My Big Fat Greek Miracle - A Family Physician Steps on the Scales and Takes a Swing at Weight Loss

After a long day of seeing patients in clinic community health, Dr. Nick Yphantides (which is the Greek name is pronounced Eee-Fahn-tee-Dees) wanted to reward himself for conduction through your favorite fast food restaurant in town In-N-Out Burger and ordering of 4 "by 4", large fries, and a Coke.The "4 by 4, four patties and four slices of American cheese piled on a hamburger bun with all the sauce and trimmings, plus chips & 16 oz Cokecontained 1,400 calories and 100 grams of fat, but that does not give a fool Dr. Nick. In his mind, the drive-thru raids were only a appetizer, something to eat before dinner.He was hungry and fat. Dr. Nick was gaining lots of weight from the medical school, where he fortified his Late Night Study Session Ding-Dongs and heaping bowl of Rocky Road ice cream . previous forty hours of endless rounds as an intern, has retained its energy from the incursion of the hospital cafeteria, where someone had put a plate of sweets to be shared by the participants entered the field of public health staff.When as a family doctor, could be described as "burly." I can not say how much he weighed, however, because weight was no longer himself. Expanding the width actually became a blessing of the work: its Nick patients read as a larger-than-life advocate for the poor, the big man with a big heart who cared about their community in a big way patients. overweight, said Dr. Nick, because they knew they would receive the tea and sympathy from someone who also has purchased from Mr. Big and Tall. From the perspective of a physician, who was always kind to those who have struggled with their weight. More than a few times, looked like a large, fat or the man in the eye and said with a smile, "Do as I say not as I do." Jolly St. NickShortly after completing 30 years of age, however, the doctor. Nick began to suffer from deteriorating health and a number of unusual symptoms that led him to the room of a medical examination. A week later, he heard the bad news: his testicles cancer.The surgical removal of the right testicle and aggressive radiation over 12 weeks, has saved lifeand caused some consciousness. The way they saw Nick, he had dodged the bullet cancer, but there was another round in the chamber: his weight had to be the cause of a tremendous amount of stress in its organsheart, lungs and liver, and skeletal structure. He wondered how much stress was getting to his knees, which were marked as load.One bad day, Nick was in two scalesone for each foot. Each needle was based on " 233 1 / 2 ". A fourth grader could address: Dr. Nick Yphantides, doc Jolly with the Santa Claus image, weighed 467 pounds on strong. Nick was scared. Her cancer had forced him to confront his mortality, and now he was sure that every bite of an In-N-Out 4x4 what grave.Something approached a project to do. Nick was tired of dressing in XXXXL T-shirt and gym pants size tent, without people tired reserve of red-eye flights so that should not have to buy a second seat, viewers tired of seeing the monstrous trunk restaurants. Before he was a future filled with high blood pressure, high cholesterol and debilitating diabetesunless made a change radical of life and lost a ton of weight. Well, maybe not a ton, but £ 200 would be a start, it figured.In April 2000, Nick has given a years notice would resign and leave the Escondido Community Health Center. Then he began to formulate a game plan. As it would not work, you need the diversion DOA something to keep your mind about being so hungry. That's it! Nick loved baseball (or ballpark were Franks?), so he decided to drive across the country and visit the 30 stadiums and watch Major League baseball games. He estimates that had been consuming 5600 calories per day to maintain weight. To lose weight slowly but surely put on a liquid protein supplement fastdrinking which provides only 800 calories day.On April 1, 2001, Nick sailed in an RV vehicle dubbed the USS Spirit with the intention of reducing to become half the man he used to be . His father was shot.'s going cold turkey Nick fed him to tremble, like any drug addict coming off a high. "I was so hungry that I ate a cigarette dipped in mustard, known cities said.Two gastronomic delights have been particularly painful to visit: