Wake-up calls prompt lifestyle makeover

Early in life, John Robb didn’t give a thought to exercise or what he ate.

“I was a fat kid,” said Robb, who by sixth grade weighed 150 pounds and as an adult, was told he'd better shape up or his lifestyle would kill him.

At 73, he’s now a distance athlete. He logged 4,000 miles on his bicycle in 2014. He’s ridden across Kansas nine times — missing only the year he had a knee replaced, but not the year he was fitted with a pacemaker.

A native of Pittsburg, he grew up on a farm eating gravy and whole milk. He played no sports and was mostly sedentary.

It was while in basic training at Ft. Riley that he learned he had high blood pressure. While stationed in Korea, he was told it was serious: He weighed 275 pounds.

So he cut out drinking and desserts. And he started running.

"It was life or death,” he said of his condition. “You’ve got to come to a point where you realize that. I saw it as a wake-up call. The first quarter mile was awful."

In 13 months, he lost 100 pounds. Back stateside, he continued running.
Then, he began competing, starting with 5Ks, working up to 10Ks and then a marathon. He wasn’t going for speed — his best time was 4 hours. But he was 51at the time, and he was proud to finish.
​
When he retired and returned to Pittsburg in 2002 with his wife, Carole, he took up cycling and completed his first 400-plus-mile Bike Across Kansas in 2009. But then the lights went out.

Physicians discovered a heart blockage: A Widow Maker.

“It was filled with gravy,” Robb said. “I wasn’t watching what I ate.”

The misconception?

“That I could put in the miles exercising and then scarf down a cheeseburger, desserts or whatever else sounded good,” he said. “I figured I was skinny, so I had no reason to worry.”

His logic made sense, his wife said.

“He was putting in miles and miles, so if he wanted a milkshake, he would eat it,” she said.
“That’s one of the reasons he liked to run, so he could eat all the desserts he wanted.”

He began a strict diet: No foods with anything they couldn’t pronounce. No preservatives. No palm oil. No artificial sweeteners. Beef, pork or chicken once a week, and no more than 3 ounces at a time. No more than 29 grams of fat a day, including the good kind. Broccoli and fish each twice weekly. No more than 1,500 milligrams of salt per day.

Breakfast is a bowl of steel-cut oatmeal. Instead of salad dressings, they dress up greens with crunchy stuff: cranberries, walnuts, dried fruits, carrots.

The couple now cooks almost entirely with organic or locally grown food, shopping at the farmers market, a local food cooperative, the organic sections at Ron’s and Dillons supermarkets, and at Whole Foods in Kansas City.

For meat, they eat only grass-fed turkey, bison and venison for its low fat content. And their larger meals are at noon, with lighter fare such as soup or smoothies in the evening.

Keeping an exercise diary is important to his success, he said.

He's also participated in the National Bike Challenge sponsored by the League of American Cyclists. In 2014, he finished 16th out of 320 riders of all ages. He also has completed the PSU Gorilla Century and ridden every county road in Crawford County.

“Doctors tell me to just keep doing what I’m doing,” he said.

— By Andra Bryan Stefanoni

John Robb is a Live Well member and part of the Live Active commitee.

John participated in the BAK with his son and a granddaughter.