YOUR Story

We want to hear from YOU. We want to be encouraged by your successes as you have waged the war against excess weight and other health matters. In each issue of our newsletter we will print one or more stories as we all try to encourage and inspire one another to stay the course. Submissions must be less than 1000 words and may be emailed to peter@speakwell.com. Please include your name and your city.

From "Fats" to "Fit"

Ihad many nicknames while growing up. The one that still, at times, reverberates in my head was that coined by my younger twin brothers during my pre-adolescent years – "Fats." We three used to hangout in a downstairs rec room on an old settee swaddled in blankets while eating Alpha-bits and ice cream, watching television or playing marathon games of cards or monopoly. The sound was always "Fats, move over," or "Ha ha, Fats you lose." Despite my mother's pleas for politeness, the name stuck for years until my brothers matured. The irony was that, as a child, I wasn't particularly overweight. Between the nickname and the girdles, which my mother insisted, I wear during my teen years (in hindsight more likely to prevent pregnancy than anything else) I was certainly of the opinion that I was anything but small. As a teenager and into my early twenties, I was 5' 8" tall and weighed 135 lbs. I regularly played school sports and both swam and played badminton competitively. During university and dormitory life, I gained twenty-five to thirty pounds, but by my mid twenties I was running six or seven miles a day and had dropped to an all time low of 119 lbs.

And then things, from a weight perspective, began to unravel. I married which encompassed a different set of interests (I no longer ran) and was promoted and chained to long hours behind a desk. With three children cursed with a multitude of health problems and subsequent hospitalizations there was no time for myself. My asthma, which I now realize had been kept in check with regular exercise and, more latterly running, increased. Unavoidable exposures to allergens in my work environment simply exacerbated the problem. And so, the weight slowly increased. I worked in Public Health Nursing and knew the weight was not healthy and like so many who diet my weight yo-yoed up and down. My eating habits were fairly good, however, exercise was an enormous chore. I would begin exercising but be forced to stop as my asthma took control. By 1996, I coughed almost incessantly and gasped and wheezed mid-sentence. I was also quite edematous. My physician described my fingers as sausages growing larger with every visit. For ten years I endured this hell.

During January 2006, a friend mentioned she had signed up with a personal trainer. However, she said that at my age and with my health challenges I would never survive! (I was, by this time, 56). My physician had encouraged me to use a personal trainer for five years, but I simply did not have the energy to consider it. It was all I could do to make it through a full day. Despite all this something nudged me to explore the idea.

After some tests and physician approval, my journey began the first week of February 2006. Initially, I could only walk one lap of a treadmill – zero incline – in fifteen to seventeen minutes, coughing and wheezing from even this light exertion. Results with weights were a little better but a definite challenge. In truth, there was no enjoyment, but my trainer was patient and slowly, at least in my core stability and strength, I improved. Despite this, my cardio endurance was still extremely low and the body weight and edema remained. On July 5, 2006, I changed trainers and, subsequently, both my routine and my diet. I had never added salt to my food but now I became obsessive about avoiding it completely. I also avoided sulfites. Concurrently with my dietary changes, my trainer began to increase my cardio workouts and I increased them at home. For the first time in years I rode an exercise bike and slowly I burned an extra 200 calories a day working up to three and four thousand calories daily. Every training session I produced these numbers for him. Some days I was so exhausted that I held a pillow in my arms with my head resting on it (no easy chore). I also used a pedometer to measure my steps and followed the 10,000 steps a day rule. I was determined and, I think, compulsive because I had to record the results and report them regularly to my trainer. I never went to bed without completing both the required cycling and walking. I could have cheated and fudged the results but I realized this would only be cheating myself. Ryan, my trainer and I became a team and as a team member I realized I had a commitment. Ryan's responsibility was to guide me, push me, encourage me, keep my body in proportion, and keep me safe from injury. Mine was to eat well, drink water and deliver an increasing daily calorie count (from exercise) to him. We worked well as a team. Between mid-October, 2006, and May 2007, I shed 80 pounds and lost 20 plus percent in body fat. In my mind "at least 100 pounds."

Early in 2007, Ryan suggested that I should run a marathon. By this time I was running at the top incline (13) on the treadmill and usually from 6 to 8 M.P.H. for extended periods of time. During April, I mapped out a 9.1 km route and an 18 km running route. At first I walked/ran, then I ran/walked until I could run the whole way. It did not happen overnight. The 18 km route felt more comfortable and it wasn't long before I was doing it two days a week. About July, I decided I could run not merely a 10 km race but a half marathon – Oct 7, 2007.

And then – Aug 28 – I found myself in hospital with a complete small bowel obstruction, emergency surgery and several days in hospital. With no food I lost 11 pounds. I was weak but with my surgeon's approval and encouragement I was back at exercise as soon as I was discharged. I still had my surgical staples. It was only five weeks until the Royal Victoria Half Marathon.

And then – less than two weeks after my surgery – I was hospitalized for several more days with a second bowel obstruction. To say I was devastated would be an understatement. Friends, family and hospital staff suggested that I should delay my run for a year. But the run had become my carrot, and, in my mind, was paired with losing the one hundred pounds. My surgeon became my champion. He said "never let others dissuade you from your ideals or dreams." My trainer echoed this sentiment. However, a week or so before the half marathon I was terrified. I didn't feel in control of my breathing or that my strength was returning fast enough. To combat the fear the following morning, I ran 17 km to prove to myself that I could do it. I took the bus home on the eighteenth and last kilometer. My time was not Olympian but I knew I could run the distance.

Dawn – Oct 7. I was calm, determined, and my resolve was unshakeable. Time was not the focus. I simply wanted to finish. The first few kilometers were difficult. My breathing was ragged, my legs felt like lead and my incision hurt. The downhill stretch on Dallas Road gave me a boost, so did friends who waved their greetings and shouted encouragement along the route. My sons also running but far ahead of me looped back and hollered "Hi Mom," as they passed. Those around me laughed. Before I knew it I was on the way back. Ryan thought, because of my hospitalizations, that I might, with a good run, complete the half in a minimum of 2 hours and 50 minutes. Imagine how thrilled and proud I was when I finished it in 2 hours, 22 minutes and 18 seconds. Fifty-eighth (my age) out of the 150 in my age group!

In life, many of us are faced with what we believe to be insurmountable difficulties. I certainly had that mind set for years. Since my teenage years I had always thought that I was fat. Only recently did I realize that during much of my adolescence I was simply of average weight. I hope my journey may provide some incentive to others to at least consider attempting to climb the mountain. The task is not without difficulty but there are kindred spirits along the journey whom provide empathy, encouragement and assistance. My losing weight, and then running the half marathon would have been impossible without the unwavering support, encouragement and benevolent pushing to excel from my personal trainer. Since losing weight and improving my overall health, I have been informed by at least four physicians, in frightening terms, that, in all probability, had I not radically altered my lifestyle, I would have experienced major organ failures within two years. Now that is an incentive to run for your life! :: Brenda Simeoni

A Healthy BEVerage

 by Bev Mason

In 2003 I had been working at Speakwell for 2 years. It had been a time of turmoil with the death of both of my parents followed quickly by my separation and subsequent divorce after 28 years of marriage. Both of my children were quickly becoming independent adults so I was entering the empty nest years.

The weight gain was gradual at first and hardly noticed until my cousin sent me a photo. She'd visited me in my newly-single apartment and took a photo of me as a very proud owner of a PT Cruiser. She'd also remarked in her letter how much I was starting to look like my mother! My mother had always been a big woman (read overweight) and I was shocked at the truth of her statement. The weight gain that had been so gradual had become a stark reality.

Speakwell is all about wellness – physical, mental and emotional. I'd been working in that terrific environment, typing articles about exercise and nutrition, listening to our inspiring wellness speakers and hearing many personal stories of success. I can't remember the exact day but I do remember how I felt when the realization hit that these stories and suggestions about nutrition and exercise didn't just apply to others but to me. The thought that I could take charge and change my way of life and become physically the person I wanted to be was a revelation.

If I said that I immediately started dieting and exercising I'd be lying but the seed was planted. I started taking a daily walk at lunchtime, which became so enjoyable that it was the part of my day I looked forward to the most. Some days I added a stop on the way home from work for another walk; along the beach, down an inviting trail or even window-shopping. At that time, Speakwell was doing research and testing on a wide variety of makes and models of pedometers and I got hooked. This testing led to our importing the reliable and accurate model we now sell with such success. I started wearing one of these every day and watched the steps add up with excitement.

The next phase was calorie restriction – nothing drastic, but I began to watch the 'distracted eating'. I was doing and make better choices about meals. The weight started to drop so I walked more and ate less. After 20 lbs of weight loss I felt great and my friends and sons were so supportive and excited for me. A Curves opened up in my neighborhood so I joined and the easy 'no thinking' workout on their hydraulic circuit was where the inches melted away and I actually started to see muscles for the first time in my life. Curves is not only where I work out but the women I've met there have become friends and I'm eager to see them each week to catch up with what's going on in each other's lives. The trainers are wonderful: enthusiastic and supportive – a great environment to keep me on track and I've now done over 400 workouts.

The most surprising part for me was the realization that my body was waiting for the change and responded so well. I looked better in my late 40s that I had in my 30s. My favorite activity was shopping for new, form-fitting and stylish clothes and getting rid of my 'fat' clothes – the ones that were merely cover-ups. Last Christmas I actually wore a bikini in Mexico – a first since my late teens.

One thing I've totally integrated is that weight maintenance is a lifetime commitment, not something I can do for a while and then go back to old habits and expect to keep fit. I weigh myself regularly and go back to caloric restriction when needed. When my activity levels start to slow down I give myself a shake and get back on track – it's what I do for me (a concept that's taken me a long time to grasp) and I've resolved never to let circumstances lead me away from the healthy, active life I'm enjoying now. :: Bev Mason