What would you do if you had 12 months to change your life; if you were faced with a chronic disease like diabetes, or undergoing an operation that would ultimately change your ability to live a normal and active life?

The Royal Gazette <$>found four individuals who spent 12 months overcoming obstacles to radically change not only their bodies, but also their outlook on life. We applaud them and hope their stories will inspire you to take that first step towards change in 2007.

Reid Young is an athletic 66-year-old and years of playing competitive squash and taking care of his health is evident as the tall and charismatic islander strolls into the Health Co-op in Warwick.

Definitely not the same Reid Young from three years ago, when a mere ten-minute walk caused him such excruciating pain that he was forced to sit down for almost an hour to recover.

In fact Mr. Young is the first to admit that when he underwent hip-replacement surgery six years ago, he thought he would never experience the joys of being able to move without pain again.

“It was a hardship for me to have to slow down because of the pain,” he recalls. Not only was travelling restricted, but suddenly his friends and family were forced to cater social events around him.

That, he says, put a lot of strain on his relationship with his friends and family who knew him as a man who would, and could not sit still.

He spent the next two-and-a-half years recovering from the surgery and slowly getting back in shape, but his healthy hip suffered, compensating for the months he limped with every step.

Faced with undergoing another hip replacement, Mr. Young decided to turn to exercise as an alternative to surgery.

“I met Sophia (Cannonier) at a cocktail party and she told me about the work she did at the Health Co-op,” he recalls.

Although a little sceptical about Pilates at first, Mr. Young began a bi-weekly regime of this unique programme that increases mobility, flexibility and strength by working muscles in proper alignment to build core stability.

He also tried the Feldenkrais Method — a system of somatic education that improves human function and teaches awareness through movement and functional integration.

With a chuckle he recalls the first time he tried Feldenkrais: “I was so relaxed before I knew it I was sound asleep and woke up when Sophia said: “That’s it!”. She had me so well-aligned that I just went to sleep.”

Within a matter of weeks Mr. Young had more flexibility than he dreamt possible, his heart-rate was down and he found the programme to be a “wonderful experience”.

“I’m not graceful like a ballet dancer, but I go at it with sufficient fervour and I build up quite a sweat, so I get my aerobic exercise as well as my strength and flexibility training. It’s been wonderful for me.”

Mr. Young says his life is much more pleasant and rewarding now and he spends time doing gardening and walking around the property near Shelly Bay.

“Pilates gives me the strength, as the whole programme is designed to rehabilitate people,” he adds.

He also thinks being one of the few men doing Pilates poses a challenge to Ms Cannonier: “I’m not as graceful as a woman might be and just charge around doing my version of Pilates.”

With a frown Mr. Young recalls a time when he could not bend and was forced to kick objects around the room until he could find a way of picking them up: “You can’t undervalue the benefits of being able to bend and move. Also, when you get older, a big issue is falling and Pilates helps you a lot with your balance. When I first got here, I couldn’t stand on one foot. I just didn’t have the balance or the strength in my ankles, I also didn’t know how to stand up correctly and Pilates solved all these problems.”

Happily married for 40 years, Mr. Young and his wife now enjoy being able to travel again and although he says he will never play squash again, but by choice, he does enjoy taking a whack at golf whenever he gets the chance and also goes to gym every week.

“But this... this is my sport now,” he declares as Sophia takes over and begins his daily workout.

With an extraordinary amount of flexibility, Mr. Young poses a challenge for The Royal Gazette>photographer, Glenn Tucker to get the perfect photo as he pulls his entire body almost vertical to the ceiling and points his toes towards the sky.

Would he recommend Pilates to anyone?

“Most definitely... anyone can do Pilates. I don’t think you can ever be too old, or too young to start!” he says with a boyish smile that lights up his whole face.

Two years ago Clifftina Stevens had reached a low point in her life. At the age of 33 she weighed over 200 pounds and even though she had been overweight all her life, she wanted to change.

“One day I woke up and just felt that I didn’t want to be like that anymore,” she recalls.

At that stage Ms Stevens held two jobs and says she ate whatever was quick and easy, which usually ended up being “fast food” — sometimes twice a day.

She walked into Contours gym in Hamilton in April, 2005 and despite her busy work schedule found the time to exercise five times a week. She also signed up for Contour’s ten-week weight management programme.

Through these weekly classes with fellow “dieters”, she was given a course on nutrition and eating healthy: “I love junk food, so it was hard. I used to just get by on a bag of chips and a chocolate for lunch, but now I eat healthy and light and enjoy fruits and veggies for lunch.”

Instead of settling for junk for dinner, Ms Stevens makes lunch her main meal of the day and enjoys something light, like soup or salad for dinner instead.

She praises the programme which not only gave her the opportunity to share her fears with others, but also gave her the support to lose 70 pounds.

Was it easy? “Heck no!” she says with a laugh, adding that the greatest challenge has been maintaining her weight.

She also went from a size 20 dress to a 12 and works regularly with a personal trainer, Sharlene Shakes, to keep her body toned and stay in peak “fat burning” condition.

Ms Stevens chuckles that her boyfriend has been a great support from the start, having known her as a “large” woman and been there for her during her transformation.

She says he not only encouraged her during her weight loss, but also constantly praised her on her success.

“I would meet a lot of people who knew me before I lost weight and they all want to know if I had used some magic pill,” she says with a laugh. “When I tell them what I did, they say I motivate them.”

Like many plus-size women, Clifftina also struggled in the past to find clothes that flattered her body shape and made her feel sexy and beautiful, but not anymore.

“When I put clothes on now ... Wow! I love shopping and feel so much more confident and beautiful,” she adds.

Clifftina elaborates that she comes from a family plagued by obesity and hopes that by setting an example, they might try and lose weight too: “You just have to put your mind to it and be motivated!”

When asked about any other major changes she’s made since losing 70 pounds, Ms Stevens revealed that last year she participated in the May 24 Marathon Derby for the first time and also completed the End to End.

As for the International Race Weekend, she says with a chuckle that Ms Shakes is trying to get her to participate, but she hasn’t made up her mind yet: “The hardest part is taking that first step I guess.”

B>Kim Powell has a hard time convincing immigration officers that she is in fact the person she says she is. Looking at her passport photo from a few years back, they ask her to sign her name — just to make sure.

And with good reason. After losing almost 100 pounds, she is a different woman.

The married mother of two teenage sons admits that for as long as she can remember, she put her family first and in the process neglected herself.

However, she reached a turning point in January, 2005 when she and her husband decided to go to Spanish Point Park for lunch — which back then consisted of sub-sandwiches, chips and sodas.

However, Kim decided to walk back to work when her husband stopped the car at the top of Cox’s Hill.

The short walk to Serpentine Road took her 15 minutes and Kim realised her weight was affecting not only her daily life, but also her health. It was time for action and that same week she started “shopping around” for a gym.

Her boss, Clive Thatcher at Island Glass, where she has worked for the past 15 years, offered to pay for the first year at a gym of her choice if she enrolled and walking down Gorham Road one morning, Ms Powell poked her head into Curves and was sold.

Over the next year the gym’s logo, “The power to amaze yourself!” proved true to her in every sense of the word.

“It was a challenge. I’ve never started something, and seen it through to the end. This I’m going to finish!” she admits with a broad smile.

Ms Powell spent the first few months concentrating on the machines, working out 30 minutes almost every day of the week — even though she only had to go three times a week — and says when she saw the first few pounds “falling off” she realised she had found something that worked for her.

Only when the weight she lost became noticeable that she decided to pay attention to what was also going inside her body.

“I never really went on a diet, just watched what went into my mouth,” she says.

After she lost almost 50 pounds, Ms Powell signed up for Curves’ Six Week Solution in April, 2006.

“My sister was getting married in May and I wanted to lose another 20 pounds before then,” she adds.

For the next six weeks, she attended small and intimate weekly classes where she learnt how to lose weight and keep it off for good by eating healthy, calorie-controlled meals for the duration of the programme.

She did lose 17 pounds in those six weeks and laughs when she recalls that the straps of the dress she wore to the wedding kept sliding off her shoulders.

Filled with a sense of accomplishment, she stuck with what she had learned on the programme and to date has lost a total of 83 pounds with Curves.

Does she feel different?

“Not at first, even though everyone would say that I’ve lost weight, and ask how much have I lost, I still couldn’t see it. Looking in a mirror has been one of the hardest things I used to have to do, but when I lost the first 40 pounds, I could see a difference. When I look in a mirror now, I like what I see, and that’s a good feeling” she says with obvious emotion.

However, she is quick to add that in order to succeed, it is important to take it one day at a time.

“When I fall off, I get right back up,” she adds. “But the hardest part is taking that first step.”

She says she never feels deprived on her diet and when she really wants something sweet, she will eat it, but never finish it.

“I went to our company Christmas party and ordered the baked Alaska for desert, but instead of finishing it, I had a few bites and left the rest,” she explains, adding with a laugh that most of the time her husband is only too happy to finish whatever she leaves on her plate.

Like most women on the planet ms Powell says she also spent years trying every imaginable diet, diet pill or gimmick available on cable TV in an effort to lose weight, but found that nothing worked — until now.

She still goes to Curves gym almost every day to keep her body toned and looks around to see if anyone is listening when she admits that she approached a plastic surgeon a while back to find out about getting a tummy tuck, but was told she was not a candidate.

With diet and exercise she has managed to tone her body, slim down and more importantly remain healthy. No plastic surgery needed!

In 2005 and 2006 Ms Powell took part in the annual Middle to End — as part of the End to End event — and boasts that it was easier than she thought: “I love walking, but being overweight before I couldn’t do it over long distances.”

Another reason for her success, she believes, has been the support of her family, especially her wonderful husband of 23 years, whom Ms Powell says has been very supportive.

“He tells me I’ve accomplished a lot in a short time, and he is extremely proud of me” she adds that both her sons and husband have also lost weight.

Her next mission? Getting her sister Cindy to join Curves and perhaps also applying for a new passport. So the next time the jaws of Immigration officers drop, it’s because the photo of the woman smiling back at them is as stunning as the woman standing in front of them.It is never easy for a man to admit that he needs help, especially when it comes to asking advice on diet and exercise.

But in 2005 Corrections officer, Troy Richardson felt a change was more than overdue when at the age of 43, he weighed 243 pounds and was constantly tired, lacking the energy to complete even simply tasks.

“I was just fed up at being overweight,” he says.

He approached diet counsellor Dawn Berry at Magnum Power Force Gym and Diet Centre in October that year and by June last year had lost 53 pounds to reach his goal of 190 pounds: “It definitely was not easy. It was tough! I would advise anyone who wants to improve themselves that they have to be committed and serious to the cause. If not, they are just wasting their time.”

Like Clifftina Stevens, Mr. Richardson found the hardest part was maintaining his new goal weight.

To date Troy has lost 53 pounds and has lowered his body fat from an unhealthy 35 percent to a healthy 16 percent — much to the joy of his doctor.

With a chuckle, Troy recalls when his doctor started referring other male patients to talk to him about his weight loss success.

This, he says, doesn’t bother him one bit because he feels being fit and healthy is important and he can help other men reach their goal by setting an example.

As for his lifestyle before he joined the gym, Troy admits that he loves food and would eat three meals a day and snacked in-between meals.

But all this food, he says, just made things worse because he was not exercising on a regular basis.

“Now I’m very consistent. I’m here six days a week. I do aerobics sessions, spinning and cardio,” he explains.

Troy said he did not see a difference until he had lost 15 pounds, but added that he tried not to get too excited because he did not want to “slide” in reaching his goal. Was he happy when he reached his goal? Troy replies that he had no idea what he would look like less 50 pounds and used the mirror as an indicator: “I was hoping it was what I was hoping to see when I looked in the mirror, but when I looked I didn’t see what I hoped I would ... I didn’t see the stomach gone. But I was pleased with my progress and have since set a new goal.”

Troy is now pushing towards losing another 15 pounds and says the mirror will once again be his judge.

But he does feel great and says he is able to do things he never did before: “When I first got on the Stairmaster, I couldn’t barely do a minute and half without having to lie down on the carpet to catch my breath. Now I’m running on it for up to half-an-hour,” he says with a broad smile.

Mr. Richardson also participated in the 2006 May 24 marathon: “I’ve done it in the past, but I was much fitter back then. But this year was my first year back and I told myself I wasn’t running it again until I was under 200 pounds and I did it.”

As for the International Race Weekend, Troy says he will definitely be participating this weekend, but is still trying to decide which race to sign up for.

His advice to other men who might be thinking about dieting, but not sure how to do it: “If they are serious about improving themselves, I suggest they pick up the phone and call these guys. They are fantastic, if it wasn’t for them staying on me and encouraging me, I could never have done this.”

12 months to a new life