By Rob Potter
HARRIS — October 3, 2003 – By his own admission, Dr. Carlos Carreno never really viewed himself as overweight.
“I never felt fat,” said Carreno, an OB/GYN who joined the staff of Catskill Regional Medical Center (CRMC) this summer.
But then came the day in January 2001 when he looked in the mirror.
“I thought, what’s going on here?” Carreno explained. “I looked and said to myself, I’m heavy. So at the age of 33, I decided to make a change in my lifestyle. Was it easy? No.”
Most people who have lost a great deal of weight or are currently trying to drop a few pounds would probably agree with Carreno on that point.
But would they follow the weight loss plan that Carreno has implemented for himself for nearly three years? That’s debatable when one considers that Carreno began an intense running and weight-training program.
In fact, Carreno is now in the final stages of training for the Chicago Marathon. The marathon in the Windy City, which is scheduled to be held on Sunday, October 12, will be the fourth marathon that Carreno has participated in since his life-changing decision in January 2001.
He competed in the New York City Marathon in November 2001, finishing the 26-mile course in a time of 6 hours and 59 minutes. The next November, Carreno again ran in the NYC Marathon. He took seven minutes off his time and crossed the finish line in 6 hours and 52 minutes.
Back in April, Carreno, who completed his OB/GYN residency at Hutzel Hospital at Wayne State University in Detroit and was a clinical instructor at New York University Medical School prior to joining the staff at CRMC’s Selma Ettenberg Regional Center For Women’s Health, competed in the St. Louis Marathon. He finished that race in 6 hours and 5 minutes.
For the past several weeks, Carreno has been “tapering” for the Chicago Marathon. Tapering is a common practice for long-distance runners as they shorten the length of their daily training runs as the marathon approaches.
Carreno has tapered down from running 45 miles a week a couple of months ago to a planned 8-mile training run this weekend. He plans a couple of light training days next week prior to flying to Chicago for the marathon.
“My goal is to finish in five-and-a-half hours or less,” he said with a smile.
But no matter what his time, Carreno plans to keep on running. He is looking forward to competing in either the St. Louis or Paris marathon next spring and the 2004 NYC Marathon.
Since he began his running and weight-training program – which also included a change in diet – Carreno has dropped over 100 lbs. and 12 pants sizes. He has also had to purchase some new collared shirts as well since the width of his neck has decreased by three-and-a-half inches.
“I really enjoy running,” said Carreno, who belongs to the New York Road Runners Club. “It’s so relaxing.”
The doctor, who will celebrate his 36th birthday next month, also enjoys Sullivan County. He currently resides in Orange County, but is looking to relocate to the county in the near future.
Since he also sees patients at his office in Rock Hill, Carreno said he would like to move to that area.
“It’s nice being here,” Carreno said. “Sullivan County is awesome.”
Carreno added that he has a good practice with fellow staff members OB/GYN Kimberly Ginyard, M.D., Certified Nurse Midwife Raquel Vargas-Villa and Family Nurse Practitioner Diane Primavera.
Some of Dr. Carreno’s colleagues at the Ettenberg Women’s Health Center will also be participating in an upcoming athletic event – but one that is a little closer to home. They are walking in the American Cancer Society’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk on Sunday, October 19 at Woodbury Commons.