52 Weeks Older - - - 52 Kilograms Lighter


A lot has happened in the last few days. Friday marked the 12 month anniversary of my Lapband surgery for morbid obesity and on Sunday I was part of a successful triathlon team representing the Gold Coast Obesity Surgery Centre!

Review of the last 12 months:

Total weight loss of 52 kg in 52 weeks;
Cholesterol levels have gone from high to v good;
Resting blood pressure down 160/100 to 120/80;
Gastric reflux is totally gone;
I can sleep the entire night now;
I no longer have knee pain;
I can now walk/run 10 kilometres;
Trouser size has reduced from 142cm to 102cm;
I can comfortably sit in movie theatres;
I fit into economy plane seats;
I am not stared at when going to the shops;
I look a million bucks;
People treat me as ‘normal’


The Noosa Triathlon – Decision Time

My long term goals include getting under 100kg and running a full marathon. Since having the surgery I've done my best to achieve both by building up to a 60 minute daily walk.

Twelve weeks ago I received an email asking if I would like to do the run leg of the 2005 Noosa Triathlon along with two other lap banders from the Gold Coast Obesity Surgery Centre. At first I was reluctant because I had not started jogging yet and from previous experience I knew that there was barely enough time to build up to 10km.

However, after thinking more about it I figured it would be the perfect excuse to begin my marathon training and, if the team did manage to finish the event, we would prove to others and ourselves that our previous obesity was NOT due to a lack of will power.

The Noosa Triathlon – Build Up

The following day I got serious about my training and, with the help of a personal training friend, devised a program of jogging 3 days a week and walking twice a week that would let me build up to 30 minutes of continuous jogging in the week prior to the triathlon.

The first day I barely managed to jog 5 minutes before collapsing in a heap. But surprisingly I felt great afterwards and by the 8th week of training, I was up to running 20 minutes every second day.

It was at this time I contacted the other two competitors (Julia the cyclist and Jeremy the swimmer). Each of us had our own story of success and each of us was determined not to let the side down.

With 4 weeks remaining, I was feeling very confident. I felt fine increasing my distances and was really enjoying the feeling of freedom that comes with running. It was then that disaster struck (well a bit of a set back anyway).

The Noosa Triathlon – Things Go Bad

With about 3 weeks to go, I went for a 20 minute jog only to find myself with severe back pain that night.

By the morning it had subsided and two days later I decided to try it again. My back felt terrible. Even walking hurt so I decided to go to a doctor. He told me not to jog for a couple of weeks so as to allow my back time to heal - - - aaarrrrrggggghhhh!

So I walked a bit and prayed a lot and just a couple of days prior to the race my back was free of pain. I only hoped I hadn’t lost too much fitness in the two weeks and that my flu would go away before the Sunday!


The Noosa Triathlon – The Big Day Arrives

Woken by my alarm at 3am, I groggily arose from a fitful sleep, had a coffee, a light breakfast and left home at 4am to meet my fellow team mates at the Noosa Sheraton.

The trip to Noosa only took one 90 minutes so I sat in the lobby until my team mates and Felicity arrived. We then registered in the main tent and waited for a couple of hours before the start of the teams division. It was good to hear about the others success stories following Lapband surgery.

All throughout the day a film crew from Today Tonight followed our athletic endeavours so this gave us even more incentive to put our all into it! After all, nobody wants to be shown as a quitter on national TV!

Our first team member Jeremy thought he would swim the 1.5km distance in 45 minutes. He did the team proud by coming in under 30 minutes which was an awesome achievement! I’m sure with that sort of effort he is going to do well in his university degree.

He then changed over to our cycling guru, Julia who in an effort to find out how long it would take her to cycle 40km, did it the previous day in 2 hours. ‘Crikey’ I thought to myself!

Then, while waiting for Julia, the heavens opened and all the runners including myself got absolutely saturated. Finally the rain stopped, the sun came out (at around 30 degrees mind you) and Julia returned some half an hour earlier than expected.

The Noosa Triathlon – My Finest Hour

My heart beated a little faster as Julia handed over to me. My saturated clothes tugged at me and felt confining as I started running through the muddy puddles and grass. Presently I made it to the road and the course proper.

Within a couple of minutes I thought ‘oh, oh, I’m in trouble here’. I was used to running 3-4 km in a cool dry climate and here I was attempting 10km in high heat and humidity. My plan of running the entire way was already in jeopardy.

I was alone running in one direction with the majority of the pack coming towards me on the other side of the road. After about 10 minutes I was exhausted and waiting for the 1km mark where my friend Nina had agreed to meet me. Nina is an awesome athlete and was in Noosa that day just to help me get through this race. I doubt I could have made it without her – go you good thing Nina!

Finally Nina joined me and we stopped to walk through a drinks station. I then decided that I would not be able to get to the finish line unless I walked parts of the course. So that began a walk/run/walk/run schedule for the remainder of the course.

By about 4km every other runner had passed me or pulled out of the race and I was not feeling well at all. I continued to the 6km mark feeling very ill indeed. At one point I remember yelling out aloud ‘just bloody finish Paul’. Spectators and the Marshals on the course were constantly giving me encouragement which was great. I cheekily told Nina that I couldn’t be too bad because I could still check out some beautiful scantily clad ladies that we passed.

At the 7-8km mark I was physically ill and dizzy and Nina had to tell me to slow down my breathing and try to relax more. She also forced me to take a teaspoon of a gel energy replacement which seemed to help but tasted bloody awful! At least I kept it down and the dizzy feeling went away. I tried drinking some energy drink but couldn’t stomach it.

At about 9km we could see the finish line and I tried to run again but soon stopped feeling quite dizzy. I thought of stopping but quickly corrected myself by remembering what we had all been through just to get here and if the rest of my team could make it then so bloody well could I. Fellow competitors including the all time champion Pat Carroll cheered me on as if I was the first placed runner.

At about 500 metres I once again tried to run home but the dizziness came back so I started walking. Finally with about 100 metres remaining Nina said ‘go for it Paul’ and I raised a final effort to make it to the finish line. The last 30 metres or so I ‘sprinted’ with a chorus of applause seeming to engulf me. I honestly think I could not have made another kilometre.

I made it to the finish line amidst simultaneous feelings of pride, satisfaction and hurt. I was told by the camera crew that my face was a picture of pain at the time.

I felt faint as was sat down and given some cold water. The medical people made sure I didn’t have any chest pain. Once I had recovered slightly the commentator came down to interview me.

He asked about my triathlon history and I told him the story of our team and that we were dedicating our ‘WIN’ to all the obese people who feel there is no hope and that they are doomed to less than a good life because of their weight. We proved that with Lapband and some common sense eating and exercise miracles can happen! We also showed that our previous obesity was not due to a lack of willpower on our part but rather a terrible disease. I wasn’t comfortable with all the attention I was getting as this was a 3 person effort and I shouldn’t be singled out just because I was less fit than the others. But so long as the message gets out, I’m happy (though I might cut my hair short once the Today Tonight story goes to air (insert smiley face).

Not being the most affluent runner and a hefty 4E in shoe width, I also cheekily asked for a shoe sponsorship but nothing has come of that yet (insert another smiley face).

After the commentator had finished with me, a gorgeous athletic woman came over and thanked me and the team for inspiring other obese people. She herself had an eating disorder that she fought for many years. I was gobsmacked at this and felt immensely proud of Jeremy, Julia and my efforts.

I must point out that it probably wasn’t good judgment for me to continue running once I became distressed, but I just had to if that makes sense? In future I am going to be much better prepared for my runs.

I'd like to thank all the coolrunners who have given me advice during my short running career.

Take care,

Big Mac

Wow Big Mac! How inspiring.

Well done on such an amazing feat - and by that I mean all of it. Going ahead with the surgery, starting a fitness program, agreeing to do the Tri and then finishing it~!!!

There are times in a run when I think 'shit stuff it I'll stop or walk' and then I think of amazing people like yourself who doesn't give up and it keeps me going to.

Thanks for the material, it's food for thought in many ways. I'll use it in my upcoming race (insert lots and lots of smiley faces!!)

Yeah, that's pretty awesome Big Mac. :)

Great effort. Hang in there you will continue to improve and lose weight.

Cheers Plu

Congratulations Big Mac! An inspiring story and a great team of people around you! Keep us posted - I'm sure there will be many more milestones to come!

one of the cool runners has Lance Armstrong's quote as their byline, goes something like "pain is temporary, quitting is forever"...the feeling of not quitting is also forever - well done big mac!!! will watch the progress with interest
cheers
PH

52kg in 52 weeks :) - that alone is a fantastic achievement, let alone preparing for and doing the tri. Inspirational effort Big Mac!

Well done Big Mac. You are proof that anything is possible. Keep spreading the word by setting such a great example.

Fantastic effort, Big Mac - what a champion!

I see that Greybeard is nearing a milestone of his own - getting very close to one thousand postings!

Congrats Big Mac. Well done!

great effort,Big Mac,It must of been hard work for you to acheive your goals,so I think that it is a credit to your willpower,guts, and determination to lose 52 kg's and run 10 km's with preparation,congratulions and keep up the good work and it will only get easier.

Love to hear that shit Big Mac!

It's moments like these that I run myself and it's the reason I do what I do for a job.

Well done, looking forward to reading about your progress.

Keep at it BigMac. :) You are one really cool runner! B) So far, in one year, you have achieved incredible results, just think what you will achieve in the future! ;)

Keep it up Big Mac, your story is not only an inspiration for the obese but for all of us, your best is yet to come.
A fine achievement B) .

Fantasic Effort Big Mac
your story has been one of the most inspiring I have read.
There are many athletes out there blessed with natural talent and a genetic advantage that may not understand or empathise with everything you have gone through.
What you have achieved so far is a life changing experience which I hope continues on and on.
These memories will live forever and I for one hope that this is only the beginning.
You and your team are an inpiration to everyone that struggles towards a goal when it seems that nature has placed too many barriers in front.
Good luck with your continued training and hope to see you at the Gold Coast Marathon/Half Marathon/10km event in July 2006.
One of those distances might be worth aiming for and I can guarantee the encouragement you will get from other CR's will be awesome.

CATO

I just want to thank all the cool runners for your kind words and encouragement.

It means a lot!

Big Mac

Truly inspirational stuff Big Mac.
Congratulations and well done! Looking forward to future progress reports and more of that never say die attitude! B)

Unreal effort Big Mac! I have absolute respect for anyone who puts in their all, and it sure sounds like that is what you've done.
I'm not a fast runner, but that sort of stuff inspires me to do my best and know it's good enough. I just need to pluck up the courage to enter in the 2006 Gold Coast 1/2 marathon... eep.
Congradulations :D

Dear Big Mac,
First, you'd better change your name to Junior Burger! You are a LEGEND. Congratulations to you and all of your team. This is a huge effort and such a story of encouragement to all of us, regardless of our level of fitness or the distance we currently walk, jog or run.

I also like the comment that someone made about 'pain being short-lived and failure lasting forever'. I'm going to remind myself of that when I attempt my first race on NYE in Perth: 7.5kms.

Top effort!!

Aileen :-)

Big Mac
I have just read your story and I had to swallow a lump in my throat a few times. That is so awesome. My husband and I are about to do our first triathlon together on sunday and I thought I'd look on this page for some inspiration. Now I've got it. We have done sports all our lives, but let ourselves go a bit last year. At the beginning of this year we made the decision to eat healthy food ( with only the odd treat) and get fit. He has dropped 17 kilos and I have dropped 11. A measly figure compared to your effort, but something we were pleased with. We started running, but with both of us having niggly injuries, started the cross training and realised triathlon might be a giggle. I did the (baby) women's one in april and loved it, so we decided to really go for it, enrolled in a swim squad and are now training 6 times a week. I can't wait for sunday. I'm a SHOCKING swimmer still, compared to most of the rest of the population, but a strong cyclist and runner. Trouble is I know I will be hurting so much from the swim that my best phases will hurt the most. On Sunday, when I see the finish line and my legs and lungs are screaming at me to stop, I will be thinking of your amazing courage. Thank you for inspring us all to push that little bit harder.
Anyone who ever thinks " I can't" should read your story.
Well done :D

Big Mac,

Congratulations to yourself and the rest of your tri team. An outstanding effort.

Elite world-class athletes are inspiring; we stand in awe of what they achieve, but we cannot really relate to their efforts as >99.99% of us will never approach those sort of results.

You, on the other hand, are one of us, one of the real, normal, everyday people. Through your post we can all relate to the huge effort, sacrifice and rewards that you have undergone to date.

You can read in these replies the way you have touched people, and the inspiration that you personally have delivered to us all.

I would only ask that you please stay in touch via CoolRunning, because if you get to the Gold Coast next year, whatever event you are in, I would like the privilege of running with you to the finish line.

Keep up the outstanding work Big Mac,
Cheers, Blue Dog. B)

There is a follow-up article in this month's Runner's World. Congratulations again on the transformation, Big Mac!

Yeah thanks Kato - I'm now a media tart chasing free pairs of shoes etc

Now, if I can only find a magazine that will do my story and in return pay the $30,000 it would cost for all the loose skin to be removed - now that would be great!

Sadly I think my 15 minutes of fame is all but over - oh well, back to the real world.

Will be doing the 1500m swim (dog paddle) this year!

Big Mac

.

I just read this, and have such admiration for your courage and story.

I'm one of the bigger runners, and I'm slow. (But way faster than sitting on the couch!) Building exercise into my life, as something that is done as almost top priority (definitely top 3, in no particular order : work, running, my family) has helped me get rid of 14 kg in a year.

Thank you for sharing this with us. The worst thing about my top weight was that I had problems believing I could reverse the trend. You did, and I am, and let's keep getting faster and better.

Emma

Congratulations Big Mac, keep up the great work !!!

I'll be thinking of you as inspiration out there when it get's a little tough on the lonely long runs.

Thanks for that great post.

Cheers,

Mars 2