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Mike now...

HE really is half the man he used to be - and in double quick time too.

It took Mike Hare less than three years to lose more than 50 per cent of his body weight after deciding his size was going to cut short his life.

The 54-year-old's amazing weight loss is not the result of medical procedures, pills or fad diets - he claims it is down to his Internet blog.

The former 28-stone, father of four from Lymington, has shed an incredible 15 stone since joining a website specialising in health and wellbeing and chatting to other people who were also looking to lose weight.

It was when he started his own blog to record his weight loss that he developed a strong willpower to live more healthily.

"People can lose weight on their own and I refuse to listen to those who say they can't," he said.

"If anybody was ever in that situation it was me and I am unquestionable proof that being obese is not genetic or anything else, it's just a state of mind."

Mike, a former pupil of Our Lady and St Joseph's RC Primary School, said it was when he realised that his obesity was shortening his life that he realised he had to drastically lose weight.

... and as he was before

"I had tried to lose weight two or three times and had tried special diets," he said.

"People need to find the basic, core reason why they want or need to lose weight and come to terms with it.

"Only when you have got your head around why you should lose weight will you lose weight long term."

Starting by eating healthily and cutting out fast food, second helpings, and developing a taste for fruit made up the first 15 months of his weight loss before he joined a gym and took up running as a hobby.

He has since completed several 10k runs and the London Marathon.

Mike, who runs a market research and database company in Peterborough, now carries two pictures around with him to prove to people he went from 28 stone to 13 stone in two-and-ahalf years which is chronicled on his blog at realbuzz.com where he kept note of his diet and exercise routines.

"The response to my blog has been fantastic. I now have a host of virtual running friends and every time I raced bloggers have turned up to either race with me or cheer me on."

Tim Rogers, founder of website realbuzz.com, said: "ike''s story is truly remarkable and just goes to show that willpower and the help and support of online communities can do an awful lot to help and inspire people to reach their goals."

1:18pm Friday 18th July 2008

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