MIAMI: 42 year old Eli Sapharti has participated in a unique summer photoshoot for People magazine this week, after he  lost 110 lbs. by abandoning his bad eating habits. Now he’s dismissing the inhibitions of wearing a swimsuit and he gives out the best weight loss tips. “I can’t believe how unhealthy I allowed myself to get,” the Miami native tells the magazine. “I’d go through two liters of soda a day.”

Sapharti appears in some amazing “before-and-after” pictures inside the August 27th issue of the magazine. In the “before” pictures he appears wearing a yarmulke, sitting on his coach at home, back when his weight was 290 lbs. “One day a cute girl at the airport said, “You’re handsome for a heavy guy,” but all I heard was, “You’re fat.”

“That night I set out a plan: I’d walk for 15 minutes and eliminate soft drinks. The first week I lost 2 lbs. That motivated me. Now I work out six days a week and visit sites like ShapeFit.com for tips.”