Tony Luke Jr. drops an astounding 100-plus pounds in a year

According to Luke, it was Leisinger who put the finishing touches on what he prefers to call his "lifestyle change." Leisinger, he offered, diagnosed Luke's problem, pointing out that he was "overtraining" and that he needed more cardio work and less weight training.

Luke, who a year ago had a 50-inch waist, now has one that measures 38. His goal is to get to somewhere between 34 and 36 inches. His target weight is 215.

To make that a reality, he works out two hours a day, Monday through Friday. His morning routine is accomplished before he eats anything (although he does have a protein-rich snack just before his 11 p.m. bedtime). On most days, his time (30 to 40 minutes) on the elliptical machine is so intense, he easily burns 800 or 900 calories a session.

Instead of two or three meals a day plus snacks (in the past, he would regularly inhale multiple cheesesteaks at one sitting), Luke has five or six small-portion meals a day. He consumes copious amounts of protein (fish, chicken, red meat and egg whites) and makes sure to have four daily helpings of vegetables. At Franco & Luigi's his dinner was a piece of unadorned broiled salmon and a selection of fresh grilled veggies.

However, Luke claimed the key to staying on such a rigid diet is that he allows himself the occasional indulgence. "Do I make healthier choices? Yeah," he said. "Do I deprive myself of the foods I love, like pizzas and cheesesteaks? No. I just don't sit down and eat two cheesesteaks or five pieces of pizza like I used to."

To prove his point, Luke - whose sleep apnea is "gone," and whose blood pressure is fine - didn't totally ignore the sinfully rich small pasta pillows in a cream sauce the waitress brought to our table. He sampled one, along with a single bite of a hot-from-the-oven roll.

"I satisfied my craving," he said. "I am a huge believer in not depriving yourself of what you want, a huge believer. [Self-deprivation] is one of the main reasons people break diets and feel guilty."

Luke's physical transformation has not been achieved in secret. His Twitter followers and Facebook friends are provided updates on his progress almost daily. That has had an unintended consequence that has made Luke especially proud.

"I can't believe how many people I've inspired," he said, making no attempt to hide his pleasure. "I get emails, tweets: 'Tony you got me started. I'm down 20 pounds, I'm down 30 pounds. Any time I don't wanna get out of the chair, I look at your tweet; you're at the gym, you're doing cardio and I get up and do it.' "That's the one thing that makes me feel real good."

Luke's dramatic transformation has brought him great satisfaction and joy. But, he confided, it's nothing compared with the happiness he's found with Alexis Aronson, his younger-by-24-years publicist girlfriend (she owns the ALAPR agency).

"Maybe," he said with a big smile, "you don't see the glow of health, but the glow of love."