Still Slim 3 1/2 Years Later, He’s Sailing Through Life

On July 6, 1998, Health ran the How I Did It story of Craig Willis, who went from 420 pounds to 175, a loss of 245 pounds. The 17-month process started with a recommendation from his doctor: gastric bypass, which he underwent in November 1995. As Willis, now 30, explained, “He knew I would die soon if I didn’t do something. He also knew a typical diet wouldn’t work for me.” Willis learned to change not only his eating habits--”I would eat fast food for breakfast, lunch and dinner”--but also his lifestyle, which came to include exercise. Another benefit, Willis wrote, was being able to put money down on a new Jeep Wrangler from the money he saved in food. His food budget went from $6,000 a year to $2,000.

Here is an update from Willis, who, at 5 feet, 10 inches, now weighs 190 pounds:

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Another year is now behind me. It has been 3 1/2 years since I underwent gastric bypass and two years since I’ve maintained a weight loss of about 230 pounds. I have made many new friends, sailed to exotic islands and discovered a few tools to help with the maintenance.

As I said in my original story, keeping off the weight is the real work. Food has been and continues to be an everyday issue. I have been told that this is good, and it is right where I want to be in life. Every time I put food in my mouth, I am thinking of the calories and my weight. I strongly believe that I cannot consume more calories than I burn; the excess only turns to fat. I believe I have a beautiful mind, spirit and body. I do not want to return to the unwanted feeling of being ugly and unappreciated, which I had felt for so many years.

My weight has gone up 10 or 15 pounds a couple of times in the past year, but luckily it’s all come off. I realize I need to stop eating the wrong foods and start exercising a bit more. It is still hard for me to believe that I am now a “normal” person with “normal” weight issues that everyone deals with. I’m happy that I’ve come to know when I’ve begun to gain weight. It is so much easier to lose eight pounds than 15.

I will always continue to follow Dr. Leport’s program, “Smart Dimensions,” and most importantly believe in myself as it has saved my life. The support groups are still a major part of my maintenance program. The toughest issue I deal with today is that I still think of myself as fat. I have lost that “high” of losing the weight and everyone telling me that I look great. The issue of loose skin can be disturbing. I have learned to deal with this day by day. I am grateful that I have little of it, but to have a tight, flat stomach would be an absolute dream.

The group supports long-term patients such as myself. I have spoken with others who feel that they are failing, and I support them because I know how important the support is.

My eating habits are still much the same. I continue to eat six to eight meals a day. Choosing the right foods is important, and it’s so much easier today. I read labels like a pro! There is so much variety out there that anyone can eat healthy. My No. 1 strategy when food shopping? Shop only on the outer walls of the store, where the fruits, vegetables, dairy and meat are. Shopping up and down each aisle years ago only made me fat.

Work and other activities keep me so busy that finding time for exercising can sometimes be difficult. However, I continue to walk 2 1/2 to three miles four times a week. There is so much open space in South Orange County, where I live. Walking on an open trail, you can discover something new each time, and there are wildlife, fresh air, waterfalls, a stress-free environment. I prefer the outdoors and hiking to an old, stuffy gym.

And I still have my Jeep! I love it as much today as I did when I first bought it. It just amazes me today that I actually saved money from not buying as much food as I had the year before I bought it. What fun this vehicle has allowed me to have. I have taken it almost everywhere, from San Francisco to Mexico to Phoenix to the Pacific Ocean.

One of my most memorable experiences this past year was sailing in a private catamaran around Tahiti. I swam among sea urchins and stingrays, picked coconuts, moored off Bora Bora and swam to the beautiful, white sandy beach--these were all awesome experiences. Before, I would have been too self-conscious to relax and enjoy the islands. At 420 pounds, I would easily have sunk the dinghy.

Life is a beautiful and wonderful adventure. Whether you are fat or skinny, it is what you make of it.

How Did You Do It?

Do you have a story about how you lost weight and kept the pounds off? Or a story about how you learned to mountain climb or in-line skate, trained for a half-marathon or discovered a unique way of keeping fit, dealing with a nagging ailment or persevering with a fitness regimen despite some obstacles?

If so, we’d like to hear from you. Tell us your story in a 500-word essay listing what worked in terms of diet, exercise and encouragement, as well as any emotional and physical changes.

For weight-loss stories, send us full-body color photos of yourself, before and after. For other types of stories, send a color photo of yourself doing the activity you’re writing about.

Send essay and photos to How I Did It, Health, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053. Include daytime and evening phone numbers. Submissions cannot be returned. And, please, no phone calls.

In addition to publication, winners will receive a Los Angeles Times Health section gym bag, a Sparkletts hot-cold travel mug, T-shirt and coupons for free water products, courtesy of McKesson Water Products Co.