DEREK MITCHELL: I love 5Ks now. I do them
any chance I get, which is probably part of my craziness but…
DEREK MITCHELL: Running across a finish line
and getting the medal, it just, it makes the entire past hour just kinda melt away. I mean,
that, it’s just, it’s totally worth it. Absolutely.
COMM: Derek Mitchell might not look like the
average athlete, but the 35 year old from Kansas City is defying expectations.
DEREK MITCHELL: As of today, I’ve finished
17 5Ks so far this year, my goal is to finish 30 by the end of the year.
COMM: As well as raising money for charity,
Derek is determined to reach a healthy weight.
DEREK MITCHELL: My goal weight is 225lbs and
so now I am at 564, as of this morning. I wanna get down to where I’ve lost a total
of 400lbs. And these pictures are where I’m starting to get bigger and this was my, these
are my high school senior pictures.
COMM: But for Derek, controlling his weight is not straight forward.
DEREK MITCHELL: About 6 years ago, I was diagnosed
with a non-cancerous tumour on my pituitary gland called a Prolactinoma. And this Prolactinoma,
it secrets an enzyme called prolactin that essentially blocks my body’s ability to
produce testosterone. Well testosterone controls energy levels, it controls mood and the biggest
thing is it controls metabolism making it extremely difficult for me to lose weight.
COMM: While waiting for treatment to start working, Derek’s weight soared.
DEREK MITCHELL: I didn’t really exercise.
I mean, I spent a lot of time in front of my computer playing games, I didn’t pay
attention of what I ate, I just ate whatever I wanted, sometimes it was pizza, a lot of fast food.
In November 2014, I went to the doctor and the scale said 625lbs and that’s when I
knew that I just couldn’t wait anymore. There was a lot of points where I did have
some depression to an extent.
COMM: Derek knew he had to change and help was at hand to get him going.
DEREK MITCHELL: Person who first got me interested
in running was actually my sister. She is a marathon runner and a former roller derby
girl. I started with a block, and the way my mom puts it, when I got back she thought
I was having a heart attack, but I got back out there and just kept going at it, and pretty
soon I was averaging around 2 miles a day.
COMM: Further medical treatment could boost
Derek’s metabolism, helping him lose weight and cross the finish line quicker.
DEREK MITCHELL: They are hoping to get me
on testosterone replacement therapy to get my testosterone levels back where they are
supposed to be, and the doctor said once they do that, it should be a lot easier for me
to lose weight. I’d love to finish a marathon someday. I’m actually shooting for Honolulu.
COMM: A permanent reminder of his achievements,
Derek’s been inked for every 5K run he's completed.
DEREK MITCHELL: So it has 37 little dots on
there. Each pixel is a representation of each 5K that I’ve done so, which is now outdated
as of this morning. It’s good that I have a visual representation.
COMM: And the marathon hopeful has already
inspired others to follow in his footsteps.
DEREK MITCHELL: One of my favourite things
about this whole journey is just getting massages from people who say they started doing 5Ks
because they saw my story and everything. To motivate other people, to show them that
it doesn’t matter how big or slow you are. That actually helps motivate me to keep getting out there.