After years of being overweight, Christian Montijo had abandoned his plans to join the Army. But after a year of hard work, this 28-year-old Floridian has made his Army dream come true, according to an Army news story.

Montijo knew he could never serve in the military when his weight hit 350 pounds. But at the end of 2018, however, he made it his new year’s resolution to revisit his high school dream of joining the Army.

“From the start, I didn’t want this to be a diet but a lifestyle change,” he says. “I knew that losing the weight is just half of the battle, and keeping it off is the other half.” Montijo told Men’s Health.

With that decision came an intense change in his habits. Fast food and soda were often at the top of his shopping list, and his schedule allotted little time for exercise. Before choosing to lose the weight, Montijo frequently noticed a high level of fatigue, even in doing simple, everyday tasks.

“I would sit down to watch tv and would breathe heavy and sweat just by sitting down,” he told Men’s Health.

In order to lose the weight, he replaced his daily soda intake with water, and swapped fast food for healthier options. Montijo pushed himself to get active, starting out with daily walks before making going to the gym part of his weekly routine after about six months.

In 12 months, he lost 160 pounds — just under half his body weight. Through this transformation, Montijo now hopes others will find inspiration to achieve their weight loss goals.

“It’s night and day. I’m a whole new person,” he told the Army news reporter. “I wake up with energy, I sleep through the night. I can run now and be fine, and I can keep up with my [two] kids.”

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In January 2020, Montijo began basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. His intended MOS is 25S, a satellite communications systems operator-maintainer.