Vacaville Man Loses 200 Pounds Without Surgery Or Going To Gym

VACAVILLE (CBS13) — A Vacaville man lost half his weight with a simple plan he says saved his life.

Gary Mullins says he read a lot of books about weight loss, but in the end he kept his plan very simple and lost 200 pounds.

Just a couple of years ago, walking around the park was impossible for Mullins.

I'd walk from bench to bench and I'd just be a mess," he said.

Now he can do so many things he thought he'd never be able to do again.

"I can put on a pair of pants and tie my shoes," he said.

At his heaviest, Mullins weighed 412 pounds, and he says he wasn't the only one who felt the pain over his weight.

"I think the rock-bottom for me was seeing my family under so much stress and pain, realizing the damage I was doing, seeing them lose hope in me," he said.

At one point, Mullins believed he'd die overweight, and his family would remember him for not wanting to change. That's when he decided it was time.

"I set a goal, I wrote out a plan, kept a food diary," he said.

Without the help of surgery, or even signing up for a gym, Mullins made changes at home, at his dinner table, eating healthier, smaller meals and exercising.

He met a lot of people at that park who supported him and saw his rapid weight loss. In 9-and-a-half months, Mullins had lost half his weight.

But the biggest change he says wasn't with him, but at home with his family.

"Seeing the eyes of my children go from one of concern and pain to one of joy and hope and pride, and that keeps me motivated to keep going," he said.