Ian
XSport Fitness Member"I have been fighting a long battle of weight loss most of my life. It wasn't until now I have conquered the battle. "
In 2009, I suffered from a herniated disc in the L1 and L2 vertebrae which gave me the inability to walk for three months. It was caused by my weight. At the time I weighed an estimated 350lbs. During an evaluation, the pain specialist saw the pain I was going through and decided to take me in that day. I ended up getting three epidural shots in the spinal cord. After the procedure was finished the doctor said if the pain comes back, come back and see him. They did not suggest any rehabilitation or what I should be doing after.
After few months had past, my friend suggested joining XSport. On my 26th birthday I enrolled. I weighed in at 308lbs with a 38% body fat. I met with personal trainer Randy Frolich for my PTX and two PT sessions. I gathered what I learned from my PT sessions, along with suggestions and ideas from other friends and members and applied them to my workouts. In one year I dropped 86lbs. After a year of training, one of my friends suggested I try a 5k run. On May 23, 2010 I ran my first 5k and finished in a time of 30min 7sec. After that I was hooked.
Another friend was running the Rock and Roll Half Marathon that year. I did not know how long a half marathon was. She asked me to run with her 5 days before. I committed to do it. I finished it in 2hr 45min. Since then I've participated in many other runs including 5, 8, 10, and 15k runs and half marathons. My fastest 5k run I completed in 22min 49 sec. I did the Rock and Roll Half Marathon this year and finished it in 1hour 46min. I just participated in the 2011 Chicago Marathon. With only three weeks notice I finished it in 4 hours and 17 minutes. It was one of the biggest rushes of my life. Beat up and battered, I can't wait to start training again. Now I know what time I have to beat next year.
Ian
Libertyville Gym
