Y program inspires dedication

Revere resident Dotty Grossman has some rave reviews for the “Waist Away” fitness program at the Lynn YMCA.?It was the best thing I?ve ever done in my life,” said Grossman, who added she is now at the Y “five nights out of seven. I just absolutely love it. Waist Away has really done it for me. (It?s shown me) how to work out, what to do.”Grossman, 59, came to Waist Away after undergoing bypass surgery about four years ago. At that time, she weighed 348 pounds.?I only lost 50 pounds,” she said. “I was starting to put it back on.”After taking three sessions of the 8-week program, in which she never missed a class, Grossman lost 164 pounds to reach her current weight of 140.?The weight loss is a healthy weight loss,” she said. “The first 50 pounds with the bypass, I don?t think it was healthy. This is so different, a healthy weight loss. I wish I did this instead of going through surgery.”Asked about her health, she said, “Excellent.”The exercise component of Waist Away included aerobics, weights and running.?By the third time, I could do more than the first time,” Grossman said. “It?s all different levels. If you can?t run, fine, you can walk. If you can only lift 2-pound weights, that?s fine. They were full of encouragement.”Grossman even took on some extracurricular activities. Lynn Y fitness director Sharon Dobbyn, one of the Waist Away instructors, told Grossman about the summer cross country races at Lynn Woods.?The first race, I hated it,” Grossman recalled. “Oh my God, I had to jump over these rocks. I ended up loving it. My husband couldn?t believe I was running through the woods.”She said that her husband and son “can?t believe I?m doing what I?m doing. They?re in total shock. They can?t believe I?m doing that (running).”There is also a nutrition component to Waist Away.?There were things I never realized, the right foods,” Grossman recalled. “You have to eat. I was starving myself, which is one of the worst things. I get so hungry. You have to keep your metabolism going so it doesn?t stop. A candy bar?s OK. You have to read the ingredients.”She added the nutritionist?s advice on ingredients: “If you can?t pronounce it, it?s no good.”Grossman continues to keep busy at the Y, taking Tabata classes with Dobbyn, spinning classes with fellow Waist Away instructor Steve Martin and aerobics with instructor Lisa Tobin. She also completed a running program with Martin last month.?I never ran during my life, even when I was thin, when I was younger,” Grossman said. “It has changed my whole life. I didn?t realize when I had the bypass, I was looking for a miracle cure, an easy way out. There is no easy way.”Since the program began in the fall of 2010, Waist Away participants have lost a total of 1,000 pounds. The next session of Waist Away begins on Saturday, Jan. 4, and runs until Feb. 22. It takes place on Saturdays from 8-9 a.m. and Wednesdays from 5:30-6:30 p.m. The cost is $100 for members and $200 for non-members. Call (781) 581-3105 or visit www.ymcametronorth.org for more information. Those interested can also contact Sharon Dobbyn, Fitness Director, at (781) 581-3105×244 or [email protected].