Beating the Bulge
Post workers win war of weight loss
July 30, 2004
By Patricia Radcliffe
Steering clear of stomach stapling or fad diets like the current zero-carb craze, three Fort Monroe employees have found that Holy Grail of better health that so many of us search for everyday.
Mary Hall, a grandmother who just wanted to be in better shape; Capt. Demetris Bryant, a new mom with “baby fat” to dump; and Richard Booker whose physique vanished little by little over a period of years whipped themselves into shape by shedding 18, 55 and even 100 pounds.
The three agreed to share their experiences with the Casemate in hopes of inspiring others to follow their lead. And their stories have a good moral … slimmer waistlines and better health are just a fitness center away.
“I developed what I call ‘medically induced diabetes,’” said Booker who smilingly described himself as having had a ‘big, round head’ when he weighed 318 pounds. “I was given high blood pressure medicine that made my weight increase.”
One of the main reasons for his high blood pressure was inactivity, said the Directorate of Information Management employee. And the weight gain compounded the problem — he became diabetic and that led to depression. He was taking at least 10 pills a day to combat the three maladies.
After gaining 30 pounds in one month, he found a diabetes specialist who recommended that he begin a program of healthy eating, not deprivation, and exercise — only 15 minutes a day to start. Booker listened and, a year later, he is over 100 pounds lighter and no longer needs the prescription medicines.
“You have to look at the big picture,” said Jeannette Coffman, Fort Monroe’s Fitness and Wellness Program coordinator. “People have the greatest successes if they have a food plan and an exercise plan. They complement each other.
“Diet sounds like something dying … ACK,” said Coffman, enclosing her neck in her hands as if to strangle herself. “People need a food plan. We have financial plans and exercise plans, why not a food plan?
“Our bodies are like fine-tuned pieces of equipment — deluxe automobiles. To feel your best and do your best, put the best in. We use good quality oils and gas in the car, why not eat well,” she said.
Food and exercise plans have been paramount to Bryant’s success. As a Soldier at the Futures Center, she was concerned about her appearance in uniform and losing battles with stress, especially at home.
“My husband tried to console me with comments like, ‘You know, whenever somebody is pregnant, they gain weight,’” she said deepening her voice, raising her shoulders and doing a “man walk” to imitate her husband.
Bryant said that she picked up a lot more weight during her second pregnancy than she did during her first one. Even though her husband tried to console her, at 220 pounds, this 5-foot-7-inch tall woman was still frustrated.
She started exercising at home using Taebo tapes and often found it necessary to pick up her new baby during the routine. But, she “kept on kicking.”
Bryant also reduced her intake of “white things” – rice, potatoes and processed foods – and successfully lost about 25 pounds. Then, the weight loss stopped. The fat wouldn’t budge; she needed something else. One of her coworkers suggested she give the Fitness Center a try and she did.
Now, encouraged by her boss, she makes an almost daily trek from her office to the gym on post for her workout. She has dropped 30 pounds since March.
“Anybody who tries to change their body image by diet alone is just fighting half the battle,” Coffman said. “If they add exercise, it’s like the right and left hand, they fit together and form a pair.”
Furthermore, exercise generally helps to curb the appetite, she explained. It also increases metabolism, and you’re more like likely to migrate to nutritional foods because you are trying to enhance your athletic performance.
“If you add 300 to 500 calories worth of exercise every day, and you take a 300 to 500 reduction in your caloric intake, that 1,000 calories a day will result in weight loss,” Coffman said. “That’s why people who diet and exercise find a greater measure of success.”
For those wondering what it takes to achieve 300 to 500 calories worth of exercise, Coffman offered the following examples. Usually you burn about 100 calories a mile running. Walking is a little less, about 60 calories, depending on the intensity. In a 45-minute group cycling class, you’ll burn approximately 600 calories.
And it doesn’t hurt to start looking at food in terms of what it will equate to in exercise, Coffman noted. “A Hershey kiss is about 30 calories. You can run that mile to have three kisses. So, if you look at those equivalencies, maybe, you won’t want those Hershey’s kisses. If I didn’t have to have the mayo on this, I wouldn’t have to run that mile.”
Establishing a routine is also vital to the success of a good fitness program, as Hall learned. She began her exercise program to simply strengthen her body and hopefully avoid the need for surgery for an injury she sustained in a minor accident.
She started out with a Microfit assessment, which shows strength and flexibility levels. Then she began working with a certified personal trainer, William “Russ” Russell.
“Russ set up a program and concentrated on certain areas,” Hall said. “When I go in there, he’ll tell me what (weight) machines to work on that day. Russ makes sure I use the proper form and pushes me to work harder. You need the encouragement from the trainers.”
The fitness center also has more to offer than one-on-one training, as Bryant discovered … she jumped right into aerobics classes.
“I started with Ralph Kelly’s cardio kick class. At the end he said, when we come back Wednesday, we will do this, and I thought, ‘Wow, I can come back Wednesday,’” Bryant said, sounding delightfully surprised. “This is a first-class fitness facility with first-rate personal trainers. I think everyone should work out here.”
Despite her enthusiasm, Bryant said she realizes it hard for some folks to hone in on the health and well being that seems to resonate through the Fitness Center. Some, like Booker, had a hard time getting through the front door.
“The hardest thing I ever did was come to the Fitness Center for fear of being laughed at because I was so huge,” Booker said. “I came over a couple of days and just observed the people going in and out.”
After seeing people with whom he could relate, he made his primary visit to the Fitness Center and started his 15 minutes of exercise. After a couple of workouts, he was approached by a staff member who encouraged him to continue. He was surprised.
“We are a close-knit group,” Coffman said. “We can key in on that new face and say, ‘oh, that person is new so they may need some help.’ And we’re quick to bring them into the fold, because we know we might have just that right program or class that they’ll enjoy and will keep them coming back.”
Booker now works out for about an hour every day. Using an elliptical machine, he has carved out a new physique. His former 52-inch waist is now a svelte 32 inches.
Hall, who works out three to four times a week, also advises: “keep working at it. It may seem like a long, drawn-out process, but I feel so good after a workout that I sometimes even go home and mow the grass. It’s kind of like running; the first mile is the hardest.”
“I’ve talked with people who are nervous … they haven’t exercised for years, and they don’t want to do too much,” Bryant said. “But I keep trying to encourage them to come out. All it takes is a little time and effort.”
Source:http://tradoc.monroe.army.mil
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