Lawyer Who Once Weighed 386 Pounds Is Now Running Marathons

Michigan lawyer Bob Springstead thought he needed bariatric surgery when he stepped on the scale almost two years ago and saw that he weighed 386 pounds.

Because his insurance required a year of diet and exercise first, the Fremont lawyer gave it a try. Now he is down to 235 pounds and running marathons, the Grand Rapids Press reports.

This week Springstead was planning to run in the Grand Rapids Marathon, his first 26.2-mile event. He began training by trying a 5K (3.1 mile) event, prodded by his then-10-year-old daughter, Jessica, who wanted her Dad to run with her in a program called Girls on the Run.

“I tried to run to get ready for this 5K and lasted about 30 seconds,” he told the Grand Rapids Press. “At that point, I figured a 5K might as well have been a marathon for me.”

Jessica had to drop out of her 5K race because of an injury, but her father kept on training. He entered his first 5K race last year, running with his brother, and began to train for longer distances. He changed his diet by cutting out fast food and buffets, eating red meat just once a week, and counting calories, according to the Muskegon News.

“I literally worked out six and seven days a week for a year to lose the weight. It was really liberating, because I set a goal and committed to it,” Springstead told the Grand Rapids Press.

Springstead is a 1993 graduate of Detroit College of Law who runs the family law firms in Fremont and Hart, according to the Grand Rapids Press. Since losing weight, his cholesterol and blood pressure dropped to safe levels, and he no longer has to use a sleep apnea machine.

"I can focus better at work now, and I have more patience with my clients and my kids," he told the Muskegon News. "I used to be convinced that I didn't have time to work out. Then I checked my schedule and saw that I wasn't doing anything at 5:30 in the morning. I just made time to exercise."