My Breakfast with “Jared” from Subway
What were you doing this past Monday morning at 9 am? Perhaps inhaling your bagel or in a meeting? Not me! I was having breakfast with Jared from Subway at Sarabeth’s in NYC. And no, we weren’t having Subway sandwiches for breakfast. Instead, we ordered fluffy egg white omelets with whole grain toast - no oozing cheese omelets with home fries for Jared! (pic is of Jared showing me his famous pants!)
For those of you aren’t familiar with Jared - he is the spokesperson for Subway. He lost 262 pounds by eating Subway sandwiches. I was really excited when I got the invitation for breakfast so I could find out the scoop on how he lost the weight.
Jared’s story (as told to me)
He had a weight problem since the 3 - 4th grade. He had an insatiable appetite and loved to eat. Jared was a very 
inactive child and prefered to play Nintendo rather than playing outside. As his weight increased, his activity level decreased even more. He tried numerous diet plans - from frozen food meals to liquid diets at the enouragament of his dad (who was a doctor). However none of them had lasting results. By the ninth grade, Jared was morbidly obese. He said he felt like he missed out on his entire high school life due to his weight. (pic is of Jared telling his story)
By the time he was 20 years old, he was over 400 pounds. At that time, he began experiencing some health problems including edema and sleep apnea. Having started college, he noticed a Subway right next door to his apartment. He checked out the nutrition info, found he liked the sandwiches and decided to put himself on his own “Subway” diet. He ended up losing ~ 250 pounds in about a year on this diet. In 1999, one of his friends wrote a story about this in a local paper. Subway picked saw the story and the rest is history! For those of you who read CGB, you will notice that I frequently recommend Subway as a healthy, low cal and inexpensive option for a meal on the go.
Jared stats
Body stats
Height: 6′2 Starting weight: 425 pounds Current weight: 190 pounds
Jared’s diet
Diet start date: mid March 1998 End date: early March 1999
What he ate every day:
Breakfast: nothing (Hmmm…) Lunch: 6″ turkey, tons of vegetables, including hot peppers and spicy mustard. No mayo and no cheese. He also had a bad of Baked Lays and a diet drink
Dinner: foot long veggie sub - no cheese and no mayo
Exercise routine
Jared did no exercise until he lost 125 pounds and got to a weight of 300 pounds. Slowly, he replaced riding the bus with walking to class. By the time he reached 250 pounds, he was walking at least 1.5 miles a day
Motivation
His friend J.L. and his family helped to keep him motivated
My final interview with Jared
Since there were other health professionals at the breakfast, I couldn’t monopolize his entire time, so I had to ask my final questions:
Martha: Is it still hard to keep the weight off? Do you still get the craving for junk food? (I didn’t say this - but I’m sure being a spokesperson for Subway having lost over 250 pounds must put some pressure on Jared to keep the weight off… but he still must get strong urges to overindulge at times, especially considering the fact that he had a major weight problem for much of his life)
Jared: Absolutely! It can be really difficult at times because my life is so hectic. I travel about 250 days a year for Subway. I still eat a lot of Subway sandwiches, but not everyday. I definitely get cravings for junk food but try to control it as best as possible.
Unfortunately, I ran out of time and couldn’t probe anymore. I am so impressed that he has lost so much weight AND has kept it off!
Lastly, I just wanted to say what a nice guy Jared is. He is so sincere and loved sharing his story. He also said 
that he still finds this whole thing about being a spokesperson and kind of “famous” so surreal - especially when he saw some people dressed up on Halloween as Jared with big baggy pants stuffed with Subway wrappers! (Pic is of Jared, his pants and the group who attended breakfast)
Jared’s commitment to fight childhood obesity
The Jared Foundation is commited to helping kids fight obesity. Here is a message from Jared: Childhood obesity is a growing epidemic. I believe there is a solution; educating kids about the importance of proper nutrition and physical activity. I am proud to have my name on this foundation. Its vision and mine is to eliminate childhood obesity. Check out the Jared Foundation website for more info on these great programs.
Keep up the good work Jared and Subway!
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