Colorado coach Mike MacIntyre drops 52 pounds in six months after focusing on his health
Mike MacIntyre endured a difficult first season as head coach at Colorado last fall and turning things around on the football field, at times, was the least of his worries.
MacIntyre traveled to Nashville in the middle of the season to help his brother move their aging parents into a nursing home. MacIntyre's father, George, a former national coach of the year at Vanderbilt, is suffering from multiple sclerosis.
MacIntyre went back to Tennessee to visit his parents after the season around the holidays and he admits he was depressed when he came home from the trip. Seeing his parents aging and struggling at times led MacIntyre to realize he needed to take better care of himself. It reached a tipping point when he found himself looking in his bathroom mirror one night at 3 a.m. and he didn't like the overweight, stressed out version of himself in that reflection.
"Oh my gosh, what have I done to myself?" MacIntyre recalled saying to himself when he shared the story this week during an early college football kickoff luncheon in Colorado Springs.
It didn't help that in the process of obtaining some life insurace last fall, MacIntyre learned that he was in some high-risk categories and a possible candidate for cholesterol lowering medication.
A few days later while attending a high school football awards banquet in which his son, Jay, was among those being honored, MacIntyre crossed paths with former Colorado ski team member Peter Greenlaw, who authored the book "Why Diets Are Failing Us."
Greenlaw, who had a similar epiphany about his health 10 years earlier, suggested MacIntyre read the book and apply it. MacIntyre said he has lost 52 pounds since Christmas time simply by changing his diet and exercising regularly.
“I started eating correctly and doing something that is low in calories, high in nutrients and non-toxic and eating a lot of that and then working out regularly and putting time in my scheduled to do it," MacIntyre said. "Because if I don’t take care of myself, I can’t take care of everybody else. It’s kind of a life change there and it’s been awesome. It’s something I can definitely keep doing.”
MacIntyre said a recent trip to the doctor revealed all his worrisome results from previous tests last fall have turned around and are in positive ranges now. He's looking forward to a less stressful second season at Colorado for himself, his family and his rebuilding team which hasn't been to a bowl game since 2007.
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[Kyle Ringo is the assistant editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at kyle.ringo@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo
