Cassidy Pfaff and her partner Zach H. have spent their entire lives struggling with their weight.
Like millions of people, they’ve tried losing weight over the years, both separately and together, but they could never find the right routine that stuck. However, when Zach was involved in an accident in July 2020, their lives were forever changed after experiencing the harsh reality of their physical condition.
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It began when both of them went to an elderly couple’s house to pick up an air conditioner they bought via Facebook Marketplace. Everything was going fine at first, but as Zach tried to carry the appliance to their car, he fell down a staircase.
Zach was immediately admitted to a local hospital, but they were unable to give him the care he needed.
“They were trying to get x-rays and MRIs and stuff but their equipment wouldn’t work on me because of my weight and size and the thickness of the fat on my body,” Zach said. “So they were calling different zoos in the area to try and see if they could get me in and there was still nothing available.”
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That was when Zach and Cassidy decided together that they would change their habits to create a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.
“Being overweight basically ran in my family,” Cassidy said. “All sorts of metabolically related disorders run in my family like diabetes and, so, I had always been overweight as a child.”
They began their journey by prepping meals, which took a bit of time to adjust to, especially for Zach, who thought he could rely more on his athleticism than worry about the nutritional side of things.
“I thought that it would be like a 60% exercise thing, 40% diet,” he said, “I think it’s probably more like 80% what you eat and how you eat it and 20% exercise.”
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Once they started to find a way to eat healthier and get regular exercise, the couple finally started to see long-lasting results.
“The biggest thing for us was the sustainability piece,” she said. “We’ve done everything in a way where we chose to change our lifestyle and … to heal our broken relationships from food when we were kids and adults.”
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When they started their journey, Cassidy weighed 317.3 lbs while Zach weighed 682.6 lbs! Together they weighed 999.9 lbs, which likely went over 1,000 lbs or a ton on any given day. But, in just over a year and a half, Zach and Cassidy lost over 500 lbs together!
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They documented much of their journey on social media, where they received lots of support from family, friends, and total strangers. But this fantastic couple’s most vital support came from one another.
“I’m so proud of you,” Cassidy said to Zach. “I just hope you understand how much you’ve changed, how much work you’ve done for yourself and for our family, and for our future, and for what we’re going to have. None of it would have been possible if you hadn’t put this effort in.”
“Everybody can celebrate the highs,” Zach added. “Everybody can get excited about the viral TikTok video that Zach posted, but having Cassidy along for the lows was what was so vital to me. I can confidently say that I would not be where I am if it wasn’t for her.”
You can watch a video about their incredible journey below.
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Sources:
- “Fitness Goals: Couple Who Weighed Nearly 1,000 Lbs Combined Are Half Their Size!” Inspire More. Kelsey Bjork. June 7, 2022.