Man credits Taylor Swift with helping him drop 425 pounds

Ronnie Brower weighed 675 pounds two years ago (600 lbs to Success)

A New York man who weighed more than 600 pounds, and was told that if he didn’t lose weight he would die at age 35, is crediting his personal trainers and Taylor Swift with helping him drop more than 400 pounds.

Ronnie Brower weighed 675 pounds two years ago, MyFoxNY.com reported. After his doctor told him he needed to make drastic lifestyle changes, he took to Facebook to share the news. Joe Bufano, Brower’s former high school teacher, reached out and helped put him in touch with personal trainers, Syracuse.com reported.

At the beginning of his journey, Brower was unable to leave his house because it was too difficult to get around. He relied on hand weights and a hand bike. As he worked toward his goal, Bufano took him on trips to the Adirondacks for swimming— an activity Brower could never imagine doing before losing the weight, MyFoxNY.com reported.

Brower chronicled his journey on a Facebook page “600 lbs to Success,” documenting his trips to the gym with videos and motivational posts. He also took his love for Swift’s music to the gym with him.

As an added incentive, Bufano offered to purchase him a ticket to see Swift in Cleveland on June 3 if he reached his goal of dropping 425 pounds. Brower has reached his goal, and now there is an online campaign to reach Swift before the concert so Brower can meet the voice behind his inspirational music, MyFoxNY.com reported.

In a video posted to Brower’s wall, Bufano explained how much meeting Swift would mean to Brower.

“For all of his hard work, that you’re about to see, I’d really want to make your concert special for him,” he said.  The video has been viewed more than 1 million times.