It’s not what you do; it’s why you do it

By Angela Caple '14
Published Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014

Being weightless is unachievable due to the essence of gravity; however, Gregg McBride ‘83 has created his own form of weightlessness. McBride managed to make the drastic transformation from 450 pounds, with a 60 inch belt, to a healthy 175 pounds.

With a passion for writing, Gregg has worked in a number of genres such as; The Walt Disney Company, Paramount, Sony, Warner Horizon, ABC Family, Nickelodeon, SyFy, USA, Comedy Central, and MTV. While using his talent with language, McBride has written two books to spread his ideas and own personal experiences of weight loss. The first book titled, Just Stop Eating So Much; which describes his journey of his self-proclaimed metamorphosis. And his most recent book, Weightless: My Life As A Fat Man and How I Escaped, focuses on the more challenging issues in his life that he had to overcome.

McBride believes in the mindset, rather than the actual diet taking place; which is a concept that can be confused by many. “Our past doesn’t make up who we are today, but it does inform it,” says McBride. Before anything can be accomplished, one must be comfortable with the past and let go of any mental agony – which leads you towards weightlessness. It is then that you are able to make the transition of focusing on what you are giving up, to what you are gaining. Eat less, move more, drink water, and sleep enough; he considers these as the basic tenants of losing weight.

Just completing a new feature thriller called “The 5,” McBride is working on several television projects as well as constantly posting on his blog to encourage others to create a weightless lifestyle. Currently residing in the northern California area, McBride has been featured on television shows such as; The Today Show, Huffington Post, Access Hollywood and CBS. McBride manages to not only have an effervescent attitude towards life, but has also developed resilience for a weightless lifestyle.

McBride encourages those who are in any sort of attempt to lose weight, to determine a reason why it is you are doing so. Just like every other task completed in life, a reason must be present in doing so. These health-conscious goals are what make McBride successful with all aspects of his professional and personal life.