[music plays] [no dialogue] >>Lori Banks: Coming up next on Being Well, we're talking to two men whose voices are probably familiar to you.

Tim Stolz and Kurtis Allen are here to talk about their weight loss journey.

They have a great story to share, and some advice for anyone who's struggling with weight or thinking about starting a weight loss program.

That's just ahead on this edition of Being Well, so don't go away.

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Eating a heart healthy diet, staying active, managing stress, and regular check-ups are ways of reducing your health risks.

Proper health is important to all at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System.

Information available at sarahbush.org.

Dr. Ruben Boyajian, located at 904 Medical Park Drive in Effingham, specializing in breast care, surgical oncology, as well as general and laparoscopic surgery.

More information online, or at 347-2255.

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Our patient care and investments in medical technology show our ongoing commitment to the community of East Central Illinois.

Paris Community Hospital is pleased to help bring you Being Well on WEIU.

Welcome to this edition of Being Well.

I'm your host, Lori Banks.

And today, I've got two gentlemen on the show whose voices may sound familiar, but you may not know their faces.

And I've got Tim Stolz and Kurtis Allen from WMCI.

And we're here actually today, not to talk about radio, but to talk about a journey that you guys have both been on.

And that's a weight loss journey, and something that a lot of people out there have been on.

Let's talk a little bit about, have you always had issues with weight?

Kurtis, I'll start with you.

>>Kurtis Allen: I was always a bigger guy.

I was always the bigger kid.

I was always taller than a lot of other kids in school, until about high school.

But yeah, I've always been a little bit overweight.

And I had a couple pretty major back surgeries in high school, and that kind of hindered lifting weights and stuff like that.

It eliminated a lot of the exercise that I did because pain just became a regular thing.

And so, you combine that with, you still eat the way you did before, and through the end of high school and through college, yeah, I put on weight, and really kind of ballooned then.

So, that's kind of how it started for me.

>>Lori Banks: Yeah, Tim, what about you?

>>Tim Stolz: Similar to Kurtis, when I was a kid, I was always the bigger kid.

And when I got to high school, it just kind of got worse and worse.

I was on the football team for a while, and I was the big guy on the football team.

And even when I got out of sports, I was not doing the physical activity as much anymore, and I was still eating the way I always had.

And it just ballooned from there.

And it's been getting progressively worse throughout my adult life, as well.

>>Lori Banks: Now, you're both in your early 30s.

Have you throughout your life tried to lose weight or gone on a weight loss program?

>>Kurtis Allen: I mean, yeah, there's been a couple of different diets that I tried through college and after college.

And a couple of years ago, there was a program with Sarah Bush that was more about portion control and lifestyle change.

And I was able to lose about 45 or 50 pounds with that.

I put a little bit of it back on.

But other than that, I mean, this is the first real sort of full on diet that I've ever really done, to this level, I suppose.

>>Lori Banks: Yeah, Tim, what about you?

>>Tim Stolz: Yeah, I had never done any structured diet before.

I've just tried to do stuff on my own, in terms of joining a gym, getting in more exercise, trying to watch what I eat and control what I eat, and it's just never had any measurable success associated with it.

>>Lori Banks: So, we want to tell people that Kurtis and Tim participated, or are participating in Sarah Bush's HMR program, which is a medically supervised, you said structured.

It's food, you're eating the HMR meals, correct?

>>Kurtis Allen: Yeah, they have shakes and meals, and bars, things like that.

But I'm doing what's called a Decision Free, so it's three shakes a day and two entrees.

So, I'm able to kind of space that out through the day, like a shake for breakfast, entree for lunch, shake in the afternoon, entree for dinner, shake for dessert kind of thing.

And it's all low calorie, and it's combined with, you know, exercise.

You're reintroducing exercise into your life, and you try to burn off right around 2,000 calories is what they want you to burn off throughout a week.

So, I mean, I'm up to right around 3,800, 4,000 calories now a week, which I couldn't have imagined when I started this journey.

So, it'’’s pretty crazy how well this has worked for me.

>>Lori Banks: So, what was it like, Tim, I'll ask you, when you first started, to go from probably eating, you know, whatever you wanted to now, all of a sudden here's all I get for the day?

>>Tim Stolz: Right, right, yeah.

It was a big transition.

And it was really rough for the first week or so, week or two.

And it was mostly just because of habit.

You're used to eating whatever you want, whenever you want, and suddenly you have to be very, very structured in what you're eating.

And it wasn't so much that I was hungry all the time.

I just felt like I should be hungry.

And the habit of eating just was a hard thing to break.

But once you get over that first couple weeks, and you get sort of used to what you're eating, and your body gets more used to it, it becomes a little easier.

And especially when you're getting a lot more physical activity in, you're spending a lot more time working out and doing stuff to be active, you're not bored so much, so you're not having boredom hunger.

You're not eating just out of nothing to do.

>>Lori Banks: So, what were some of the bad habits that you did have, that now you don't partake in anymore?

>>Kurtis Allen: Well, I was never like a sweets, soda guy, but if you put like a 24 ounce ribeye in front of me, I was going to eat it.

Like, portion control was the big thing for me.

And one thing I've been able to learn, when people see the meals, they think it's these little boxes.

But if you were to put this on a plate, combined with all of your veggies that you're eating now, I mean, it's a full meal.

So, we're not hungry at all, actually, which is pretty cool.

But portion control is the biggie for me.

You know, sure, if a double bacon cheeseburger's good, then I bet a triple's even more awesome, kind of thing.

But, so just portion control, and also getting away from the high calorie stuff, too.

That's been the biggie for me.

>>Lori Banks: Did you guys know a lot about nutrition before you started this, and what you should be eating?

>>Tim Stolz: No.

>>Kurtis Allen: Well, I mean, I think I took a nutrition class once here at EIU.

And I think I got an A in it.

I mean, I don't know if I actually learned anything, but I'm pretty sure.

>>Tim Stolz: I mean, yeah, I didn't know really the difference between a high calorie thing and a low calorie thing that were essentially the same amount of food volume-wise.

And so, yeah, the food on the program is, it's the same amount that you get if you went to a restaurant and you ordered an entree and sides.

But it's a lot low calorie, and it's a lot more nutritionally healthy for you, got all the stuff your body needs in it.

Whereas, before, you know, I might have just been tearing through a pizza and getting five times as many calories, and not near as much of the nutritional content.

>>Lori Banks: So now, are you label?

Well, you're still on the program, but are you label reading more?

>>Kurtis Allen: Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

And it's something that, it's a habit that, my mom's big into label reading.

She always has been.

So, it was a habit that I tried to pick up from her.

It never really caught on with me.

But with this program, you know, since we started this back in January, big time.

Because, I mean, it's not rocket science, this weight loss stuff.

It really isn't.

I mean, you know, you burn off more than you take in, so low calorie is good.

You know, calorie's the first thing I look at now when I look at a label.

>>Lori Banks: Let's talk about how you've incorporated exercise into the program, because that's the other key component to this.

>>Kurtis Allen: Yeah, that's definitely the biggest component of it, I think.

It started slow.

I think that's the case for anybody when they start weight loss.

You start slow, you don't overexert yourself, you don't, you know, set some crazy, lofty goal early.

So, when I started, I was just a little bit of, trying to reintroduce walking, you know, some cardio into it.

And I do about a mile a day.

And now, five and a half months later, I'm walking and running.

I'm running!

It's awesome, I'm running three miles every morning.

I did that this morning before I came in.

So, I mean, there's different stuff for who, whatever.

Whatever you want to do, whatever sort of exercise fits you best, you can do.

But for me, I mean that's been the great thing, to be able to introduce cardio again.

>>Tim Stolz: I got myself back into the gym on a regular basis.

And back at the beginning of the year, I'd be lucky if I could make it about a 45 minute workout.

And I'd feel like, okay, I'm completely drained.

But yeah, I got progressively better as the weight came off, and as my body got more used to it.

And recently, I got to the point where after like three hours in the gym, I'm like, okay, I've got to stop because I've got other things I have to go do, but I'm not tired yet.

>>Lori Banks: Which, you've come a long way because before taping, you said you would walk through the local Walmart, and you would be tired and in pain.

>>Tim Stolz: Yeah, that's how bad it got, to the point where just basic walking around a store, or just out in front of the house walking around the block would just kill my back and kill my knees, and kill my feet.

And I'd have to sit down and catch my breath.

So, yeah, just the basic kind of movement was difficult.

And yeah, now I'm to the point where, you know, I'll jog three, four, five miles on a whim.

And it's just, I need to burn off the energy.

>>Lori Banks: Are you shocked, surprised that, wow, I can do this now?

>>Kurtis Allen: Yeah, I am.

I really am.

I thought, you know, I told you this before we started, I didn't think I'd ever be able to do any running again.

Like, with the surgeries and all that stuff, just everyday pain was sort of a part of, it was a part of my life, and it was something I just sort of accepted.

So, when people go, "Wow, you've lost 90-some pounds, you must feel good," I just, the casual reaction, "Yeah, I do, I feel great."

But yeah, like there's a lot of pain that's gone, that I didn't have to deal with before.

So, I can't believe that I'm able to do three or four miles every morning, and that I'm living a mostly pain free existence these days.

I mean, that'’’s great, you know.

>>Lori Banks: So, let's put, for our viewers let's put this on a timeline.

You guys started this in January of 2015.

As we're taping this today, depending on when people see it, we're taping this on, it's... >>Kris Allen: June 30th.

>>Lori Banks: June 30th, so we're six months in.

You know, people may see this later or, you know, this summer or in the fall, or you know, a few years from now.

How much have you lost at this point?

You're six months into it, what's your weight loss at?

>>Kurtis Allen: I'm at 91 or 92 pounds, depending on what the scale, depending on which way I tilt on the scale.

I've been right around 92 pounds so far.

>>Lori Banks: Uh huh, and Tim?

>>Tim Stolz: I just hit 150.

>>Kurtis Allen: That's awesome, that's awesome.

>>Lori Banks: That's great.

So, where is your, do you have an end point, or...?

>>Kurtis Allen: I'd like to get to the 150 mark when it's all said and done.

I mean, in a perfect world that's what I would like to do.

But just cracking 100, I'll be happy with that, too, so.

>>Tim Stolz: I had no real goal when I started because I never lost any measurable weight in my life.

So, I didn't know that it was going to be successful to any degree.

So, I didn't even want to set a goal, just to not reach it.

So, you know, now I'm passing the 150 mark, I'm kind of just like, I want to see how far I can go.

Because, I'm still losing as much week to week now as I was back when I started.

It's not even slowing down.

>>Lori Banks: That's what I was going to ask.

Have either of you reached any kind of plateau yet?

>>Kurtis Allen: For me, not really.

I was consistently losing two or three pounds every week.

And in the last six weeks, it's been four or five pounds every week.

And I've had a couple where it's spiked like seven pounds.

The first week, everybody had a big loss.

I think I lost 15 pounds my first week.

I think Tim... >>Tim Stolz: Same, same for me.

>>Kurtis Allen: Tim lost 15, as well, his first week.

And so, that was a big motivating factor.

But I haven't, you know, knock on wood, I haven't had a steady plateau.

But they, you know, we know that if we do plateau, just to kind of stick with it, and it's going to pick back up, so.

>>Lori Casey: So, it sounds like through the six months that you've been in it, it's been all pretty positive.

Has there been any like real road blocks or challenges that you've come up against?

>>Tim Stolz: Mmm, closest thing to a challenge is that your weight loss will kind of go up and down.

There will be weeks when it seems like you are plateauing, but the next week, you know, it drops again, and you have significantly more weight loss.

And it you get frustrated easily, that week that comes along where you maybe only lose half a pound or something like that can make you think, well, maybe this is it for me.

Maybe I need to transition into the next phase, and just try to maintain where I'm at now.

But you know, you stick with it another week or another two weeks, and then you see more weight drop off again.

So, you can't always, even if you're eating the exact same amount of food as you did a week when you had big loss, and you're getting the same amount of physical activity as a week when you had a big loss, there may be a week where you just don't lose as much for some reason.

>>Kurtis Allen: Right, and you know, I think one of the challenges that I've had that's been a major challenge is, you don't want to eat the same things everyday, too.

If it gets monotonous, that's when people start to tune out on what they're doing, no matter what the diet is.

They get bored with it.

So, you know, spice and seasoning is your best friend in the world.

You don't have to be like Martha Stewart or something in the kitchen.

But you know, like just adding flavor to your meals is going to make a big difference.

And I think that's going to keep people motivated to stay on a diet, too, just trying to experiment in the kitchen, as well.

And like Tim said, not getting frustrated when you do sort of plateau, or you don't have that big week compared to maybe the week before when you did.

>>Lori Banks: So, have you tried different foods that you never have had before?

Or tried different seasonings, or you're in the kitchen actually experimenting?

>>Kurtis Allen: Oh, you know what?

I can speak to the seasoning one.

Like I've discovered that I'm pretty good when it comes to some garlic.

Not that I was ever a huge garlic fan, but for some odd reason, I like a little garlic these days.

I hate broccoli with a passion.

Oh, oatmeal, I've got to talk about oatmeal.

I hated oatmeal with an absolute passion.

Like, I hated it.

I didn't understand how anybody could ever eat oatmeal, ever.

And there's these sugar free syrups that exist.

They're zero calorie, and there's one that's salted caramel, and I'll put a shot of that in my oatmeal, and I think it's the greatest thing ever now.

I love oatmeal these days.

I've flipped over to the "go oatmeal" team, so.

>>Lori Banks: Still, where are you at with the broccoli team?

>>Kurtis Allen: Um... >>Lori Banks: No.

>>Kurtis Allen: Well, this is, okay.

So, we've talked about this, we have weekly classes we get to do.

And Tim talked about eating out of boredom.

If you feel like you're hungry, if you were to go into your refrigerator, and there was nothing in there but just plain broccoli, maybe you could put a little salt on it.

Are you that hungry that you would eat that?

And if you go, well, no, okay, well then you're not really.

If you're plain broccoli hungry, then you know you're hungry, kind of thing, so.

>>Lori Banks: That's a good, that's a very good point.

So, next time you're thinking you're hungry, use that broccoli.

>>Kurtis Allen: That's right, exactly.

>>Lori Banks: Neat story.

Tim, are there foods that you've eaten, that you thought, I am never going to eat this or try this?

>>Tim Stolz: Well, I'm trying a lot more of fresh greens, and fruits and vegetables now.

I used to have a big sweet tooth, and if I was going for a snack, I'd either go for some candy, something sugary, or you know, a bag of chips or something like that.

Just the junk food.

And now, I'm a lot more into the fresh stuff.

I'm hitting the fruits and vegetable aisle at the grocery store, and I'm loading up on that stuff.

And I'm getting, all my snacks are healthy stuff now.

And so, just way more into the salads, and the fruits, and the vegetables than I used to be.

Not that I never would have eaten that stuff before, but I'm much more focused on it now.

>>Kurtis Allen: And I think that you get different cravings that you wouldn't expect before.

Like, before we started this, I could never imagine craving a salad.

Like, it's a treat to have a salad.

You know what I mean?

Like you genuinely, oh my god, this is the best salad I've ever had in my life, kind of thing.

You would never think that you would get excited about eating a salad, but... >>Lori Banks: And that's funny because you don't, women are typically "Oh, I'm going to have a salad."

You don't typically hear men say, "Oh, I really want a salad."

>>Kurtis Allen: Exactly, exactly.

Like I said before, you put the giant steak in front of me, I'd be a happy camper.

But now, if I get a chance to have a salad, I'm, oh it's awesome, I love salad.

>>Lori Banks: How have you handled special occasions?

Birthdays, parties, that sort of stuff.

Because, you're eating this pre-planned food, so how do you go about handling that?

>>Kurtis Allen: Planning's the big key.

People have asked me that before, and I tell everybody you have to plan.

So, you know, like as we're taping this, Fourth of July is this weekend.

You don'’’t have to eat eight hotdogs because it's America's birthday, you know what I mean?

So, maybe I'll have an entree before I go to that cookout.

Or Tim, for his birthday, his mom made him, instead of a birthday cake, made him this awesome fruit cake.

You could probably explain that better.

I mean, little stuff like this.

>>Tim Stolz: I mean, when you say fruit cake, you think of Christmas and the thing that nobody wants to eat.

But no, she just took a bunch of different fruits, my favorite fruits, pineapple and strawberries, and grapes and oranges, and she just sort of made this, it almost looked like a castle of different fruits.

And that was my birthday cake.

And I just thought that was the most awesome thing, and that's a great healthy alternative to something like cake and ice cream.

And so, yeah, having a really good support structure is important for special occasions.

Letting everybody, your friends and family, know, you know, I'm on this diet.

I don't want to stray off of it.

Because, you know, peer pressure, when they're saying, "Hey, have this hotdog because it's a party, you're supposed to."

You know, the Superbowl wasn't long after we started the program, and that was, everybody was big into the Superbowl foods.

And "Have some wings," and "Have some chips and dip," and everything.

And you just have to be like, "I can't, and I need you guys to support me and not try to tempt me with that stuff."

>>Lori Banks: So, how has your support system been through this process?

>>Kurtis Allen: I think it's been pretty fantastic.

I don't have any complaints, for the most part.

My wife has been super, super supportive from the get-go.

She actually started doing the same diet that I am.

My mom got on the same diet that we're doing, and she dropped like 20 pounds in a week.

My mom's not like a, wasn't a very big lady, but just to see those instant results from people in my immediate family that are, you know, doing it, as well, that was very, very cool.

And it also let me know that, you know, I'm not alone in this.

But I've got the best friends in the world, I've got a great family.

Everybody has been so supportive.

So, when we have these sort of events, like the Fourth of July or birthday parties, or whatever, everybody's pretty understanding, for the most part.

There isn't a whole lot of pressure, you know.

You do get random questions about, "Well, what about, could you eat a veggie pizza?

What if we got a veggie pizza?"

Well, no.

No, we can't do the veggie pizza, no.

But for the most part, it's been fantastic.

>>Lori Banks: Yeah, Tim, what about you?

Your mom did a great thing by making that fruit cake.

>>Tim Stolz: Absolutely.

And you know, my friends and family have all been super supportive about it.

And you know, some extended family, cousins and such who I don't see very often, I'll see them for the first time maybe since I've lost a good amount of weight, and they'll just, they can't stop talking about how great I look and "Hey, you're doing great, you're doing amazing."

And yeah, and then same way with my friends.

When we'll go out to places, they won't pressure me into, you know, splitting a big appetizer or something with them, and they won't, you know, make fun of me if I'm just getting some vegetables and fruit, or something like that.

So yeah, it's really important that you've got support around you, to not bring you down, especially when those times you're having rough times and you're having times when you're feeling like you may crack.

If you have people around you who are kind of like... [laughing] >>Lori Banks: I was going to say, have you ever had, have you cheated?

Have you had that moment where you're just like, I can't do this, I've got to have this?

>>Kurtis Allen: I give myself one cheat meal every couple of weeks.

Can't do a cheat, I tried doing a cheat day once, and I had to work extra, extra hard because I put a couple pounds back on.

But I give myself a cheat meal about every two weeks.

And when I started, it was like going back to some of the typical foods I used to.

And now, it's you know, grilled chicken and salad if I'm going to have a cheat meal.

You know what I mean?

Yeah.

>>Lori Banks: Your cheat meal is not what it used to be.

Right, right.

Tim, have you had any cheating moments?

>>Kurtis Allen: No, no.

I haven't because I'm kind of like the type of person who, if I break, I think I'm going to break all the way.

And I think I might just slide right back into some really bad habits.

So, I'm kind of making sure that I stay 100% on the diet.

And yeah, and that's just what I need to do in order to stay on it.

>>Lori Banks: Okay.

So, we just have a few minutes left.

What long term, obviously you cannot eat, you have to at some point transition into real food that you're making in your kitchen.

How is that process going to work for you guys?

>>Kurtis Allen: Well, I mean, that is sort of a part of the diet, not to go infomercial on the diet we're doing, but I mean, that's the whole part.

There's three phases to it, so we've started to slowly transition into the second phase.

The whole point is it is a lifestyle change.

And I don't envision myself suddenly not exercising.

It's such an engrained part of my everyday life now, I don't think that I'm going to, you know, wake up in a couple of months and go, eh, that's it.

Nice run.

Good job, Kurtis, you did it for a few months, great.

That's, so I don't see that going anywhere.

And with that and what you've learned, and changing your habits, I mean, I think it'll just be a positive thing.

I think it's not just a diet, it is a lifestyle change, so.

>>Lori Banks: Yeah, do you feel this is your lifestyle now, Tim?

>>Lori Banks: Yeah, to echo what he said about continuing with the physical activity.

I mean, it seems like oh, well when you don'’’t have to go and work out so much anymore, that'll be the first thing to drop off.

But you've got to think when you couldn't work out before, when you couldn'’’t do physical activity before because of the pain associated with it and how difficult it was, you don't want to go back to not doing it.

You like that you can get out there and run, and be way more physically active than maybe you've ever been before.

At least, that's how it is for me.

And so, I don't see myself ever not wanting to go and work out, and do more physical activity.

>>Lori Banks: So, last little bit of advice if someone'’’s out there, maybe they're where you guys were six, eight months ago.

What would you say to them to get them, you know, make that step?

>>Kurtis Allen: Well, we get to do blogs.

And I've said this before on our blogs, that I'm not much for ra-ra speeches.

But don't ever count yourself out.

Like, I know it's cliche to go, well if I can do it, anybody can do it.

No, I, if a 30-year-old with a busted up back and hip, and knees can find a way to drop 90-some pounds, then you can definitely do this.

I mean, you, it's not worth counting yourself out.

Because, it's your life.

I mean, at the end of the day, we're looking at each other going, we're in our early 30s.

Like, do we really want to be like this for the rest of our lives?

Do we want to have, you know, not to be morbid, but you want to have a long, healthy life.

And if I continued on the path that I was on, that probably wasn'’’t going to happen.

You know, that's the reality of it.

So, don't ever count yourself out.

You can make the change that you want in your life.

You've just got to take that first step and do it.

>>Tim Stolz: Absolutely.

I said earlier that I had never lost any measurable amount of weight before in my life.

And I kind of got resigned to that.

I kind of was thinking this is me, this is how I'm always going to be.

I'm always going to be way overweight.

And I'm just, my health is going to continue to deteriorate.

And I'm going to get worse and worse, until I'm gone.

So, when I started the dieting, it was kind of like this is almost like a last ditch effort.

This is kind of my last chance to really get better.

and I almost didn't think it would.

I almost didn't think it would happen.

And now that it has, I'm like, yeah, exactly what he said.

If we can do it, anybody can.

Don't ever, ever count yourself out.

I never thought I would lose 150 pounds in six months, if ever in my life.

So, yeah, anybody can do it.

>>Lori Banks: Well, good for you.

Thank you so much for coming on Being Well, and sharing your story with us.

And for sharing your story online through their blog.

I think it's helping a lot of people.

>>Kurtis Allen: Thank you so much for having us.

It's awesome we get to do something like this.

>>Lori Banks: Thanks.

Production of Being Well is made possible in part by: Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System, supporting healthy lifestyles.

Eating a heart healthy diet, staying active, managing stress, and regular check-ups are ways of reducing your health risks.

Proper health is important to all at Sarah Bush Lincoln Health System.

Information available at sarahbush.org.

Dr. Ruben Boyajian, located at 904 Medical Park Drive in Effingham, specializing in breast care, surgical oncology, as well as general and laparoscopic surgery.

More information online, or at 347-2255.

Paris Community Hospital Family Medical Center.

Our patient care and investments in medical technology show our ongoing commitment to the community of East Central Illinois.

Paris Community Hospital is pleased to help bring you Being Well on WEIU.

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