Elder Sullinger sets example for his son by shedding weight

https://www.bostonherald.com/sports/celtics_nba/boston_celtics/2015/10/elder_sullinger_sets_example_for_his_son_by_shedding



Elder Sullinger sets example for his son by shedding weight





Photo by: Ted Fitzgerald
Jared Sullinger poses for a photo during Boston Celtics Media Day at the team's training center at Healthpoint in Waltham, Friday, September 25, 2015.


Sunday, October 4, 2015

By:  Mark Murphy




Satch Sullinger was driving across town last week, thinking about food.

As patriarch of the Columbus, Ohio, Sullingers, this former high-school basketball coach is a big eater, and generally proud of it. But in the process of steering his son Jared into better dietary choices with a family intervention, Satch had a personal epiphany.

“I lost weight,” he said. “My question, to myself, was ‘How can I ask Jared to do this if I don’t do something myself?’ He motivated me. So when he and I talk now, I’ve got skin in the game.”

Only the fat is melting. Satch’s own summer program was transformative. By the time he showed up at Celtics Media Day on Sept. 25, the still-massive elder Sullinger appeared to be half of his former self.

“I lost 116 pounds,” he said. “I went from 386 to 270. I feel wonderful. I had to just stop living to eat, and learn to eat to live.”

That’s why Sullinger’s drive to get lunch last week was, for him, like a trip to the moon — or the casbah.

He was headed to a restaurant called Lavash.

“I’m going for hummus and tabouli,” he said of what are acceptable options in a plan with some simple rules. “I quit eating anything with commercials, no fast or processed food.”

Beyond better eating habits, he walked the course when he golfed, dovetailed that with hour-long cardio workouts, and lifted weights every other day.

While Jared Sullinger trained with John Lucas in Houston — a session set up by agent David Falk — Satch set about changing his own life.

The commitment wasn’t easy for either. Jared’s early NBA career has been pockmarked by injuries that are possibly weight related, including the back surgery he had as a rookie and last season’s foot trouble.

The Celtics landed in Milan yesterday with a team at its most competitive at Sullinger’s position of power forward. Though Brad Stevens has praised Sullinger’s early work in camp, the Celtics coach is also blunt about his prospects.

A major role is no longer guaranteed when Amir Johnson, Kelly Olynyk, David Lee, Jae Crowder and Jonas Jerebko are also in the queue at the so-called No. 4 spot. A fitter Jared is clearly vital to success in this environment.

“He’s in competition with a lot of guys for minutes,” Stevens said last week. “He’s a good player. But there’s stiff competition at those spots.”

Falk proactively introduced the Sullingers to Lucas, the former NBA point guard and coach who not only trains athletes, but has also helped a few overcome a demon that damaged his own career — substance abuse.

If Satch initially was surprised by Lucas’ hard line to working his son into shape, he also warmed quickly to the approach.

“John knows what you’re thinking before you do,” he said. “I asked if I could go down there and he said no, because dads get in the way.

“I like John. He cuts right to the chase, because he’s been there and done it. His situation was much more than what most people go through. He didn’t just read about these things and put them to use — he lived them.”

Inspired by his son’s ongoing challenge, Satch Sullinger thus confronted himself, with a stark, tangible result. He believes his son is headed in the same direction.

“There are things that have to be learned,” said Satch. “It’s been proven that the cognitive side of the brain doesn’t develop until you’re 25, and he’s 23. As his dad, I’m there to support him and get him through this.”

Satch also understood that Jared couldn’t be forced into compliance.

“You can’t bully a Sullinger. He’s my clone,” he said. “You have to want it.”

And Satch believes that Jared does indeed want it.

“I think the message is getting through,” he said. “You might not. But it’s getting through.”



bob
MY NOTE: Everybody seems to be on an "anti-carb" kick. I was in SE Asia for 3 1/2 months this past winter. EVERYBODY eats carbs with EVERY meal, 3x/day. If it's not rice it's rice noodles. If it's not rice noodles it's banh (sandwiches in Vietnam). If it's not banh it's taro or yams or potatoes or rice paper. And yet the only time you see fat Asians is when they are eat a lot of western food. What they do not eat a lot of is prepared food. There is a reason why the sauces in those meals don't break down into their individual ingredients despite sitting in the supermarket's frozen food section for days. It's because there are things in the meal that bind those fats and lipids together so they are still a sauce when you cook them. Why wouldn't they continue to bind fats together in your stomach?


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Did you ever check the sugar and sodium content in those "prepared" foods?
Loaded. The one thing I bet they do not eat over in South East Asia is sugar.
Sully's Dad is a big man, Sully should be proud that his father grabbed the bull by the horns and practiced what he was preaching. I hope he continues to keep his health in check. Now it is up to Jared to learn from the example his father set for him and continue on the journey to becoming an irreplaceable piece to a team, hopefully the Celtics.

Rosalie