When Wagga man Luke Brodrick went under the knife for gastric sleeve surgery two years ago, not even he could've predicted his rapid transition into long-distance running.
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Formerly tipping the scales at 172 kilograms, Brodrick went from grossly obese to the picture of health in the blink of an eye.
In fact, he turned around his life so quickly that barely a year after surgery, he competed in his first ever marathon, - the 2018 Canberra Marathon - and finished in the impressive time of three hour and 30 minutes.
But it hasn't always been beer and skittles for Brodrick.
A relative newcomer by marathon standards, Brodrick was put through the ringer in his maiden competitive season and has since taken the time to step back and develop as a runner.
"The aim after Canberra last year was to do Gold Coast and then Melbourne but things don't always go to plan when you're running a marathon," Brodrick said.
"Gold Coast had amazing weather last year but the humidity was at about 90 per cent and I cramped up really badly in the last 10 (kilometres).
"I knew it was going to be a tough race really early on and it just went pear shaped."
Gold Coast paved way for a shot at Melbourne but the Victorian capital proved an even unhappier hunting ground with Brodrick rolling his ankle midway through the race.
Still, a family moment made everything worthwhile and put his own achievements into perspective.
"I had really high expectations for Melbourne after Gold Coast but I really just wanted to get it done as well," Brodrick said.
"Everything was going well and then 24kms into the race, I rolled my ankle trying to overtake someone and had to finish the last 18kms with a busted ankle.
"But it was still one of the best moments all year because my family had caught the train down to surprise me and as I came around that last turn, I saw my boys cheering me on.
"It was the first time my boys had ever seen me racing and it was just an amazing feeling."
Brodrick believes the most important lesson he's learned is to slow down and form a routine.
There's a lot of ego in running and how you always want to go faster … but marathon's are bloody tough and they can still bite you if you're 10-foot-tall and bulletproof.
"I think it's just about ticking them off, getting through them … and being comfortable going at your own pace.
"I'm running for myself and my family and it's about being consistent and working hard."
The Toowomba-born salesman now has eyes on shredding "10-15 minutes" off his previous effort in the Canberra Marathon and hopes to compete in Gold Coast and Sydney later in the year.
"I'd still love to do something like the Boston Marathon, it's definitely still a goal, but I'm just going slowly build and get the miles up."
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