Hanging around the 90–95kg mark for about 15 years, not terribly overweight but feeling unfit, Scott Gresham was finding it increasingly difficult to stay the full 90 minutes on the soccer pitch. Scott says, “My excuse was that ‘I did all my running at school,’ so I very rarely did any training type of exercise, other than a Saturday afternoon game of soccer in winter.”
Time to take up the challenge
Although Scott did not have a defining moment when he knew it was time to get into shape, his wife, Tricia’s decision to take up the Oxfam challenge this year (their team of four, walked 100km in 48 hrs) and seeing her train ‘religiously’ with walks of 20km-50km every weekend made Scott realise that he wanted to lose some kilos and get fitter, himself.
The 38-year-old Sydney-sider had tried the Jenny Craig diet plan before which he says, “Worked, but was an effort to get to the Jenny Craig Centres all the time and the food wasn’t marvellous. Plus a lot of it is ‘their’ food, rather than food you can buy at the supermarket, and the reality is, that’s where they make their money.” Scott chose The Biggest Loser Club to help him get fitter because, as he puts it, “I got quite enthused when I was playing around on the site.”
Click to enlarge photos
Scott before
Scott after
Slow yet steady
Scott says, “I started my The Biggest Loser Club plan in February 2008 and the results have been steady; I think that’s the way they should be when you lose the weight properly. I stuck to the plan fairly carefully, drank all the water I was supposed to and did the exercise I needed to; I was losing about 0.6–1 kg every week. It didn’t take long for things to look noticeably different.”
“As I lost more weight and got fitter, I realised I wanted more. My wife was going to the gym as part of her Oxfam training and she convinced me to try it for a week. I had always hated gyms, but I went along and to my surprise, I kept going. Another of the dads from my children’s school goes to the same gym and we began to go along together three to four times a week. I really enjoy it now and, fortunately, because I have my own business (I supply sporting and corporate apparel to clubs and to corporate clients) I can be flexible where time is concerned. So, I usually work out just after school drop-off in the morning until about 11am. And, as I operate from a home office, I can be pretty flexible, so a lot of my work time is at night time. I have to say, it sure beats driving into town everyday for work!”
Fittest in 20 years!
Having shed over 12kg (he started his program at 94.4kg and currently weighs 82.3kg), Scott remains a member of The Biggest Loser Club and although he still follows the plan, he doesn’t follow it quite as strictly as before. Scott explains, “Better eating and exercise are part of my life now. There are honestly so many great meal choices in the menus that I find myself flicking back through and just having whatever I want from the menus for the meal ahead. It works fine for me; I feel fitter and healthier than ever. And, what’s more, I can easily run a full 90 minutes on the soccer field! I also ran the Sydney City2Surf this year in 72mins; something I could never have done in any of the 20 years since I left school.”
The simple formula
Scott feels it was the combination of carefully following his personal daily program that made him so successful. He explains, “Look, it’s not Einstein stuff! There are literally hundreds of diet options out there and although I don’t claim to be any kind of expert, I suggest that 90% of them are just there as money-making tools for their inventors and not really much use for people who want to lose weight and feel good. The simple formula is to eat right (and that doesn’t have to mean eating less as I have found out!) and throw in some exercise. Do it at your own pace and do what you are comfortable with, but stick to it. It will work. If you haven’t seen a result in say two weeks and you think, ‘ah stuff it, it won’t work for me’, and then if you go off and eat a pack of Tim Tams, hey presto – it won’t work! There’s a saying that I like to use for my business: ‘If you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right!’”
Scott leaves you by saying, “I am very happy! I love living and being an active part of our community. Thanks Biggest Loser Club!”