At his heaviest, Ben Miller weighed 477 pounds and he was unrecognizable to himself in the mirror. All of his attempts at fad diets were unsuccessful, but after a heart-to-heart talk with his wife about having children, the issue of his health needed to be addressed once and for all. "The realization that I wouldn't be around to see my kids grow up and to grow old with my wife was just beyond imagination," Ben admits. "Something clicked in my head -- I just said, enough."

Ben decided to take his life back, setting a goal to lose 230 pounds. But he also wanted to do something for others at the same time, so he and his wife Andrea came up with the idea that for every pound he lost, they would donate a pound of food to a local food bank. As news of his plan spread, friends and relatives began donating, and his cause snowballed when corporations were inspired to step in with larger contributions. To date, Ben's mission has raised $7,086 and 52,859 pounds of food have been sponsored or donated to food banks.

Ben has lost over 80 pounds so far through eating right and exercising, and he can now enjoy activities like playing on the floor with his kids or spending a week walking around Disney World. He continues to focus on reaching his target weight, but he never loses sites of his larger mission. "After all the damage I've done to my body," Ben says, "I have an opportunity to not only get better, but to help other people."

Related Links

"Donate My Weight" Website