Pounding in the message
By KALEY LYON
Rick Salewske once told his friends he was going to lose 300 pounds and be a guest on Oprah Winfrey's show.
After two years of healthy eating and exercise, he did just that. In fact, he was on Winfrey's show twice.
"If you put your mind to something, you can achieve those goals," said Salewske, who was the highlight of the kickoff event for Pound Plunge 3 on Thursday evening.
Hundreds of people flocked to Hays Medical Center's Center for Health Improvement, where they weighed in and had the opportunity to check their blood pressure and body fat percentage.
The idea also was to get the 1,400 participants revved up and ready to go for the community weight-loss competition, and Salewske's speech seemed to do just that.
While participation is slightly down from last year, the third annual event is expected to be a good one, said CHI Fitness Manager Stephanie Schaffer.
In fact, Schaffer's so confident that a community weight loss goal of nearly 12,000 pounds has been established.
Last year's event drew about 1,700 participants, but many teams dropped out before the challenge's completion.
"A lot more people dropped out last year, so I hope that retention this year will be a lot better," Schaffer said.
Participants are asked to weigh in once a week, either on Thursday or Monday evenings. Group activities will be available, and participants will have access to CHI facilities from 5 to 7 p.m. Sundays.
Salewske shared his personal weight loss story, including the struggles he faced along the way.
Most weight loss comes from a mental determination to change lifestyle habits, he said, noting he once turned to food for comfort.
His highest weight was 538 pounds. He had a hard time finding clothes to fit him, was stared at in public and couldn't sit in chairs that had sides.
The breaking point came in 1999, when he resolved to make a change. But even then, surgeries and weight loss pharmaceuticals weren't the ways he wanted to go, he said.
"I don't care about what's hard," he said of making the lifestyle change. "I think it's the right way to do it."
He also gave the pound plungers his Top 10 weight loss tips, including eating breakfast, meal planning, de-emphasizing food and setting goals.
A Michigan native, Salewske married in 2003 -- he proposed to his wife on Winfrey's show -- and has two young sons. It's his family that motivates him to maintain his healthy lifestyle, he said.
He also encouraged those in attendance to get motivated, and not just for the program's duration.
"You have to make a decision whether to do this or not. You're going to have to lower your calories, you're going to have to exercise every day. You're going to have to make the decision," Salewske said. "This is not a 12-week program. This is a program for the rest of your life."