Patrick Hayes spent his whole life in some kind of battle with fat. But the day he maxed out the scale at over 450 pounds, he made a commitment to win the fight.
Precision Nutrition Coaching gave him the ammunition he needed. In one year, he dropped a whopping 152 pounds and 20% body fat. But more importantly, he won his self-respect and newfound hope for his future.
Patrick's Transformation
Lost 152 lbs and 20% body fat!
- Age: 35 years
- Weight Lost: 152 lbs (from 417 lbs to 265 lbs)
- % Body Fat Lost: 20% (from 39.1% to 19.1%)
- Total Inches Lost: 73 inches (from 337 inches to 264 inches)
The power of a word
The path to momentous personal change isn’t always a straight one.
Take Patrick Hayes, for example.
He’d fought with fat his entire life.
Still, that wasn’t why he was visiting his doctor on that sunny afternoon in May, shortly before his 35th birthday.
He was actually there to discover why he hadn’t been able to shake a series of colds.
Strangely — to Patrick — his doctor seemed more interested in his blood pressure, which registered 190/110. And the form that he gave Patrick for his blood work included a little notation: Obese.
Sure, Patrick was big. He’d always been big. As a part-time bouncer at a bar, sometimes his size had even been an advantage.
But it was one thing to be big. It was one thing to be fat. It was something else again to be obese.
The word stuck in Patrick’s craw. Like a curse. Or maybe a goad.
Weighty matters
Patrick thought he weighed about 420 pounds. He’d never been higher than that. So he bought a scale that claimed accuracy to 450.
“I got on it,” he says.
Then he pauses, calling up an image of himself that day.
“It errored out when I stepped on,” he says. “I was too heavy for the scale.”
His tone is sober and quiet, fit for a courtroom. Which makes sense, considering this was a moment of reckoning.
The day he topped out his scale was the day that Patrick knew he had to change.
As someone who’d been involved in powerlifting and strongman competitions, Patrick was aware of Dr. John Berardi’s work.
He even owned one of the early versions of the PN system. And he’d heard about Precision Nutrition Coaching. But he was reluctant to sign on.
He’d never been great at taking orders from other people. Besides, he knew what he should be doing — how he should be eating and working out. He figured he should be able to manage himself.
And then there was the expense. Finances were tight. “I was afraid to spend the money,” he says.
But the scale offered clear proof that he wasn’t managing. And Patrick realized that unless he acted soon, he might as well consign himself to a lifetime of poor health and misery. At thirty-five years old, he wasn’t ready to do that.
So he closed his eyes and clicked the mouse. “It was a leap of faith,” he says.
What made Precision Nutrition Coaching different?
After all, it’s not as if Patrick hadn’t tried to lose fat in the past.
“Since junior high,” he says, rolling his eyes. “My whole life!”
What did he try?
“You name it. The Velocity diet. Weight Watchers. Atkins. That cabbage thing. Eating a little less. Eating the same, but not the fries.”
He shakes his head. “Just everything that anybody who diets all their life does. Looking for that miracle.”
And while he’d always lose ten, twenty, as much as thirty pounds on these regimes, in no time at all, he’d gain that weight back again — and then some.
“I hated the idea of counting every calorie. It made me miserable,” he says.
But Precision Nutrition Coaching was a different experience.
Now, Patrick was determined.
He gave the program everything he had. 100%. Workouts, habits, assignments — despite holding down two jobs, he didn’t shirk. A few times he even sneaked in a workout at 3 a.m. He knew it was the only chance he’d get.
When it came to the lessons, some of them struck him as odd or annoying. Especially the ones that asked him to do a little soul-searching.
“Tell me!” he remembers thinking. “Just tell me what I need to do! I didn’t sign up so I could figure things out on my own. What is this?”
But whenever he felt resistant, he’d remind himself that those questions were there for a reason.
“I need to answer as honestly as I can,” he’d tell himself. “And not for my coach, not for the other people in my group. For me.”
To his surprise, after the first few months, it became easier.
He developed a kind of rhythm. Every day he’d check in to note that he’d done his workout and followed his nutritional habit. Sometimes he’d visit the forums. And, week after week, the accountability kept him focused on his goals.
For the first time in his life, Patrick started to feel that he could trust himself.
For the first time in his life, he began to see that he wasn’t just big. He wasn’t just strong.
He was powerful.
It didn’t take long before other people started noticing the changes.
There was a homeless guy that, in his larger days, Patrick used to run into once in a while on the street. “You got guns!” the guy would always remark. It had become a kind of joke between them.
But their paths hadn’t crossed for a few months. And the next time they did, the man had to do a double take when he recognized Patrick.
“Dude! You been dropping weight!” he said. “Still got the guns, though,” he chuckled, a moment later.
Soon Patrick’s family and colleagues were making similar remarks.
It took Patrick a little longer to believe it himself.
The signs? Such little, seemingly insignificant, yet vitally important things.
“I had to buy a new watch strap. I was down to the last hole on the extra-large version I had to order specially in the past. I needed the regular size.”
“I could get out of the shower and wrap a towel around myself — and the ends would meet! That hadn’t happened in so long.”
“I had to adjust the car seat up so I could reach the pedals. Because when you lose 20-some-odd inches around, you need to move a little closer.”
One night, when Patrick was working at the bar, he had to refuse entry to a couple of drunken troublemakers.
Naturally, they weren’t too happy about it. “You’re a pussy. You couldn’t scare anybody,” one guy said.
I hate this, Patrick thought.
As a bouncer, he was used to being called names in the line of duty. That didn’t mean he enjoyed it.
Even so, watching those two guys walk away, he couldn’t help but feel that something was a little different this time.
For some reason, this encounter didn’t feel quite as demoralizing as some of the earlier ones.
But why?
“He didn’t call me fat,” he suddenly realized.
“Ever since I was ten years old, any time there’s ever been a situation like that, I’ve been called fat. But this guy didn’t say it.”
Fat was the insult of choice. Fat was the worst that people could say of him.
But fat was precisely what people weren’t saying about him now. Not anymore.
Today, Patrick weighs the same as he weighed in high school. He’s wearing the same size pants as he wore in junior high.
His blood pressure is back to normal. For the first time in years, he’s not tired all the time. He hasn’t been sick in a year. Instead, he says, “I welcome the day.”
He’s tried yoga — and found it “surprisingly difficult”. He’s considered trying MMA. He’s dating. He’s looking into some investments. And in general, in every aspect of life, he’s moving towards the positive opportunities that come his way.
There’s no question that this represents an enormous change.
“For so long, things were not good. And you kind of get used to that status quo,” he says, with a shrug. “But now…I’m healthy. I’m more energetic. Women are interested.”
“I feel like anything I want to do is possible.”
He smiles. “And I’ve got to say, there’s never been a point in my life before where I felt that way.”
Sometimes, Patrick admits, all this possibility is a little scary. And no wonder. After all, he’s making decisions and choices that he never thought he’d be in a position to make.
But mostly, he’s glorying in his newfound options.
And you only have to compare his photos to see profound impact that Patrick’s weight loss has had on his sense of self.
“My eyes are smiling now,” he says.
And he’s right.
“I’ve never been this fit. I’ve never been this excited by life.”
What advice would Patrick give to someone else who was considering the program?
“Just do it,” he says. “Do it. If it’s your time, and you’re sitting on the fence…you want to do it, you’re thinking of doing it, you’re not sure if you should do it — jump off that fence. And give it everything you’ve got. Give it 100%.”
“Life is too important,” he adds.
He smiles, savoring his hard-earned success and eager to share it.
“Why sit on the fence when you can be a part of life?”
Want to read more great stories like Patrick’s? Then come meet a few other men, women, and couples who lost weight, started eating better, and took control of their health.
Want help finally getting the healthy, energetic body you’re after?
Most people know that regular movement, eating well, sleep, and stress management are important for looking and feeling better. Yet they need help applying that knowledge in the context of their busy, sometimes stressful lives.
That’s why we work closely with Precision Nutrition Coaching clients to help them lose fat, get stronger, and improve their health…no matter what challenges they’re dealing with.
It’s also why we work with health and fitness pros (through our Level 1 and Level 2 Certification programs) to teach them how to coach their own clients through the same challenges.
Interested in Precision Nutrition Coaching? Join the presale list; you’ll save up to 54% and secure a spot 24 hours early.
We’ll be opening up spots in our next Precision Nutrition Coaching on Tuesday, January 14th, 2025.
If you’re interested in coaching and want to find out more, I’d encourage you to join our presale list below. Being on the list gives you two special advantages.
- You’ll pay less than everyone else. At Precision Nutrition we like to reward the most interested and motivated people because they always make the best clients. Join the presale list and you’ll save up to 54% off the general public price, which is the lowest price we’ve ever offered.
- You’re more likely to get a spot. To give clients the personal care and attention they deserve, we only open up the program twice a year. Last time we opened registration, we sold out within minutes. By joining the presale list you’ll get the opportunity to register 24 hours before everyone else, increasing your chances of getting in.
If you’re ready to change your body, and your life, with help from the world’s best coaches, this is your chance.
[Note: If your health and fitness are already sorted out, but you’re interested in helping others, check out our Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification program].
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