This Guy Lost 100 Pounds in 9 Months and Now He Runs Marathons

Hed stop for cheeseburgers on the way home, eat dinner with his family, and keep eating through the night. He put on more than 130 pounds, which led to high blood pressure and chronic knee and back painwhen he was weighed at the doctors office during his vacation, he tipped the scales at 291 pounds. He was 43 years old.

It was a wake-up call. Ranson and his wife both started a weight loss program called , which provided scales, exercise DVDs, recipes, portion plates, and more. They both went all-in, he says; though he admits that his wife was more motivated, they both pushed each other forward. After 5 minutes of very light exercise, he says, I was in a deep sweat and could barely do one push-up. Stretching exercises were a real challenge; hed lost most of his flexibility.

But as he moved from low-intensity to high-intensity workouts, he found his niche. Hitting up the YMCA for weightlifting, he found that what he really liked was running. I had never run more than a mile and half in my life, he says, and that was during my years in the Air Force. He stayed motivated thanks to his wife and to an online coach who customized his workouts, as well as helping him curb his appetite for junk food. The weight tracker helped him stay accountable and see his progress.

In nine months he lost 110 pounds. I have never felt this good, he says, not even when I was 20 years old entering the military. His newfound love of running turned into competing in a seven-mile relay race, then, two years ago, he finished his first full marathon. That was my shining moment, he says. I had run more than 26 miles one year after weighing 291 pounds. Closer to home, he found that with his slimmed down form, he was finally able to join his children on all of the amusement park rides.

His friends and family were shocked and proud. I went to visit my parents right after I lost the weight and my mom cried tears of joy, he says. Losing the weight gave him more confidence and energy; he no longer eats dinner before slumping into the couch to eat more. My back has never felt better, he says, and I no longer turn away from mirrors. Hes looking to do another full marathon for his 50th birthday.

As to what got him back into shape, he says perseverance was the key. First he had to learn, Eat to live, not live to eat, as he puts it. His program helped him reign himself in, but it was a process. Rome wasn't built in a day, he says. Don't give up.