Trucker Loses It Behind the Wheel

He doesn’t lose his mind, he loses weight. John Drury has lost nearly 100 pounds of weight since he made the decision to treat his body better and be around longer for his family. The 6’7 and 292-pound truck driver used to weigh nearly 400 pounds, but the misfortune of his good friend finally woke him up and convinced him to make the change. “I think about him every day on this weight-loss journey,” he said about his friend Dave Johnson, who died severely overweight.

“I just think of him… I have to make a change. I want to be here. I don’t want to leave my family and this earth prematurely. I want to be around as long as I can,” said Drury. “I know he’s looking down on me saying, way to go Big John. Way to go.”

For where he is today, John attributes eating better, drinking more water, walking when he has time during his travels and Zumba when he is home… and ultimately getting to his goal: 250 pounds. “The lifestyle of a truck driver… it’s brutal, Drury said laughing, while driving the 18-wheeler on Interstate 275. “We cover about six states and we work a lot of hours. I’m on the road a lot. But Drury says he wouldn’t want to do anything else.  “I love truck driving, saidDrury. I just love the open road.”

Because trucking doesn’t offer easy solutions to eating healthy on the road, Drury says that his fight at first seemed insurmountable. “There’s not a quick fix. I mean, people always ask me, ‘How did you do it?’ ‘What’s the secret?’ There’s just really no secret. It’s blood, sweat and tears. It’s dedication. It’s commitment. It’s really wanting to lose weight.”

“I still have a goal, I’m not there yet. The old me is dead and gone away…” he quoted the tattoo he had inked on the side of his bald head.

Along with his weight-loss goals, his mission now, is to help others achieve theirs. Something he’s no longer able to do for Johnson.

“I’m there to tell people, ‘I’ve been there and done that. I’ve been in your shoes.”