RAUL V.
TRAINER OF
MIND & BODY

My story begins back in 2007, when my body gave me a loud and clear wake up call. It was a typical Friday afternoon on my way to work and I was not feeling 100% but decided to go to work anyways.  I remember pulling up to an intersection and stopping at a red light, when suddenly, I got this horrific pain on my arm and chest. Somehow I got through the intersection and pulled into a mall parking lot and made it out of my truck. By this time, I was in tears from the pain. I remember with detail walking into one of the businesses to ask to use their phone. I called my girlfriend and told her something was really wrong with me. I told her what had just occurred. I was going to die! Maybe that's why I called her and not 911. On my way to the hospital I truly believe I was having or had a heart attack. After being at the hospitalized a few days I was told I had Sleep Apnea, which is common on a person as obese as I was.

In all honesty, I’m not sure of my exact weight back at that time but I do know for sure I was over 400 lbs. I come from your typical large Mexican family which loves to cook and our family reunions consisted of exactly that a lot of good food and a lot of eating. Throughout my life, I have always been over weight and I also thought that was just the way it was to be.  So I took advantage and used my obesity as an excuse to always be the first one to eat. And I would really eat. Eat and eat to the point of getting sick.

A few days after leaving the hospital I received a package at my home. It was a machine that I had to wear to sleep that would help me breathe. This machine is known as a C-pap machine. After one of the most uncomfortable nights with this thing strapped to me face, I refused to wear it any longer. A week later I had an appointment with a nutritionist. The nutritionist was going to help me with my eating habits and lifestyle. Ultimately, seeing her was the first step to change my life for the better. She gave me very valuable information that helped me along my journey. One thing she said and probably the most important thing and I’ll always remember is: diets don't work! And it’s true, sure you will lose the weight while you on your diet, but once you get off you'll gain all the weight back again and then some.  If you really want to lose the weight and keep it off, change the way you eat, "live a lifestyle not a diet". I started using the methods she showed me and the weight started coming off. I joined a gym and it came off even faster.  I was very motivated and my girlfriend was very proud and kept motivating me although she was going through many health issues herself that started from her childhood, yet she always managed to have a smile on her face and never gave up. Her motivation was contagious and I caught on to it.  I continued to lose weight and in late summer of 2010 I got down to 245 lbs. I was committed to continue but it wasn’t that easy as I had many life changing incidents that almost put me down again. When you are lacking motivation and think nothing is going right for you in your life remember this quote that has helped me along my journey: "LIFE IS NOT ABOUT WAITING FOR THE STORM TO PASS, BUT LEARNING TO DANCE IN THE RAIN".