Kenny Saylors always had a passion for food. But after a harrowing and sudden breakup with his girlfriend in 2006, he spiraled into a negative eating trend that quickly became dangerous.
In 2009, with the help of experts and doctors, he embarked on a fasting program for 55 days, one that saw him only drink water and not eat anything at all. Needless to say, it was a risky journey – several doctors had told him not to do it because of the associated dangers.
However, Kenny pulled through. Since then, his life has been a rollercoaster ride. At his heaviest, Kenny said he weighed more than 500 pounds, but fortunately managed to turn everything around before it was too late.
Nothing can keep Kenny down – today, he’s doing better than ever. So, let’s take a look at his incredible journey.
A healthy diet can be a difficult thing to maintain. If you have a family, a partner, or time-consuming interests, it can sometimes be hard to cook healthy food. Not to mention the fact that eating healthy can also be pretty expensive.
Fast food is simple by comparison and can even be good now and then. In the long run, though, it’s terrible for your health if abused. That’s why doctors are ever imploring patients to work out. In short, fitness is good for your mind, body, and soul!
Kenny Saylors – weight loss journey
These days, it seems there is no shortage of people aiming to teach others how to live a healthy life through exercising, eating healthy, and working on our inner peace to feel great.
Such individuals, often very physically fit themselves, are rightly praised for being inspirational. That said, I think the people who are perhaps struggling with their weight – and then take matters into their own hands to start doing something about it – are equally deserved of admiration.
You’ll know the sort of people I’m referring to. Some of them have appeared on popular weight-loss shows such as My 600-lb-Life. Others choose to change their lives with more subtlety, leaning on the support of friends and family. One of those people is Kenny Saylors, who managed to make a giant U-turn in his life.
In 2013, the Texas native decided to make a documentary about his latest weight loss project. It included drinking only water for 55 days – said to be the world record – and not eating anything at all. Kenny, in essence, would be a human guinea pig to see what would happen.
Of course, he needed doctor supervision to complete the project, which marked the start of an impressive transformation.
Today, Saylors is still on his weight loss journey, and doing his best to inspire others to join him.
Was very thin in high school
As a teenager, Saylors was like any other young person.
He went to high school, was a part of the school’s marching band, and loved playing sports. In his senior year, he weighed a healthy 160 pounds.
“When he was growing up, he was active from the time he started walking. He liked sports, played football, and never met a stranger. He was friendly with everybody,” Kenny’s mother recalled in his documentary Facing The Fat.
“When he went to high school, he was very thin, almost frail looking. I never thought he would gain this much weight, so when he gained weight he started this coughing.”
Later, doctors attributed Kenny’s coughing to his weight gain and the extensive amount of fat he had in his body. So what happened?
Well, in 2006, Saylors’ weight loss began to spin out of control. By that point, he was already tipping the scales towards the wrong end, and when his girlfriend broke up with him, things took an ugly turn. Reportedly, he had been under the impression that their relationship was fine. Then one day, out of the blue, his girlfriend called him and told him it was over.
Crushed by heartbreak, Kenny started eating as a way to deal with his emotions.
Gained 80 pounds in one year after breakup
“I was devastated. I wasn’t just broken-hearted, I was broken. And she never gave me a reason, just ended it. I didn’t know, emotionally, what to do with that. There was no closer. From that point, over the next year, I gained over 80 pounds. I ate, and I ate because food doesn’t reject you,” Saylors explained.
“When people see me they just see a fat guy. But what they don’t see is that I’m a person that struggles with every day. It’s something I’m trying to overcome. I know that there are much bigger people than me around, so I can’t even imagine what they are going through.”
Years went by, and Kenny’s weight gain continued. Between 2007 and 2008, his weight jumped from 235 pounds to a whopping 315 pounds. Finally, three years after the breakup with his ex – in 2009 – he decided that enough was enough, and went into a water fasting program.
So, what is water fasting?
According to a 2021 study, water-only fasting is described as:
“An absolute cessation of food consumption while consuming water. This type of fasting is believed to improve health and can help motivate a healthy diet and lifestyle changes. It has been found that this type of intervention stimulates physiological effects that are potentially favorable to health. They include enhanced ketogenesis, modulated hormone activity, reduced inflammation and oxidative stress symptoms, lipolysis, autophagy, and improved physical and emotional well-being,” it reads.
Before going further, we must understand and remember that we, as individuals, all are different.
Kenny Saylors – water fasting for 55 days
Some might have an easier time losing weight, while others have to put in more work. Just because one specific method works for one person doesn’t mean it will work for another. So before heading into any particular weight-loss program or method, please see a doctor and find out what might work best for you.
Now, Kenny Saylors went into the fasting program firmly believing it could be done. At the time, he was carrying a little over 53% body fat. He had an incredible 55 days of only drinking water in front of him.
Kenny’s doctor recommended he drink” Smartwater,” enhanced with electrolytes. The electrolytes are specific minerals needed to regulate body organs and cells.
Once again, we want to reiterate that if any of our readers are ever thinking about attempting something similar, they should always consult a doctor first.
Just days into the fast, Kenny had his first colonic irrigation, using warm water to help clean his colon from waste. After that, with the support of friends and family, Kenny continued to consume nothing but drink water. He also played tennis, and generally exercised in the best way he could.
Incredibly, he continued to hang out with many of his friends at dinner parties and BBQs, all the while standing firm and never giving into the temptation of eating.
Succeeded – but gained weight again
As the weeks went by, things got tough. Kenny steadily lost energy. Some days, he couldn’t even get out of bed. At first, he was supposed to be fasting for 40 days. But when he heard that the world record for fasting was 50 days – completed by a man named Agasi Vartanyan – Kenny decided that breaking it was a goal he had to aim for.
So how did he do? In the end, Kenny did magnificently. All told, he lost around 50 pounds! Now the route towards a healthier life was open for him. Sadly, just a few years later, he piled the weight on again, almost getting as heavy as 500 pounds.
As a result, in 2013, Kenny again dedicated himself to a healthier lifestyle. In addition, he started what he called “Reinventing Kenny,” where people could follow his journey.
“My quality of life due to obesity had driven me to an almost reclusive lifestyle. I could not walk across a flat parking lot without losing breath, or even take on stairs without agonizing pain in my joints from the pressures of carrying around so much fat,” Saylors wrote on his website.
“I didn’t WANT to be this way, but after more than a decade and hundreds of failed attempts to get my obesity under control – trying every eating plan, program, and lifestyle imaginable – I had become hopeless and resigned myself to the fact that I would be ‘the fat guy’ for the rest of my life.”
Kenny felt that he had to make a critical choice.
“I needed a goal in mind”
Either he changed immediately or be faced with an “early, unnecessary death.” So he took selfies, which he described as “the photos I never wanted to take,” to motivate himself and inspire others that a dramatic change could be made.
Kenny worked hard. He went on a better diet and exercise routine, and naturally dropped 80 pounds. Unfortunately, the Covid 19 pandemic became a significant setback, and in 2021, other things stalled his progress.
“Life took an even harsher toll on me, as I faced a series of emotional challenges in my life that broke me almost entirely and brought me to the brink of depression. I weighed 420 pounds and realized I needed a goal in mind and the accountability of people around me to achieve the impossible,” he described.
Once and for all, Kenny felt that he needed to lose weight and get fit.
Through his social media channels, the inspiring Texas native now shares his weight-loss journey with the world. He has gotten the help of his friend and health expert John, who has made a program for Kenny that will hopefully make things easier.
Kenny Saylors today
Although he still has a long way to go to reach his goal of 220 pounds, Kenny is a true fighter. He simply refuses to gives in and, as a result, has become a great inspiration for others.
Today, he runs a production company with his brother, and is working on several documentary series as executive producer. His documentaries have been featured at film festivals all around the country.
In September, 2020 he celebrated a milestone moment after losing 100 pounds!
”This journey is full of immense highs and lows and requires dedication to truly change one’s life and fight the fat after more than a decade of bad habits and food addiction. This is why I have chosen to publicly document it all, in real-time, as I travel this road,” Kenny writes on his website.
Kenny Saylors is a true inspiration. Please, share this article on Facebook with your friends and family!
