Elsie
Walking back to happiness
Just two years ago, Elsie Houma was finding it difficult making the short trip to her mailbox. Weighing 155kg, with severe asthma, sleep apnoea and heart problems, Elsie was issued with a Green Prescription (GRx) by her doctor and given an ultimatum – "Lose weight or you’re not going to be around to enjoy your grandkids."
"I had to do something, I knew that, but I just didn’t have the motivation," she says. "I'd got so big that I couldn’t walk, even to my letterbox and I was in and out of hospital five or six times a year.
"To be honest I gave up that first time I received a GRx," recalls Elsie. She finally found inspiration from her son Dave, who at more than 170kg was battling his own weight issues. Dave was among the top 10 finalists in the first series of NZ Idol and was affectionately dubbed "Big Dave" by the nation. But he decided to get active and lose weight and Elsie followed his lead. "I looked at Dave and thought that if he could do it then I had to give it a go, and we pushed each other along."
So, with a second GRx from her GP, Elsie headed to Te Awhi Tangata, a GRx support group at the community and recreation centre at Tamaki College in Auckland, where participants receive support and motivation from a range of speakers as well as taking part in physical activity such as aerobics.
After a while, Elsie soon began to shed the kilos. "I found the aerobics a bit hard on my body initially so I started going down to the pool and when the weight started coming off I felt so much better that I just kept going."
Elsie has since graduated from the GRx programme and is a relatively svelte 127kg, with a goal to reach 100kg. "I’ve got a long way to go and I know the doctors would like me to lose more, but if I can get to 100kg I’m happy – any more than that is a bonus."
She's also recently been appointed as a coordinator for the GRx programme in Glen Innes, helping to organise speakers and supporting new participants. "I think it's good for people to see someone like me who has gone through the programme and that it can make a difference – that's cool."
While the support of the GRx team and her family has been a huge part of her transformation, Elsie says her personal motivation and dedication have been her biggest success. "When it comes down to it, no one can do it for you. You have to make that decision for yourself and follow through with it."
Updated | 07 Aug 2007.
Skip page tools.
