- American Heart Association and Subway
As a 430-pound 20 year-old college student at the University of Indiana, Jared "The Subway Guy" Fogle knew he needed a change. Fifteen years ago, through a combination of twice daily low-fat Subway sandwiches and moderate exercise, Fogle dropped 245 pounds in a single year. Now, the Subway Guy, tours the globe telling his story. He sat down to speak with Creative Loafing this week ahead of the Tampa Bay American Heart Association's Heart Walk on Sat., Nov. 1.
CL: How does Tampa's Heart Walk compare to others around the country?
Jared Fogle: This is one of the first Heart Walks I ever did, about 12 years ago. It's one of the biggest in the country. I was just in Seattle and they had about 10,000 walkers. This will have 25,000 so it's considerably bigger.
Can you talk about the moment you decided you needed to change your lifestyle?
I was 20, going to college and weighed over 400 pounds. I knew I needed to change, and more importantly, I was ready to change. I was ready to find the right way. I lived next door to Subway off-campus, literally next door. I grabbed a nutritional brochure and it seemed like it made sense to eat twice a day off the low-fat menu. A turkey sub for lunch and a footlong veggie sub for dinner. No mayo, no oil, no cheese. Baked Lays had just come out so I'd have one bag and a diet coke or water. I lost 94 pounds in the first three months.
Just through diet?
Just through diet. I was so big that walking down one block left me winded and out of breath. I started walking after that, just around campus. Like 15-20 minutes and taking the stairs.
What was it like to see your body beginning to shift so dramatically?
It was surreal. It was a great deal of motivation to see the sacrifices I was making pay off. And for me, it was a lot of sacrifice, to cut back on calories like that, to cut out on junk food. Most college kids' lifestyles aren't the healthiest. It was all around me, drinks, late-night pizza, parties. I had to say no. I had to know I was doing this and starting to see the results made me run with it. I figured it was worth a shot. I never thought it would turn into a story.
Yeah, this has turned into a job for you.
To lose my last name forever and just be Jared from Subway is a little surreal [laughs]. It's become normal, but it's still surreal.
What did you study in college?
Business management and marketing. I thought I'd work for an ad agency or PR firm. It was never my intention to be on the front line, never to become the brand.
So, do you still abide by the Subway diet?
I do, I still eat it a couple days a week. I still have days I'm bad, when I splurge. It's not an exact science and I'm always going to struggle with this for the rest of my life. It's no fun accepting that, but it's worth fighting for. If I have a couple bad days, I pull it together and move on to the next day, but don't let it derail you. It's easy to let that domino effect take hold and start going back to those old habits.
Yeah, and sometimes it literally is Dominos.
Exactly, and for me it was. I was heavy from third grade on. They call it the freshmen 15, but for me it was the freshman 100. It was just out of control. Pizzas are cheap and easy. But it's the time as a young adult where you create habits for the rest of your life. If you put on weight in college, it's easy to continue those habits. It's important to create healthy habits at a young age so it doesn't become a bigger problem later on.
So what is your job these days? What kind of work does this gig entail?
Well this weekend is the Tampa Bay Heart Walk with the American Heart Association. I'll be talking about my story and will be at the walk itself on Saturday speaking to the crowd, leading the walk, kissing babies and everything else.
You're like this ambassador of what's possible.
I think that's why this has lasted 15 years. People say if Jared can do it, so can I. And really, if I can do this, anyone can. It's neat to give hope to someone else because I know what it's like on the other side of the fence. To long for it and want change so bad but not know how to start and not know how to get there.
I'm curious, as someone who struggles against diet and exercise in your own life, do you see changes happening in the public's awareness on nutrition and push for a healthy lifestyle?
I think as much as we know there's a problem with obesity, and especially childhood obesity, I think people are more aware. But, the divide is still great between between people that are trying to make healthy choices and those that are on the other side table.
Since your story is your brand and so much a part of what you do, what kind of pressure does it put on you to keep the weight off?
It is pressure. I try to think of it as motivation. I joke that if everyone's job was tied to maintaining a healthy weight, maybe that would end obesity or at least make a huge dent. I feel fortunate that my job gives me additional reason to stick to it. Then again, I worked way too hard to get it off in the first place and I sure don't want to put it back on. I can't separate the two now. It's always a struggle. I still love to eat and love to eat the wrong kind of foods, but I do it in moderation.
Can you talk about the importance of a healthy lifestyle as it pertains to the American Heart Association? What are the risks?
Cardiovascular is the number one killer. Stroke is number four. When you throw numbers out there like that you realize it's bigger than anything else. It's really important. One of the things you'll see at the Heart Walk tomorrow are the "Red Cap Survivors." Those are the survivors. Those are people who's lives have literally been touched by the American Heart Association's dollars. It's pretty insane to hear their stories. Obesity and cardiovascular disease have such a high correlation, it's really preventable but at the same time it's out of control. Change doesn't just happen though, it's a decision.
What's ahead for Jared the Subway Guy?
I want to do this as long as it's still fun, as long as I still enjoy it, as long as it is a win-win for everyone. It's a unique situation, but Subway has done great over the last 15 years, and so have I and so has the customer. It's great for many reasons. When people get excited and want to tell me about what they put on their sandwiches, that's great.
People really do that?
All the time. Usually when people go to Subway, they know exactly what they're going to get on their sandwich. people get a kick out of it, especially kids, and so do I.
See Jared the Subway Guy on Sat., Nov. 2 at the American Heart Association's Tampa Bay Heart Walk. 8 a.m. Raymond James Stadium, 4201 N. Dale Mabry, Tampa, 813-350-6500.
This article appears in Oct 31 – Nov 6, 2013.