Good Morning America spotlights FSHD

Carlos Romero, an FSH Society member, was featured today on Good Morning America in connection with People magazine’s annual “Half their Size” issue, which is out on news stands today. While the magazine focuses on several individuals’ remarkable success in overcoming obesity, Carlos made a point of highlighting the role his FSHD diagnosis played in his personal transformation. You can read more about Carlos in this ABC News report: Mom of 2, Man With Muscular Dystrophy Lose More Than Half Their Body Weight:

For Carlos Romero of Seattle, food was a source of comfort. His weight ballooned to 437 pounds.

“I was always overeating,” the 31-year-old told GMA.

It wasn’t until Romero, an operations analyst, was diagnosed with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy – a disease that causes progressive skeletal muscle weakness – that he decided to turn his life around.

“I saw it as an opportunity to inspire people that were struggling with obesity … and muscular dystrophy,” he said of the diagnosis he received two years ago.

Romero has since become a para-athlete. He does cardio and resistance training three times per week, and goes climbing up to six times per week.

Romero lost 225 pounds, and now weighs 212. He has also become active in two organizations –FSH Society and The Friends of FSH Research – working to find a treatment for facioscapulohumeral, or FSH.

“We’re actually making progress towards the first treatments,” Romero said.