Gastric-bypass patients to run Colfax Marathon

Richard Kalasky was overwhelmed with emotion after his first Ironman triathlon in early May, but it wasn't just the achievement of swimming 2.4 miles, biking 112 miles and running a marathon that filled him with joy.

Members of the support group he created for gastric-bypass patients were there to cheer him on.

Kalasky used running to make a new life after gastric surgery, and now he uses what he has learned to help group members do the same. Several are running various Colfax Marathon events May 20.

Kalasky weighed 325 pounds in 2009 when he had "lap-band" surgery, a procedure that reduces the amount of food the stomach can hold.

"I just decided it's a lifestyle change," said Kalasky, who now weighs 185. "A lot of people look at it as a magic bullet. 'You cheated, you took the easy way out, you had the surgery.' That is not the case. I decided I wanted to start running."

Read more about Kalasky's transformation and how he is motivating others by reading the entire story.