Health & Fitness
EEH physician weightlifting for personal growth and patient motivation
Doug Tran, M.D., an internal medicine physician in Naperville, will compete in the 2022 National Masters Weightlifting Championships.
It’s easy to tell people they should exercise regularly and eat right—it’s an entirely different thing to make it your personal lifestyle.
Doug Tran, M.D., an internal medicine physician with Edward Medical Group, has credibility and empathy to spare. He spends his workdays treating patients and advising them on health and wellness. In his off hours, he follows a strict regimen of nutrition and physical training.
About five years before the coronavirus pandemic started in 2020, Dr. Tran participated in daily group exercise at a local CrossFit gym, which improved his physical health and provided a mental health boost. Then, the gym stopped group exercise because of COVID-19.
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Dr. Tran had a good relationship with the gym owner, who let him come in after hours to train and relieve stress. A coach at the gym who had competed in weightlifting told Dr. Tran he should consider it. Intrigued, he gave it a shot.
“I would train on my own. I’d videorecord lifts and he would critique me,” Dr. Tran says. “Technically, I got better, I got stronger. And as the pandemic improved, he encouraged me to try out for a competition to see how I compared to others.”
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In February 2022, Dr. Tran took part in a weightlifting competition in Villa Park, keeping his expectations low.
“I placed gold and qualified for the 2022 National Masters Weightlifting Championships, age 50 to 55,” he says.
Dr. Tran will compete at the event on April 22 in Salt Lake City.
The workout, nutrition and sleep regimen necessary for success in weightlifting has been helpful in his relationships with his patients.
“It definitely gives me a talking point, because I'm living it as well—the struggles pretty much everyone would face, we all have goals,” Dr. Tran says. “I sometimes hear from patients that they haven't been able to get activity in five days a week. There are days when I don't do that. I can relate and have empathy for them.”
Regardless of the outcome of the weightlifting competition, Dr. Tran plans to continue his regimen.
“It's been a great example for my kids,” Dr. Tran says. “With childhood obesity on the rise, they see their parents staying active and eating healthy, and it motivates them to do the same.”
