Ron Allison suffered from depression and emotional eating until he tipped the scale at 321 pounds. In this fourth installation of WTOP’s Marine Corps Marathon series, he shares how he dropped half his body weight and became a marathon runner.
This before-and-after photo shows Ron Allison at his heaviest — around 320 pounds in August 2013, and in November 2015 with his 9-year-old daughter, Kaidlyn. To date, he has lost nearly half his original body weight.
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
He didn’t see his expanding waistline as a problem, because he had great self-esteem and thought he was active. But when his overweight father died after complications from surgery, he knew he had to make a transformation. “If I can keep from putting my family, my wife, my kids through that, then I was going to. It was at that point that I decided I was going to do something,” he said. This photo shows Ron with his son, Beckham, in February 2013, when Ron weighed around 320 pounds.
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
Ron Allison pictured with his son Beckham in December 2013, soon after Ron decided to transform his life. His first goal was to lose 100 pounds over the following year. “I started by eating halfway decent and exercising. The exercising started with just walking,” he said.
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
After months of training, Ron completed a 15K in November 2014 at 212 pounds. “The only time I used to run before was to run after a food truck, probably,” he said. “At some point, it clicked and I fell in love with it.” At this point, he had lost nearly 110 pounds in 9 months.
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
Ron’s finish as he completes his first marathon in October 2015, after losing 150 pounds in less than two years. “The person that handed me my medal said, ‘Congratulations, you’re a marathon runner.’ That’s when I broke down. If that was never said, I still probably wouldn’t have thought of myself as a marathon runner. It took me a while to even consider myself a runner at that point,” he said.
(Courtesy of MarathonFoto)
Courtesy of MarathonFoto
Ron with his wife, Chrissie, in September 2016. He wants to run one marathon per year, perhaps qualify for the Boston Marathon one day, or even finish a 32-miler.
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
Ron with Beckham in September 2016. At his heaviest, Ron weighed 321 pounds. Now, he’s down to 159 pounds — a drop of about half his original body weight. He stays fit by being active but doesn’t work out every day. “I’m extremely happier and healthier,” he said. “The good news is as you start losing weight, you will feel better.”
(Courtesy of Ron Allison)
Courtesy of Ron Allison
Ron finished the Capital City Half Marathon on April 30, 2016. His message to others who are struggling with weight loss is “just start. I tell people that all the time. If you’re eating bad right now, just start eating better. If you’re not active, just start walking. I think your body will naturally take you there.”
(Courtesy of Robb McCormick Photography / CapCity Sports Media)
Courtesy of Robb McCormick Photography / CapCity Sports Media
October 13, 2016 | Ron Allison: 'I fell in love with it' (Jamie Forzato)
Editor’s note: All this month leading up to the Marine Corps Marathon, WTOP’s Jamie Forzato is bringing you stories of runners who have endured loss, persevered through personal struggles and found hope.
WASHINGTON — Ron Allison was overweight and confident. He didn’t see his expanding waistline as a problem because he had great self-esteem and thought he was active. But when his overweight father died after complications from surgery, he knew he had to make a transformation.
“I come from a family that’s pretty obese,” Allison said. “After high school, I got really heavy — somewhere in the high 200 mark — and from there, continued to gain weight.”
The Springfield, Ohio, resident suffered from depression and ate food to cope with his emotions.
In February 2011, his father passed away after abdominal hernia surgery. Ron’s emotional eating spiraled out of control, and by the end of 2013 he tipped the scale at 321 pounds.
“It kind of hit me,” he said. “For somebody that was so self-confident and so emotionally stable to be going through the amount of depression I was after losing my dad … I said, ‘this is silly.’ If I [could] keep from putting my family, my wife, my kids through that, then I was going to. It was at that point that I decided I was going to do something.”
His first goal was to lose 100 pounds over the following year.
“I started by eating halfway decent and exercising. The exercising started with just walking,” he said.
But it didn’t come easy.
“That progression of walking to walking up hills to start to jog … it was horrible. The only time I used to run before was to run after a food truck, probably,” he said. “At some point, it clicked and I fell in love with it.”
Nine months into his journey, he’d lost 90 pounds and completed his first 5K.
By the end of 2014, he was down 121 pounds. He was training for a local marathon in October 2015, and he was hooked.
“The person that handed me my medal said, ‘Congratulations, you’re a marathon runner.’ That’s when I broke down. If that was never said, I still probably wouldn’t have thought of myself as a marathon runner. It took me a while to even consider myself a runner at that point.”
Allison wants to run one marathon per year, perhaps qualify for the Boston Marathon one day or even finish a 32-miler.
He chose the Marine Corps Marathon this year since his younger brother is in the Marine Corps Reserve. “I thought, how fitting. I love Washington D.C. Obviously [I] have a heart for the Marines and our country,” he said.
He’s down to 159 pounds — a drop of about half his highest body weight. He stays fit by being active, but doesn’t work out every day.
“I’m extremely happier and healthier,” he said. “The good news is as you start losing weight, you will feel better.”
His message to others who are struggling with weight loss: “Just start. I tell people that all the time. If you’re eating bad right now, just start eating better. If you’re not active, just start walking. I think your body will naturally take you there.”
