Massive man sheds 376 pounds, credits doctor's blunt words
What do you tell a man who weighs 585 pounds? If you're a concerned family member or friend, you might urge him to lose weight. But when Adam Slack, of Mays Landing, New Jersey, walked into his doctor's office, he was told to write his own obituary.
Dr. Irineo Bustamante's blunt words first infuriated the 37-year-old man, who asked the doc to leave the room. But Dr. Bustamante later came back to talk to Slack - and eventually something clicked. Dr. Bustamante helped motivate the morbidly obese man to lose almost 400 pounds. Keep clicking to learn more about Slack's amazing transformation...
Slack had been working as a security guard at an Atlantic City casino in 2008. In June of that year, he nearly passed out during a shift. His supervisor dialed 911, and Slack was brought to the AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
At the time, Slack had high blood pressure, type II diabetes and other health issues. Here he stands with three of his four kids in 2008.
After talking with Dr. Bustamante, Slack started counting calories, limiting salty foods, and walking his dog daily. "At first we walked from our house two blocks to the stop sign on our street," he said. "That's all I could do."
The year of his first visit to the AtlantiCare medical center, Slack became a security guard at the campus in Pomona, New Jersey. He enrolled in a plan that encourages staff to exercise three hours a week.
Slack was once a self-proclaimed "human baseball target," but once he started losing weight, he also began to coach for his son's baseball team, the Mays Landing Pirates.
Slack with his wife, Michele, who he says has always stuck by his side. Since Slack began his wellness journey, Michele lost 24 pounds - from walking with him and working out herself.
Slack with his daughter Madisen in 2008.
Slack lost 376 pounds in two years. Here he stands, holding up the size 68 pants he used to wear. Now, he wears size 34.
All of Slack's kids fit into a pair of his old pants. Since starting his new job, Slack has had at least seven new uniforms.
Slack hugs Dr. Bustamante at their reunion on Nov. 15, 2011. "I'm thankful that he listened and is now an inspiration to everyone. It's a wonderful transformation and he looks really healthy," Bustamante said after seeing Slack for the first time since 2008.
After a tearful exchange, Slack told Dr. Bustamante that if he hadn't spoken those strong words, "I probably wouldn
Slack's daughters, Madisen (left), 7, and Autumn, 10, presented Dr. Bustamante with homemade thank you cards.
Madisen's card read, "I want to thank you for saving my dad. Now he can go on big roller coasters with me."
Autumn's said, "Thank you for saving my daddy. It means so much to me. Now that you did that, he can do softball with me and my friends and he can go more places."
Slack also gave Dr. Bustamante an obituary that he wrote, focusing on how he changed his life to have a better future and to coach three generations. Slack was a "loving husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather," one line reads. "Adam considered his greatest legacy to be the example he set for his children and grandchildren and people everywhere who are striving to better themselves and the world."
Slack now motivates kids he coaches as well as his colleagues at AtlantiCare. "The thought of losing my family was a thought I couldn