High School Student Loses Over 100 Pounds After Walking to School Every Day

Zachary Stieber
By Zachary Stieber
May 14, 2019US News
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High School Student Loses Over 100 Pounds After Walking to School Every Day
Michael Watson, a senior at McKinley High School in Ohio, lost 115 pounds by walking to school. (Canton City School District)

An Ohio teenager hit upon a weight loss plan that saw him lose over 100 pounds, his school district said.

The Canton City School District said that Michael Watson, a senior, started walking to school to shed the weight.

“After years of being overweight, Michael took matters into his own hands. He adopted a healthier lifestyle of eating and exercise by taking the road less traveled. He walked to school every day (no matter the weather conditions) his sophomore, junior, and senior year!” the district said in a Facebook post.

“He stands a proud 115 lbs. lighter and is looking forward to graduating and working full time! Family Support Specialist Terrance Jone said he couldn’t be more proud of this student’s perseverance. Congratulations Michael!!!”

NTD Photo
Michael Watson, a senior at McKinley High School in Ohio, lost 115 pounds by walking to school. (Canton City School District)

Watson, 17, said that initially, he struggled to complete the walk to school.

“I couldn’t walk too far to be honest with you and I got out of breath easily,” Watson told WKYC. “It was just a disaster but once I lost the weight … I feel amazing, I could never go back to being heavier.”

Watson said that he was inspired by his brother.

“I did a lot of exercising, I had a lot of inspiration,” he said. “My brother Richard actually lost 50 pounds and I was like, if he could do it, I can do it.”

Reactions

A number of people praised Watson, commenting on the district’s Facebook post—including his brother Richard.

“I’m so proud of you Michael, you’ve come such a long way. Your determination and drive is going to get you so far in life! I love you brother!” he wrote.

Others also added praise.

“Wow!! Bravo!! You look so good!!” one user wrote.

“That is amazing! What an envious ‘get it done’ attitude! Well done, young man!!” another user said.

“I grew up in California in the 70s. Unless you lived more than 5 miles away, you were walking. I think that’s why my generation did not have the problems with obesity that the current generation has. We also had PE every day of middle and high school. The state requirement for my daughter here in Arkansas is just one semester for all four years of high school. That’s just ridiculous. Congratulations Mr. Watson, you look awesome!” added another.

“Bravo Michael Watson!!!! You proved to yourself you could do it. Your victory, that important ‘Life Lesson’, will continue to be valuable to you for the rest of your life,” added another.

Tom Brady celebrates win
Tom Brady of the New England Patriots at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on Feb. 5, 2017. (Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Fitness Trainer Tries ‘Insane’ Tom Brady Diet

While fitness trainer Keltie O’Connor usually tries different exercise workouts and shares the results with her social media followers, she recently decided to try a new diet, one promoted by football star Tom Brady.

“Going into the New Year I was feeling really bloated,” O’Connor wrote on YouTube. “I know you guys have requested me to attempt celebrity diets, so I thought let’s start 2019 off with the GOAT himself, Tom Brady!”

Brady, 41, published his book “The TB12 Method” in 2017, and it goes into detail about his strict diet plan.

“The regimen I follow is a mix of Eastern and Western philosophies,” writes Brady, according to an excerpt shared on Boston.com. “Some of these principles have been around for thousands of years. My nutritional regimen may seem restrictive to some people, but to me it feels unnatural to eat any other way.”

O’Connor tried the diet for a full month and documented the process in a nearly 18-minute video. Although she said she was at a healthy weight at the beginning of the diet, she was feeling unbalanced and having digestive issues.

“I’m not doing this for a weight loss as much as just like a reset,” she said at the beginning of the video. “And you know what, if my abs could come back a little bit more, I wouldn’t be mad.”

O’Connor said the premise of the book is eating proper portions of nutrient-dense foods in certain combinations, with a focus on alkaline foods. Brady eats either protein with vegetables or carbohydrates with vegetables, but no protein with carbohydrates, and he says fruit should be eaten alone.

“I just had to rewire what I think of a meal, because I think of a balanced meal: having some fruit or veggies, a complex carb, protein, and a healthy fat,” O’Connor said.

O’Connor said she found the diet very inconvenient and time-consuming because of the meal prepping involved, while Brady himself uses a personal chef.

But the biggest problem for the fitness trainer was eating enough calories due to the large amount of vegetables she was consuming.

“About two or three weeks into this, I woke up gaunt. I woke up and I felt weak and brittle, and I looked in the mirror, and I was like, ‘Whoa, ribs,’” she said.

As a result, O’Connor said she lost weight that she didn’t want to lose, and it became “unattractive.” At that point, she started eating more fats from nuts, cooking oil, and proteins like salmon.

Epoch Times reporter Sarah Le contributed to this article.

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