TONY

Weightloss Success

Here is my story about my journey since I had my lapband procedure.

At my heaviest, I weighed 124 kg and whatever diet I went on, nothing seemed to work. I did lose weight on some diets but quickly gain the weight back on and more.

I suffered from sleep apnoea most nights (I wake up gasping for air which was very frightening for me and my wife), high blood pressure (mainly due to a stressful job), general fatigue and low self esteem.

I first heard about the lapband procedure from my Uncle who lives in Melbourne. He weighed 170 kg. After having the lapband procedure, he reduced his weight to 100 kg in approximately 12 months. When I heard about this, I decided to do some research. I saw an ad in the Sunday Mail Newspaper about a seminar and decided to attend to find out more information. I left the seminar feeling very excited and confident that this was going to work for me so I booked an appointment to see Doctor Layani straight away.

In October, 2005, once the lapband was inserted, my journey began. With the support from Dr Layani and his team and Dr Amanda Clarke, my Dietician, I started to see the results. My weight started to fall off me quickly and with lots of compliments from family and friends, my confidence and self esteem began to grow. My sleep apnoea improved dramatically and now I don't suffer from this anymore. My blood pressure is normal and I don't take anymore medication to control it. It feels great to now be able to buy clothes from any clothing store instead of going to the Mr Big section.

As a teenager I played a variety of sports including AFL and Cricket so I was very active in those days. As I slowly gained weight through my adult years, I stopped playing sport and devoted my time to my kids sports in coaching and managing their sporting pursuits. Although I enjoyed this (and still do), I felt that I would also like to be active like I once was. As my weight reduced, I started riding my bike and gradually increased the distances I travelled. I then joined the Northern Rivers Cycling Club and participated in their activities. Some of the cycling club members also participated in the local Ballina Triathlon Club and encouraged me to give it a go. This is when I started my achievements in doing the three disciplines in Triathlon.

Since then, I have done numerous multi-sports events including cycling racing, ocean swims, half and full marathons, sprint and olympic distance triathlons and half ironmans. Having achieved these numerous events, I was looking for a challenge and there is no greater than the Ironman Triathlon which consists of a 3.8km Swim, 180km Bike Ride and a 42km Marathon Run. I knew this would take a huge commitment so I planned the race and started training six months before the event. To complete such a huge event, my training usually consisted of 8km swimming, 200km bike riding and 50km running per week at my peak training times.

The day arrived for the Australian Ironman Triathlon which was held at Port Macquarie on Sunday, 6th April, 2008. As the start gun went off, I, along with 1800 competitors started my swim of 3.8km in the Hastings River. Having never swum this distance before, I was pleased with my time of 1 Hour, 35 Minutes. I then jumped on my bike and started the gruelling journey of 180km with steep hills, howling winds and the occasional rain. I completed the three 60km loops in a time of 7 Hours, 29 Minutes. Then the 42km run commenced. Although I felt good, I was starting to feel very fatigued. I ran the first 7km and then for the rest of the race I jogged/walked to the finish line for a total run time of 6 Hours, 2 Minutes. My overall time was 15 HOURS, 8 MINUTES AND 4 SECONDS. I became very emotional as I ran through the finish line as this was my best achievement ever since I started my journey when I had my lapband procedure. This wouldn't be possible without the support of my family.

Before my lapband surgery, I was 124 kg. Now I am currently 88 kg and still losing weight trying to get to my goal of 80 kg.