Saturday Interview day!


Well, I decided to do something new for Saturdays. Every Saturday I will have an interview with someone different. The people will be ones who have lost weight, are loosing weight, or going to loose weight.

This weeks interview is with Tom. His link has been on the side for a while, and I feel it is only fair, and I am honored to have him do my first Saturday Interview. Tom has lost a little over 300 pounds and has gone from wheelchair bound a year ago to riding 10-15miles a day today.


Here are the questions I asked of Tom


Tell us a little bit about your background:
Prior career, professional driver. I've driven everything from a taxi to a stretch limo to a tractor trailer. Before I took up trucking, i was heavily into cycling.

Current weight:
249

Peak weight:
581

What would you say was the turning point?
That would be when I realized I was going to die if I didn't do something about it. I had had my third heart attack, had open nonhealing wounds on my legs, was in congestive heart failure as well as being on insulin for diabetes and oxygen to support my blood oxy saturation. I had an O2 sat lower than many corpses, arterial saturation without oxygen was at 68%. My weight problem, however is from a physiological cause. My pituitary is not completely functional due to a condition called Empty Sella Syndrome. I don't produce all the hormones I am supposed to and have to supplement them artificially.

What has been your most embarassing momment dur to your weight?
When I fell through a hardwood floor, and it required 8 firemen to lift me into the ambulance. I'm not kidding!

Any life restrictions due to your weight?
I was shackled to technology to stay alive, on oxygen @ 7 lpm, stuck in a wheelchair because I couldn't stand up for more than a couple of minutes, couldn't walk more than 50 feet without crushing chest pain, If I wasn't Catholic and it being a mortal sin, I think I would have said enough was enough then!

What is your goal weight:
200 pounds or a bit less

Why did you decide to loose weight?
Should be self explanatory, life was so bad it wasn't worth living. I gambled with the Bariatric Surgery because I was a pretty poor risk, but what was I really risking, a life in hell on earth?

Who was your biggest motivator?
The Grim Reaper......I met him, he's not a very pleasant feller!

Why do diet fads always end in Failure?
Because there aren't any short term fixes to a weight problem. Either you are willing to modify your lifestyle and diet to reflect a healthy one or you aren't. Sometimes it requires extreme choices on your part, but in the long run it is worth it!

Why do most people fail at weight loss?
Well, it's a combination of factors. Discouragement, the people around you unknowingly sabotaging your efforts, an inability to cope with the changes in your life, for yourself AND the people around you. When you start really changing, the people around you start worrying they'll be left behind. In addition, we are so often at such a point that what we eat is the only real control we have over our own lives, so we indulge that freedom. In other cases, we eat for comfort. Food is a drug. Eating stimulates endorphins and it makes you feel better, it modifies our seratonin balance, as well, so we feel better if we have problems with too rapid an uptake of seratonin and the nutrients slow it up for us. Depressed people often use food for comfort, then feel guilty then eat to feel better, then feel guilty..........it's called a negative feedback cycle and can indicate an eating disorder Elements of compulsion can factor in. Often, in these cases, psychological intervention is required as well as medical. Weight control really needs to be addressed with a multidisciplinary approach. Cognitive-behavioral approaches seem to work best, with plenty of emotional support as well as a bit of guidance in nutrition. The surgery route really needs to be looked at as a last ditch effort. There are other factors as well, but if I get into them, I promise your readers eyes will glaze over and roll up into the back of their heads because I'm already getting pretty technical. Essentially weight problems are a serious medical, and possibly psychological issue.

Give us one of your most favorite dishes!
Skinless Chicken Breast, broiled, with Lemon Pepper, basted with a tiny bit of olive oil and oregano, with steamed spinach leaves as the vege, a bit of Cottage cheese, and a glass of 1% milk.

What have you gotten back since loosing the weight?
My entire life! I am currently enrolled in College, going after my RN License. I am thinking of going on after my license to get a PhD in Psychology. I want to work in the field of eating disorders. Iy fascinates me and I truly think I have something to offer. I have also gotten back my cyclig! I have gone in the space of a year from a wheelchair to an actively touring cyclist. My first tour in 20+ years had to be cut short due to weather, but I still rode 106 miles in two days on a heavily loaded bike! A year ago, if anyone had told me exactly one year after the surgery that I would be doing that, I would have laughed at them! Cycling has been a godsend to me, as I could exercise without destroying my knees. I also love doing it and it has really helped me by allowing me to accomplish measurable progress physically. I could see myself getting stronger. I am now off ALL of my medications and only use oxygen at night. I still have sleep apnea. Here is a link, by the way, to my first tour writeup over March 11-12.

Do you have a favorite quote:
Who dares, wins all! (British Special Forces: SAS Motto)

What would you say to everyone else trying to lose weight right now?

Do it! It requires a commitment to changing your life! There are no easy fixes or shortcuts that won't adversely affect your health, so make the necessary changes! Up the exercise, eat healthier and stay away from JUNK! If you feed your body junk, that's what you'll get.....a junk body! Change is possible and it won't come from anywhere or anyone else but you! Seek out support, make a realistic plan and set small goals, and work from goal to goal, each leading to the next. If you look at the wehole problem, you'll get lost and shoot yourself in the foot. Remember, if you decide you can't, that will be an accurate prediction! It's called a self fulfilling prophecy! If you decide you CAN, then the sky is the limit! As my favorite quote goes..."Who dares, wins all!" Go for it!


You can visit Tom over at his blog here.