We are pleased to introduce our very first featured Underwater Ambassador! Patty is a pillar in our community. She has been actively sharing her fitness journey with the world since 2016 on her blog and Instagram, inspiring women and men all over the world to overcome their anxiety and conquer their fitness goals.
“If you too have thought ‘I love swimming, but I don’t want to be seen in a swimsuit.’ I would say... get in and swim! It is totally worth it.”
- Patty Deters
If you’re anxious about going out in a swimsuit or suffer from a chronic ailment that makes staying in shape complicated, you’ll relate to Patty.
When her fitness journey began 5 years ago, Patty was 54 years old, nearly 300 lbs, and working to get off medication for Rheumatoid Arthritis (a medication known to inhibit weight loss).
“My trainer told me I should be doing what I love to do – which was swimming. I had always put it off because I thought I was too big to be seen in a bathing suit… I was quite heavy; almost 300 pounds.”
Swimming, once a beloved activity, had become a source of anxiety.
“Look, I don’t know about you, but music just brings me joy and it helps decrease my anxiety. I find myself swimming and just forgetting about how much more I have to swim because I’m so into the music.”
By listening to everything from worship classics like How Great Thou Art to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody while she swims, Patty is able to suppress her anxiety and find joy in the pool.
-- By July 18th, 2016, she had lost 48.5lbs through a combination of diet and exercise.
-- In October 2019, Patty competed in the National Senior Games and placed top 10 in 4 of her 5 events.
-- By December 2019, Patty was down 75 pounds and feeling proud of the incredible physical and mental transformation she’d accomplished over the past 3 years.
“ In 2016 I was OBSESSED with the scale. The scale dictated my mood. If it went up, I was mad. If it went down, I was happy. Today, 2021, I am obsessed with saying yes to adventures with my family.
Before 2016, I watched them raft or zip line or go on amusement park rides or travel. Now I participate with them and that is such a victory in my life. Proper nutrition helped fix my physical body, music helped fix my mind. I'll be forever thankful for swimming with music for that.”
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