New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie spoke with NBC's Brian Williams on Tuesday night to discuss his decision to undergo lap-band surgery and being a regimen to start losing weight. The political figure has often been criticized for his weight. He detailed the experience with the news anchor, revealing his motivation behind shedding pounds. One person that played a large role in getting one of the country's top political figures to slim down was New York Jets coach Rex Ryan.
Ryan has spoken publically about his own experience with the weight-loss surgery. He once topped the scale at 348 pounds in January of 2010. He then underwent the surgery in March of that year and has since lost over 100 pounds. Prior to the 2012 season, he was down to 242 pounds and continuing to drop the weight. Ryan took time to speak with Christie privately about the surgery and all that it entails. Christie said the football coach told him to just "listen to the band."
Since undergoing the surgery in February, the governor is already down over 40 pounds. He is aiming to have a more active lifestyle and says the biggest adjustment has been not being hungry all the time. Ryan was vocal about the same issue, noting portion control helped him. The coach said that instead of eating 12 tacos, one will be just fine. He embraced the lifestyle chance that Christie is now working towards as well.
"I couldn't believe it. I turned around and looked to see if someone was behind me. To me, the answer was without question having the lap-band, and it has been great," Ryan said.
Christie said he is by no means ready to take a victory lap in his wieght-loss journey, instead taking things one day at a time. The govenor is hoping to have an active second-half of life.
The meeting with Ryan comes as some surprise considering Christie once made headlines for calling the New York Giants as New Jersey's football team instead of the New York Jets. However, he has since said that he roots for the Jets over the Giants. When the Giants and the Jets faceoff, Christie said he will always be on the Jets side while New York's Mayor Bloomberg normally tries to stay as neutral as possible.