Being a musician, I’ve was always convinced that talent was the most important thing in being successful, but in recent years I realized that appearance also influences success. So many times, someone would be really interested in my work through hearing a recording, and then, in person, everything would change. That’s when the budget started to disappear, old acquaintances would come over, that had already offered me a job, and canceling the recording with a million excuses that I knew weren’t true. It was so hard having to face the rejections so many times and knowing that my weight was holding me back from arriving at the goal I wanted.
 

When I was overweight, I was tired all day; whatever simple activity like walking to my car, opening a bottle, or even cutting my nails would leave me exhausted and with serious pain in my muscles. I think 10 years had passed since I had a full night’s sleep, because I would always wake up in the middle of the night not being able to breath and sweating like I had just run a marathon. All this time I had to spend thousands of dollars on doctors, massages, medicine for the pain, and treatments to be able to sleep… I then found out I had a thyroid condition. Today I feel like I burned all of that money because the solution was always in my hands, and I never wanted to believe it. Another part of my life that had been affected what my emotional health. Obesity made my sex life a disaster, because I didn’t have any endurance, that even taking off clothes was a huge stress that it would eventually kill the moment.

I always thought I should do something about my problem but I convinced myself that it was already too late for me, and I continued to eat excessively, at odd hours and food ridden with fat and sugar. The moment when I decided that it was enough was when I took a trip to Disney World with my friends. All of us were so happy to go and we already had everything planned for the trip. Finally when we arrived at the park, I suffered from the biggest humiliation of my life: because of my weight, they wouldn’t let me ride any of the rides. Being a Latino in the United Stated, this gave be a huge surprise because in all of the people that one sees, one never thinks that he or she is “that bad” and with so many people with morbid obesity problems, it shouldn’t be so difficult leading a normal life. The reality is, that it really is difficult. I will never forget the face of the girl at the roller coaster who told me, “Excuse me sir, but the security bar fails to close all the way, so we can’t let you ride. If you want, you can wait for you friends on this bench.”
 

 I came back so depressed from this experience that I called a friend to tell her what happened to me, and she told me that she had just bought her Yes You Can! and she was happy. That’s when I went to go read the paper and see what it was all about. I always admired Alejandro Chabán, not only because he’s my compatriot, but also because he really seemed like a role model of success. I started following him on facebook but I lied to myself saying that I could NOT follow his example. It was for someone else. Every post that I read that night convinced me more that I could do it, and that’s how I started learning how I could transform my life without suffering.  All of Alejandro’s advice helped me completely change all of my eating habits, and learn the importance of movement in our lives. The most important thing is that I overcame my fears and I began to coexist with the “mental fatty,” which Chaban talks about, without letting it control me.
 

In only 7 months, I lost 111 pounds, I went from a pant size 56 to 36, and for the first time I could buy clothes outside out the “big and tall” section. My life completely changed. Today everyone around me sees me, respects me, and doesn’t see me as weak. My health is better than ever and I only go to the doctor for regular check-ups now. Personally, I saw a 1000% improvement, my sex life is healthy and without stress or anxiety. I already got what I want and, with the Yes You Can! weight loss program  I will get more. The word “NO” doesn’t exist in my head anymore, and I can’t believe that eating arepas, meatloaf, plantains and even hallacas can get such an amazing result. The meal replacement shakes and healthy supplements  helping so many people like me, and I never get tired of telling people around me that YES YOU CAN and that there is no better proof than me.