Two months after the police introduced exercise programs for obese officers, several chubby cops have said that they have started to notice the benefits.
East Jakarta Police officer Adj. Second Insp. Budi Patmono, for example, said that he had dropped 13 kilograms from his previous weight of 129 kilograms after changing his diet and lifestyle.
"I bought a treadmill from an overweight friend four years ago and never used it until the police diet program started," Budi told The Jakarta Post in a recent interview. "Now, I walk on the treadmill, do sit ups, skip rope and climb the stairs in my office every day."
Budi said he had also stopped eating nasi uduk for breakfast, replacing the dish of rice cooked in coconut milk with a nutritional diet product. He also said that he eats more fruit and drinks more water.
"I used to have dinner at 9 p.m. because I didn't want to waste my wife's home-cooked meal. I told her to stop cooking for me in the evening," he said.
Budi has had to dig deep to buy nutritional diet products, which he said cost Rp 600,000 (US$62), although he offsets the expense by selling the beverage to other cops.
Exercise was also key, Budi said. Sometimes, he wore his jacket inside his patrol car without turning on the air conditioner to sweat away the excess kilograms.
"I feel lighter and healthier after losing weight. My target is to reach 70 kilograms and to reduce my blood pressure," Budi said, adding blood drives had turned him away four times due to high blood pressure.
The East Jakarta Police implemented the fitness program in November, requiring overweight officers to attend exercise sessions on Tuesdays and Fridays in the yard of the Purna Bhakti Pertiwi Museum in the Taman Mini Indonesia Indah theme park.
East Jakarta was the first police force in the capital to respond to an instruction issued by the National Police and the Jakarta Police requiring police officers to stay in shape.
East Jakarta Police physician Reni Setiawati that said around 40 to 50 officers regularly attended the exercise sessions, down from 118 at the start of the program. Rainy days and the call of duty sometimes reduced attendance, she said.
"Officers who often participate in the exercise program have lost three to five kilograms on average. Some may have not lost weight, but they feel the benefit of exercising," Reni told the Post after the exercise session on Tuesday.
Reni said that officers who had lost more than two kilograms in a month were advised to check in with her. "It is okay to loose weight as long as it does not disturb health. That is why we check up the officers' health and sometimes send them to the medical lab for a thorough check-up."
The police physician did not recommend using diet drinks, suggesting that officers control what that eat and exercise more.
Adj. First. Insp. Sriyanta, who is assigned to the Kramat Jati police substation, said he currently weighed 107 kilograms, down from 110 kilograms. He said that he had gained weight over the past 10 years because he often ate late at night while at work and did not exercise.
"I reduce my rice intake because I don't want to eat too much anymore. If I am still hungry, I drink warm water," he said, adding that he wanted to lose 37 more kilograms.
The 50-year-old officer said he was sure that his diet-and-exercise program would succeed, as he has received effusive support from his friends.
"I get motivation from my friends to exercise together. I usually get lazy if I have to do it on my own," he said.
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