[CJFusco]

When I went away to college, I gained weight very quickly. Before I knew it, I was 185 pounds or so (I am about 5'8") - which isn't obese, or even "fat", just flabby and, um, unsavory.

I decided to do something about this and saw three factors as tatamount to my losing weight: 1) beer consumption, 2) red meat intake (I ate a LOT of hamburgers and hot dogs off the grill), and 3) exercise.

For whatever reason, I ended up doing these three things in waves. First, I started walking at a nearby wildlife sanctuary, which has a 3-mile track around. Soon the walking turned to running, and I would end up doing two or three times around. Next, I cut down my drinking from three nights a week to one or two at most, and tried stuff like Bacardi and Diet Coke (just be sure that your buddies aren't around when you order that one). Lastly, just about 7 months ago, I gave up red meat, mostly for health reasons, and also tried not to eat a lot of junk. No set diet, just being conscious of what I was eating.

As I did these things in waves, I noticed the weight loss occur in waves. 10 pounds and then plateau; give up beer - 10 pounds over another few weeks, and then plateau; give up red meat and watch my diet - 10 pounds over another couple months and plateau.

Well, here I am. 144 pounds as of this morning, the perfect ideal weight for my height. I still run as often as possible, but it is tougher during the winter - I am down to about twice a week as compared to about 4 times per week during the spring/summer/fall. But this running has been replaced by lifting weights and doing daily resistance exercises like crunches and pushups.

So, it can be done... all it takes is time and willpower.