My Fight To Lose Weight
You've heard this before. Obesity is the second leading cause of preventable death in the United States. And while we all know someone who's struggling with weight, it might surprise you to learn that weatherman Dave Price from The Early Show fought that battle and is winning it. The following is his story:
To people I meet on the street, a lot of folks can't believe I once was heavy. I haven't always been a weatherman. I didn't look like this eight years ago. I lived in another part of the country. I had a completely different career. But something was missing in my life. And for a while, I tried to fill that void with food, with really negative consequences.
There was a time when I was frustrated and not so happy. Eight years ago, I worked as a human resources manager at Taco Bell headquarters in Irvine, Calif.
My boss then, Connie Colau, says, "I took an interest in him because I liked his wit and creativity. Quite frankly, I could use a little bit more of that myself."
I was a square peg in a round hole, and it gnawed at me every day.
Mary Koenig, a friend and former co-worker remembers, "He was a big practical joker."
Colau adds, "He was half comedian, half HR person. And quite frankly, that dichotomy was a struggle for him throughout his tenure."
And Linda Gigliotti of the UCI Weight Management Program notes, "It appeared that he was just very unhappy with who he was at that point."
The truth is, in my 20s, I was still trying to find my direction. My life was very different then, and so was I.
Gigliotti says, "Dave was very pudgy."
Koenig describes me then as "Always a little husky. Is that what they call it? Husky? Hefty?"
You don't really consider yourself fat. You just consider yourself bigger, uncomfortable, but not fat. I saw fat people, and I was convinced I wasn't one of them. I was chunky. I needed to lose a few pounds. But no, I wasn't a fat person.
I was way off.
Dr. Morris Hasson of University of California at Irvine, explains, "Dave was easily 70 or more pounds overweight."
Koenig says, "I think the weight gain for Dave was really about where he was in his life."
Colau notes, "He was struggling with the challenge of was he really doing what he wanted to do?"
Koenig points out, "He would say to me, 'Do you think I'm going to be relegated to this for the rest of my life?' or, 'Do you ever think I'll have a career in television?' and I think as that grew more and more frustrating for him, the weight continued to pack on."
With no other passion in my life, my passion was food. Once you start getting heavier, your frustration grows until you eat more, so you get heavier, so your frustration grows. And before you know it, you're 28 years old and 242 pounds.
I was always laughing it off, and I was always the life of the party and the butt of the fat jokes. What'd they call me? Fatlas, Heavy D, Sleepy D, Big Boy. Unless you're obese, you don't understand how much it hurts when someone makes a fat joke. I was miserable. I was unhealthy, and technically, I was obese. And I just got to the point where I said I've got to do something about this. I mean, I've just got to do something about this now.
To The Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith Price says back then he was in a spiral. "You wake up angry. You wake up frustrated. You wake up tired. You go through the whole day. You put on this face of happiness and laughter and you go to sleep alone and miserable and frustrated.
"It is an awful, painful cycle. But once you take hold and once you focus and once you get support around you, you can not only lose the weight but keep it off. Not any fad diets, not liquids, not surgery."
Tune in Wednesday as he talks about how he lost his weight and how you can do it too. Price would like to hear any comments or questions. Just write to him at heydave@cbsnews.com if you are beginning that struggle or have completed it. Price would like to meet you and celebrate your victory as well.