Mitch Kaminer, 52, of Roswell lost 41 pounds

Pounds lost: 41 pounds

Height: 5 feet 7 inches

Age: 52

How long he's kept it off: He started in August and reached his current weight in May.

Personal life: "I have been a real estate agent for the last 25 years, with Re Max Paramount Properties. I was president of the Atlanta Board of Realtors in 2012, then I was Realtor of the Year in 2013," Kaminer said. "I live in Roswell."

Turning point: "I decided to stop drinking alcohol in August 2017," Kaminer said. "I looked at myself one day and thought: 'I don't like what I see. I don't feel good this way. I'm better than this.' I decided, 'You know what, I gotta stop something. I have worked out my entire life. I used to go to five spin classes a week. My weight never went down. When you work out you say, 'I can have this, I worked out.' It was a mixture of alcohol and portion control with food — those are the two biggest things. It wasn't a lack of working out, I have always worked out. The only thing that changed was I stopped drinking alcohol and started going to five yoga classes per week at Onelife Fitness. … I have a trainer there, he's been instrumental to me … and I lift weights there."

Diet plan: He starts his day with a banana and protein bar. For lunch, he has a chicken salad wrap or salad with chicken. Dinner varies, usually fish, chicken or lean meat.

Exercise routine: "I would say on average six days a week … between yoga, spin classes, weight lifting, singles tennis, and I do long-distance bike riding," Kaminer said. "I go between 45 and 50 miles on a Sunday morning."

Biggest challenge: "I haven't had a big challenge," he said. "I decided I wasn't going to drink anymore and I stopped — I was able to turn it around."

How life has changed: "My weekends are longer because I am waking up earlier," he said. "The best feeling in the entire world is that I can put clothes on and they are loose on me. … The worst feeling in the world is putting on pants that are too tight and you feel like crap. … I would never encourage anybody to do a diet, the reason is, you are going to do the diet, then you are going to go back to the crappy way you have been eating. It is terrible for your body to lollipop like that. For me, it is a complete lifestyle change. I had an advantage in that I have always eaten healthy, so that didn't have to change much for me. I just started incorporating the yoga and having no alcohol. In August of 2017, my blood pressure was 175/85, now I'm 117/70. … It went down to phenomenal levels. … For me, it is psychological — there is no way that I would let myself gain weight again."

Share Your Success: Have you lost weight successfully with a healthy lifestyle change? If you would like to share your story with our readers, please include your email address, a daytime phone number, and before and after photos (by mail or JPEG), and contact us at: Success Stories, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 223 Perimeter Center Parkway, Atlanta, GA, 30346-1301; or email Michelle C. Brooks, ajcsuccessstories@gmail.com.