Patti ATX
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been overweight. From eighth grade until age twenty-eight, it was only about thirty pounds. Then I moved to Texas and began several years of yo-yo dieting—losing weight and gaining even more back. In 2007, I made my decision to quit smoking and packed on sixty pounds shortly thereafter (but I did quit smoking). In 2009, I was 46 years old and physically felt every single year. I was 265 pounds and had a body mass index (BMI) of 42.5 percent. I tried every diet—Atkins, South Beach, Weight Watchers, Slim Fast shakes, Michael Thurman Program, and any other fad diet known to man—I tried everything, even if it was unsafe. I was constantly on and off a diet, and I thought it was normal. I would always lose weight, but would gain back even more. I had given up on me. I was dying inside and disgusted with myself. I was miserable. I was scared of my future health issues. I was terrified of orphaning my son. I knew deep down inside that if I could just get the weight off, I would keep it off. It took me six long years to arrive at a decision that would forever change my life—I decided to have bariatric surgery. Once that decision was made my real journey began. On June 16, 2009—the date of my rebirth—I had my Roux-en-Y surgery. After the surgery, I was really weak and could only eat a couple ounces of food at first. That is when I knew it was going to be a long road. Not only did I have to learn my new physical limitations of eating, I also had to change my relationship with food. If I didn’t change my relationship with food, I would regain all of my weight plus more. I had to give up a lot of different types of food that I had grown to love. I wanted to be the poster child for bariatric surgery and make my surgeon proud. I followed all the rules they gave me and still do, except for the caffeine. I gave up alcohol because food addiction can be swapped for alcohol addiction. Shortly after surgery, the stomach stretches and returns to normal size, and many bariatric surgery patients never keep the weight off. They gain most, all, or more weight back. Keeping the weight off was my personal goal, and if I was going to keep my weight off I would need to exercise. So my new obsession began. In August 2009, I joined a gym—a very intimidating endeavor for a large individual who is lacking self confidence. My time at the gym became very sacred to me. My typical walks started as early as 2:30 to 4:00 a.m., then off to Planet Fitness, shower at home, and then to work by 8:00 a.m. I am very goal driven, and without a target I’m like a fish out of water. The first goal I set was a promise to my sister that I’d walk sixty miles with her for the Susan G. Komen Foundation. I believe in “go big or go home,” and started training. I began at Planet Fitness on the treadmill at two and a half miles per hour for twenty minutes, and I thought I was going to die. But, I came back the next day, and the next, to do the same 20 minutes. I gradually added speed, and within six months I was at five miles per hour and level twenty on the incline setting. I was rockin’ it! I did 5k, 10k, and half-marathon walks leading up to the sixty miles as part of the training. My sister and I did that sixty-mile walk together on November 5 through 7, 2010. When I crossed that finish line, I thought it would be all about me and achieving my goal, but it wasn't—it became about being a part of cancer survivors’ lives and their stories of survival. Perhaps, it was a parallel to my own survival. After the 60 miles, I wasn’t done. It was not enough for my recovery. I knew that I had to do more than just walk for my exercise of choice. It had to be extreme in order for me to transform and help other bariatric patients. I wanted to become a runner. I wanted to become a trainer, a coach a support person for those who were trapped inside their own bodies. I was back at the gym for treadmill training and using the roads near my home. For the next four months, I trained for my first half-marathon run. I had a big setback on January 11, 2011, when I hurt my knee, but I persisted. I did the elliptical machine at 2:30 am every morning s and added weight circuit training. When I completed the half-marathon run in March 2011, I had my “ah-ha” moment. I made it. It was such a feeling of accomplishment—I passed level one, and I was on my way to achieving my fitness goals. Weight loss is such a personal journey. It was important to learn what made me “tick” so I could succeed. This applied to my physical well being, and I had to have a fitness goal. Before I finished my half marathon, I was already looking to the next goal. When I was younger, I took a body conditioning class and always thought it would be cool to be part of a body building competition. So, I hired a dear friend and personal trainer, Mr. Calvin Todd, in January 2011, and started my training for the November 2011 Lackland Classic Body Building Competition at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas. I was self conscious about the sagging skin from my weight loss, which was not a pretty sight. Calvin guaranteed that if I put the work into this, my sagging skin would go away. He was right. I recently finished two body building competitions. I placed third in Novice on November 12, 2011, and placed first in Novice on November 19, 2011. I received my certification in personal training and certification in nutrition. I want to start exercise classes for bariatric patients since I know how intimidating the gym can be for an obese person. I don’t want anyone to feel the way I did when I was contemplating the gym. My weight loss journey has been such a growing experience for me both physically and emotionally. My new goal is to help others reach their potential by motivating them in their own weight loss journey—nothing could be better than to witness someone else get their “ah-ha” moment. May the glory be given to God!
