In his 20’s and 30’s, Hayes was always able to lose weight. The problem? He always gained it back. Recently, after completing his annual labs, and at well over 200 pounds, Hayes found himself unhappy. At age 50, he was troubled that the tools he relied on to lose weight were no longer working for him. Hayes joined Take Control, turning to Coach Linda to learn simple lifestyle changes that would keep the weight off for good.
Hayes describes his weight as a “rollercoaster” over the last few years. Finding time for himself is tricky as a busy professional and father who travels often for work and keeps up with his teenage daughters’ busy sports schedules. As a result, his health often fell to the back burner.
When he started adding the monthly coaching calls with Linda to his calendar, he realized the extra time set aside to focus on himself did not disrupt the rest of his day. As Hayes analyzed his routines and how he spent his time, he realized setting better boundaries and increasing his efficiency were keys to achieving his health goals. He knew that if he could commit to a one-hour call, there was no reason he could not commit to 10-minute breaks during the day to benefit his health. “It is a matter of wanting to do something,” Hayes says, “there were ways I was wasting time during my day, now I’m more thrifty with my time and less wasteful of it too.”
Hayes fits several short walks into his day making sure he prioritizes time for himself to get his body moving. While traveling for work, he remains flexible noting that if he is driving in the morning, he makes it a non-negotiable to walk at lunchtime or in the afternoon. He also aims for at least four days of weight training or cardio at the gym.
With a new mindset in place, Hayes and Coach Linda began working on a nutrition plan to suit his busy lifestyle. Hayes began reducing his carbohydrate intake and learned to pay attention to nutrition labels. While on the road for work, he began buying snacks that would sustain him for a long drive instead of causing a sugar crash. Coach Linda notes that as young adults, it can be easy to let ourselves off the hook when we give in to tempting foods, but that as we get older, we can learn to let go of foods that no longer fit our lifestyle.
Hayes’ biggest “Aha!” moment during the program was learning to embrace getting older and making changes to remain healthy for the long term. “The best thing to do is have an open mind, listen to your coach’s suggestions, explore them, and be willing to accept change when what you were doing on your own is no longer working.” Hayes learned that aging means making room for permanent lifestyle changes, rather than temporary ones. “I can’t change my behaviors for six months and then go back to the way I used to do things,” he says. Hayes plans to remain active as he ages and wants to keep up with his daughters now, and in the future. As a family they enjoy hunting, hiking, and playing sports. “I don’t want to have to sit back and rest. I want to be at the front of the trail, not on the bench.”
Results:
• Reduced body weight by 13%.
• Lowered cholesterol by 45 points: LDL by 24 points, triglycerides by 35 points.
• Vitamin D level now in normal range
