When Mark Reichenbach's mother died in 2008, the grieving son had to rent a suit for the funeral. He didn't own one because for someone 5 feet 5 inches with a 64-inch waist, clothes were hard to find and higher priced than normal.
The rented jacket fit so poorly, he didn't wear it. "I was so embarrassed. It had big brass buttons on it; I looked like a greeter at a casino. There I was at my mother's funeral dressed like that."
That same day he vowed that nothing like that would happen to him again.
He's not sure of his exact weight at the time, but it was the largest he'd ever been. He found an adequate scale some time later: 440 pounds.
Today, Reichenbach, 43, of Freeburg, is between 190 and 200 pounds. He lifts weights and walks for regular exercise. "I want more aerobics," he said. "I'm working not to be big, not get bigger."
At work in his job as a security officer, he walks up and down six flights of steps nine times a day.
He has incorporated more walking into his life. For example, he shops at farmers markets, which require a lot of walking.
"I used to just work and sleep," he said. "Now, I have so much energy."
He has taught himself yoga from a textbook. He jumps rope.
"I cook 90 percent of my own meals," he said. He eats mostly vegetables and fruits.
Just before spring of this year, his waist had shrunk to 38 inches. And he was wearing size medium shirts.
He'd probably weigh less without the excess skin, he said. Surgery to get rid of it would cost $30,000, he said.
HEAVY AS A TEEN
Reichenbach had always been large, around 300 pounds as he left his teen years.
"I just ate what I wanted, when I wanted," he said. "Just apathy; instant gratification. I always overate."
"Something sweet" was breakfast; fast food and sugary sodas for lunch; fast food and sugary sodas for dinner; fast food and sugary sodas for late-night snacks — for years.
Over time, he became more aware of his weight. It limited his ability to work as a security officer. The six flights of stairs? "That was torture," he said.
He was aware of others' attitudes toward him. "I know people have prejudices," he said.
"I was rounder than I was tall," he said. "I didn't feel like a person any more."
After a lot of reading and research, he chose the high-protein, low-carbohydrate Atkins diet. He also quit drinking alcohol and sodas.
From late 2008 through most of 2010, he lost 160 pounds.
That his blood pressure and cholesterol were normal even above 400 pounds is a mystery. "Even my doctor was surprised about it," he said.
After the initial weight loss, he "hit a wall." The weight stopped coming off.
He left Atkins in late 2010 and made up his own plan.
It's one that makes some health professionals cringe, saying universally: Don't try this at home.
He cut his calories to about 500 a day — a cup of coffee for breakfast, four ounces of lean meat for lunch and the same for dinner, plus an apple or orange every day.
He took over-the-counter amino acid supplements to curb his appetite and a multiple vitamin daily.
"When I started feeling bad, I'd up the calories and when I'd work out I'd up the calories," he said. "Sometimes I had to remind myself to eat," he said. "I just forgot to get hungry."
By this past spring, he'd lost another 90 pounds. "It's the best I've ever felt," he said.
"He's exceptional," said Mary Ellen Beindorff, a clinical dietitian with the Weight Management Program at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. "I wouldn't recommend 500 calories a day to any of my clients. You can't get all the nutrients you need from 500 calories."
Danielle Clapper, a dietitian with St. Anthony's Medical Center, agreed there are exceptions but that the short- and long-term effects of very low-calorie diets are for most people ominous at best.
They'd risk loss of lean muscle mass, reduced bone density and depletion of electrolytes. The body's metabolism goes into 'starvation mode," hoarding calories.
Clapper said such a drastic weight loss plan needs to be monitored by a physician.
The best way to lose weight remains "moderate calorie reduction, exercise and work for about two pounds a week," she said.
Reichenbach smiled and shrugged. "I didn't have any problems," he said.
After he hit his goal weight under 200 pounds, he reinstated regular meals, eating about 2,000 calories a day, mostly vegetables and fruits.
"I meet people I knew years ago, even in high school," he said. "They don't recognize me."
He doesn't remind them. "I just smile and let it pass."
