An innocent comment from a preschooler started Jason Enriquez on his weight loss journey.
Enriquez told TODAY.com last week that she was playing on the dining room floor with her then-3-year-old son, Wyatt, when he said, “When I grow up like you, I want to have a big belly like you.”
Enriquez was 37 at the time, and his obesity was seriously affecting his health: he suffered from asthma, allergies, herniated discs, torn knee ligaments, and gastrointestinal problems including colitis, gastritis and gallbladder problems.
His son’s comment was something of a revelation for Enriquez. The next day, the father of three put Wyatt in his stroller and went for a long walk. He continued to walk between two and 12 miles a day, but Connecticut’s winter weather led him to look for other ways to stay fit.
After joining the gym and taking advantage of the free personal training service, Enriquez discovered how challenging and rewarding the rowing machine can be.
“I was used to walking, jogging and cycling, and rowing changed that completely. Changes can be hard sometimes,” he told TODAY.com. “But I loved it because it wasn’t hard on my joints like running and cycling are, and it felt great.”
Designed to mimic the motion of rowing a boat, rowing is a near-total body workout, according to Healthline. It engages most of your major muscle groups, including your lats, upper back (rhomboids), quads, hamstrings, core, biceps, and forearms.
In terms of calorie burn, rowing is comparable to running but with much less impact on the joints. The exact calorie burn depends on several factors and varies from person to person.
On average, a person weighing 175 pounds can burn 555 calories per hour rowing at a moderate intensity and 833 calories per hour rowing at a very intense intensity.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week.
Henriquez, 44, appreciates the balance that running and rowing provide: “Rowing is the perfect companion to running because I can build endurance without the impact of the rowing machine. Then, when I’m out on the town, I can use rowing as a recovery for my running.”
He recently completed a 48-mile row, rowing four miles every four hours for 48 hours.
In the first year of her health journey, Enriquez lost 160 pounds.
“I became obsessed with the whole fitness world and how it made me feel afterwards,” he enthuses.
Over the next few years, my gastrointestinal problems subsided, my joint pain disappeared, my allergies and asthma subsided, and although I still had a herniated disk, core-strengthening exercises like rowing helped me build the muscles needed to protect my spine.
In addition to physical exercise, Enriquez also dramatically changed his relationship with food: He and his wife eliminated junk food from their home and, with the help of a food diary, he identified which foods exacerbated his gastrointestinal issues.
Enriquez and his family have also started paying more attention to where their food comes from, and although buying fresh, local, organic food costs more than the processed and packaged foods he used to eat, it’s a price he’s willing to pay.
“Instead of spending money on medical bills later, you’re investing in your health now. You’re investing in your quality of life,” he explained.
Enriquez’s passion for health and wellness also helped him land a new career: He was invited to audition and eventually joined the team at Row House in Monroe, Connecticut, where he would coach other athletes in the mornings before work.
Enriquez recently expanded his role at Rowhouse, moving from being a self-employed photographer to general manager, which he says was “a little scary, but one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”
He believes his own fitness journey and health issues have made him a better coach, telling TODAY.com: “I can empathize with people who have the same issues and I can be more strict with my form because I know that even the slightest deviation can make the injury worse.”
As a coach, Henriquez is open with her clients and shares her stories and struggles. “Someone else in the room might be going through something similar. They can relate. I really like making that connection…I potentially help other people who might be going through the same thing that I went through. What could be better than that?”
