Bill Yetman with Ancestry.com

Bill Yetman of Ancestry.com has made tremendous changes in his lifestyle since his initial Apple Health AssessmentSM last winter. Follow his assessment his evaluation indicated he was overweight and had high blood pressure. Bill felt like a “fat boy with high blood pressure” who needed to make modifications. He decided to start making changes by getting in shape and staying that way. He’s since lost over 50 pounds, dropped five pants sizes, and consequently lowered his blood pressure!

Bill accomplished these improvements by biking over 2200 miles on his road bike this year and hiking in the Draper trails even when if it was cold and rainy. He also learned to improve his eating habits by eating and enjoying more greens and limiting fatty junk food. His wife, Liliana, also helped him improve his eating habits by following the 30 Minute South Beach Cookbook and planning and preparing healthy meals for both of us. “She found recipes that were tasty and good for me,” reports Bill. He adds, “My daughter, Shanna, also visited me shortly after my assessment and taught me how to count calories. It was an eye-opening revelation to actually write down what I ate in a single day and calculate the calories. I learned that if you change what you eat, you could ‘diet’ without being hungry and if I went back for seconds it was for vegetables or a piece of fruit. That was a big change.” He realized his tactics were working when he lost his first 10 pounds. “I felt better and that made it easy to keep going.”

“The Apple Program® was the final straw to get me moving,” Bill says. “I was thinking about doing this but being part of the program helped me go from thinking to doing. Without the program I would probably still weigh above 240 and still be thinking about losing weight and getting in shape.”

Bill states that his Apple Health CoachSM was also very encouraging and positive. “She suggested some core exercises for me to compliment all the leg work I was doing on my bike. Having someone you must contact once a month and check in with helped keep me on course. It was nice to have an extra reminder.” At various times in Bill’s life he’s been very athletic and in shape. In college he swam and played water polo, working out twice a day, 6 days per week. At that time he weighed 180 pounds. He indicates, “I was 21 and in the best shape of my life. Right now I am only 10 pounds away from that weight and almost in as good a shape--and I’m a lot older.”

Bill’s future goals are to maintain his fitness strength and keep the weight off. To do this he plans to workout at least one hour a day for a minimum of five days a week. His added energy, focus, and drive keep him motivated to stay in shape. He has also seen that his ability to climb hills on his bike a lot easier, and his added strength and stamina that he thought he had left behind for good years ago also help keep him focused on his goals. “The process was painful, and I had to get in shape slowly but it worked!” reports Bill.

Bill’s advice to other is, “If you’re trying to get in shape and exercise, start slow, and build up a little at a time. Build an aerobic base and then push a little farther and challenge yourself. Consistently making little gains over long periods will result in big changes. Finally remember the slogan, ‘Just do it.’”

Dale Watkins with Washington County

Dale Watkins of Washington County is winning his battle with weight loss with the assistance of The Apple Program®. Throughout Dale’s life, he’s wanted to lose weight but never saw any lasting progress. This changed on Memorial Day of 2010 when he and his wife decided together that it was time to make changes. With his wife’s assistance and his Apple Health Coach’s SM support, Dale has lost over 30 pounds since June 1st and has improved several other aspects of his health biometric scores.

When Dale initially joined The Apple Program® he designed goals for himself that were good, but not very challenging, because he wasn’t extremely committed to making a change. When he saw little improvement at his next Apple Health Assessment SM he knew something really needed to change. Dale indicates he was “a health disaster waiting to happen.” He adds, “I think everyone wants to take better care of themselves, but truly doing something about it is where the rubber meets the road. You have to decide to act. I didn’t and I saw the consequences, but with the support of this program and my wife, I am now reaping the benefits. I feel better mentally and physically, and I weigh less. Without this program, I would still be in denial, starting other programs and eventually giving up, but with this program I get support, praise, and encouragement to keep me motivated.”

Designing real goals helped Dale have success. Walking was a key component for his fitness. “When I walk with my walking partner, Brinkley, my golden retriever, I feel better; it energizes me, and I consequently have a better attitude when I wake up in the morning! I have found a new willpower and I am not willing to look back.”

Dale plans to lose another 30 pounds by next June and anticipates seeing more improvements in his scores at his next Apple Health Assessment SM. To accomplish this he will continue to follow a quote that has motivated him to get make changes thus far, “The pain of change is never overcome until the benefit of the change is realized.” Dale indicates, “I used to set goals but would find ways around them, thus I never realized the benefit. I have now realized the benefit of a healthier lifestyle, and it is good. Another quote I live by is, ‘Kites rise against, not with, the wind.’ Resistance is a fact of life; what we need to do is learn to harness or control those things that are thrown against us and use them to our advantage; when we have overcome them or subdued them then we rise above and are in control of the resistance, rather than it controlling us.”

Jacob Case with Max International

When Jacob Case with Max International finished college in the fall of 2009, he decided it was time to get in shape. For six years he had faced frustration with his weight, excelling in school but not in his health. Shortly after graduation he began making changes. His workplace then teamed up with The Apple Program® and he’s since lost 50 pounds!

Jacob has known for some time that he needed to improve his blood pressure, but he didn’t realize that his weight was also putting him in high risk health categories. To move his scores to normal levels he set goals related to nutrition improvement and increased exercise. Jacob states, “My goal this year was to run 365 miles and ride my mountain bike for 750 miles. I’ve run 620 miles and biked 650 so far!” Several weeks have passed since, so Jacob has likely well exceeded his goal.

“The Apple Program® has helped me in numerous ways. I knew I was heavy and needed to lose some weight, but it was learning of the other factors (hypertension, high body fat percentage, and BMI) that really reinforced my purpose to get healthier. Talking with my health coach has also helped generate new ideas. For example, I try to eat about 2,700 calories each day, 30% from protein, 50% from carbohydrates, 5% from saturated fat, and 15% from unsaturated fat. Trying to maintain calorie amounts and ratios became a challenge until I discussed this with my health coach. She gave me several new ideas about foods to integrate into my diet. She has also helped me with running advice and discussion with exercise such as why I should have good running shoes and how important stretching is,” notes Jacob. He adds, “I think the program has added knowledge and motivation that I wouldn't have otherwise had. I learned more about my health, as well as gained support and ideas about how to maintain variety in my diet and workout plan.”

Jacob has learned things from his Apple Health CoachSM that he otherwise may have never known, for example, he though his sodium and caffeine consumptions were at normal levels, but then learned he was actually consuming 300% of normal sodium requirement. Jacob’s coach helped by giving him ideas to reduce his intake of those ingredients, which has helped him lower his blood pressure to a normal level. Jacob states, “Talking with a health coach is good because you know they will ask you about your goals and give you ideas about them. Tracking the goals is also great because it's a way to hold yourself accountable. Just having a health-minded mentor there to bounce ideas off of and check yourself with is a great advantage. Furthermore, although I already know much of the material at the quarterly brown bag meetings, I always come away from the meeting with at least a few new ideas and concepts that I can integrate. Some things that I already knew I still need to be reminded of, and the brown bag meetings are good for that.”

Jacob knows that his success would not have come unless he was able to change his behaviors. “I remember saying ‘I have a slow metabolism,’ but that was before I started tracking my diet and learned that I didn't eat well. After taking ownership of my diet, I found that my metabolism is not slow at all. The Apple Program® and the health coach helped to facilitate the process of improving my health. Specifically, I would say that goal setting and periodic evaluation of those goals with the health coach is how I've succeeded.”

Jacob suggests, “You have to decide why you want to reach your goals and believe in those reasons; they're different for everyone. This summer I got into racing mountain bikes. Much of my motivation and purpose for wanting to lose weight, in addition to getting healthy, was to be able to compete in the mountain bike races. I competed in 5 mountain bike races, 2 half marathons (Ogden and Park City in 1:45, and 1:47 respectively) and ran the St. George marathon in 3:50:22. While losing the weight and conditioning, I went from running a 10:30 mile pace to around an 8 minute mile. Physical performance is one of the biggest reasons I've become so concerned with my health. It's very satisfying and adds a level of fulfillment to my life.”

Saying yes to challenges and stepping out of your comfort zone is important to Jacob. He was invited by a team to run the Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay last June when they had a teammate drop out at the last minute and needed a replacement. Because a member of the team knew he was training for the St. George marathon, they invited him to join. He was uncertain about it, but did it anyway. It was a great experience for him. He made several new friends that weekend, and they all formed another team for the Las Vegas Ragnar, which was just last weekend. Jacob states, “Doing activities in groups and gaining friendships with people who are into fitness is important, because values rub off on one another, and you can gain insight from those friends when you talk to them. That's why it's also important to get your spouse on the same page; my wife and I are on the same page with our diet and exercise, and it helps tremendously.”

Jacob’s future goals include maintaining the fitness he’s implemented and become more competitive with mountain biking and running. He’s grateful that he has achieved efficacy (the capacity for producing a desired result) in his life and is able to do what he wants with physical activities.

His advice to others is to, “Find balance and sustainability. You have to keep balance in your life or the program that you're on is not Sustainable. I see the need for balance when I start to get annoyed with not eating appealing foods because of its nutritional content. When this happens, I loosen my diet for a meal or two. I don't go overboard; I just force myself to be ok with eating a less than perfect meal, such as having desert, or a larger portion. It's better to eat one or two less than perfect meals than it is to fall off the bandwagon for several weeks. By the end of the month, if you've eaten a handful of less than perfect meals but the rest of the time you ate clean, then your overall diet is excellent. It's also good to remind yourself that fitness will ebb and flow to a certain extent. When I start to get burned out of exercising, or a certain type of exercise, I'll try to switch it up, or replace it with another activity. Sometimes I realize that I haven't spent as much time with my wife as I should be, so I won't work out that day and go do something with her instead. Also remember that early on, you will get extremely sore from exercise. This is also when it's the most discouraging. Keeping balance in your life will help you from getting burned out and discouraged and is the best way to find a sustainable, healthy routine to adhere to over the long run.”