From 407 lbs to 267 lbs

Carson attended The Rice Diet Program eight years ago and has continued to maintain his weight loss with a simple philosophy to eat healthier and to exercise. As Dr. Neelon so often reminds us -- slow and steady wins the race.

What made you decide to come to the Rice Diet Program?

I had been heavy all of my life, but I was always an athlete. I played football in college at SMU and I was about 6'2 and 330 lbs. and losing weight, but I quit after my freshman year to transfer to Texas. Shortly after quitting football, my weight rapidly ballooned. I continued to eat and drink in the same manner as when I was playing football, however, I stopped exercising. Before long, I had reached a point at 20 years old where my quality of life was terrible. At 407 lbs., I had become really depressed and was really in a bad place mentally. My father came to visit me before the spring semester of my sophomore year, and he told me (again) that he was very concerned about my weight. He said he could also tell that I was very unhappy. At dinner, he made me an offer to allow me to drop out of school and he would pay for me to go anywhere in the world to get help with losing the weight. I had heard about the Rice Diet from an old strength coach at SMU, and so that is the place I picked. I liked the fact that it was a little more "extreme" in my opinion and that it had such an amazing history of weight loss with people that were morbidly obese. I dropped out of school the next day and was in Durham three days later.

Have you been to the program more than once?

Twice. My first stay was from February 1 (or so), 2000 through August of 2000. I lost a great deal of weight, although I could have done a lot better. I was still fighting through my temptations and I cheated frequently. I believe I got down to about 300 lbs. I went back to school for my junior year, and I had an amazing year. I felt so much better, I was happier, life was good. I decided to go back to Durham the following summer to continue what I had started. I was not able to lose any weight at school. In fact, I think I gained about 10 to 15 lbs. When I checked back into the Rice Diet, I was 336. That summer I was extremely dedicated and went from 336 to 267 in a little less than three months.

What changes happened while you were at the Rice House?

Obviously my weight changed, but what I heard more frequently than that was the fact that my personality changed. Some of my dearest friends commented to me that as amazing as my weight loss was, my change in personality was that much greater. I was just happy for the first time in years.

What type and duration of physical activity did you do while at the Program?

I worked out, a lot. I was very active in weightlifting and cardio training. I was actually able, which some people doubted, to gain muscle mass and get stronger while on the program. I typically spent time in between breakfast and lunch working out with weights and time between lunch and dinner doing cardio. It was not uncommon for me to spend 3 to 4 hours in a day working out.

What type and duration of physical activity do you do at home?

Today, I mainly jog, walk and box. I recently started playing golf.

How have you modified the program since returning home to work for you?

I just try to eat "healthy."

What helps you remain focused at home?

I don't ever want to go back to where I was, to cross 300 lbs. again.

How has the experience of the Rice Diet Program impacted your life overall?

It has fundamentally changed my life. It gave me a life. I have no doubt that without the Rice Diet Program I would be in very dire health eight years later. I also know that I would never have done this on my own without the Rice Diet.

I don't think of myself as a huge success as I still need to lose weight and I have put on 20 or so pounds since my departure. However, I know what my life would have been like without the Rice Diet and that makes me understand that it was a success.

I don't take any medications and I went from 407 to 267 lbs. I am holding and maintaining my weight right now at about 286 lbs.

More About Carson's Weight Training

It may be true that some muscle is lost during rapid weight loss, but this can probably be mostly overcome by exercise. Below is Carson's weight training record as he lost 103 pounds in 161 days (0.64 pounds per day).

Carson told us that in addition to all of this, his cardiovascular endurance improved tremendously. When he initially came to the Rice Diet Program, he could do no more than 30 minutes of any sort of cardio and then he gradually worked up to 4 hours of cardio daily.