Growing up in southern Louisiana, Dani Raine found comfort in food. By 22, she was diabetic and struggled with blood-pressure issues in addition to depression and anxiety.
“I don’t really know how long I expected to live,” Dani says.
In 2007, she married her high-school sweetheart, Travis, but the couple initially had trouble starting a family. After taking metformin, Dani lost some weight and was able to deliver a son, and then a daughter. However, she was anxious and didn’t feel well. When she turned to her doctor for help, he told her he was going to put her on another medication and send her to a therapist.
Dani immediately resolved to change her lifestyle before going on any more medication. Travis and Dani cleared out their fridge and began training at Behemoth CrossFit in Cypress, Texas. The affiliate is owned by former CrossFit Games athlete Aja Barto.
“Making these changes and going down the right path with CrossFit and nutrition, everything started coming very easy. And results were happening very quickly, from losing weight to getting rid of the little hypoglycemic crashes. … Those quick wins kept us motivated and sticking with it,” Travis says.
Today, Dani has lost 123 lb., Travis has lost 60 lb., and both have “fantastic” glucose levels. They point to their children as their source of motivation.
“For us now, it’s all about setting the example … and establishing those habits so that they hopefully won’t have to go through the same struggles,” Travis says.
Our Why: Fighting Diabetes for Family