I received this email this morning from one of my weight loss challengers just as I was finishing up my morning run. I read it, but it took a few minutes for the message to really sink in. As I was driving down the road, I was absorbing what this man had just told me and I had to pull the car over to collect myself and wipe the tears from my face. This is truly a story about a man who is choosing to take control of his health and save his life!
Dear Alice Anne,
As you have probably already noticed, I do not regularly do Facebook -- Susan generally posts for both of us. However, I wanted to share something with you as a way of saying "thank you" for all of the work that you put into creating and administering these challenges.
I began gaining weight in the fall of 1981 when I got my first fulltime job as a draftsman for a small engineering firm in Raleigh, North Carolina. I sat at a drafting board for 8-10 hours a day. I gained a little bit of weight every year since then. The more weight I gained, the more sedentary my life became simply because I did not have the energy or the drive to make a change in lifestyle. One time about 14 years ago, I posted a note on the office bulletin board asking if anyone would be willing to walk/jog with me at lunch once or twice a week to help me get in better shape. Instead of getting any help or even any encouragement, I was humiliated to find close to 20 comments written on the bulletin board poking fun at my request. I lost all desire to get in shape.
I began making regular trips to West Africa in 2004 to build laboratories for the NIH. During our safety briefings that preceded each trip, someone always asked what we were supposed to do if we encountered a wild animal (e.g., lion, tiger, etc.). The running joke for close to five years was that no one should worry about that scenario as long as you were capable of "running faster than Bill" because you would have time to escape while the animal attacked him.
I participated in your challenge last fall to support and encourage Susan but I did not embrace it for myself and had lackluster results.
I had a physical exam two weeks before this challenge and my doctor blindsided me with the sobering news that my health was in such bad shape I probably had no longer than 1-2 years to live unless I began a regime of taking multiple medicines for the rest of my life. I had no desire to be medicated for the rest of my life and I asked him if it would make a difference if I could lose 30 or 40 lbs? He looked me straight in the eyes and said that it would make all the difference in the world, but he had NEVER had a patient in my shape ever be able to make such a radical lifestyle change. He agreed to give me 90 days to make a change but said that the only exercise he would sanction at this time was walking. He then told me that when he saw me again in 90 days we would start an aggressive regime of medicines because he was sure that I would fail in this effort.
Although I was educated as a scientist, my career has been predominately as an engineer. My new position with NASA has recently given me the chance to work more as a scientist for the first time in my life. I decided to approach this challenge as a 12-week science experiment. I used my prior affiliation with NIH to gain access to the latest scientific studies in weight loss. I used my status as a graduate student at the Harvard University Extension School to gain access to the vast Harvard libraries where I have been able to read up on some of the latest research in the nexus between brain function and weight loss and some of the cutting edge obesity studies coming out of the Harvard School of Public Health.
During the first two weeks of the challenge, it was all I could do to go 1-2 miles on the treadmill. Yesterday, I walked on an inclined treadmill for 18.25 miles (just over five hours). It felt great!
Two weeks ago, the doctors at NASA rechecked my blood work and found the following:
my blood pressure has gone from 172/105 to 117/64; triglycerides have gone from 514 to 150; total cholesterol has gone from 420 to 128; thyroid function has gone from 8.22 to 4.52. In general, almost all of my biomarkers have gone from "dangerous" to either "normal" or very close to "normal". This weight loss challenge is not only changing my life, it has saved my life. I just wanted to take this opportunity to sincerely thank you for all you do in organizing and running this challenge! It is making a miraculous difference for our family.
Best regards,
Bill
Again, SUCH an inspirational story! I just had to share! His journey has been a long and treacherous one; one of lost hope, jokes, and never believing things were "that bad". Sometimes, we just have to hear something that shakes us up and makes us stop and realize that we are in charge of our lives and our health! I'm so incredibly proud of this man and he is a true testament that we are in COMPLETE control!
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