http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25305547-421,00.html
A FORMER underwear model stacking on weight so he can understand his obese gym clients better has received a shock health setback.
Paul "PJ" James is eating burgers and cake towards a goal weight of 120kg, a far cry from his days of strutting US catwalks at 80kg.
The Melbourne personal trainer has been having regular health checks and for the first time received news he didn't want to hear - that his body is starting to struggle.
PJ has blood pressure, liver and kidney problems that threaten to derail his campaign to fatten up, which he is also filming as an independent documentary.
Health experts say he is at higher risk of heart problems and kidney or liver disease.
But the Coburg gym junkie turned junk food junkie said he would finish the job he started in January.
PJ said he would have blood tests more regularly to ensure that his liver enzyme readings, which have spiked to double the healthy amount, did not contribute to liver disease, to which he is now susceptible.
"I am taking my doctor's advice, of course. If he tells me to stop, I would stop straight away. There's no doubt about it," he said.
"I have to have blood tests every two weeks to monitor it. They (the liver enzyme results) are not in the very high range yet, but it's a concern."
Kidney tests, liver tests and blood pressure tests have all come back much higher than he hoped for, and he is still waiting for cholesterol tests.
PJ said he had also had trouble with chafing and sore knees.
"My inner thighs completely rub together. It sounds trivial, but it's actually quite annoying," he said.
"Also, as my stomach has got bigger, I have compensated by leaning back a bit because of my weight. The ligaments around my spine have sort of twisted a bit, so my posture is out of whack and I need treatment."
World Health Organisation Centre for Obesity Prevention director Prof Boyd Swinburn said PJ risked long-term damage to major organs if he didn't lose the weight he had stacked on.
He said PJ was at higher risk of stroke because of his high blood pressure.
PJ said he was worried about losing his excess weight. "I'm actually eating less now but still putting on weight," he said.
