Nathan Meola goes from 246kg ‘funny fat guy’ to 120kg personal trainer
AT 18 Padstow personal trainer Nathan Meola gave up and decided to “eat myself to death”. Having topped the scales at 246kg the 120kg 30-year-old now helps others deal with their obesity.
The Express
Don't miss out on the headlines from The Express. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Greater Sydney Commission holds up Riverwood as a ‘model’ for solving Sydney’s social and affordable housing crisis
- Night Sky arts project draws on Bankstown’s diversity
IN HIGH school Nathan Meola was always the “funny fat guy” and, at more than 240kg, it was no surprise.
As far back as he could remember the Padstow personal trainer had struggled with his weight, to the point where, at 18, he had given up and decided to “eat myself to death”.
It was then that his parents convinced him to get gastric banding, or lap band surgery.
“I imagined walking into the room six months later and looking perfect and having all this success and greatness,” Mr Meola said.
He quickly shed more than a quarter of his body weight, but again hit a wall.
“The reality is you take a step like that and it kind of cures you of your physical ability to overeat, but that’s pretty much it,” he said.
It took booking into a weight loss retreat to finally overcome his mental struggles. Six years later Mr Meola, now 30, weighs half of what he did and uses his talents as a personal trainer to help clients struggling with obesity.
“Helping them make those first steps, for people who would never walk into a gym … it’s just so foreign and so uncomfortable and such a big hurdle,” he said.
“I was thinking, ‘How do I reach those people? Well I want to create an environment that is comfortable for them, so I can start working with people who are at the very, very beginning where I started’.”
Mr Meola will speak at a weight loss seminar at the Revesby Workers Club on December 10.
For more details visit Nathan’s Facebook page.
Australian obesity rates are on the rise
‘Heart sank’: Son’s brain cancer diagnosis during mum’s chemo
Teenager Jerome Kertebani was 8 when he was diagnosed with brain cancer, just months after his mum’s breast cancer diagnosis. Read their story and see how a southwest Sydney community is rallying behind them.
Drug syndicate ‘runner’ busted after selling 125 bags of cocaine
A young southwestern Sydney dealer was caught after he sold 125 bags of cocaine while working as a “runner” for a highly organised criminal syndicate.