Werner's story: 24 pounds lighter and stronger at 73 on a plant based diet
Werner, a Mavy Wellness client and pastor, lost about 24 pounds at 73 and built visible muscle after a decade of losing weight and gaining it back. With a meal plan, a rotating strength program and weekly accountability from Mavy Wellness, he went from struggling to walk 2 kilometers to walking 5 kilometers comfortably.
Where he started: Werner had eaten plant based on and off since 2013 but had never focused on protein or strength training. Taking apart his own deck left him exhausted within minutes.
What changed:
A meal plan with enough protein. Clear calorie and protein targets instead of dieting alone.
Rotating strength workouts. Upper body, lower body and full body days.
Weekly accountability. Check-ins that helped him stay consistent for the first time.
Travel strategies. A portable blender and protein powder on a missions trip, then straight back on plan.
Life now: His wife calls him "the new Werner." "There's a sense of integrity that's returned to me. I'm keeping that vow." Werner shared his story on the Forever Fit Podcast.
What the research says. In a 2017 New England Journal of Medicine trial of 160 adults over 65 who were losing weight, those who did resistance training kept more of their lean muscle than those who only did aerobic exercise. [1] In a classic 1990 JAMA study, nursing home residents with an average age of 90 nearly tripled their leg strength after eight weeks of strength training. [2]
"After decades of working with thousands of clients, I can say with confidence that Maxime is the real deal."
Julieanna Hever Risse, MS, RD, The Healthspan Dietitian, Author, on Forever Fit
If you've tried and quit more times than you can count, book a call with our team at mavywellness.com.
Sources
Villareal DT et al. (2017). Aerobic or resistance exercise, or both, in dieting obese older adults. New England Journal of Medicine 376:1943-1955. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28514618/
Fiatarone MA et al. (1990). High-intensity strength training in nonagenarians: effects on skeletal muscle. JAMA 263(22):3029-3034. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2342214/
About the author. Maxime Sigouin is the founder of Mavy Wellness (formerly FitVegan Coaching) and the author of Forever Fit, a book endorsed by physicians including Neal D. Barnard, MD, Laurie Marbas, MD, and James F. Loomis, MD. He has coached for more than six and a half years and, with his team, has coached nearly 1,300 adults over 50 on a whole food plant based diet. He hosts the Forever Fit Podcast, with more than 450 episodes.
Last updated: October 26, 2026. Results vary from person to person. This page is for general education and is not medical advice. Check with your doctor before starting a new exercise or nutrition program.
