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No more fried steak? Citizens challenged to lose 1 million pounds in 2008

With a button-popping spread of cornbread, sausage and gravy, chicken fried steak and pecan pie designated as Oklahoma’s official state meal, it’s no surprise that Oklahoma City’s mayor wants to put the city on a diet. Mick Cornett has challenged the city to shed 1 million pounds as its New Year’s resolution. Prompted in part by his own struggle to lose weight, Cornett wants to end Oklahoma City’s dubious distinction as one of America’s fattest cities.

“The message of this obesity initiative is that we’ve got to watch what we eat,” Cornett said Thursday. “Exercise is part of it and the city is trying to change into a city that is less sprawling, has more density and is more pedestrian friendly, but you’re not really going to take on obesity unless you acknowledge that we eat too much and don’t eat the right foods.”

As part of the initiative, residents can sign up and track their weight loss on a new Web site, www.thiscityisgoingonadiet.com. More than 2,600 people had registered by Thursday. They’ve lost more than 300 pounds.

Besides a body mass index calculator, the site includes recipes and links to metro-area fitness centers. Plans call for expanding the site to include the opportunity to blog and network with other participants, Cornett said. “It’s always easier if you’re doing something hard if you have other people to do it with,” he said.

Oklahoma City ranked 15th in a 2007 survey of America’s fattest cities conducted by Men’s Fitness magazine. The survey examined lifestyle factors in each city, including fast-food restaurants per capita and availability of city parks, gyms and bike paths.

“I can’t tell you exactly where you rank in our 2008 survey, but I can tell you that Oklahoma City is in the top 10,” magazine spokeswoman Jennifer Krosche said. “That’s not good.”...