Anything’s Possible: Three Members That Prove It!

These Profile members say they have counted many victories—big and small—as they walked their health journey with Profile. The success of a health journey is often marked by the added pleasures of a warm season – outdoor activities, vacations and celebrations. Summer is a great time of year, members say, to start making lifestyle changes and begin counting the victories.

Cameryn Taylor: The victory of healthy lifestyle changes

Cameryn remembers it was summer when she knew something needed to change. “I realized school was going to start in a month and I had no clothes to wear,” said the 26-year-old special education teacher. “I just didn’t feel good anymore. I felt blah all the time.”

She joined Profile and lost 74 pounds. Others noticed her weight loss, including her parents who became Profile members as well. The change in all of them is evident in photos from an annual 5K her father’s company hosts. The family ran the 5K four years ago, and then ran it again this year. “It was so cool,” Cameryn said. “Before, every step hurt and was a production. Now I can run two miles straight without stopping. I wear a smaller size than I did in high school.”

Dennis Adams: Encouraged by his why

Dennis knows the same feeling, except his 5K experience struck a deeply emotional chord for him. Dennis, a 64-year-old pastor, decided to make a change when his weight peaked at 372 pounds. “I was a Type II diabetic,” he said. “I had an insulin pump with incredible amounts of insulin each day. I felt inhibited. I said, ‘This is enough.’” He was headed for gastric bypass surgery when his doctor suggested Profile. “My wife said she would do it with me for eight weeks. Eleven months later, we both hit our goal.”

He lost 127 pounds, going from a 56-inch waistline to a 38. “My goal was never to be skinny,” Dennis said. “It was to be healthy. I consider that a victory.” His number one motivator was to attend his granddaughter’s college graduation. She’s in elementary school now. “I realized I would have to live to be 84 and I wasn’t on track for that. I want to be there.”

Dennis ran the 5K with his wife’s encouragement. Eleven years ago, their 27-year-old son passed away from genetic colon cancer. Their daughter had run a 5K in Washington in honor of her brother. Now healthy and able, Dennis joined her. “I was able to honor my son in a way I had never been able to,” he said. “Crossing the finish line was euphoric. I can’t begin to describe it. It felt like such an accomplishment and my son was there with me the whole time. He would have been proud.”

One of the most poignant things about Profile, Dennis said, is how it dealt with his heart. “You deal with some realities,” he said. Dennis grew up relating food with love. “My mom would comfort me or celebrate with food – here’s a Coke, here’s ice cream, here’s a cookie,” he said. “Breaking that relationship was really hard. It’s the emotional part of the journey.”

Joshua Galyon: It all adds up

Joshua, 37, also faced some realities when he started his Profile journey. “You look at yourself and think, ‘How did I get to this?’” Joshua and his family enjoy vacationing and riding rollercoasters at theme parks. “I always enjoyed them, but there were some I couldn’t get on,” he said. “It was disheartening and embarrassing.”

With the help of Profile, Joshua has lost 80 pounds. One of the goals that kept him moving was those rollercoasters. It was a sweet victory when his family traveled to a theme park and he slid in to his seat with no problem. “It was an exciting moment,” he said.

Joshua’s wife also did Profile and now their 12-year-old son has started. “We want to be there for him and let him know he can do this” he said. The road to health is hard, he said, but the victories do roll in consistently. “Like going to the beach recently I had to buy all new clothes,” he said. “Things like getting up out of a beach chair and walking back to the house are a lot easier.”

Victory for Joshua was a lot of little moments that added up to a new lifestyle. He thinks about quiet moments on the beach and how even that looks and feels different. “I was looking at seashells on the beach and I was crouched down in a squat. I think I could have stayed like that for hours. When I started this, I just wanted to feel better about my daily life. I wanted to do what I wanted to do and not have to worry about if I could or couldn’t because of my weight. It’s the little things.”

So, what’s holding you back this summer? Don’t let your struggles with weight get in your way — you can do this! Make this your summer of possibility and choose lasting weight loss and sustainable healthy living like these members did!