Ryan Barshop: Making the move to healthy living

“PER ASPERA AD ASTRA.”

This Latin phrase, which translates to “through hardships to the stars,” is how United States immigration lawyer Ryan Barshop describes his health transformation journey.

A lifestyle shift that started two years ago, the 40-year-old New York native said that while the change has not been easy, it has however made a huge difference in his life that has seen him transform from being “morbidly obese” to be in “incredible shape” right now.

It is something that Mr. Barshop, in hindsight, said he is very thankful of being able to do before it was too late.

Mr. Barshop originally came to the Philippines 16 years ago as a volunteer for the US Peace Corps, returning for good in 2012 and has since been a practicing immigration lawyer, focusing on consular processing, a specialized type of immigration law dealing with embassies and consuls.

His expertise is the embassy here in Manila and the US consul in Ho Chi Minh City, work that requires him to alternate between Manila (he resides in a condominium unit at the Bonifacio Global City area when here) and Vietnam every other week.

Mr. Barshop said that he was a very active individual when he was in his 20s, engaging in muay thai and kickboxing and was then in tiptop shape.

A sedentary life caught up with him when he started law school and went on to practice. The days that he would exercise and be active dwindled, and his eating habits were anything but ideal.

And the “damage” of such neglect grew through the years — the once active and vibrant Barshop gaining over 100 pounds in a span of 10 years and grew very depressed, which he said affected not only his personal life but also his work.

It all came to a halt three years ago when Mr. Barshop said he hit “rock bottom.”

“I started to hit rock bottom in November 2016, and I was kicked very hard because of work reasons. May 30 the following year was when I took the plunge to change my ways,” said Mr. Barshop, who said that at his biggest he tipped the scales at 260 pounds.

“I was just unhappy with myself, with my life, and it was affecting my work. I was just not a happy person at all. I literally felt I was going to die. I felt I had 10 years before I die. It was that bad.

“So on my 38^th birthday I realized I have nothing else to lose but if I don’t get healthy now it’s gonna be too late. So I made a lifestyle change and the rest is history,” said Mr. Barshop.

Mr. Barshop intimated that his health and wellness transformation journey has been a roller-coaster with its ups and downs but the reason he is doing it is not lost to him, which serves as the motor that keeps him going.

NUTRITION
He said that change for him came largely through nutrition — eating the right food — coupled with the needed exercise.

“The change is 70 to 80 percent nutrition. I started realizing that whatever I consume in my body has consequences. They say abs (abdominal muscles) is made in the kitchen because if you don’t have a healthy lifestyle, you don’t focus on good nutrition, going to the gym means nothing,” the lawyer said.

“You have to constantly focus on nutrition. I saw a weight change within weeks and I started developing muscles and so on,” he added.

Work also has not gotten in the way of his lifestyle shift.

While eating the right food, Mr. Barshop makes sure he follows his workout regimen both here and in Vietnam.

“I have two workouts, here and in Vietnam. I prefer working out after work. So here, three days a week, I have personal training which I do in my condo gym. I frequently do circuit classes at Saddle Row and most recently have become active in adidas Runners Manila, and then I train by myself,” he said.

He went on to say that since embracing a fit and healthy lifestyle, the impact on him has been thorough.

“It helps me to be a better person. Being healthy allows me to do many things. Physically, mentally and emotionally I feel better. I have more fun doing things — shopping, travelling and others. People come up to me and be amazed and I love sharing my experience,” Mr. Barshop said.

CELEBRATION
As a form of “celebration” of the gains he has made in his fitness journey, Mr. Barshop went on a two-week trek to the Base Camp of Mount Everest in September, joining a group of hikers.

He said that making the trek was on his bucket list and being able to survive and do it made him more determined to continue the fitness path he has chosen to go on.

“Everest is a pinnacle of success, symbolic for someone who thought he would die. It was my way of saying I survived,” said Mr. Barshop, who described the trek as the toughest he has had to do, both physically and psychologically, so far.

He drew parallel as well between his move to healthy living and his Everest trek, saying, “Anybody can do it. You don’t have to settle with what you have. It’s not going to be comfortable and it takes self-control. Anything is possible. It’s realistic.”

Two years since his shift towards fitness, Mr. Barshop said the challenge continues but he is undeterred, just as he encourages others to go on their own journey of health transformation.

“One of the quotes I live by now is ‘Per aspera ad astra,’ which translates to ‘hardships to the stars.’ Getting to where I am right now was not easy. I had to undo 10 years of hard damage in my life. It’s going to be a process, so give it time,” he advised.

“You start when you are ready, and you’ll know when you are ready. I did it when I was ready. People were telling me about being healthy and all, but I had to realize it for myself. You don’t have to hit rock bottom though like I did. Some people would be content with what they have, but I wasn’t,” Mr. Barshop added. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo