Senator Uses Treadmill, Twitter To Lose 50 Pounds

At 58, Sen. Claire McCaskill "was tired of looking and feeling fat," as she tweeted to her 59,000 Twitter followers in May.

She figured that maybe talking about it publicly "will keep me on track as I try to be more disciplined."

The Missouri Democrat used the social networking service Twitter and daily jaunts on the treadmill to keep herself motivated and exercising as she lost 50 pounds in five months, CNN reported.

Among her tweets: How she resisted getting a funnel cake when she visited the state fair, and her worry that she'd overeat at family gatherings.

Her weight-loss plan, created by her gym trainer Charles D'Angelo, was based on his own experience losing weight after he topped out at 360 pounds in high school.

D'Angelo had McCaskill exercise five times a week, from 30 to 60 minutes, walking on the treadmill at a slight incline.

She also avoided caloric drinks, like juices, smoothies, soda and energy drinks, and ate something healthy every three hours to stave off hunger and keep up her energy.

For the first two weeks, D'Angelo told CNN, he puts his clients on a strict eating plan "so they are no longer spontaneous in their habits with food." After 14 days, clients get more variety in their food choices because "they start seeing results, feeling results and they're able to stick with it," he said.

Here's a sample menu from the senator's weight loss plan:

6 a.m.: Two eggs and a piece of whole wheat toast, or a protein shake with whey protein and berries

9 a.m.: A piece of fruit or one-ounce serving of unsalted almonds

Noon: Turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread with a banana

3 p.m.: Low-sugar yogurt

6 p.m.: Lean meat or fish and green vegetable such as broccoli

9 p.m.: Another piece of fruit

On Oct. 8, McCaskill's diligence paid off. "GOOAALLLLL! I did it! Lost 50 lbs.," she tweeted, thanking her trainer, her treadmill and "healthy food and  lots of exercise."

Photo credit: guprogressive.com