CommunityEditor
05-23-2009, 08:03 PM
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — About a year ago, 18-year-old Hilton Head Island High School student Jaquan Rivers decided he wanted to join the Air Force after graduation.
But Rivers, now a senior, faced one big problem: He had been significantly overweight and sedentary most of his life — attributes that “weren’t going to help me get into the military,” he said. “I was sick of being big.”
Rivers, who’s spent four years in the school’s Navy Junior ROTC program, decided he would do whatever it took to get physically fit.
In January, when he weighed more than 300 pounds, he set out on a three-mile loop. He started out jogging but walked after he grew tired. Though it was tough, Rivers stuck with the routine, running daily.
By February, he could run six miles at once.
“It hurt, but I did it,” he said.
Rivers, who works part-time at McDonald’s, cut fattening foods from his diet and started drinking more water. At work, he started eating salads instead of hamburgers. He brought fruits and vegetables to school for lunch. He grilled fish or chicken for dinner.
He started cross-training. He did push-ups and sit-ups, and ran up and down the high school bleachers — repeatedly.
He’s coming closer to his physical fitness goal. The aspiring airman has lost 90 pounds over the past six months. Currently about 210 pounds, Rivers would like to get to about 180.
Rivers plans to talk to a recruiter and eventually take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, the military entrance exam.
He said he still has to study for the written exam, but he’s confident about his fitness. He laughed as he flipped through a photo album filled with pictures of his former self.
“All you do is exercise more and eat less,” Rivers said. “There’s no magic to it.”
Though his strategy was simple, Rivers said he also had plenty of support from friends and family, including from his 25-year-old cousin, Tiffany Young, who helped him get started, and his Junior ROTC teacher, Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Pheiffer.
“Commander inspired me. He told me about the Air Force. He said I could get to travel to places I’ve never been,” said Rivers, a Hilton Head Island native. “I want to explore the world and get an education. He told me I could do it.”
Pheiffer, who described Rivers as “a well-mannered kid with a heart of gold,” said the student’s motivation and dedication led to his success.
“He’d always been a big guy, then he started eating healthy and running 12 miles a day,” he said. “Who has that kind of mental discipline?”
Students who once teased Rivers about his weight now look to him for inspiration, Pheiffer said.
But his fellow students aren’t the only ones inspired.
Rivers’ mother, Nicole Young, said her son has inspired her and his 14-year-old brother to become healthier.
“I’m so proud of him,” she said. “He’s so motivated. When he sets his mind to do something, he keeps going until he does it. If someone tells him ‘Oh, you can’t do that,’ he’ll say ‘I’m going to prove you wrong.’ “
Young said Junior ROTC helped motivate her son and keep him on the right track, and she supports his eagerness to join the military.
“I really hope he gets into the Air Force,” she said. “He’s made it this far.”
Rivers’ cousin, Tiffany Young, who ran with him during his first weeks in January and still occasionally runs with him, is confident her cousin will realize his dream.
“He has a really strong will,” she said. “He’s determined to get into the Air Force. I know he’s going to get it.”
Rivers said he doesn’t plan to slow down any time soon. He has advice for people facing challenges, weight loss or otherwise: “Don’t ever say you can’t do it. Don’t ever give up. You can do it.”
Article: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2009/05/ap_air_force_weight_loss_052209/
But Rivers, now a senior, faced one big problem: He had been significantly overweight and sedentary most of his life — attributes that “weren’t going to help me get into the military,” he said. “I was sick of being big.”
Rivers, who’s spent four years in the school’s Navy Junior ROTC program, decided he would do whatever it took to get physically fit.
In January, when he weighed more than 300 pounds, he set out on a three-mile loop. He started out jogging but walked after he grew tired. Though it was tough, Rivers stuck with the routine, running daily.
By February, he could run six miles at once.
“It hurt, but I did it,” he said.
Rivers, who works part-time at McDonald’s, cut fattening foods from his diet and started drinking more water. At work, he started eating salads instead of hamburgers. He brought fruits and vegetables to school for lunch. He grilled fish or chicken for dinner.
He started cross-training. He did push-ups and sit-ups, and ran up and down the high school bleachers — repeatedly.
He’s coming closer to his physical fitness goal. The aspiring airman has lost 90 pounds over the past six months. Currently about 210 pounds, Rivers would like to get to about 180.
Rivers plans to talk to a recruiter and eventually take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, the military entrance exam.
He said he still has to study for the written exam, but he’s confident about his fitness. He laughed as he flipped through a photo album filled with pictures of his former self.
“All you do is exercise more and eat less,” Rivers said. “There’s no magic to it.”
Though his strategy was simple, Rivers said he also had plenty of support from friends and family, including from his 25-year-old cousin, Tiffany Young, who helped him get started, and his Junior ROTC teacher, Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Pheiffer.
“Commander inspired me. He told me about the Air Force. He said I could get to travel to places I’ve never been,” said Rivers, a Hilton Head Island native. “I want to explore the world and get an education. He told me I could do it.”
Pheiffer, who described Rivers as “a well-mannered kid with a heart of gold,” said the student’s motivation and dedication led to his success.
“He’d always been a big guy, then he started eating healthy and running 12 miles a day,” he said. “Who has that kind of mental discipline?”
Students who once teased Rivers about his weight now look to him for inspiration, Pheiffer said.
But his fellow students aren’t the only ones inspired.
Rivers’ mother, Nicole Young, said her son has inspired her and his 14-year-old brother to become healthier.
“I’m so proud of him,” she said. “He’s so motivated. When he sets his mind to do something, he keeps going until he does it. If someone tells him ‘Oh, you can’t do that,’ he’ll say ‘I’m going to prove you wrong.’ “
Young said Junior ROTC helped motivate her son and keep him on the right track, and she supports his eagerness to join the military.
“I really hope he gets into the Air Force,” she said. “He’s made it this far.”
Rivers’ cousin, Tiffany Young, who ran with him during his first weeks in January and still occasionally runs with him, is confident her cousin will realize his dream.
“He has a really strong will,” she said. “He’s determined to get into the Air Force. I know he’s going to get it.”
Rivers said he doesn’t plan to slow down any time soon. He has advice for people facing challenges, weight loss or otherwise: “Don’t ever say you can’t do it. Don’t ever give up. You can do it.”
Article: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2009/05/ap_air_force_weight_loss_052209/