A man weighing 18 stones (about 190 pounds), doctors told him that if he still maintained this weight, he would not live to his 60th birthday, but now he is a top fitness model.
Former Chris
Now Chris
Chris Zaremba, 62, from London, is a retired software salesman. He quit taking out and joined a gym.
Chris is now a personal trainer, and as he approached his 50th birthday, paramedics warned him that eating only Pizza Hut and McDonald's would make him die early and live less than 60 years.
Chris was so frightened that he immediately took action and quickly changed his lifestyle, losing 6 stones (about 63 pounds). At the age of 55, he won an international fitness model competition. He now feels younger in his 60s than he was in his 20s.
"When the doctors told me that if I continued to eat my usual diet, I might not live to be 60 years old, I never imagined that I would be on the stage of an international fitness competition and eventually be able to go back with the trophy," he said.
"I've tried to be less active for most of my life, spending most of my life in places like Pizza Hut and McDonald's."
"When I was 50 years old, my blood pressure went up, I almost became diabetic, and the doctors decided I was obese."
"The idea that the doctor told me that he couldn't guarantee I would live to my 60th birthday unless I changed my lifestyle was terrifying to me — I needed to exercise."
Chris quickly changed his eating habits and started working out at the gym, losing a staggering 6 stones (about 63 pounds) at the age of 55.
Eventually, his changed lifestyle became a hobby, and his personal trainer encouraged him to participate in modeling competitions.
Since then, Chris has won himself a series of awards, with trophies filling his prize cabinet.
He said: "The first time I couldn't go to the gym was because I was on a business trip, but I really wanted to go. That's when I learned that I didn't do it out of necessity, but because I wanted to. ”
"When a fitness coach told me I should run a fitness model competition, I told him I hadn't been in 1 million years. But just a few months later, I changed my mind and took to the stage. ”
"I competed at the Miami Pro Fitness Model World Championship and finished first in the over 50 age group. I can't believe I've done it myself! ”
But he says he's found fitness to help other aspects of his life as well, like enjoying more time with his wife, Jenny, 48.
Chris explains, "Ten years ago I couldn't even run on the bus, but now I can run a marathon with Jenny, and we've run seven marathons."
"We also compete in triathlons and go on a hiking trip to vacation. Jenny hasn't been in a fitness event for over a year due to her injury, but I know I'll definitely be with her again when she recovers. ”
He continued, "I look at old pictures and I don't even recognize myself."
"People come to my house and ask who the man in the picture with Jenny is – she always jokes that it was her first husband, but it was actually me who used to be super fat."
"I work out almost every day now."
Now that Chris is happy he's retiring, he says he also has a job when he retires — a hobby with an income — and his only regret is not finding a way to get fit sooner.
"My only regret is that it took me 50 years to discover the benefits of staying healthy, but you can't change the past, and I'm grateful I finally found out," he said.