How One Dad Lost 160 Pounds After Inspiration From 3-Year-Old Son

A father shared with Today the sweet way he managed to shed 160 pounds after an errant remark from his three-year-old son.

45-year-old Jason Henriques vividly remembers the moment eight years ago that he decided to change his lifestyle. His son Wyatt, who was then three, said something that forever altered Henriques’ way of thinking.

“We were sitting on the dining room floor playing and he said, ‘Daddy, when I get big like you, I want a big tummy like you,’” the father recalled.

The innocent remark made Henriques realize that he needed to set a better example of physical health for his children. At the time, he was obese and struggling with a number of related health issues including herniated discs, torn ligaments, and gastrointestinal problems such as colitis, gastritis, and gallbladder issues. He also suffered from debilitating asthma that often required hospitalization.

“I got up the next day, put Wyatt in a stroller, and started walking,” Henriques recalled. “From that day on, for months, we walked three to 12 miles a day. My mindset was, ‘I have to do this. I have to be a better parent. I have to be a better role model. I completely changed my mindset and went all-in.”

Henriques was working as a photographer at the time, a position which allowed him to curate his own hours. “I had my own schedule, and I made the time” to get healthy, he said. “Walking was my number one priority in the morning. I pushed everything else to the side for a little while.”

When colder weather set in, Henriques switched his focus from walking to other methods of exercise. He joined a local gym and took advantage of the free personal trainer sessions that afforded him. During one of those meetings, his trainer suggested he try rowing. Henriques was at first hesitant, but after rowing 1,000 meters, he’d found his new passion.

“It was new, it was challenging and I was in a routine of walking, jogging and cycling,” he said. “Rowing shook it up, and change is hard sometimes. But I loved it because it didn’t have the impact of running or cycling on my joints. I felt great.”

Henriques summarily joined a CrossFit gym, which led him to run his first 5k that Thanksgiving. “I just fell in love with the whole world of fitness and how I felt afterwards,” Henriques enthused. “Rowing is the perfect counterpart to running because you can build your endurance on the rower without the impact. And once you hit the streets, you can use rowing as recovery from your running.”

Along with shedding 160 pounds, Henriques’ change in lifestyle curbed his asthma issues, cured his gastrointestinal issues, and remedied most of his joint pain. “I feel better at 44 than I did when I was 24,” he marveled.

Now a father of three, Henriques looks back on his first son’s remark as the catalyst that “changed not just my health and fitness, but the whole trajectory of my life,” he said. “Now I’m doing this parenting thing right.”

You can check out Today’s full interview with Henriques, including details about his current diet and before and after pictures of his astonishing weight loss.