As a primary care physician, Kevin Gendreau’s job was to take care of people. Unfortunately, he forgot to also take care of himself. Thankfully, he came to learn to practice what you preach.

Learning from Tragedy

Medicine is a demanding profession. With limited time to see patients, complete medical documentation, and fight insurance denials, there is not always enough time for a doctor to take care of himself. It did not help that Dr. Gendreau suffered from depression after losing his father to metastatic melanoma back when he was a teenager. All that stress eventually caught up to him.

At 5 feet 9 inches, Dr. Gendreau weighed 300 lb. His BMI was 44.3. While people argue that BMI is not an accurate representation of body fat, it was clear that he was not only overweight, he was obese. He had the unfortunate complications of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, fatty liver, and sleep apnea to show for it, all before he turned 30 years old.

Sometimes we do not see the need for change until tragedy strikes.

Making a Change

In 2016, Kevin Gendreau’s older sister was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. A mother of two, her fight for life opened his eyes up to issues around his own health. While she battled cancer through no fault of her own, he realized his health conditions were the result of the lifestyle choices he had made. It was time to change, if not for himself then at least for her children. Sadly, his sister died in June of 2017.

“As my sister’s condition worsened, it motivated me on the path,” he said. “I knew I was going to be an integral part of their (the children’s) lives.”

First, he cut his calories down to 1,700 a day. Next, he cut processed sugar out of his diet. Then, he changed when he ate, turning to an intermittent fasting diet that limited his food intake to the hours of 12 pm through 8 pm. Then, he added exercise. In 18 months, he lost 125 lb. He now has a BMI of 25.8. Not only has he shown that it is possible to lose weight with resilience and grit, but he has also become an inspiration to his patients.

Practice What You Preach

Primary care doctors diagnose and treat a number of medical conditions, risk factors too. We turn to them for their expertise. That often includes advice to eat right and exercise regularly.

It can be hard for a doctor to make an impact if his patients do not feel they can take him at his word, if they do not see him acting on his own advice. In fact, Dr. Gendreau admitted that he avoided talking about weight out of fear for what his patients might think. That’s no longer the case. Now he is a shining example of how to turn your life around. He is a doctor who shows you how to practice what you preach.

Even though changing your lifestyle can be challenging, Dr. Gendreau is proof that anyone can do it. This is not to say that you have to diet in exactly the way he did. You do not have to significantly cut calories or intermittently fast or cut out all processed food, though those may be effective ways to go about it. You need to find what works for you and do it. Don’t wait for a life-changing event to inspire change. You deserve good health now. Go out and get it.