A lot of people say im inspirational because i lost a lot of weight, to me it was just something i did, like going to the dairy to get bread. I did it for me, not for anyone else, i dont see the big deal as much as others.
If you want some inspiration, then let me tell you about a guy i knew from the weight loss forums.
After loosing several hundren pounds of weight, i think about 200-300, he let felt ‘ok’ about letting a few of us know exactly what he had gone through.
He was laid off from work because he was no longer fit for work, thats how fat he was. Unable to do his job and stuck on a sickness benifit supported by the state. This is when it hit home for him. He decided to change his life, starting with diet of 800 calories of protien, and as much fruit & veg he was hungry for. As for exercise he started with walking. It was the only thing he could do and he wasnt even able to do much of that.
Every morning he got up, slathered both thighs and his belly with butter or oil or something he could find that would lubricate, put on his hoody with pockets in the front, and walked. He started out doing 10 minutes and being puffed and slowly got better and walked longer.
He would always be sweating and hot from the exercise but never took off the hoodie. When he walked he chafed, thighs would chaf, hanging belly would rub, he would be raw and bleeding. This is why he used the oil and butter. Even with it he would often finish in extreme pain. The hoodie disguised the fact that his hands were not just in his pockets, but wedged under his belly holding it up so it chafed a little less so he could go just a little bit longer.
When i read what he posted, the things he went through just to loose weight, it almost made me cry. How can you possibly thing I did such a great thing? look what he went through? its far more hardship than i ever did, i feel lazy in comparison.
This man came from an obese family, and went on to finally inspire his brother to loose weight. That brother died of obesity related problems after only loosing 50-100lb , he simply started too late. He was young and married and had children, his heart could simply not sustain him. It was extremely upsetting for him to watch his brother die, knowing that he was on his way to good health. The hardest part was that his brother passed on the stairs, and they were unable to move him to treat him due to his size.
So if that’s you, then don’t leave it too late. Time to act is now.
Wow Liz, that's incredible. I think that anyone that makes a decision to do something to increase their lifespan is amazing. You inspired me.
I think that there are so many untold stories out there of people who are struggling just to do every day things i.e. walk. So it's about telling and re-telling the stories of people's success and how they got there. I think it's important that this man's story is told, because it wasn't easy for him and it was obviously often painful and uncomfortable. More importantly I think it’s about everyone sharing their stories and experiences from not being able to fit on a plane, to struggling to use a public toilet.
We also talked about whether big is beautiful the other day. I do consider that people can be beautiful over the average size of 14; however I do not consider obesity to be beautiful. I am not an expert at all; however there are some people that are considered overweight (think rugby players etc.) who are incredibly fit and healthy. Let’s not confuse this with someone that has more fat than muscle. For me, I was incredibly fit and healthy and weighed 100kg, and I was probably a size 18. That time in my life was a happy, healthy, beautiful time. Now I weigh more than that, fat outstrips muscle and I am no longer fit and healthy. So time to do something about it, and hopefully one day my story will help someone.
Totally Agree, I dont think obesity is pretty, though im all for a well rounded woman if shes fit! in fact it can be quiet sexy.
I think the moral of this story is, stop making excuses to not do exercise because it may hurt or whatever else. This guy was snowed in half the year and still managed to walk in agony for more than a year to loose the weight. If he can do it, anyone can!
I often see a VERY VERY obese guy struggling to walk up the street on my way to work in the mornings. He wears shorts and you can tell his calves are chaffing, and obviously thighs, belly etc. There are people who turn away so they don't look at him, but I always think – damn! good on you for getting out there and walking and being physicial. I hope he sticks with it.
I used to see an older tubby guy running, i recall him because he had a funny gait, anyway every single day i would see him, started with a short route up the road, then he went further, and sometimes we saw him a fair way away from the house. Anyway over the years he eventually become fairly slim, and this year i was actually running next to him in the Auckland marathon and i said he inspired me by seeing him run for the past few years! it was soo cool!