SPR I NG 2019 / DI A BETIC LI V ING 37
riders,” she recalls of the 25-mile race. “But
there at the finish line were over a hundred
people greeting me. People had heard my
story and my commitment to finish no
matter what. I still tear up when I think
of that day.” She’s participated in the race
every year since.
As Medley cycled more and more, her
weight dropped steadily. She also started
to make changes to her diet, watching her
portion sizes and cutting out soda, frozen
meals, and unhealthy snacks. “When you
start losing weight, it immediately makes
your body feel better,” she says. “My en-
ergy was better and my perspective on life
was better.”
In June 2016, she had bariatric sleeve
surgery, the first in a two-part weight-loss
surgery process. Once her doctor gave her
the OK, just two weeks after surgery, she
got back on her bike—indoors at first. “I
put a training wheel on the back and rode
it stationary in my house,” she says. “But as
soon as I could I was back on the road.”
That September, to celebrate her
66th birthday, she traveled to Holbrook,
Arizona, to cycle 66 miles on the historic
Route 66. “People stopped me everywhere
and wanted to know my story,” she says. “It
was epic.”
In June 2017, Medley had the second
part of her bariatric surgery, called the
duodenal switch. Soon after, she was taken
off her second insulin. In October 2017,
she finally had the knee replacement sur-
gery for her left knee.
Now, she cycles more than 100 miles
a week. This year, she’s planning a 68-mile
ride for her 68th birthday, a 35-mile ride
through Sonoma County, California, to
support law enforcement, and a three-day
walk on the Appalachian Trail.
“I’m wearing out the young people in
my life,” she says. “I just went home for my
50th high school reunion and I was one of
the most vivacious and energetic people
in that room. People my age are sitting
in their La-Z-Boys and getting more and
more unhealthy. I want to tell the world
that it’s never too late to get up and start
doing something to improve your health.”
MOVE EVERY DAY
“I knew that for the rest
of my life, in order to not
become large again, I
would have to do some
kind of movement every
day. I won’t stop for the
rest of my life.”
FIND A WAY TO
LOVE VEGGIES
“I eat as many vegetables
as I want. I find a way to
enjoy them, whether it’s
grilling them or boiling
them or finding another
way to prepare them.”
MAKE SMALL
CHANGES
“I always tell people not to
try to do too much at one
time. I think it’s better to
make small changes. Over
time, those small changes
become big ones.”
What Worked for Jean
J
ust 41/2 years ago, Jean Medley,
PWD type 2, weighed 325
pounds and was on two types
of insulin. She had neuropathy
in her feet, severe sleep apnea, and an
enlarged heart. Her left knee was in need
of replacement but, due to her weight, the
surgery couldn’t be done.
“There I was sitting on my La-Z-Boy
watching TV with all these health nuts
telling me to just get up and move,” says
turned insurance saleswoman who
lives in Phoenix, Arizona. “I must
have heard that message 200
times, and one day it just clicked.
I knew I had to do something
before I descended into health
oblivion.”
It wasn’t easy. “I couldn’t walk
because of my left knee, and I didn’t
know the first thing about lifting weights,”
she says. “But when I saw an ad for ‘The
Biggest Loser’ with a guy standing next to
a TerraTrike, something clicked.”
Still, Medley was worried that because
of her fitness level and age she couldn’t
ride even a three-wheeled bike. And then
there were the reactions when she tried to
buy one: “I would walk into these places
and the salespeople wouldn’t look at me,”
she says. “I wasn’t their image of a cyclist.”
Finally, after visiting 14 other shops,
she was greeted enthusiastically at Sun
Cyclery in Phoenix. She walked out of the
store with a used trike, adjusted to her size,
and a commitment to herself to ride it a
little bit every day.
She started out with a ride around the
block. “I was gasping for air and I had to
stop,” she says. “I was so out of shape.”
But she stuck with it and kept building
stamina. Six months later, she was able to
ride a mile—and no longer needed one of
her insulin treatments. She hired a coach
to help her learn the rules of the road and
teach her how to ride safely.
One year after she got her TerraTrike,
she participated in the American Diabe-
tes Association’s Phoenix Tour de Cure.
“I came in dead last out of about 1,500
