A fat kid who at age 9 tipped the scale at 145 pounds, Patrick Lee could hardly dream that 30 years later he would be running marathons and competing in triathlons. On April 9, he completed his second triathlon, placing 298th from a field of 1,800. Freelance Writer Shelly-Ann Thompson caught up with him last week.
PATRICK LEE didn't realise he had a weight problem until he overheard a relative joking that he would not make it past age 16.
Lee was 11 and the comment struck a chord. Stung by the remark and alarmed at the thought of an early grave, he made a silent vow to shed the weight.
Today, Lee, 39, managing Director of Lee's Food Fair Supermarket on Red Hills Road, St. Andrew, is 5 feet 7 inches tall and a slender 144 pounds.
Lee remembered that at about age six he started rapidly gaining weight, reaching 145 pounds three years later by the time he moved to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Still, the size of the problem didn't register with him until he overheard the remark.
"When you're that young you don't know it. So when I heard relatives making fun of me and laughing that I wouldn't live past 16, that's when I realised that something was wrong."
He immediately devised a diet plan to slim down. He started by eliminating fatty foods like butter, gravy, margarine and anything creamy. He went as far as instructing his mother to boil his chicken.
"I had a problem with fat so I knew the best thing was not to eat anything fatty."
He also started exercising, running a mile a day. When he couldn't run, he would skip for half an hour. At nights, he did sit-ups while watching television before going off to bed. In three months (during summer holidays) he lost 40 pounds. He said when he returned to school he was hardly recognised.
"It was a big shock to everybody. I had a stomach and I didn't anymore. Up to now I don't know what motivated me to put myself on own diet," he said.
It's not as difficult as many people think, he added. "Anything I used to consume I replaced with vegetables, raw or cooked. I cut off carbohydrates and added more greens."
Since then healthy eating and exercise have become a huge part of his life. Now he easily does chin-ups and other exercises that he could never do in prep school.
When he returned to Jamaica in 1989 he realised that the climate was ideal for training which he said has contributed to his rigorous training for road events. He participates in road races, marathons ("Nothing competitive just private for personal training") and, more recently, triathlons.
CENTRELINE: LESS THAN 3 HOURS FOR A MARATHON
His foray into competitive sports started at Thornlea High School just north of Toronto when he represented the school in track meets.
In 1997 he started running marathons, completing 12 so far. It took him 12 hours to finish his first marathon but these days he can wrestle his time for the 26.2 mile event to below three hours. He completed the Disney World Marathon in 1999 and qualified for the Boston Marathon in 2000 which he completed in three hours and a few seconds. A year later, October 2001, he was at the Twin City Marathon in Minneapolis, Minnesota in United States. A member of Jamdammers running club since 1996, Lee has also competed in the Reggae Marathon held in Negril.
These marathons, explained Lee, were in preparation for the triathlons.
Competing in a triathlon is not easy, he noted. Competitors have to meet time requirements and need a strong background in running.
"You have to put in a fair amount of training time," said Lee who placed third at last year's Jakes Triathlon in Treasure Beach, St. Elizabeth. This was a sprint marathon -- 400 m swim, 14 mile bicycle ride, and a 2.5 mile run.
CENTRELINE: FAMILY SUPPORT
For the Arizona Ironman triathlon he had a written work out plan that included 14 training sessions a week -- four training sessions per week for each sport and two days of strength training at the gym -- for 12 weeks leading up to the event.
Despite his strong showing in Arizona, Lee did not qualify for the Triathlon World Championship in Hawaii scheduled for October. He needed to finish in the top 11 of his age group to qualify.
He's not giving up though. "It is my dream to run at the championships so I can say to my children 'I actually did that race," he laughed. "Now I'm experienced, I can go back next year to try and qualify again."
He noted that people who compete internationally take the event seriously, training vigorously despite their work and family commitments. Lee added that he's able to compete at these events because of the support of his wife, Michelle.
"You really have to have the support of someone who will take care of things when you are away and gives support for you to compete. If you don't it's really hard."
