When David Diaz was a child, a debilitating asthma attack sidelined him from strenuous activity for a brief period. Once the asthma was controlled, he was reluctant to resume his normal level of play, fearing another attack. This downward spiral of fitness, combined with a reliance on sugary soft drinks and fast food, only compounded his weight gain. Though it’s taken David many years to learn how to eat well and take care of himself, now he’s committed, accountable and has 100 fewer pounds on his frame to show for it.
After a modicum of weight loss success in college, David soon fell back into old patterns. “It wasn’t long before I treated food the way some people treat cigarettes or alcohol, namely as a way to feel better,” he admitted. “From there I just got worse and ballooned to my maximum weight of 280.”
During this time, David felt so uncomfortable in his own skin that he rarely allowed himself to be photographed. When he saw a photo that had been taken without his knowledge, he was dumbfounded. ” To them it was just a photo of me, but to actually see myself in that way, my gut as wide as it was, my face all puffy; I couldn’t believe I’d allowed myself to get that fat.” That was the turning point.
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