Steve Vaught

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Steve Vaught, also known as The Fat Man Walking, is a California man who walked across the United States of America in an attempt to lose weight.^[1] He left from his home in Oceanside, California on April 10, 2005, and arrived at the George Washington Bridge in New York City on May 9, 2006.

Vaught says that he had gained weight in the first place because of depression, which started after he accidentally killed two elderly pedestrians in 1990. By the time he had started the journey he claims to have weighed 180 kg (400 lbs). He states that he was not even able to walk across his local Target store due to his obesity. He decided on the cross-country walk to lose weight and for the experience. Throughout the journey, he kept a website, www.thefatmanwalking.com.

He received a great deal of media attention, with some interviewers walking with him for a few miles at a time.

Vaught's journey was not without controversy. Questions were raised by both the media and fans as to whether Vaught caught rides and did not in fact walk every mile. Vaught was also still morbidly obese upon completion of his journey and in part, has blamed the fast food industry for his failure to lose weight during his 3,000 mile trek. Pierre Bagley, a Texas filmmaker, travelled much of the journey with Vaught in order to produce a documentary. Interviewed at the end of the walk, Bagley stated that rather than the 110 pound weight loss claimed by Vaught, he believes that the loss was no more than 40 pounds.

Vaught returned to California upon completing the walk. He refuses to step on a scale in front of witnesses. He insists that he has lost some weight, but will not allow anyone to see his weight.