By Diego Abeloos

Town Crier intern Diego Abeloos resists the urge and the pressure to eat a SBC Park bratwurst.

The Town Crier is running a diabolical experiment on its current intern. Diego Abeloos, 27, looked reasonably fit and healthy when he arrived in our offices freshly graduated from San Jose State University. How he will look when he leaves is the question to which we seek the answer.

I love food, perhaps more than most people, but it’s becoming a problem for me. You see, my recent graduation from college has left me with not only a degree in journalism, but also a few extra pounds to shed.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not exactly the poster boy for gluttony at 6 feet tall and 180 pounds, but I do have to look at myself in the mirror every day, and I don’t like what I see.

Therefore, my goal this summer is to shed the extra 10 pounds my body packed on as a result of late-night fast-food runs and lack of physical activity during the past school year. To do this, I’ve come up with a plan that I hope will lead me to a slightly slimmer physique.

The plan

For my diet, I’ve used a simple equation suggested to me by a friend who is a personal trainer (and who shall remain nameless).

I multiplied my weight (in pounds) by 14 to find the average daily caloric intake I need to maintain the same weight. My friend also told me that every pound is equal to 3500 calories. So I subtracted 500 calories from my daily intake, which, in theory, means that I will lose about one pound per week.

Simple, huh?

Here’s a disclaimer: This equation isn’t necessarily healthy for everyone. Check with your physician to see if this, or another diet plan, might work for you.

Back to my diet.

First, the food issue. If I’m going to lose weight, I have to say goodbye to donuts and pizza, and say hello to healthier foods such as vegetables and lean meats.

Here’s my promise: I vow not to indulge in any fast-food items for the duration of my diet; I will refrain from the candy bars and ice cream cones that I’ve grown (literally, in weight) to love. My diet will consist of 1800 calories a day.

Second, the physical activities I will do as part of my regimen will vary, but I promise to do at least 30 minutes of exercise, five days a week. By exercise, I mean working up a sweat doing things like running, biking, hiking and swimming (OK, no sweat there, but you get the point).

Things that do not qualify as exercise include walking to the refrigerator to get a snack, walking two flights of stairs to get to my apartment or strolling downstairs from the Town Crier offices to buy a cup of coffee.

Food regimen

Without further procrastination, here is a synopsis of my first two weeks on the diet: I was challenged right away in my quest to shed weight. My second day into the diet, I attended a friend’s birthday celebration and was tempted by chocolate birthday cake. True to my word, I politely refused a slice of the delicious confection, surprising my friends in the process. Hey, you don’t get the nickname “human garbage disposal” by eating carrots, do you?

As for the rest of my first two weeks, things went pretty smoothly. I ate reasonable portions of salad and skinless chicken breast (or tuna, for a change) for dinner, with low-fat cottage cheese, combined with an apple or an orange, for lunch. For breakfast, I stuck to a bowl of Cheerios (two cups) doused with 1-percent milk.

In an effort not to get bored by eating the same things, I have eaten turkey sandwiches on wheat bread with no mayonnaise for the past few days and grilled eggplant and salmon for dinner. Variety is a good thing, as long as it’s done in a healthy way.

One of the hardest parts of my diet has been staying away from midafternoon snacks. My pantry normally contains at least one unhealthy snack, such as a box of Oreos, but in the past week, I’ve dumped the cookies in favor of a piece of fruit, usually a banana or a peach.

Exercise

If there is an Achilles heel to my progress, it has to be the exercise. The past two weeks have not been pleasant for me, but I’ve stuck with it.

Quite simply, most people won’t bother with exercise if they have to go out of their way to do it. Who really wants to go to the gym after working for 10 hours? Not me.

I’ve done 30 to 45 minutes of daily exercise within the friendly confines of my apartment complex. Most of the time, I’ve swum laps at the pool, conveniently located right below my apartment. On days when I needed something different, I went down to the small gym, also located right below my apartment, and worked up a sweat on the stationary bike.

I also managed to go on a 3-mile hike during the weekend with my wife, which was somewhat grueling, but worth it.

Here’s the answer to the burning question: How much weight have I lost in my first two weeks? Three pounds.

Granted, I’m not losing in astronomical proportions. But hey, I’m still losing it and getting more fit too.

Check in with me again on July 21 to get an update on my diet. Until then, wish me luck. I just may need it.