Close Ad

Man Loses 60 Pounds By Running Toward Sobriety
Sean Hennessey
Exercise

Man Loses 60 Pounds By Running Toward Sobriety

For Sean Hennessy, sobriety led to weight gain-- until he fell in love with running.

Hennessy, a former lacrosse player, was 16 years old when he began abusing drugs and alcohol. 


Growing up, he was always athletic. He started playing soccer early on, then switched to lacrosse, which earned him a college scholarship.

Henessey ran to stay in shape, but sports were his passion

On the outside, Hennessy appeared to be thriving, but he was still struggling with substance abuse.

He was 26 when he finally decided to get clean. For Hennessy, that meant redirecting his motivation for sports into staying sober.

I began to value my mental health more than my physical

Hennessy told Men’s Health, “Poor eating habits and a lack of physical activity led to a quick weight gain of 30-plus pounds.”

Sobriety over sports

At the time, he weighed over 200 pounds and over the next decade he was able to stay sober, but his weight slowly kept creeping up.

“Any definition I had in my stomach, back, sides, legs, and shoulders was gone,” he said.

Up until then, he’d attempted to keep his weight under control through a combination of running and crash dieting, but quickly found out that it wasn’t the right approach.

In the summer of 2018, Hennessy reached 245 pounds and the extra weight started taking a toll on him. 

He had trouble keeping up with son, he wasn’t getting proper sleep and experienced the horrible pain of a gout attack.

The moment of realization

Sean Hennessy

It was when he looked down at the scale during a doctor’s visit that summer, that he realized he had to make some changes to his lifestyle.

After years of mistreating his body and having no interest in weight lifting, Hennessy immersed himself into running. 

Along with adopting a daily running routine in August 2018, he cleaned up his diet by eliminating soda, fast food, and sweets.

By April 2019, he was down to 175 pounds

“Running has become the primary outlet for physical health, sport, activity, mental health, and personal accomplishment,” said Hennessy.

His wife has been on her own transformation journey and not only is he proud of her weight loss, but her success motivates him to keep going.

Now, he’s just happy to be able to watch his two sons grow up.

Running has been instrumental to my recovery over the years

This year marked 11 years of sobriety for Hennessy, and he celebrated earlier this month by completing the New York City Marathon.

“I smile every time I see I have set a new personal best on the app I use to track my runs,” he said, “and can't wait to see my family when I complete that race.”

More transformation stories:

Hot Stories

Why Paul Walker Left His Only Daughter With Vin Diesel

Vin Diesel & Paul Walker were more than just friends, they were …

content.jwplatform.com

When the tragic news of Paul Walker's death surfaced, the world was left in shock. As one of the most beloved stars of the Fast and Furious franchise, his passing was felt deeply by fans around the globe. But perhaps the most devastating impact was felt by his daughter, Meadow Walker, who was left without a father.

Keep ReadingShow less
Life Stories
4 Signs You've Found a Kindred Spirit, Not a Soulmate
friends wearing same outfit

Spirituality exists beyond words — to a dimension where language can only hint at deeper truths. Any words used to attempt to describe or explain it will always be poor translations because words often fall short when describing spiritual experiences. It's like trying to capture the ocean's vastness in a photograph. It might show its surface but there's no replacement for the direct experience of reality.

RELATED: The Psychology and Spirituality Causes Of An Identity Crisis

On Defining Spiritual Connections

Throughout history, people have tried to capture extraordinary experiences and spiritual connections through language. Terms like soulmates, twin flames, and kindred spirits attempt to describe these non-ordinary bonds. Yet these labels are merely signposts that point to something mysterious and won't fully capture it.

Keep ReadingShow less
Relationships
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his parents Randi and Pat
Archive

Make no mistake about it: Patrick Mahomes is the face of the NFL. The Tyler, Texas native is the son of Pat Mahomes, a former Major League Baseball player, and Randi Martin.

He burst onto the scene in 2018 when he made history by throwing 50 touchdown passes and 5,000 yards in a single season — a record he shares with Peyton Manning. He followed up his initial success by leading the Kansas City Chiefs to an incredible victory at Super Bowl LIV. If that wasn’t enough, he carried the team through to yet another Super Bowl the very next year, though they ended up losing to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Mahomes has gone to two more Super Bowls since and he's won back-to-back titles (2023 and 2024).

Keep ReadingShow less
Family