My Dogs Inspired Me to Drop 102 Pounds

By | January 20, 2019

Patrick Stokes, 49, figured that if his dogs were sedentary and gaining weight, he was, too. So they got active and lost weight together. This is his story, as told to Maria Masters.


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I was never a big junk food eater, but I was an overeater. Instead of eating a chicken breast, a baked potato, and a side of asparagus, I’d eat four chicken breasts, two potatoes, and an entire bag of asparagus. Over the years, the weight piled on gradually, and I became more sedentary. And I wasn’t the only one suffering. Major, my 6-year-old boxer, had put on about 10 pounds, and Frank, my 3-year-old pug, had gained about 3. They would look at the leash or the door as if to say, “Why aren’t we going outside?” And I kept thinking: “If your dogs are gaining weight, you aren’t exercising enough.”

At the end of 2016, I was 299 pounds and decided to make a change. I downloaded a weight-loss app called “Lose It” and started tracking my calories and physical activity. I limited myself to 2,000 calories or less per day. One way I was able to maintain portion control while still feeling satisfied was by using meal replacement smoothies from Smoothie King; my favorite is their Vanilla Slim and Trim. My dinners haven’t changed very much in terms of what I ate; I just started taking a closer look at the portion sizes I was consuming. One of the biggest advantages of Lose It is that it didn’t restrict what I ate—it just showed me how much of it I should eat to achieve my weight loss goals. That was huge for me, as I still ate a variety of foods, but was able to monitor and visualize my food intake.

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About six months into my weight loss journey, I started running, and pushed myself to achieve a 10-minute mile for about two to three miles. I didn’t want to subject the dogs to that, especially in the hot summer. But I wanted to incorporate them into my exercise routine, so before or after I ran, I’d walk them about ½ mile. The change in them was obvious—they loved being outside.

As I continued to lose weight and made running a part of my daily routine, I extended the length of my runs and improved my time. In the past year, I have probably taken part in about 15 races. I consistently run a low 7-minute mile and have actually won several races in my age division!

I have actually won several races in my age division.

By the end of 2017, I had lost 102 pounds, Major had lost 8, and Frank had lost 4. We still walk every day and go to a local dog park a few times a month. Now Major runs 2 or 3 miles with me when the weather is nice, and Frank can do a half-mile walk. (I try to never miss a day of running. On weekends, I now often go more than 10K each time I run.) When we come home, we all eat microwaved popcorn together; they’ve gotten pretty good at catching kernels out of the air. Everyone is much happier—and healthier.

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