Wheeling, West Virginia (AHN) -- Michael Warren, 20, dropped 125 pounds in 18 months to advance in a career in law enforcement. The Wintersville resident used to weigh in at more than 300 pounds.

Warren was made a deputy sheriff in Ohio County last Monday, two days after his marriage to his high school sweetheart.

"I got a wedding ring and a badge, and I closed on a house in one weekend," Warren said.

Before losing the weight, Warren said, he couldn't even make one push up and wasn't able to run far. Now he is able to make 30 push-ups and runs almost every day.

He attributes his new wife Theresa to helping him curb his food urges.

"I'm sure she whacked my hands a few times," he said.

Warren said he curbed his daily intake to 30 grams of fat a day and ran one to two miles every day. He also lifted weights and did bench presses.

He studied criminal justice at the Weirton campus of West Virginia Northern Community College.

Criminal justice professor, Jim Tully, said Warren excelled in the classroom.

"He set the standard in every course," Tully said. "In class, he demonstrates leadership."

"He didn't think he had the confidence, but he showed what can be done if you really want to do something," Warren's wife said.

The classic way to spell word game fun is now the ultimate way to spell fast fun for the entire family. Create and manage your own successful farm with John Deere American Farmer. Grow your future in America's Heartland!

More Weird News From 2006-12-19 The day's offbeat stories from around the world. • Malaysia Launches 'Self-Cleaning' Toilets For Tourism • Man Drops 125 Pounds To Be Deputy • Santa Claus Charged With Kidnapping • Two Arrested For Stabbing Inflatable Frosty • 15-Year-Old British Girl Gives Birth At Catholic School • Woman Complains To Police About Bad Cocaine She Purchased • Pakistani Clerics To Distribute Contraceptives In Mosques • Two Buffallo Men Fined For Smuggling Seven Birds In Pockets • Remains Of Joan Of Arc May Be A Cat • Rabbi Gets Kidney From A Pastor   « Current Weird News Stories