Joliet man loses 181 pounds in less than a year
By Denise Baran-Unland For The Herald-News January 26, 2012 7:30PM
Joliet resident Patrick Bagdon lost 181 pounds through diet and exercise as seen Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2012, in Joliet. His goal is to lose 200 pounds by St. Patrick's Day. | Matthew Grotto~Sun-Times Media
Updated: February 28, 2012 8:05AM
JOLIET — The day 450-pound Patrick Bagdon cut short a mile walk due to chest pains was the day Bagdon vowed to lose 200 pounds in a year … or die trying.
On March 17, 2011, Bagdon, 35, of Joliet joined Weight Watchers and now is within 19 pounds of his goal weight of 250 pounds.
Ultimately, Bagdon hopes to reach 205 pounds, for a total loss of 245 pounds.
But the 6-foot-4 Bagdon says he’ll stick with 225 pounds if feels healthy to him.
“The first 200 pounds came off quickly,” Bagdon said. “So I’m now in an easygoing mode. As the weeks and months go by, I’m just going to let the other pounds come off.”
Excess weight has been a lifelong problem for Bagdon. Working construction and warehouse jobs in high school and college minimized the extra pounds.
But Bagdon’s double major of drafting and graphic design and computer animation put him in front of a computer, working for such clients as the Chicago Bears.
The numbers on the scale dramatically rose.
“I had some traumas in life and I used food as therapy, which is not a healthy thing to do,” Bagdon said.
Increasing health risks
Concerned, Bagdon tried fad diets and meal shakes.
Though he lost weight, he returned to his former bad habits when the diet ended.
“I’d sit down at a meal with other people and they’d say, ‘You don’t seem to eat more than I do,’ ” Bagdon said. “They didn’t know I was doing a lot of snacking.”
With his 40th birthday looming, Bagdon feared becoming a family statistic. Many relatives had suddenly died in their 40s and 50s. Bagdon was experiencing chest pain, shortness of breath, gallstones and sleep apnea.
“I couldn’t do this forever,” Bagdon said. “The nutritional balance wasn’t there. I wanted a plan I could use for the rest of my life.”
Committed to the program
He initially rejected Weight Watchers because he believed the program was for women.
“I was a guy and I wanted to lose weight like a guy,” Bagdon said.
But Weight Watchers meetings proved to be a place for men too.
There, Bagdon learned acceptable portion sizes and nutritional terms: proteins, carbohydrates and fats. He felt ahead of the game when others balked at all vegetables except french fries.
“I had always eaten vegetables,” Bagdon said, “but only on extra-large pizzas.”
Bagdon didn’t let challenges deter him from his a routine of daily walks and regular trips to the gym. He no longer “pigs out” under stress or dishes up fattening culinary rewards for good behavior.
He now orders pizza by the slice, but when he wants a large meal, he chooses a chicken salad over a three-pound burger. He carries a bottle of water to satisfy between-meal cravings.
Slip-ups are taboo.
“A blow-off day will quickly become a blow-off month,” Bagdon said. “And then, pretty soon, I’ll be drowning my sorrows in a bag of Cheetos.”
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