Dropping LBs: Overcoming setbacks
Louis Jainchill was a 320-pound smoker with sleep apnea. He joined Weight Watchers and lost 167 pounds in two years. Credit: Handout
HIS STORY In 2006, Louis Jainchill was a 320-pound smoker with sleep apnea. His doctor told him he'd have to first quit smoking, which most likely meant gaining some weight, before starting to shed pounds if he wanted to feel better. Soon after, Jainchill had his wake-up call. "I fell asleep behind the wheel of a car and almost hit the guardrail," he recalls. "I took it very seriously and asked myself, 'Do I want to live or do I want to die?' I made a conscious decision that I wanted to live." He quit smoking, and indeed saw his weight climb another 25 pounds.
DIET Jainchill enrolled in Weight Watchers. He followed the program's system of tallying points assigned each food item. He cut his breakfasts by 50 percent, eating a half a bagel, smearing on light cream cheese instead of regular and using one ounce of lox instead of three. He learned to eat better quality food, lower in calories than what he was used to. He leaned on the support groups. In two years, he lost 167 pounds.
EXERCISE "Exercise," Jainchill says, "was much tougher." He started by walking in his neighborhood at night for about 20 minutes at a time. His back hurt, he sweat profusely. "I didn't feel good about it at all, but I kept at it, and it kept getting easier." He found he could walk faster and cover longer distances. He eventually added strength and resistance exercises. He is now training for his second half-marathon and regularly runs five miles in Eisenhower Park.
ADVICE "You have to have persistence," Jainchill says. "You can't let any one setback cause you to quit. You have to think of it not as being on a diet but as something you want to sustain for the rest of your life and enjoy what you're doing." He keeps his goal of being around to see his grandchildren one day. "I felt, if I was going where I was going, I don't think I'd be around to see my son go to high school."
Louis Jainchill
46, Woodbury
Occupation Receptionist
Height 5'11"
345 Weight before 2006
178 Weight in 2011
'You can't let any one setback cause you to quit.'
-- Louis Jainchill
Sarra Sounds Off Ep 36: Champs crowned in lax and flag football On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg talks with Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson about county champs crowned in boys and girls lacrosse, and Jared Valuzzi reports on the Long Island flag football championship.
Sarra Sounds Off Ep 36: Champs crowned in lax and flag football On the latest episode of "Sarra Sounds Off," Gregg talks with Michael Sicoli and Tess Ferguson about county champs crowned in boys and girls lacrosse, and Jared Valuzzi reports on the Long Island flag football championship.
