Jeff Donaldson

For most of his adult life, Jeff Donaldson struggled with being overweight. His diet, fueled by processed foods often left him with stomach pain. One year ago, in April 2015, Jeff felt an uncomfortable bulge in his stomach which brought him to his doctor. The stomach pain was the result of a hernia that needed operation. However, his doctor informed him that no surgeon would perform the operation in the current shape he was in. The doctor suggested Jeff enroll in Weight Watchers. So the next day, that’s exactly what he did.  
Although changing his diet was hard, Jeff stuck to the plan. He told us, “the pounds kept coming off. 10 pounds one week, 5 pounds another, up 1 pound the next (oops).” He also started walking 80 km a week and running, which helped him lose weight even faster. By changing the way he ate and increasing his physical activity, Jeff shed 50 pounds in just 8 months!  
This weight loss meant Jeff was able to have the operation in November. The surgery was a success, but during his two month recovery, Jeff was told that he’d have to limit his exercise to walking. For Christmas, his wife gave him MOOV NOW which he tried out right away and realized it was the key to help him get back into his fitness regimen post-surgery. “I used Moov as a healing tool,” Jeff said. 
“Once I was cleared for running, it was like having to learn all over again.” Jeff used Moov Running Efficiency to get himself started. Within a few weeks, Jeff excelled in his running. He went from Speed Endurance level 1 to level 5 and was running up hills! He also felt less pain in his knees, patellar tendon and IT band and no longer experienced shin splints like he had before. Moov taught him that his impact was too high and he needed to land lighter and on the ball of his foot.

“With Moov’s cadence I’ve learned how to pace myself. Moov taught me to lower my steps per minute a little bit and now I’m able to run 1.4 km without stopping.” Besides being able to run farther and longer, Jeff has now completed his fastest mile at 10:16, which is incredible since he told us he was not able to walk well this time last year!
As Jeff continues his fitness journey, he plans to participate in races and cross train with PiYo (pilates and yoga). He recently ran a 5K in 40 minutes and is determined to finish one within 35 minutes (Wish him luck!). When we asked him what advice he has for others trying to reach their goals, he said “start slow, don’t expect to be a marathon runner right out of the gate. Take it slow and you will reach the finish line.”