Dr. Peeke reflects on her experience with the five Fit to Live participants. Shown at the right, they are (from left to right) Kela, Luis, Dennis, Christine, and Michael.
Out of hundreds who wanted to participate in my Fit to Live show, I chose these five people because it was clear from the audition videotapes that each one of them was at a pivotal time in their lives and they really wanted to change. They certainly represented a cross section of America, with a variety of careers and living situations. Most importantly, I felt that they were ready to take themselves on and do the work it was going to take to become Fit to Live.
Meet the Fit to Live Team:
Dennis: "The Every Man" becomes "Super Man"
Christine: "The Sugar and Soda Addict" becomes "The Athletic Actress"
Michael: "The Skinny, Unfit Smoker" becomes "The Powerful Protector"
Luis: "The DJ with the Big Belly" becomes "The Diamond Boy with the Voice"
Kela: "The Skinny Fat Who Chooses Death" becomes "The Fit, Fabulous Female Who Chooses Life"
Dennis: "The Every Man" becomes "Super Man"
This 45 year old man is truly you classic middle aged guy who is successful in terms of career and family, but just never got the memo about taking care of his body. For that matter, he was so concerned about care giving his kids, wife and friends, that he became totally dissociated from his self care. To his shock and dismay, I had to tell him that not only were his cholesterol and triglycerides sky high, but he now had type 2 diabetes. Talk about a wake-up call. On the day of the initial shoot, there was no question in the minds of my production team that we would have to pay special attention to Dennis because we knew he would most probably have the greatest amount of trouble completing the challenge.
And, sadly, we were right. The question was could Dennis get the message and take this seriously? Dennis is a comedian — literally. He does standup and wants to do more, but his obesity is embarrassing and holds him back. When I confronted him on the roof top and told him he didn't survive the burning building scenario, at first I got some smart remarks and then he finally calmed down and realized this was not a joking matter. I got through.
Next, Dennis would have to make substantial changes with his mindless eating and sedentary lifestyle. Could he do it? His wife and family were supportive. That was terrific news. He showed up to all of the workouts with Steve and Ana. He read my Fit to Live book cover to cover and repeated back to me his favorite passages. He kept meticulous logs of his mood, eating and activity. He carefully monitored his body measurements and reported to me weekly. This was a guy on a mission. After two weeks, it was clear nothing but nothing was going to stop Dennis from achieving his goal of shedding excess fat and reversing his early heart disease and diabetes. Despite the fact that he was the slowest guy in the pack, he was never deterred. For that matter, his cheer and great attitude really affected the rest of the Fit to Live participants.
And a small miracle took place. In only four weeks, this incredible guy dropped thirty pounds, increased his endurance and strength, shed inches from his girth, normalized his cholesterol and blood sugar, and then showed up for the final shoot. He had to make a special time in order to survive the challenge. We held our collective breath as the scenario began. I waited on the rooftop helipad, holding my breath and praying he'd make it. Frankly, I think the whole show was really so much about Dennis's struggle. He was the "every man" out there. Who couldn't relate to him? He's not an athlete. He's just a wonderful, loving family man who needed to make some dramatic changes to save his own life. That final shoot proved once and for all, that if you really want something, and you're determined to change, you can do it. That last shoot was an amazing experience. Not a dry eye in the place.
And here's the really awesome news. Dennis is continuing his journey. He's not quitting until he reaches his goal of first getting below 200 pounds (that in and of itself would be 63 pounds down) and then achieving and sustaining a weight around 180-190 pounds. He's also learning that to become Fit to Live, he has to pay attention to his self care in order to maintain enough mental and physical strength to be able to save his own life — both in terms of life threatening challenges but also in terms of living his daily life to the fullest free of medical diseases brought on by a mindless and unhealthy lifestyle. Hey, Dennis is back on stage at the comedy club.
This young woman struck me as someone who knew she was in trouble. When I met her, Christine was downing on the average over 40 ounces of fully sugared soda every day. Like the others, she ate mindlessly, picking and grabbing whatever was sitting around on location where she worked as an actress and ventriloquist. This one time cheerleader was now an overweight young woman in her later twenties, and this was holding her back from competing optimally when she auditioned for her work. Christine was on a mission. She wanted to achieve her "audition body" and she knew she'd have to awaken that sleeping athletic giant in her to make that happen. Christine also started the Fit to Live challenge with a lower than normal HDL, or good form of cholesterol. Her sedentary lifestyle and high fat diet was repressing the formation of more HDL. If she kept this up, she would be facing early onset heart disease. She would also have to survive the withdrawal from her toxic highly sugared diet. This was treacherous territory.
The good news is she lives with her supportive boyfriend who's a vegetarian. We didn't have to worry about hamburgers showing up on the dinner table. However, Christine was also a big time emotional eater. Her life is stressful and she takes so much to heart. Her boyfriend's mother was very ill and this was a stress that would normally send her right to the fridge. But she didn't do it this time. She fought and struggled and won in the end. On the first day of the shoot, although she was overweight and completely out of shape, she actually did much better than I thought she would. Although none of the participants survived the scenario, I think she was surprised at how well she did. She collapsed on the roof of the building after finally emerging from the building and it took quite some time to catch her breath again. What stunned her is that she is so young and in such bad shape in terms of fitness, and that if that scenario was real, she would have died. She was clearly not Fit to Live.
Despite an old knee injury that bothered her intermittently, Christine showed up for the physical training and really put out the effort. When I had done her initial body composition analysis, I was pleased to tell her that although she was carrying about 25 or thirty extra pounds of fat, she was also the owner of more muscle than average. Yep, there it was — her inner athlete. She was blessed with great genetics and now needed to get these muscles trained to not only burn calories more efficiently, but to power her up those stairs in the skyscraper so that she could save her own life. Well, she was not fun to be around the first week of the challenge when she was withdrawing from the sodas. Sure glad her boyfriend has a good sense of humor.
By the end of the second week, Christine really felt like a new person. She was already shedding fat, getting stronger and eating mindfully. Although she doesn't cook, she learned to eat every 3-4 hours and plan to take food with her on her sometimes 18 hour work days. Christine was not going to allow anything to get in the way of her mission — the audition body. By the end of the fourth week, her good form of cholesterol had normalized and Christine had shed over 10 pounds of body fat. Like all the others, Christine is continuing her journey. She's shed another 10 pounds and is hell bent on finishing this very personal challenge. That last shoot in the building was a much more pleasant eye opener. Christine learned the lesson of a lifetime. She was given a second chance to live and she went for it with all she had.
Michael: "The Skinny, Unfit Smoker" becomes "The Powerful Protector"
45 year old Michael is the kind of guy that people like Dennis, who was out of shape and obese, would aspire to become — skinny. But, looks can be deceiving. Although he's been slender all of this life, he's had an on and off relationship with physical fitness. Let's just say that it's been a while since he's seen the gym. A musician with his own band and radio show, Michael was also a devoted father and husband. But something was bothering him. Michael was troubled by the concern that he didn't feel physically strong enough to be able to protect his wonderful family. Thin all of his life, he was teased as a child and adolescent. This became his mental burden — the skinny weakling. Would he ever get strong enough to achieve his goal? On top of this, Michael was a smoker. He felt doubly winded — from the smoking and the lack of endurance fitness. You could really see this in action that first day when he was running for his life in the building.
Like Christine, he surprised everyone, including himself, by getting out of the building faster than we'd expected. Still, he didn't get out in time to survive, but when I reviewed his body composition, I found a guy with a low body fat (12%) and plenty of muscle. He was indeed strong. He just never knew it. He's actually got the perfect build for a runner or martial arts. He was very pleasantly surprised when I shared this with him. His lab results were perfectly normal. He just needed to stop smoking — which he did immediately upon starting the Fit to Live challenge — and build some muscle — which he also did.
Actually, in four weeks, he gained three pounds of muscle with aggressive physical training and increased lean protein intake. And boy did Michael pick up physical endurance and strength. This is a guy on fire. He now saw that he could indeed protect his family. He had the power and the potential to build a strong body. And, along with the physical changes came a mental transformation. Instead of feeling defeated, Michael was experiencing a new sense of empowerment. He too as continued his journey. He rejoined his gym and is in the process of seeking out just the right martial arts school to begin his training. Meanwhile, he's even cut his hair and is now in the process of serious new career development.
You might ask yourself how could trying to save your life in a burning building do all of this? Well, it's a wake-up call about your whole life. You're faced with the question — am I mentally, spiritually, nutritionally and physically Fit to Live my dreams, let alone save my life should I be faced with a life and death scenario? When Michael was challenged, he had his own personal revelation about this. He needed to change up multiple levels of living. And change he did. And continues to do. Scope out his latest blog and keep up with this very powerful guy.
Luis: "The DJ with the Big Belly" becomes "The Diamond Boy with the Voice"
Luis chooses his words carefully. That's what makes him an outstanding LA disc jockey with his own show. But Luis had always been tormented by the endless "Battle of the Belly". Gifted with a terrific voice, he knew he wouldn't be able to be the best singer he could with a girth out to here, obesity and a surprise — the early stage of type 2 diabetes, a disease especially rampant among young Hispanics like Luis. When Luis was challenged that day in the building, his obesity kept him from being able to climb the endless flights of stairs and save his own life. In his early thirties, Luis was shocked at what terrible shape he was in. He dreamed of getting back into his size 34" pants. He'd have to make some big changes, very much like Dennis. Luis's wife, who was already in great shape, was elated when Luis was chosen for the show. Together, they teamed throughout the challenge, encouraging one another. And as the training began, Luis was totally focused on achieving his dream — being a successful recording artist. Who needs to keep playing other people's songs when you have the velvety voice of the "Diamond Boy", a nickname given to him years ago. Luis also had some specific goals in mind. He'd always dreamed of running a mile nonstop.
Built more like a half back, Luis was no Kenyan. Yet there was no reason why he couldn't train to run a mile or more. The Fit to Live trainers, Steve and Ana, helped prepare him. And then, one day, while meeting with all of them at a beautiful park in LA, I surprised Luis and ran with him. I kept him talking all along so he wouldn't know how far he'd gone. Before you could say "Diamond Boy" he'd lived his dream. I was thrilled for his success. And I was summarily rewarded with a copy of his newest recording. And, I've been dancin' to it ever since. This is one talented young man. In only four weeks, by applying himself fully, Luis was able to normalize his blood sugar, reduce his girth and drop almost thirty pounds of body fat. Luis kept methodical records and he also demonstrated a rule I have. That is, the simpler you keep your lifestyle choices, the easier they are to follow. Luis followed a very simple template for eating a balance of what I call Fit carbs, fats and proteins every 3-4 hours. He worked out with my Fit to Live trainers, never missed a session, and also added more time at his gym. He was lucky enough to be doing all of this with a professional mentor of his. Luis was fortunate enough to have assembled a real A team to help him achieve his goal.
That last day of the shoot, Luis powered himself through the entire sequence and blew even himself away with his lighter and leaner body. This particular life and death scenario really struck home with Luis, because he'd lost friends in the burning towers of 9/11. He really understood the meaning of becoming Fit to Live — to save your life and to live your dreams. Well, you sure better check out Luis' blogs because he's not only pacing pretty closely with Dennis, but he's also just signed a contract to record a new CD of his songs. Now that's the Fit to Live attitude.
Kela: "The Skinny Fat Who Chooses Death" becomes "The Fit, Fabulous Female Who Chooses Life"
Like Michael, Kela appears to be a woman so many other women would choose to emulate. She's tall, skinny, and carries herself with grace and elegance. What's not to like? However, her body composition told the whole story. She may be skinny (5'11" and 134 lbs.) but her body fat was 27%. She was skinny but she had lost muscle from years of under eating and lack of exercise. So, relatively speaking, she had too much fat for her body. I would have expected her fat to be closer to 20%. 27% is too high. She needs to shed fat and build muscle for a strong, tight and fit body. But wait. Kela was once a soldier in the Army. She was more muscular then but dropped the muscles over time for fear that men may not consider her attractive unless she was skinny and less muscular. Also, Kela had made a choice not to pursue a healthier body. For that matter, she was feeling very hopeless.our sites
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