How surfing and downhill longboarding helped Bogart The Explorer lose 100 pounds in 1 year

Fatherhood motivated Marco Antonio Ho—more popularly known as YouTube comedian Bogart the Explorer—remembers the exact moment he realized that it was time to shed the extra pounds.

“When my daughter was born, I wanted to be there while she grows up and when she gets a child of her own,” Bogart points out. “Although we can’t control when fate decides to take our life, I wanted to take away death’s options, particularly my fitness level.”


He first gained Internet fame as the parody version of the late conservationist and TV personality Steve Irwin. These days, however, Bogart is looking much fitter, having lost a hundred pounds in a span of nine months. And he has surfing and downhill longboarding to thank for it.


“I’ve always been a water person. I knew I needed a form of exercise, as I was growing quite hefty from a sedentary lifestyle, but didn’t feel like going to the gym because of its set schedule and regimen,” he explains. “With surfing, I knew I had found my ‘gym.’”

When waves weren’t roaring during the offseason, Bogart turned to downhill longboarding. “With surfing, I did a lot of upper body work through paddling, whereas longboarding trained more of the lower body, as I had to climb up the hill over and over again.”


The lack of a support system prompted Bogart to take his weight loss journey to social media. Most of his followers cheered him on and eventually underwent a similar transformation themselves. “Many people were inspired, but some were also turned off simply because they thought a funny fat dude losing weight isn’t going to be as hilarious. It was like I killed Bogart; the guy they’ve come to know and love.”

That being said, Bogart was never going to stop. His new lifestyle and mindset were starting to benefit other aspects of his life, and he liked what he was seeing. For one, the choice to start eating healthy and walking to places allowed him to save money on food and transportation.


“I wasn’t much of an advocate for vegetables, but gradually it tasted good until it became a preference over fast food. It came to a point where I had to convince myself to take a cheat day,” he revealed. “Same with exercise; my day just doesn’t feel right anymore without physical activity.”

“Safe to say, I’ve got a happier home now full of happy, healthy, and beautiful people.”

It’s been quite a journey for Bogart, and apart from his Instagram followers, he has found a new supporter in BDO. “It’s amazing that my bank cares about what I care about—my health and fitness. So wherever I go, whatever I do, it’s there for me.”


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