{"id":8279,"date":"2020-01-05T08:00:14","date_gmt":"2020-01-05T14:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.osfhealthcare.org\/blog\/?p=8279"},"modified":"2026-02-24T16:21:53","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T22:21:53","slug":"losing-168-pounds-changes-peoria-mans-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/osf-blog.live.imagescape.com\/blog\/losing-168-pounds-changes-peoria-mans-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Losing 168 pounds changes Peoria man\u2019s life"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Need to lose weight?<\/p>\n

Start with a free information meeting<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

So, you need to lose some weight? Listen to this.<\/p>\n

Paul Thompson knew he was overweight. A former college athlete, Paul was well aware that this self-described \u201cdrive-thru diet\u201d wasn\u2019t healthy and that his obesity was contributing to chronic back pain<\/a> and compounding his arthritis<\/a>. But working 12-14 hours a day, mostly behind a desk as principal at Concordia Lutheran School in Peoria, was not exactly a weight-loss prescription.<\/p>\n

Then Paul went for a physical exam. He checked in at 6 feet, 21\/2 inches and 353 pounds.<\/p>\n

Even hearing his primary care physician use the words \u201cmorbidly obese<\/a>\u201d didn\u2019t shock him, though. No, what got his attention was hearing the doctor mention surgery as an option to lose weight.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was the wakeup call,\u201d Paul said.<\/p>\n

It came in January 2019. By mid-September, Paul had lost 168 pounds. He weighed 185.<\/p>\n

Finding Healthy Solutions<\/h2>\n

Shortly after his physical, Paul attended a meeting at the OSF Weight Loss Center<\/a>. There, Dr. Cherie Hawkins suggested he was a good candidate for a program available through a partnership between OSF HealthCare and Health Management Resources (HMR)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

HMR is an established national program that combines a variety of diet options, exercise, weekly classes, individual coaching and on-going maintenance support.<\/p>\n

Paul chose HMR\u2019s most popular option, known as Healthy Solutions. It includes specifically prepared HMR meals and a daily regimen of at least five full cups of fruits and vegetables, 64 ounces of water and physical activity.<\/p>\n

The average weight loss in the Healthy Solutions program is 35-40 pounds. Paul more than quadrupled that.<\/p>\n

\u201cSome have accused me of being competitive,\u201d Paul said. \u201cBasically, my doctor created a challenge, and I was going to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

No shortcuts<\/h2>\n
\"Paul

Paul Thompson before weight loss<\/p><\/div>\n

Paul grew up as the youngest of three children. He describes his mother as very petite, his father as average size and his early high school self as \u201cscrawny,\u201d at 155 pounds. But he played football and grew and continued that path at Concordia College in Nebraska.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt 245 pounds, I was the smallest offensive tackle in the conference,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen your peer set is college offensive linemen, your view of body size can be a little distorted.\u201d<\/p>\n

After graduation, Paul became a teacher and coach. Even though he put on some weight, he stayed active on the football field in the fall, basketball court in the winter and around the track in springtime. But nine years ago, he got into school administration. His lifestyle changed, and his weight ballooned.<\/p>\n

Now 51 years old, when Paul was faced with his defining moment, he summoned the discipline he had learned as an athlete. There would be no shortcuts and no excuses. He would follow the program. Period.<\/p>\n

For years, Paul had been a daily regular at the drive-thru windows of nearby fast-food chains<\/a>, usually for breakfast lunch and dinner. That stopped cold in mid-winter.<\/p>\n

After February 5, 2019, he ate the HMR prepared meals, drank the shakes and supplemented those with ample fruits, vegetables and plenty of water. He religiously avoided the treats that appeared in classrooms to celebrate holidays and birthdays. When colleagues brought goodies to faculty meetings, Paul brought a banana or an HMR bar.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a gym near Paul\u2019s house. He was there to open it at 4:30 a.m., seven days a week. Every day, he would spend 90 minutes there: 45 minutes of resistance training, 45 minutes of cardio exercise.<\/p>\n

A whole new look<\/h2>\n
\"Paul

Paul Thompson after weight loss<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThey call it being inside the box,\u201d Paul said. \u201cI was always inside the box. That\u2019s where my success came, with 100% adherence to the program.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pounds vanished.<\/p>\n

One week early on, Paul lost 14 pounds. Dropping seven or eight pounds in a week was not unusual. In a \u201cbad\u201d week, he would lose only three or four.<\/p>\n

By the time the school year ended in May, Paul had lost 100 pounds \u2013 and people noticed. But the real shock came when the students returned in August. Paul had dropped another 65 pounds, and many kids and their parents thought the school had a new principal. Some even introduced themselves to him, as if they had never met.<\/p>\n

There were other changes, too. Fun changes. Like not having to worry about crushing a folding chair or the bench seat in a friend\u2019s fishing boat. Or hiking through the woods and climbing in and out of a deer stand without getting winded.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know those 40-pound bags of water-softener salt? Basically, I had been carrying around four of those everywhere I went,\u201d Paul said.<\/p>\n

But not anymore.<\/p>\n

A new lifestyle<\/h2>\n

Paul\u2019s original goal had been to reach 175 pounds \u2013 half his peak body weight. But everyone, OSF HealthCare staff included, stopped him 10 pounds short. A Bod Pod test<\/a> revealed his body-fat was barely 6%. Elite male endurance runners generally test in the 8% range. Under 5% is considered dangerous.<\/p>\n

\"Paul<\/p>\n

\u201cThey made me redo the test, and then I overheard them talking. They were debating if the machine was broken. It was hilarious,\u201d Paul said.<\/p>\n

So, Paul ended Phase 1 of the Healthy Solutions program in September and began the maintenance phase. He\u2019s no longer on the HMR prepared meal plan, although he keeps a stash handy for emergencies. He has cut back to five days a week at the gym.<\/p>\n

Paul said weight-maintenance has been more difficult than weight-loss.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe discipline is harder,\u201d he said. \u201cIn Phase 1, I had to be in the box. Now, I can use any box I want.\u201d<\/p>\n

The OSF Weight Loss Center<\/a> emphasized the importance of changing and controlling your environment. So Paul installed a water cooler behind his office desk. He cleared out a cabinet in his book case and stocked it with healthy foods<\/a>, measuring cups and the like.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is now my drive-thru window,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Then he lifted a camouflage backpack from the floor and opened it on his desk, revealing several servings of fruits, vegetables, apples, grapes, salad, proteins.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd people tease me, but this is my lunch box.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

School principal joins Health Management Resources program at OSF Weight Loss Center and sheds almost half his body weight in eight months.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85,"featured_media":8301,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,223],"tags":[28,30],"coauthors":[912],"class_list":["post-8279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diet-exercise","category-patient-story","tag-obesity","tag-weight-loss"],"yoast_head":"\nLosing 168 pounds changes Peoria man\u2019s life | OSF HealthCare<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"School principal joins Health Management Resources program at OSF Weight Loss Center and sheds almost half his body weight in eight months.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" 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