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Missouri
State
King
John Spinola
114.50 pounds lost
I joined
TOPS Mo #330 at beginning of January 2007 weighing 313.5 lbs. I was
already down from my high in 2006 of 327 lbs. I started watching the TV
show “The Biggest Loser” and decided if those contestants could lose
large amounts of weight through diet and exercise, then I could too. I
was inspired to join TOPS in a chance meeting on New Years Day 2007 with
TOPS members Willis & Pauline Lollar while taking our first walk at the
mall. They invited us to join their chapter of TOPS. I visited and
joined TOPS a few days later. My wife Cathy, joined the following week.
My goal when I first joined was to lose 1 lb a week and once I reached
that goal, then lose 1 lb more. This allowed me to have small successes
to keep me motivated and not to think about how far I had yet to go to
reach my goal weight. I wanted to move from morbidly obese, to obese and
then to just overweight and so on. My TOPS chapter provided weekly
encouragement and that kept me going. It helped being accountable by
having to face the scale every week.
There is no magic bullet or shortcut, just a lot of hard work and
determination. You must get your mind set in the right place first in
order to succeed. You have to convince yourself that you CAN DO this. My
wife, Cathy, adjusted all her recipes to reduce fats, sugars, and
calories. We began to eat smaller portions, make better food choices,
eating more fruits & vegetables and I got into a regular exercise
routine. I couldn’t do a lot at first, but gradually made improvement
until I now workout 4 or 5 times a week for about 90 minutes each. I
usually get up at 4:30 am to get to the guy by 5:30 am and workout until
about 7:00 am. My routine now includes 2-3 miles on the treadmill, 2-3
miles on the stationary bike, 20-30 minutes in an elliptical machine and
two repetitions of 15 to 20 on each of about 8 or 10 pieces of weight
circuit equipment. My trainer at the NKC Community Center Gym, Bob,
helps by always providing me with compliments on my improvement. I
supplement this with periodic water aerobics, taking 3-mile walks,
hiking nature trails, playing senior softball, keeping up with 3 active
granddaughters, and doing some calisthenics at home. One of my
granddaughters, Skyler, also gave me advice. She said “papa”, you must
eat more fruit like strawberries, and go for long walks. She was only 5
through 7 years old during my weight loss, but she always asked how I
did weekly at TOPS and that made me feel good. Being able to be more
active with the grandkids is a real incentive and I hope to be around
longer now to be able to see them grow up.
TOPS provided me with the emotional and psychological support I needed.
It made me feel great to receive praise from my fellow chapter members
each week. It’s very important to make it a priority to attend meetings
regularly, even when you think you might show an occasional weight gain.
Those are only bumps in the road to reaching your ultimate destination.
If you don’t map out your plans on where you want to go, you can get
lost and never get there. It’s not all looking better but a lot if it is
about just feeling better and being healthier. I eliminated several
prescription medications and a sleep apnea CPAP machine along the way.
You will notice that your increased energy will allow you to interact
more socially. Try to stay grounded and remember that you are still the
same person inside and out and that only your outward appearance
changed.
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Missouri State Queen
Irene
Christopher
115.25 pounds lost
I grew up on a farm in Oklahoma. Since my dad had no son to help
with the farm work, I did the work of a man (and everything was done the
old-fashioned, HARD way) until the summer between my junior and senior
year of high school. Working from four o’clock in the morning until
after dark at night can burn LOTS of calories. Since we were farmers, we
had plenty of food and ate much of it fried-and lots of sweets.
I worked away from home after my junior year of high school. That’s when
the overweight battle began.
Several times through the years I lost weight, even as much as forty
pounds. Within a year or two of “dieting” and losing, those pounds and
more were back. Twice I joined and lost weight at clubs.
After retiring from teaching, I joined TOPS#MO502, Wright City on
February 1, 2006 at a weight of 260.25 pounds and wearing a size twenty
to twenty-two. From then until I reached my goal on October 1, 2008, I
lost most weeks with only a very few small gains along the way.
My first loss was nine pounds. After that, it was one-fourth to three
pounds usually.
I have not “dieted”. My lifestyle has changed. All foods are in my
eating plan. I do not write down anything, count calories, or weigh or
measure my food. Smaller portions and cutting down on seasonings like
butter, cream, oils, shortening and sweets have been my biggest assets.
I use sugar-free, fat-free and lite foods as much as possible.
Many days I have quoted the Scripture to myself, “I can do all things
through Christ which strengthen me.”, and asked God for endurance for
the day. He has been faithful.
My plan for the future is to remain in my VERY supportive TOPS group as
long as I am able to meet with them and maintain my goal.
Many thanks go to my husband and my TOPS chapter for their
encouragement. With their help I can move around and feel better than I
could twenty years ago.
And it was with their help I lost 115.25 pounds to reach my goal in
2008.
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