Fitness trainer Drew Manning gained 70 pounds in six months, then lost it all before a year was up.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Fitness trainer Drew Manning wanted to better understand his clients’ struggles
- Manning gained 70 pounds on purpose so that he could lose it
- Back at normal weight, he says the psychological aspect to dropping pounds is important
(CNN) — When Drew Manning stepped out from behind the cardboard cutout of his former fat self on Monday, the audience of “Good Morning America[1]” was appropriately shocked.
The fitness trainer’s journey had come to an end after successfully losing more than 70 pounds — six months after he purposely gained the same amount.”Like it never happened,” host George Stephanopoulos said.
“Kind of,” Manning said.Both Manning and his wife, Lynn, can attest that a lot actually has changed in the past year. While Manning’s body may have returned to its six-pack heydays, his mind, in many ways, has not.
Always a fitness junkie, staying in shape comes naturally for Manning. He’s that guy at the gym the rest of us love to hate, the one who likes to use his biceps for pumping iron instead of changing channels, and who prefers sucking down a spinach shake to indulging in a brownie sundae.
Because of that, Manning was a “judgmental” trainer, his wife says. “He would look at someone who was overweight and say, ‘They must really be lazy.’
“I was convinced people used genetics or similar excuses as a crutch,” Manning writes in his new book, “Fit2Fat2Fit[2].” “You either wanted to be healthy or you didn’t.”
Defining the new male body ideal[3]
That point of view wasn’t helping Manning help his clients. When he failed yet again to push someone over to the light side, he knew something was wrong. In order to better understand the struggles his clients were facing, he had to face them himself.
He gave up the gym and started consuming junk food, fast food and soda. In just six months, he went from 193 pounds with a 34-inch waist to 265 pounds with a 48-inch waist.
Lynn saw the difference in her husband in less time than that. He became lethargic, stopped helping around the house and was less than eager to play with their 2-year-old daughter.
“He was so insecure — saying ‘I’m so fat. I look so horrible,’ constantly complaining about how he looks,” she said.
Manning says he didn’t realize the effects of his weight gain would be more than physical. It altered his relationships and his self-confidence. Returning to the gym after the Fit2Fat portion of his journey made him nervous. The fact that he had to do push-ups on his knees was almost humiliating.
“The biggest thing [I learned] is that it’s not just about the physical. It’s not just about the meal plan and the workouts and those things. The key is the mental and the emotional issues. I realized those issues are real.”
Of course, Manning had his critics. Experts said that his stunt was dangerous. His blood pressure and cholesterol shot up with such dramatic weight gain. But Manning has no regrets. The followers on his website have encouraged him with their own tales of weight loss.
Overheard on CNN.com: Do Americans take enough personal responsibility?[4]
“We see the success stories of people losing all this weight, but it’s more common now,” he says. “To see someone do it in reverse on purpose — it’s mind blowing. A balance of craziness and inspiration.”
Manning suffered through soda deprivation headaches and food cravings on his way back to fit. The journey was easier for him than for most, he’ll admit, but he’s eager now to provide tips for others to follow in his footsteps.
Lynn is just glad to have her husband back, maybe a bit better than he was before. Before Fit2Fat2Fit, the self-described foodie wife would make treats, and Manning wouldn’t even look at them.
“Now he craves them,” she says with a laugh. “It might be cruel, but I like that. I like that he’s humanized.”
Overheard on CNN.com: Fitness trainer’s intentional weight rollercoaster[5]
CNN’s Ashley Strickland contributed to this story.
References
- ^ Good Morning America (www.youtube.com)
- ^ Fit2Fat2Fit (fit2fat2fit.com)
- ^ Defining the new male body ideal (www.cnn.com)
- ^ Overheard on CNN.com: Do Americans take enough personal responsibility? (news.blogs.cnn.com)
- ^ Overheard on CNN.com: Fitness trainer’s intentional weight rollercoaster (www.cnn.com)
Resources:
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Fitness Tips…? Well, Im 16 and weigh 306 pounds at about six feet in height. I just started Varsity Football for my school. Well, my coach told me that he will prefer me at a weight of 280 by about July. I just wanted any and all tips that someone can think of that will hep me with my goal and increase my football skills. Hopefullly, improving my speed, explosion, agility, strength, etc,. Is this goal attainable and what do you reccomend I do?
Hi,
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Good luck!
Any Fitness Tips For People With Asthma? Just need some fitness tips to help with my asthma. I want to be able to run for a longer period and have an overall better fitness level. I start losing my breath after about 1 minute of running. Any ideas and tips would be very much appreciated : )
First, you have to choose a certain kind of exercise that they really can handle well. Some exercise that might be great choice for asthma sufferers are walking, swimming, riding a bike, as well as hiking. These kinds of exercise needs less physical move than tennis, hockey, gymnastics, long distance running, and many other else. You could also consult their doctors to choose the most appropriate type of exercise for you.
Second, you can take advantage of your inhaler. You can use your inhaler about 15 minutes before you start to exercise. Besides, makes sure that your inhaler is always close enough to you. You will never know when the attack might hit you. Therefore, providing inhaler as first aid near you is very important.
Third, breathing through your nose during the exercise is also important. Mouth breathing tends to trigger asthma attack since it causes you to inhale cold air right into the bronchial tube. In contrary, the air that you heal will be filtered well when you are breathing through your nose. Besides, nose breathing also allows the air to be warmer before reaching the lungs.
The fourth thing you need to do is looking for a certain area that free from pollutions and allergens. However you should also avoid area with too many trees or grass. Then, you should also be aware of the symptoms of asthma that occur during the exercise. If you feel very tired and your chest begins to be tightening, you should be notice that those are the initial symptoms of asthma. Usually, those symptoms will be followed by wheezing. Stop doing any physical activity when these symptoms occur.
By following those tips, asthma sufferers could still have exercise with less risk of asthma attack. Do not let asthma attack prevent you to have regular exercise activity.
I Want To Lose A Few Kilos But Not A Heap, Dieting And Fitness Tips..? I weigh 58 kilos, and I don’t really want to lose too much weight, maybe 5 or 6 kilos, but I mostly just want to tone up. Do you know any dieting/fitness tips? I’m going to the gym 5 times a week, and on the days I’m not there I’m going for a run. Any tips on what to spend my time on at the gym? Thank you x
Dear Isy,
One thing you need to understand is that you have to work hard if you want to change the shape of your body. That means a balance of medium-high intensity cardio exercise along with challenging strength training workouts.
For weight loss, you’ll need to get about 5 cardio workouts each week at a medium-high intensity for at least 30 minutes. If you’re a beginner, it’s best to start slow and work your way up but, if you’re in good condition and have no restrictions, challenging yourself with harder workouts is the best way to burn more calories. Interval training is a good choice because studies show you continue to burn calories even after you’ve stopped exercising.
In addition to your cardio workouts, you’ll need to lift weights for all your muscle groups at least 2 non-consecutive days a week. And, by lifting weights, that means using enough weight that you can ONLY complete the desired number of reps. For example, if you’re doing 12 bicep curls, you need to use enough weight that you can only do 12 bicep curls and not one more. Most people don’t lift enough weight to really challenge their muscles.
What you need to engage in is a well balanced all rounded diet with considerable physical exertion over a prolonged time period. Food can be broken down into 5 major groups. These groups are carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals and water. The body needs varying amounts of these types of food so that the adequate amount of nutrients is supplied to the body. A well-balanced diet does not mean an equal amount of each type of food, as our body requires more of some nutrients than others.
Each type of food plays a significant role in our body but excesses or deficiencies of certain types of food can also harm the body and produce a negative impact on our health.
It is very important that we know how much of each type of food we are supposed to consume and that we eat in a sensible way. This means eating regular meals at “least” three times a day and drinking plenty of water, but what I would suggest is breaking it down to 5 smaller meals a day and having your last solid meal before 6pm after that you are only allowed to have pure low fat milk a mug or two would be a good idea to cut down on excessive cravings.
Hope this answers your question.
What Are Some Good Fitness Tips To Do In Your House ? Please anything helps !! its cold outside and i hate running what are fitness routines i can do to loose weight but indoors?
You can do workout DVDs, Wii fit, DDR, you can also get trainers to turn your road bike into a stationary bike. Dancing is good too.
Can Anyone Here Give Me Some Good Fitness Tips On Yahoo Messenger? I am completely clueless about fitness…
can anyone help?
Walk at least a mile a day. Get rest drink plenty of water & fluids. Avoid junk food. Eat at least 23 g of fiber a day.