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Gradual changes left him healthier, 80 pounds lighter

Jon Russett’s job requires him to look for ways to save energy for General Mills. But in his personal life, he is constantly looking for ways to expend more energy.

Jon Russett, with his ID page, 80 pounds ago.

The principal engineer – who oversees the company’s global effort to trim energy costs – lost 80 pounds over the past few years by moving more and eating less. 
 
It wasn’t easy, and he knows it will be a lifetime effort to sustain the weight loss.

“Boy, do I feel better than I did five years ago,” he says. “I want at least another 29 years with my wife. I want a life where I have the energy to get on a bike and enjoy the outdoors. It isn’t only about today, but five and 10 years down the road. I’m happy to share my story, because it’s changed my life.”

Tipping point
The turning point came when Russett saw his doctor before a job relocation in 2006.

His health was not good. He was overweight and taking medication. He still found it challenging to fully recover from a back surgery a few years earlier.

"The doctor told me I would have to do something different if I wanted to enjoy my life. He made a few simple suggestions, which were to eat only half of the food in front of me and throw the rest away, and to start exercising.”

Instead of three pieces of pizza, he would eat one and a half. Instead of a whole sandwich, half a sandwich.

"I conditioned myself to get used to eating less, and I started exercising, very slowly at first. The important thing for me was that the transitions were gradual.”

Slow, steady start
He started with 20 minutes of exercise and increased his time by 5 minutes each month. Eventually he was running five miles. Russett ran 50 miles the week he turned 50 last year. 

“What worked for me was a slow and gradual process of setting goals I could achieve,” says Russett. “I had tried losing weight for years. I would go on an overly ambitious diet on Jan. 1, and by Feb. 1, I was off the diet.”

He calls his earlier attempts to lose weight “failing forward” because he learned things about himself that allowed him to eventually find a combination of strategies that work for him. 

Sticking with the program
He keeps a treadmill at home for the days when his schedule doesn’t allow him to complete his workout during the work day.

When he travels, he gets up early to exercise before the activities of the day intervene. When he’s hungry, he has an apple or a banana instead of waiting until he’s so hungry that he’s likely to overeat.

He had support from family, friends and co-workers.

“At General Mills, the culture of health and wellness is everywhere you turn. There are plenty of resources and support available – you just have to figure out what works for you,” he says.

This winter Russett finally quit wearing his old winter coat – now many sizes too big. But he keeps his old photo on his employee badge, looking at it from time to time to remind himself of his former size – and the effort it took to lose those 80 pounds.