (he took up running trails as a hobby), Gross managed to lose nearly 100 pounds by the time he visited Panthers training camp the following August. Even at his old stomping grounds, he was almost unrecognizable at just over 200 pounds.
Heaviest: 305 pounds
New weight: 200 pounds
Weight loss: 105 pounds
Nate Newton’s girth was one of John Madden’s favorite topics to discuss.
Most NFL fans from the 1990s should remember nasty Nate Newton, who helped anchor the Dallas Cowboys offensive line for more than a decade, including their three Super Bowl titles during that era. If you don’t remember him, Newton was frequently a target of color analyst John Madden’s telestrator, with Madden often circling Newton’s posterior.
But even more than a decade after retirement, Newton tipped the scales at over 400 pounds.
NFL weight: 318 pounds
Rookie year: 1986
Retired: 1999
The source of endless fat jokes lost nearly 1/3rd of his playing weight.
Newton would undergo surgery to have roughly 75% of his stomach removed. Barely six months after the surgery, he had lost 175 pounds, dropping him down to 225 pounds, making him almost recognizable from the guy who lined up for the Cowboys for over a decade.
Heaviest: 400 pounds
New weight: 225 pounds
Weight loss: 175 pounds
Will Shields was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame in 2015
Will Shields was an incredibly offensive guard in his day, going to 12 straight Pro Bowls during his 14-year NFL career. As a player, he was right around the 315-pound mark.
However, after he was diagnosed with pre-diabetes, things started to change, especially after seeing multiple family members battle diabetes.
NFL weight: 315 pounds
Rookie year: 1993
Retired: 2006
Shields went from looking like a beastly lineman to a chiseled librarian.
Shields cut out desserts entirely and now subsists on a diet that consists primarily of chicken, fish, beans, nuts, seeds, and berries. After starting on that diet, Shields lost nearly 50 pounds in about four months, dropping all the way down to 260 pounds.
Since the weight loss, Shields says he’s spending less money on medication and more on new clothes that actually fit his new body.
Heaviest: 315 pounds
New weight: 205 pounds
Weight loss: 105 pounds
David Pollack was a two-time SEC Player of the Year at the University of Georgia.
Most people know David Pollack as an analyst on ESPN. Nowadays, he looks quite trim and not at all like a former NFL player. However, he was once a lineman that weighed nearly 300 pounds, and then later a linebacker who was still a rather hefty 260 pounds. His retirement from the NFL was hastened by an unfortunate neck injury.
NFL weight: 255 pounds
Rookie year: 2005
Retired: 2006
Pollack’s weight loss has helped him become one of ESPN’s top college football “faces.”
After retiring, Pollack started to pay attention to what he ate and adopted a better diet. As a result, he’s now a rather lean 205-215 pounds, not to mention one of ESPN’s best college football analysts.
Heaviest: 255 pounds
New weight: 205 pounds
Weight loss: 50 pounds
Jamarcus Russell’s poor work ethic was evident right around his waistline.
As most of us know, weight problems plagued Jamarcus Russell during much of his NFL career. At a certain point, he weighed about 325 pounds, which would be fine for a lineman, but not so much for a quarterback.
NFL weight: 265 pounds
Rookie year: 2007
Retired: 2009
Russell still isn’t “slim,” but still got in much better shape than he used to be.
In 2013, Russell attempted a comeback more than three years after his last NFL snap. Part of that comeback was losing 60 pounds to get back to 265 pounds, which is what he weighed when he was drafted. Russell got a tryout with the Bears but didn’t get signed despite the weight loss.
He remains one of the biggest busts in NFL history (in more ways than one).
Heaviest: 325 pounds
New weight: 265 pounds
Weight loss: 60 pounds
Mark Schlereth was a member of the Super Bowl-winning Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos.
After 12 seasons in the NFL spent hovering around the 300-pound mark (not to mention the countless surgeries he would endure in that time), Mark Schlereth says he was excited not to have to eat so much after he retired.
NFL weight: 282 pounds
Rookie year: 1989
Retired: 2000
The man known as “Stink” now looks good enough to be a soap opera star.
The work has paid off, as Schlereth looks far slimmer than he did during his days as a lineman. Perhaps more importantly, he altered his workout routine in a way that was designed to make him fit rather than strong. He looks good enough to get work as an analyst on TV. Schlereth has even had a recurring role on the soap opera Guiding Light.
Heaviest: 282 pounds
New weight: 225 pounds
Weight loss: 57 pounds
Marcus Spears played for almost a decade with the Dallas Cowboys
Marcus Spears spent nine years as a defensive end in the NFL who weighed in at around 315 pounds. After calling it quits in 2013, he started to gain weight, getting all the way up to 370 pounds. It was actually a chance encounter with former coach Bill Parcells that inspired Spears to lose some weight.
NFL weight: 315 pounds
Rookie year: 2005
Retired: 2013
Spears’ took his old coaches advice and made life-altering changes.
Parcells, as blunt as ever, talked to Spears about his weight and health. After that, Spears started doing cardio like a madman, helping him lose over 100 pounds. Spears and his slimmed-down appearance can now be found on the SEC Network.
Heaviest: 370 pounds
New weight: 245 pounds
Weight loss: 125 pounds
Roger Brown was perhaps the biggest offensive linemen of his era
Roger Brown played as a defensive tackle with the Lions and Rams throughout the 1960’s and is well known for being one of the first players in the NFL to eclipse 300 pounds. He eventually reached 450 pounds before a health scare convinced him that he needed to lose weight.
NFL weight: 300 pounds
Rookie year: 1960
Retired: 1969
Brown lost more weight than most people will ever weight in their entire life.
It wasn’t easy, but Brown was able to lose over 200 pounds, getting himself down to about 227 pounds. He’s now in his 80’s and a successful businessman.
Heaviest: 450 pounds
New weight: 227 pounds
Weight loss: 223 pounds
Mike Golic played on the great Philadelphia Eagles’ defense of the early 1990’s
And underrated cog in the great Philadelphia Eagles’ defenses of the late 1980’s/early 1990’s, Mike Golic played for four different NFL teams (including the Eagles) during his 8-year NFL career. However, Golic is far more well known for his efforts in his post-playing days, as a member of ESPN’s “Mike and Mike” radio team for 17 years.
NFL weight: 274 pounds
Rookie year: 1986
Retired: 1993
Golic took Dan Marino’s advice about joining Nutrisystem, and lost 51 lbs through the program
After he measured in at 313 lbs in a physical examination, Golic — who was already a type 2 diabetic — was scared into making a change for the better. After a conversation with Nutrisystem frontman (and fellow NFL alumnus) Dan Marino, Golic joined the well-known and lost 51 lbs by mostly focusing on controlling what he ate, and how much of it he ate.
Heaviest: 313 pounds
New weight: 262 pounds
Weight loss: 51 pounds