November-December 2009 Member of the Month: Jana Stark
Kickboxing lessons, daily sessions in the pool, at least an hour walking the dog every night, power volleyball, softball, snow skiing, sailing, bike riding, snorkel, scuba diving, water skiing: Jana had no trouble maintaining her weight at 128 pounds and could have been the role model for healthy, energetic middle-aged women.
Then, suddenly, she began gaining weight — 80 pounds in less than two months — and her energy level dropped out of sight. She was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, an autoimmune disease that destroys the thyroid gland, lowering the body's metabolic rate and causing (among other symptoms) weight gain, fatigue, muscle aches, weakness, and stiffness, and elevated blood cholesterol levels.
Over the next two years, Jana and her doctors brought her thyroiditis under control, but, despite workouts and swimming, the weight gain persisted.
And then a heart valve began to fail, and she underwent open-heart surgery. Cardiac rehab followed, and then a return to the gym for weight training and cardio, and resumption of her swimming program. But heart medication (blood thinners) left Jana unable to scuba dive, kickbox, or play volleyball or softball, and she returned to skiing — her lifetime passion — only after a lot of argument with her doctors.
But, while her fitness level improved, she couldn't lose the extra weight. At age 51, Jana realized that she faced a choice: be a roly-poly old lady, or hire a personal trainer.
As part of her post-cardiac fitness program, Jana had joined Titans Gym, so she started her search for a trainer with the Titans web site. As soon as she saw Niki DelGrosso's resume, with Niki's Master of Science in Nutrition, she knew she'd found the person she was looking for. Here was the trainer who could understand her health conditions, work with her restrictions, and — hopefully — get her metabolism working again. She E-mailed Niki that day, they met a few days later, and, in late spring of 2009, Niki and Jana started building a new fitness story.
Jana began by keeping a food journal for a week and then worked with Niki to tweak her diet, focusing on an increase in protein to help build muscle and increase metabolism. Next they worked on correct weightlifting techniques, and then added cardio to round out her workouts. In the first ten weeks she lost eighteen pounds, and her increase in muscle and fitness became evident in heavier weights and increased time on the elliptical machine.
Part of Jana's routine is a low-fat Mediterranean diet — between 800 and 1000 calories/day (most weight loss diets set a 1200-calorie limit) — and twice-daily blood pressure measurement in three positions, lying down, sitting up, and standing. Although her heart medications prohibit the salads, broccoli, and spinach she once enjoyed, her blood pressure, heart valves, and blood chemistry are excellent, she has now lost 30 pounds, and she's leaner and has much improved muscle tone.
Jana and Niki agree: her progress has been spectacular. "I enjoy all my lifting and cardio, and I feel great, both physically and mentally. I couldn't be happier. Niki is a joy to work with — positive, knowledgeable, and supportive. She says it's me doing the work, and I agree, but it's her knowledge and positive influence that is making it work. With Niki by my side, I CAN do this!"
We know she will.
