Student’s weight loss makes national TV

By Kelley Brazil
Pulse Staff Reporter

Hundreds of thousands of people make weight loss resolutions for the New Year, most of which are not kept for very long. On Feb. 14, 2011, San Antonio watched one of its own residents keep her resolution on the series premier of A&E’s “Heavy,” a new reality show about weight loss and healthy living.

Flor Cox hugs her trainer. Photo courtesy of A&E's "Heavy."

Palo Alto Sophomore Accounting Major Flor Cox decided she needed to take the steps necessary to start living a healthier life for herself and for her family because she is a diabetic and had high blood pressure. As she continues on this journey, The Pulse recognizes Cox’s effort for bettering her life and for being a role model to other individuals in the community who are heading down a similar path.

Being a mother, wife and student makes it hard to manage and maintain a healthy diet, but Cox is continuing to show the world that it’s not impossible to do. Yes, there are a number of obstacles she faces, but it doesn’t look as if she is going to let them stand in her way anymore. By faithfully writing down the foods that make up her 1,200 daily calories, by exercising at least four days a week, and with the support of her loved ones, Cox is well on her way to her goal of 165 pounds. She has already lost 94 pounds, seven dress sizes and two shoe sizes since her journey began, and she continues to push forward.

“It takes you to seek deep inside of yourself and ask yourself if you are ready to do it.  Are you willing to do it even though no one around you will encourage you?  Even when your friends go out to eat, and eat all the junk foods. Make better choices,” said Cox. “Once you tell yourselves, ‘I am ready. I want this. I can taste it. I want it for me.’ Then start one day at a time. If you fall off track, just get back on. Don’t get the attitude that ‘I messed up. I will give up.’ You can do it. Just set your heart in to it.”

Losing inches and gaining muscle mass instead of fat, having more energy and feeling less tired are just a few of the reasons people should embrace a healthier lifestyle.  However, exercise is not the only factor; calories, carbohydrates and sugar intake have to be reduced in order for the pounds to melt away.

Cox’s daughter, Iris Mendiola said, “It takes determination and willpower. In a sense, it’s almost like reaching a higher maturity level where you, as an individual, can commit and dedicate yourself to a ‘life change’ and not just a diet. I feel that with this experience, my mom has come out of her shell; she used to think that she was beneath some people, but she never was! Her weight was holding her back from her life. She lived to survive day to day, but now she lives to strive and reach for the stars! She has always been a role model for me, and now she is showing me how to lose weight, as well.”

Palo Alto offers a variety of resources to help its students, staff and faculty work in daily exercise. Some of these come in the form of classes like Yoga I and Jazz Dance I. Other resources include the weight room, gymnasium and swimming pool, which are free to use with a PAC ID. The campus track and tennis courts are also available 24/7.

All it really takes to live a better, healthier life is a goal, a heart with the willpower to persevere and the mindset to follow through with new eating habits and exercise routines. It’s never as impossible as it seems. Flor Cox is living proof.