Weight-Loss Story:
Charlie Williams

Age 25, from Green Bay, Wisconsin

I grew up in a family that did a lot of barbecuing. My Dad was an excellent
chef, and he made us steaks nearly every weekend. I really got the taste
for steak, and had as much of it as possible, every time my Dad brought it
to the table. When I think about it now, I wish I'd taken it easy, but I
was just a little kid. I was good at sneaking extras, and my parents didn't
really notice.

By the time I was in 8th grade, I was already becoming a heavy kid. I
didn't think much of it, and I definitely didn't think it had anything to do
with my diet. I just thought I was hitting a growth spurt.

My diet continued as it was - lots of red meat - on through high school.
When I was a teenager, I also developed a taste for beer. My Dad drank a
lot of, and always had the house well stocked. I would sneak away cans
whenever he wasn't looking, and I was eventually getting my own. I never
quite became an alcoholic, which is a miracle because I was drinking a lot,
but I did go through heavy binges. All the beer was putting on extra weight
as well.

When it came time to go off to college, I was really anxious. I didn't want
to go away to college looking like I did, I was huge! I weighed 225 pounds
when I was 18 years old. Well things didn't get any better. At college, I
started trying to bury my problems with more binge drinking. It was easier
than ever before, because I was away from my parents, there was a lot of
alcohol around, and lots of parties. By the end of my sophomore year I had
reached the 275 pound mark. I wanted out. I didn't want to deal with this
anymore, because the only way I knew how to deal with it was through
drinking, and that was a dead end.

That summer, I had some time to myself and I wanted to do something about my
weight. I had a friend who had taken a lot of nutrition classes, and she
told me what I could do to eat better. I did well at first, but I knew I
had to do something about all the steak I was eating. My Dad was retired at
this point, and doing even more barbecuing than ever before. I'm the type
of guy who when he does things - really does them. I mean, I figure if
you're going to do something, do it right. So I just quit eating beef. But
I talked to my nutritionist friend about what I could do to replace the
things I was getting from beef. There was a lot of stuff I didn't know, and
never would have guessed. But I ate good, I ate right, and I even started
working out. I didn't want to just lose the weight, I wanted to turn it
into muscle. I mean I figure it's good for something, right?

It's now been 4 months since I began my healthier lifestyle. I'm proud to
say that I've already lost 36 pounds. I'm actually happy about going back
to school, where before I was full of anxiety. Because I know now that I
have the strength to face it. I can do better.




Based on 7 votes, this diet story has an overall score of: 8.71

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(#1) Sam posted on Sep 09, 2004 (IP: 68.107.170.107)

Thanks for posting such an inspiring story. I hope all goes well for you. Remember, though, people will love you no matter how much you weigh, but being healthy will help you to love yourself.

(#2) Anonymous posted on May 05, 2004 (IP: 24.103.33.249)

I am happy that you are doing so well, keep up the good work.