I’m sure that no one who has never faced the problem of being overweight can understand my feelings. In order for you to understand my happiness, I must tell you my pre-history. I was an average boy, playing football and riding a bus, like all of us in our early years. I was very scrawny and skinny, much like most of my friends. My mother always tried to feed me with something tasty and rich in calories. But this didn’t work out, for all the calories were burned in the course of my intensive physical activities.

At the age of fifteen I developed an interest in computers. As soon as I would arrive home from school, I would sit at the computer and spend almost the entire remainder of the day in front of it. I wouldn’t even break for eating, but would make a big sandwich and eat it right at the computer.

I didn’t pay attention to my weight, until I was seventeen. I decided to enter the Sport School, and was quite shocked when the entrance commission informed me that they couldn’t take me, because I was overweight. I stepped on the scale and saw the deterrent: 165 pounds.

I didn’t know what to do, and I had only two summer months to lose the excess forty pounds. Deciding to act that very day, I bought a book about the foods and the calories they contained.

I excluded almost all carbohydrates and fats from my diet, and consumed a lot of protein and water. I was really lucky, as it was summer, and I could eat a lot fruits and vegetables. I tried to experiment with various dishes that included them. I had to forget about McDonald’s and all the other fast food places.

The most difficult thing for me was refraining from cola and fried potatoes. But I had a strong will to lose weight in any way possible. So, I traded all the drinks for pure water and drank it as often as I could.

And my efforts were not vain. When two weeks passed, I was very happy to see I had lost fifteen pounds. I understood that there was something I had to add to my diet. And I now devote much of my time and efforts to sports. I rode a bicycle, ran in the school stadium, and tried to do some exercises at home.

You can understand my happiness and surprise when I stepped on my scale a month later and saw 125 pounds. Forty pounds lost!

It was the happiest day, indeed. At the beginning of August, I passed exams and was taken in the Sport School I had dreamed about.

Now, I’m certain that a man can achieve any dream he desires. My main advice is not to surrender, and direct your steps towards your goal.

Steven Rhoud, student

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