A Calgary trainer has transformed his body – but not how you’d expect. Adam Blackwell has packed on 14.7 kg (32.5 lbs). Now, he plans to work it off alongside the people he usually motivates.
Blackwell says in the six months it took him to gain the weight, he didn’t let himself go entirely. He says though he did have a few more treats than usual, overall, he primarily ate healthy food – just large quantities of it.
“I wanted to keep my body as healthy as I could,” said Blackwell. But he admits he grabbed a few extra handfuls of his favourite candy – Nibs –to help him get to the heaviest he’s ever been. He weighs 98.3 kg (216.7 lbs) and says he’s ready to start working the weight off.
Regulars at his bootcamp call him a little crazy but Blackwell says this personal challenge has helped him to better empathize with his clients.
“I can never really put myself in their shoes because I’ve never really been there. I figured: What’s better than to really understand the emotional side of things from my clients? How are they feeling when they gain 10, 20, 30 pounds? What kind of feelings are they… when they're going out, when they're trying on clothes? A lot of this stuff, I couldn't correlate with them,” said Blackwell.
Blackwell isn’t the only fitness freak to put on fat instead of muscle. That’s the concept of the reality show Fit to Fat to Fit – where trainers gain as much weight as their client wants to lose in order to better understand and empathize with their clients.
Hollywood stars have also been known to go to extremes – losing or gaining weight for roles. Renee Zellweger put on 9-13 kg (20-30 lbs) for the Bridget Jones movies, Jared Leto gained around 27 kg (60 lbs) for “Chapter 27” and Matthew McConaughey lost more than 18 kg (40 lbs) for “Dallas Buyers Club”.
Blackwell hopes to get back into his normal clothes within three months and wants to show people how to get fit in a healthy way.
He will be documenting his process on social media. You can follow him on Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.
Obesity is a growing problem in Alberta and across the country. A doctor who specializes in weight management says one in four Canadians is obese and that can lead to a number of health problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and cancers.
Even reducing initial body weight by five to ten per cent can offer significant health benefits.
(With files from Ina Sidhu)
