Seven years ago, John E. Ellis, MD, a 57-year-old physician, became his own patient. Between 2008-2010, Dr. Ellis lost 125 lbs within 18 months by changing his lifestyle and, as he says, retraining his brain (and pancreas). “I changed my diet, went from ‘living to eat’ to ‘eating to live’ and added regular exercise to my regimen,” Dr. Ellis tells BlackDoctor.org.
He’s successfully kept the weight off since then and readily shares his success strategies with others. Here, Dr. Ellis describes in his own words how he went from 330 lbs to now being in the best shape of his life.
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While I cared for patients with heart disease for many years as a cardiovascular anesthesiologist, I neglected my own health. As a medical school professor, I conducted and published research about heart disease and obesity, but I didn’t apply the lessons learned to my life and health. I lived a very unhealthy lifestyle. I did a lot of stressful eating at work as a physician. My diet consisted of a lot of junk, prepared, and processed foods. I used to love cheese and grapefruit juice so my diet was high in fat, salt and sugar. I exercised less and less – I loved to bicycle. All in all, I was leading a very unhealthy lifestyle.
In December of 2007, I sat in a chair at a restaurant watching the ice skaters at Christmas. The chair broke, I fell to the floor, VERY embarrassed, but otherwise uninjured. It was a seminal moment to change. I also had a series of potentially life-threatening health problems – high blood pressure, sleep apnea, 2 neck operations – that motivated me to change.
I decided to enroll in a program. I spent 2 weeks at Structure House, a weight loss program that focuses on behavior modification for obese people. There I learnt what lifestyle changes I needed to make. It was a difficult first week as I was learning to completely restructure my life. Exercising, eating healthy, and mentally motivating myself were the 3 biggest things that I focused on. After the 2 weeks were up, I stuck with the changes. I lost 125 lbs after 18 months.
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I’m now at 205 lbs! I have successfully restructured my life around maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Everything is regular for me now: my meals are regularized, my exercise schedule is very consistent, and I get adequate sleep. Exercise has been especially important for me. It trains the brain (reduces hunger), and builds muscle that burns fat 24/7. Exercise also helps the muscles use insulin to utilize sugar better, and reduces the burden on the pancreas to produce insulin. I am in a much better space physically, mentally, and emotionally. I am more confident, happier and a lot more active.
I do the same things to maintain my weight as I did to lose it, so I hope to see myself in the same place. Always healthier by the day!
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