I’m chubby. I’m overweight. I’m a big ol’ fatty. Call it what you want, I am obese — at least according to my Nintendo Wii Fit. When I stepped on that balance board, and my little Mii character shook his head in disgust, I almost threw the thing in the garbage — especially because playing video games when I was a kid helped create my weight problem.

But I can’t put all the blame on Mario. Actually, he doesn’t deserve any of the blame. I know what I have to do to keep in shape, but I can be extremely lazy and content with my size. I’ve learned to live with it. I don’t wear horizontal stripes, spandex or skinny jeans. I have an amazing wife who is super attractive, loves me unconditionally and is perfect in size — according to her Nintendo Mii character.

I’ve always been athletic and played sports growing up. I made all my All-Star teams for soccer, baseball and basketball when I was younger. My size had never affected me because I was always healthy, had plenty of friends and never had any real problems getting girls to make out with me.

Then I turned 30 years old in August. The day before my birthday I read my Facebook status feed and learned that a friend of mine was diagnosed with diabetes. He is in his early 30s, weighs about the same as me, and is about the same height.

I knew I needed to make a change.

A few days later I learned about the 60 for 60 NoFizzUSA Challenge. I couldn’t think of a better way to ease into some weight loss. I’ve never had too much of an issue with soda, but I love caffeine.

Ironically, I didn’t drink any caffeine at all during my four years of college. Once I graduated, and started to work at a newspaper, I traded in sleep for an IV full of Folgers and a pack of cigarettes. In the two years I worked at that newspaper I gained 65 pounds. Yep, you read that right.

In the last few years I quit smoking and only drink one cup of coffee each morning. I have maintained the weight I gained, but haven’t added anymore. But, without even trying, I have lost six pounds since the NoFizzUSA challenge started on September 1. Granted, I did come down with the Flu for a few days, but most of this credit goes to the 60+ ounces of water I drink each day.

I know that I need to add more to my routine than just drinking water to avoid the same diabetes fate my friend was diagnosed with, but this challenge was a great start to a new healthier lifestyle. I am signed up for a 5K race next month, and I play basketball every Saturday morning with a great group of guys — who are all taking the 60 for 60 challenge as well.

I’ve enjoyed the challenge and felt terrible on the one day I wasn’t able to access enough water. It’s now an addiction, but at least it’s the best possible addiction one could have. I can’t wait to see where this new journey takes me, and I thank NoFizzUSA for creating such an amazing challenge.