Taking Off: Ryan loses over 100 lbs.

[Gas2No99]

Rex Ryan down to 242 pounds

Jerk beat writer ESPN [ARCHIVE]

ESPNNewYork.com | July 19, 2012

When Jets coach Rex Ryan stepped on a scale a few days before the 2009 AFC Championship Game, he was shocked -- and frightened -- by the number: 348 pounds.

Ryan underwent lap-band surgery and, more than two years later, he happily announced Thursday that he has dropped 106 pounds. At 242, Ryan actually weighs less than Tim Tebow, his backup quarterback.

"I think we look real similar, except he's left-handed and I'm right-handed," Ryan joked during a media blitz to promote lap-band surgery.

The always-upbeat Ryan, 49, was in a particularly good mood. His waistline is shrinking -- from 48 inches to 38 -- but not his enthusiasm. Training camp is less than a week away, and he's looking forward to erasing the memory of a disappointing 8-8 2011 season.

"I think I've looked forward to this season probably more than any season I've had in my life," he told a handful of beat writers. "I have something to prove. Shoot, I'm excited about it."

Ryan came under heavy scrutiny after last season, when he admitted he "lost the pulse" of his team; the Jets collapsed in December amid locker-room unrest. It was Ryan's first go-round with adversity after reaching the AFC title game in his first two seasons.

Conceding that his ballyhooed Super Bowl guarantee before last season was a bad idea, Ryan has toned down the bravado. There's less talk -- and less Ryan, for that matter.

The man who used to devour 12 tacos in one sitting now shares an entree with his wife when they go out to dinner. His cholesterol is below 150, he said, and his blood pressure is 120 over 75.

The only negative to the weight loss, Ryan joked, is that he's had to discard most of his clothes. The only thing that still fits? His socks.

"I obviously look a lot better," he said. "I may not be a box of chocolates, but I look a hell of a lot better than I did."

Naturally, he gets razzed by his players, who say he has "buggy whips" for arms. His oldest son, Payton, jokes with him that he has a "six-pack."

"Yeah, I'll drink one," Ryan cracked.

Ryan, who is about 6-foot-3, walks at least 45 minutes each day and he feels so good that he actually has thought about running again. He can't remember the last time he felt that way. The turning point, he said, came in January 2010, when he was preparing for the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC title game and stepped on a scale.

"I mean, I couldn't believe it," he said. "I swear to you, I wanted to look to see if someone was behind me."

At that point, Ryan decided to have the lap-band procedure. He convinced his twin brother, Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, to have the surgery -- and Rob has dropped 60 pounds.

Ryan declined recent interview requests to discuss his weight loss, saying Thursday he wanted to wait until he reached the 100-pounds-lost mark before talking about it. He reached that plateau during a recent vacation in Europe.

"I know how fortunate I am," said Ryan, a paid spokesman for lap-band surgery. "I make a lot of money doing something I love. I'm only one of 32 guys that has this position -- head coach in the National Football League. But without your health, what do you really have?

"I want to see my kids grow up, and I want to see their kids grow up. That was important to me. Selfishly, that's why I did it."

[DaBallhawk]

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery


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[WestCoastOffensive]

Originally Posted by DaBallhawk

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery


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Glad your priorities are straight.

[Dimitri_0515]

Originally Posted by DaBallhawk

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery


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Tebow sucks

[John_0515]

I like him fat. It's the source of his powers.

[GuidoYaztremski]

Originally Posted by WestCoastOffensive

Glad your priorities are straight.

I think the point is Rex took the easy way out. Without changing the actual compulsive and addictive behavior that caused him to be morbidly obese, he's doomed to repeat it once the band is removed. And does he really deserve an "atta boy" for having a surgery? I don't see it. What about people who get lipo?

[AlwaysGreenAlwaysWhite]

Originally Posted by GuidoYaztremski

I think the point is Rex took the easy way out. Without changing the actual compulsive and addictive behavior that caused him to be morbidly obese, he's doomed to repeat it once the band is removed. And does he really deserve an "atta boy" for having a surgery? I don't see it. What about people who get lipo?

Please link me to an article that says he doesn't exercise, eat healthier, etc...because if you read the OP, that's exactly what he's doing apparently.

This post is why you can't be taken seriously... Your ax... It's a nub at this point...

[TKasper01]

Originally Posted by GuidoYaztremski

I think the point is Rex took the easy way out. Without changing the actual compulsive and addictive behavior that caused him to be morbidly obese, he's doomed to repeat it once the band is removed. And does he really deserve an "atta boy" for having a surgery? I don't see it. What about people who get lipo?

They will not remove the band. it will stay and continue to tighten until he nis at his ideal weight. Eat less and move more. Radical I know.

[Dirtstar]

Originally Posted by GuidoYaztremski

I think the point is Rex took the easy way out. Without changing the actual compulsive and addictive behavior that caused him to be morbidly obese, he's doomed to repeat it once the band is removed. And does he really deserve an "atta boy" for having a surgery? I don't see it. What about people who get lipo?

other than exercising 45 minutes a day and severely moderating his food intake, as stated in the article, i guess he's done nothing.


you get progressively worse with each name change

[Digetydog]

Originally Posted by DaBallhawk

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery


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You obviously never have been around anyone who has had the surgery. It isn't as easy as you think. It forces people to eat right.

[sg3]

Originally Posted by DaBallhawk

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery

Actually Tebonehead....Rex was probably way MORE "sugery" before the band

Seriously....as someone who dropped 30 and has kept it off since 2004 the nonsurgical portion control and more activity.way....It is far from easy to do and Rex deserves the support and commendation of all regardless of how he got it accomplished

[Eschwab855]

coming from someone who is in the process of losing some weight wtg Rex. I have lost 63 since sept 2011 ( Eat less, move more) it is hard no matter how you go. Anyone who go through this transformation can attest to this surgery or not its hard lol

[JacksonHtsJetFan]

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056...icleDiscussion

"Although short-term weight loss is readily achieved through dietary restriction, only a small minority of obese people maintain diet-induced weight loss in the long term.19 A multitude of hormones, peptides, and nutrients are involved in the homeostatic regulation of body weight, many of which are perturbed after weight loss. Whether these changes represent a transient compensatory response to an energy deficit is unknown, but an important finding of this study is that many of these alterations persist for 12 months after weight loss, even after the onset of weight regain, suggesting that the high rate of relapse among obese people who have lost weight has a strong physiological basis and is not simply the result of the voluntary resumption of old habits." -New England Journal of Medicine

It seems our body types are just WHO WE ARE. Our bodies become a certain way because of the way our brains are chemically engineered. I'd say evolution has worked pretty quickly. I think the only way to induce a healthier society LONG TERM, is to stop with all of the crappy, cheap foods that are readily available. I think that after a generation or two, our brains will have adapted and not push people to the brink of obesity.

[GuidoYaztremski]

Originally Posted by Dirtstar

other than exercising 45 minutes a day and severely moderating his food intake, as stated in the article, i guess he's done nothing.


you get progressively worse with each name change

I give him credit for the exercise, which is a lot easier to do now that he's not pushing 350. But he HAS to eat less, it's not through will power. That's what I meant by no behavioral change. Hey, I give him credit for recognizing he needed to something drastic to stay on this earth. I just think think you you can't say "atta boy Rex, job well done" as if he did it the right way. The result is the same, but keeping it off will be a huge struggle.

[gunnails]

Originally Posted by GuidoYaztremski

I give him credit for the exercise, which is a lot easier to do now that he's not pushing 350. But he HAS to eat less, it's not through will power. That's what I meant by no behavioral change. Hey, I give him credit for recognizing he needed to something drastic to stay on this earth. I just think think you you can't say "atta boy Rex, job well done" as if he did it the right way. The result is the same, but keeping it off will be a huge struggle.

=============================================

It's Yaztrsemzki.

[Dimitri_0515]

Originally Posted by GuidoYaztremski

I give him credit for the exercise, which is a lot easier to do now that he's not pushing 350. But he HAS to eat less, it's not through will power. That's what I meant by no behavioral change. Hey, I give him credit for recognizing he needed to something drastic to stay on this earth. I just think think you you can't say "atta boy Rex, job well done" as if he did it the right way. The result is the same, but keeping it off will be a huge struggle.

Just out of curiosity, how much do you weigh? How often do you exercise? Do you take any supplements? What are your eating habits like?

[GuidoYaztremski]

Originally Posted by Dimitri_0515

Just out of curiosity, how much do you weigh? How often do you exercise? Do you take any supplements? What are your eating habits like?

I have a normal weight for my height having lost 80 lbs almost three years ago. I exercise four or five days per week for about an hour. Mostly cardio with a little Nautilus. I swim a lot in the summer. I eat a relatively low fat/low carb diet with lots of fish and chicken and only red meat on occasion. Pasta is my biggest indulgence. I avoid processed foods and limit my alcohol intake to an occasional glass of wine. I only take vitamins.



You?

[SAR I]

Originally Posted by John_0515

I like him fat. It's the source of his powers.

Don't worry- come November when he's unemployed on a couch he'll puff up real nice.

SAR I

[WestCoastOffensive]

Originally Posted by AlwaysGreenAlwaysWhite

Please link me to an article that says he doesn't exercise, eat healthier, etc...because if you read the OP, that's exactly what he's doing apparently.

This post is why you can't be taken seriously... Your ax... It's a nub at this point...

[Jet Nut]

Originally Posted by DaBallhawk

It would mean a little more if he actually did something for it. All he did was get sugery


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Right because going through surgery, changing your entire eating habits and exercising amount to doing nothing.

You have a firm grasp on da reality.