Be an inspiration: If you’ve made positive changes in your diet and/or fitness routine and are happy with the results, please share your success with us. Include your email address, a daytime phone number and before and after photos (by mail or JPEG). Write: Success Stories, c/o Patty Murphy, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 223 Perimeter Center Parkway, Atlanta, GA, 30346-1301; or e-mail Michelle C. Brooks, ajcsuccessstories@gmail.com.
SUCCESS STORY / Kenneth Suffern Jr., 39: From 240 pounds to 174 pounds
Former weight: 240 pounds
Current weight: 174 pounds
Pounds lost: 66 pounds
Height: 5 feet 10 inches
Age: 39 years
How long he's kept it off: Suffern initially lost weight in 2007. He re-started with a renewed focus last year and has maintained his current weight since June 2014.
Personal life: "I work in Atlanta in sports and entertainment, which had been bad for living a healthy lifestyle," said Suffern. "I'm single and recently divorced. I do not have children but I want them." He lives in downtown Atlanta and blogs at: bluelineswork.wordpress.com. His manuscript, Blue Lines, is: "the fictional coming of age narrative of a young [woman] and her two-year growing journey through school, love and life."
Turning point: "The first time I lost weight … I lost weight before in 2007, and muscle turned to fat," he said. "When I put weight back on, I was eating bad meals once a day, and making excuses not to workout … I wasn't in the same shape I am now … I had one doctor's appointment where my heart rate was up, and I had high cholesterol. I had never had that in the past, and never had it again. I unfortunately put the weight back on. I wanted … to be healthy for my future and future wife and children, so I put my effort into doing it again — permanently."
Diet plan: "Just eating regularly," he said. "I cut out the bad food and focused on small, healthy snacks and three meals a day … I stopped eating bread and fried foods. I began to eat regularly during the day." He also stopped drinking sodas.
Exercise routine: "I get at least seven miles a day running," he said. "I have a push-up and sit-up regimen of at least 500 a day."
Biggest challenge: "I knew what I had — therefore initially it wasn't a challenge," he said. "I guess my challenge was building a consistent routine amidst my work schedule. Moving into Atlanta from McDonough helped that process tremendously."
How life has changed: "I am happier — I love the person I really see in the mirror every morning," he said. "I have been getting huge mileage days [while running], so I'm thinking to possibly run a marathon." His advice includes: "Do it for yourself … Make sure that whatever you eat [you] offset it with appropriate exercise … I have lost [nearly] 70 pounds running consistently, working out without weights, and eliminating bread and empty carbs as well as eating regularly."
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