Newswise — Maryland football Coach Ralph Friedgen heads into his ninth season next month with one victory already under his (now-smaller) belt: Since tipping the scales at 401 in October, he's lost 105 pounds.
Friedgen starts his team's practices today (August 10) having sworn off the training tables loaded with calorie-rich foods. He's banned pastas from his diet, and is instead snacking on Medifast nutrition bars and flavored water.
He hopes to lose an additional 45 pounds with the continued help of a nutritionist and his wife, Gloria.
"I came to the conclusion that whether I had lap band surgery or did something else, I was going to have to change how I ate," Friedgen, 62, said in a recent podcast on BusterSports.com.
He and Gloria Friedgen, alumni and outreach coordinator for the School of Public Health, decided against the drastic procedure. Instead he signed up with Medifast where Lisa Davis, a licensed dietician/nutritionist and vice president of research and development, created a plan that takes into account his hectic daily routine
Friedgen has gotten off of his blood and cholesterol medications, his good-to-bad cholesterol ratio has markedly improved, and his blood sugar level dropped, moving him out of pre-diabetic range.
"I kind of got concerned when my doctor told me, "You're borderline diabetic. I have diabetes in my family," said Friedgen.
Davis says this shows what a profound impact weight loss can have on your body and quality of life. "It's not just physiological, it makes life easier. When you're obese, you lose nine to 13 years of your life. When you're reversing that, you get some of that life back."
Friedgen said he's gained more weight than he's lost through various diets. Several years ago, he slimmed down during an alumni challenge that matched donations to pounds lost. He later gained the weight back.
Now Gloria Friedgen says that her husband eats five specially selected Medifast meals a day, about two hours apart, then they share "a lean and green meal in the evening." He drinks a lot of water, sometimes mixed with Medifast flavor packets, or tea.
He also abstained from any alcohol for four months. At first, she says, he didn't exercise "in order to get the body in a state of ketosis so that fat burning takes place." He now walks for about 45 minutes three or four times per week.
"My role is to prepare good evening meals. His favorite vegetable is broccoli, but I get in spinach and [green beans] every now and then. I also try to not nag!"
Friedgen has said that the support of family, friends and colleagues has been critical to his success, he'll be working through the season to further shrink the Fridge.
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