Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition - Sally

Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition - Sally

I took a study break yesterday and watched the episode on demand that I had missed.  Ironically, it on again later in the night.  Wow, what a great episode!

So we meet Sally in Washington DC.  She is 45.  For most of her life she was athletic and fit.  She was a swimmer.  In her 20's she fell down the stairs and broke her leg.  It was bad.  She needed 5 surgeries and had to relearn how to walk.  Today she is married and has a 3yr old boy.  And she's 200lbs overweight.

One day while she was watching football they had put up the stats of the linemen and she realized that she was bigger than they were.

After the surgeries she lost her job.  Her pain makes it difficult to work so she got certified to be a tour guide.  While she was giving a tour by the Lincoln Memorial Chris surprised her.

He immediately takes her to Boot Camp.  You know the first thing he asks is : Where do you want to be?  She wants to surf again!  She used to live in a bathing suit, and now she only goes to pools where she doesn't know anyone.

So it's time for the weigh in. "I make jokes, but it's not funny."  She weighs in at 335lbs. Chris talks to her about how she's different than many of his clients because she was fit once.  She says it happened over years in small increments.  I feel her pain.

Trainer Tip: Give yourself a milestone.  A 5K, a marathon, a triathlon.  So you are not just working out, you are training too.

First stop is with the Nutritionist.  They are going to make Shrimp and Chicken fajitas.

Sally's plan will be 5 meals a day at 300 calories each. She will have 3 weights days and 6 cardio days.  The big change will be NO SODA.  She was consuming 5lbs of sugar a week in soda alone. In fact, they kept it in the produce drawer...instead of produce.

Next stop is a visit with the doctor to discuss her knee.  She had broken 30 bones and has an intense fear of injury.  Completely understandable. Chris made her promise that she will never use that as an excuse.

So during her first workouts she mentions that she is a 48DDD.  It's extremely discouraging.  Right there with ya sister!  Chris has her do the sled.  That's pushing weights across the room on a sled like contraption.  The way your body is bent over and you are pushing induces panic breathing and fear. Sally breaks down.  She is grieving her lost body and the damage she's done to herself.

It's time to go home.  Chris gives her the goal for Phase 1: 85lbs.  If she makes it she gets a makeover and a shopping spree.

Nutrition Tip:  Know the good nuts from the bad.  Good nuts: walnuts, almonds, and pistachios.  Bad nuts: Cashews and Macadamias.

Chris has Sally do squats against the wall.  She struggles mightily.  He tells her that it's time to "Get comfortable with being uncomfortable."  She succeeds and says "I love you hate you Chris."  Just love him.

This change in her life is causing struggles with her husband.  They go out to dinner and she orders healthy, while he still orders what they used to eat.  It was so heartbreaking to watch him eat chips and queso in front of her.  Support is soooo important.

It's time for the first weigh in.  She weighs in at 258lbs.  She misses her goal by 8lbs.

Chris: Those couple of slips kept her from it.

But, let's look at the positive. She lost 77lbs!

Chris gives her the 6 month goal before he leaves: 50lbs...and a surfing trip.

We see her in the gym and at a bowling party. Bah.  Pizza, cake, punch..."I'll stick to the bowling." GO GIRL!

So she breaks down and says that it's difficult because her husband does not share her desire to surf or go to the gym.  Going out to dinner was their way to connect with each other.  Things are getting to her and Chris is watching on the webcam.  At day 120 he shows up and tells her he's going to weigh her.  In the 30 days he's been gone she has gained 5lbs.  He raids her kitchen and finds all kind of junk food.  She says it's all her husbands.  And then she confesses that it's hard on her.  She can't find anyone to relate to.   She doesn't have 'fat' friends.   So Chris sets her up with a therapist. Afterward she felt overwhelming relief.

So Chris calls her family together to talk about the importance of a support system. Her husband tells her he is there for her.  He knows she wants to prove she can do it herself, but she can rely on him.

It's the 6 month weigh in....in Hawaii...ahhhh  She weighs in at 238.  She doesn't make her goal.  Chris says that her biggest problem is her excuses.  He asks her if she still wants to try the surfing.  I would have been easier at 208, but it's up to her.  She says yes!  So he hooks her up with Laird Hamilton who brings along his wife Gabrielle Reece.  She does really well "it wasn't about standing on the board. It was about beating the fear and self doubt."

The goal for phase 3: To get under 200lbs.

Perfection will give her the results she wants, but Chris is worried. So he invites her to come stay with him and his wife Heidi, who is also a trainer, for 2 weeks.  She says yes.

One of the first things they do is set her up with a heart rate monitor.  She had one, but her son lost half of it. Heidi says that her problem is that she doesn't know her limits.  She thinks she is pushing herself harder than she actually is.

At one point Sally gets frustrated and storms into the bathroom.  She is "tired and sick of this". But, they get her back out there and get her to push her heart rate up.  Heidi tells her "You're so much more powerful than you think you are.  You just have to believe it yourself." Then they show her the video she made in the beginning.  She says that it's like being set free after being in jail.

Back home it's a struggle. She is finally working full time again in addition to working out and being a wife and mother.

At the end of Phase 3 it's time to weigh in. When she walks through the door Chris says she looks good, but he doesn't know if she met her goal.  He does see a positive difference though.

She tells him that her boobs hurt. They are too big for her frame now.  But the good news is that she has gone from a pant size 24 to a 12.  She's half her size. Now she's also built quite a bit of muscle. She is losing body fat and gaining muscle. She used to be 51% body fat.  Now she is 29%.

She weighs in and she's at 210. DOH!  she has only lost 37%.  Chris isn't sure if the doctor will allow the surgery.  He doesn't. She has a lot of extra skin, but she still needs to lose a little more.  So he offers that if she gets under 200 for the finale they will re-evaluate.

Time for the final weigh in.  Chris quotes Abraham Lincoln "It's not how many times you fall, it's how many times you get back up."  LOVE THAT.  She lost 138lbs.  She is now 197! WOO WOO.

So she gets re-evaluated and gets her surgery.  The doctor says that she will lose 6 square feet of skin. YIKES.

Several months later she goes to New York to visit with Dr. Ashton.  She pulls out a fajita meal that Sally used to eat.  It was 3700 calories.  There are 3500 calories in a pound of fat.

"I was digging my grave with a fork."

"I brought myself back from the dead.  Physical, emotional and medical."

She looks great and she has worked hard.  It wasn't always easy.  Not everyone can be perfect. That's why I liked her so much.  She succeeded even after all of her struggles.

Chris Powell you are awesome!

****Please note****

If you feel like you are alone on your journey and you just need some encouragement I am here for you! Shoot me an email and I will do my best to check in on you or give you the words of support you need several times a week. The journey is so much easier if you have support.


jhendersonfit@gmail.com

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