He is called the "half man walking," and he is half the man he used to be.
As the winner of the YMCA's "Biggest Loser" weight-loss competition, Jeff Doose shed 50 percent of his body weight, fat and inches -- the three areas used in a formula for judging the contest. Doose, 38, is the Grand Island Builders Warehouse divisional manager.
"He is an absolute inspiration," said Amy Rathje, health and fitness manager at the Grand Island YMCA.
"When he finally stepped on the scale and we saw he hit 100 pounds of lost weight, we cried in excitement," Rathje said of herself and Venus King, a YMCA personal trainer.
The YMCA's second annual 14-week contest encouraged healthy lifestyles through exercise and nutrition changes.
"The theme was not just losing weight, though," Rathje said. "We give them the bottom rung on the ladder to a healthier life. We show them how to climb the ladder."
Doose listened to every word the trainers told him, she said.
"He did exactly what we suggested," Rathje said. "He watched his portions. He watched what he ate."
Doose said he quit smoking seven years ago and thought it was the hardest thing he had done -- until he entered "The Biggest Loser."
"It was constantly a physical battle, no different than fighting an addiction," Doose said. "I used to drink three Mountain Dews a day, eat fast food at every lunch and snack all the time.
"I haven't drank pop or eaten ice cream or candy bars since January."
One morning, he said, he woke up and decided he needed to change.
"I honestly hit rock bottom. I was tired of who I was and what I was doing. I had seen the show and said, ’Why can't I do this?'" Doose said of the NBC fitness reality show, "The Biggest Loser."
Although he was a member of the YMCA, he had not walked through its doors to work out in a year and a half. When the contest began and he started to visit the YMCA, his wife and 9-year-old son tagged along, and he said each lost weight as well.
By the end of the 14 weeks, he said, his demeanor and personality improved.
"His entire family's lives changed," Rathje said. "That's the beauty of this: It touches lives of people who aren't even participating."
While the overall experience proved rewarding, Doose said, week by week he often felt frustrated.
Rathje said many participants felt that way when they thought they hit a weight-loss plateau.
"It was an emotional roller coaster for all of us," she said. "We had people crying in our office; it made us depressed. But we kept our focus on the positives for the participants."
Doose found the YMCA staff's support vital to maintaining motivation.
"Sometimes I had workouts planned, and I thought I was never going to make it," he said. "But whenever I walked into the gym, they knew who I was and were unbelievably helpful. I set small goals and never let myself give up."
Doose's perseverance through the entire experience is what Rathje and King found to be the most incredible.
"He couldn't run before; now he can," Rathje said. "I couldn't put my arms around him before; now I can. He never lost his positive attitude.”
'Biggest Loser': Big changes, lots lost
Throughout the YMCA's 14-week "Biggest Loser" competition, 58 contestants lost a total of 889 inches and 1,148 pounds, said Amy Rathje, Grand Island YMCA health and fitness manager.
The 89 original contestants ranged from 21 to 61 years old, and winners were those who lost the greatest percentage of body weight, fat and inches by the contest's end on May 9, Rathje said.
"The hardest thing someone can do is change their lifestyle," she said. "It was a 50-50 split between those who found changing their eating habits the hardest and those who found changing their exercise habits the hardest."
The Grand Island YMCA competed with the Hastings YMCA for an overall winner. Grand Island winner Jeff Doose lost by 3 percentage points to the Hastings winner.
Participants kept exercise and food journals, met with a personal trainer and attended nutrition informational events, Rathje said. YMCA staff did not tell participants how to eat or work out but encouraged them to do cardio and weightlifting exercises and think about food choices.
"If they ate a meat-lovers sandwich, we asked them what would have been better. If they hate salad, we challenge them to eat one just one day a week," Rathje said.
While the contest is officially over, "Biggest Loser" contestants will be assessed in July and again in the fall, Rathje said.
Venus King, a YMCA personal trainer, said the re-visits are key. Participants often give 110 percent for the contest, only to fall back into old habits, she said.
"Believe me," King said. "If they come back in July and have gained weight, they'll drop and do pushups for me.”
