Josh Mankiewicz says he no longer cringes at seeing himself on TV after losing 70 pounds.
The Date line correspondent, 69, opened up to PEOPLE about his impressive weight loss journey for the first time, detailing the dedication he took and why his latest journey was more successful than past weight loss attempts.
In 1998, Mankiewicz lost 47 lbs. after trying the popular Atkins diet. He was pleased with the results, but ultimately couldn’t sustain it over time.
“It’s hard to say goodbye to carbs forever, especially when your ancestors invented pierogi,” he jokes. “So over time I put the weight back on and every year I’d go for a physical and my doctor would say, you’ve got to work on it.”
But in May 2023, he decided to make some lifestyle changes after pressure from doctors and his own frustration with his appearance.
“I didn’t like the way I looked. I didn’t like how I felt. So I just decided to do it,” he tells PEOPLE. “This wasn’t any particular diet, it was basically just cutting out all the things that we all kind of intuitively know we shouldn’t be eating.”
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Josh Mankiewicz.
NBC news
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Among other things, Mankiewicz gave up bread, potatoes, pasta, sweets and fast food. And instead of increasing his protein intake, he increased the amount of green vegetables he ate.
“It seemed to work,” he says.
The NBC reporter says that when his doctor first discussed his need to lose weight, she mentioned Ozempic, an FDA-approved injectable drug for people with type 2 diabetes. It’s one of the brand names for semaglutide — also known as Wegovy — which works in the brain to make you feel full, and is widely used as a weight loss aid.
“But injecting myself every week didn’t seem like something I wanted to do,” he recalls. “And the idea of actually changing the way I eat seemed like a better idea. I’m glad that I managed to do it with willpower alone. But sometimes people need help and there’s nothing wrong with that either.”
By the end of the year, Mankiewicz says, “I had lost 70 pounds. and I felt great.”
“Now I’ve changed the way I eat quite permanently because I’ve been able to adapt to it quite well in the sense that I no longer crave those things that I used to love so much,” he says.
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Josh Mankiewicz.
NBC news
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Along with dietary changes, Mankiewicz also regularly rode the Peloton that his wife gave him. After reading about other people’s experiences with the exercise bike, he was inspired by one man who managed to change his health after 100 rides.
“So I thought, can I do 100 rides in 100 days? And I did. I ended up doing 184 days in a row, which was tough being on the road as long as I was Date line“, he continues. “At the time I didn’t really think it was hard. But generally, when I start something, I finish it. And I managed to keep it going. It was good to get into a routine.”
Mankiewicz says being involved in the community online — and in real life — has helped him stay motivated.
“It definitely helps to have other people supporting you. All my friends here in Los Angeles told me how great I looked, which definitely helped. And I could see it on air. Deep down, I’m shallow,” he says jokingly. “I care a lot about how I look on TV.”
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Dateline’s Josh Mankiewicz and Keith Morrison.
NBC news
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Mankiewicz plans to continue his weight loss journey, but is happy with what he has achieved so far.
“I got a whole new wardrobe,” he says. “I got to throw out a bunch of stuff and that was fun. And now when I turn it on Date lineI’m only creeped out by what killers do, not what I look like.”
Mankiewicz is approaching his 30th anniversary with Date line. In addition to the milestone, he’s also celebrating the release of his new true crime podcast, A deadly mirage, a six-part series that “explores how the murder of a California father revealed deep secrets about sex, friendship and faith that shattered carefully crafted illusions.”
“There’s some mystery and some betrayal, and there’s a love triangle. It also has a kind of what is an essential element for Date line story,” he says of the podcast, which has already released its first two episodes.
“It’s great to see people react to it,” adds Mankiewicz. “It’s a new way of reaching the same audience, or in some cases reaching a different audience. And it’s great.”
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Source: HIS Education