When Jesse Milbrat graduated from high school in 2012, an Army recruiter called and asked him if he wanted to join.
He did want to join. He always had. He wanted to earn the Ranger tab like his father. But he weighed 380 pounds. So the Roseburg, Ore., native had to pass, and instead worked toward shedding the equivalent of another good-sized person so he could enlist.
He succeeded: On June 1, Milbrat will start basic training at Fort Benning, Ga., with a muscular 6-foot-1-inch, 200-pound frame. He will attend advanced individual training as a 19D cavalry scout. And he still plans on pursuing that tab held by his father, who was a Ranger cook.
"I have always wanted to follow in his footsteps and become an Army Ranger. I wanted to defend my country," the 20-year-old recruit told Army Times. "People keep asking if I'm nervous (about basic training). It's what I want to do, it's what God put me on this earth to do. I'm excited."
Milbrat told the 2012 recruiter how overweight he was and that "I have to do this on my own." He said he jettisoned 150 pounds in the first eight months, and then began to work at the gym to tone and shape his thinner framewhat remained.
His recruiter, Staff Sgt. Geoffrey Errebo of Portland Recruiting Battalion, had been given Milbrat's information by an Army private who had gone to high school with him. After getting him into a room at the Roseburg recruiting center, Errebo said he spoke with Milbrat for an hour at the Roseburg recruiting center before the recruit casually mentioned his former heft.
"Honestly I wasn't involved in all his weight loss — that was all completely on him," Errebo said. "My jaw kind of hit the floor when I found out the transformation he'd been undergoing for the last year."
Errebo — who jokingly noted that he weighs 174 pounds, or less than Milbrat lost — said he's seen recruits struggle and give up on losing 20-30 pounds to get into the Army.
He described Milbrat as motivated, always joking and having "a really good personality."
"He's always got a smile on his face, which is refreshing," Errebo said. "I hope to run into him sometime. It'd be great to have him as one of my soldiers."
Milbrat said there's no secret code to dropping weight. For him, the answer was a blend of common sense and persistence in the face of a situation he knew needed to change.
Jesse Milbrat is shown before his weight loss. He slimmed down to about 200 pounds to achieve his goal of joining the Army.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Jesse Milbrat
"I realized, 'I'm killing myself by sitting in my room all day.' Technology got to me," Milbrat admitted. "I had the motivation and determination to do it so I just did it. I did what doctors tell you to do to lose weight. They're right."
Milbrat stressed diet over exercise. He said the latter would provide the bathroom scale no relief when paired with the wrong intake. He cut out fast food and soda, as well as over-sized portions, especially of carbs. Instead, he ate a lot of veggies, fruit and lean meats like chicken.
"I just ate less calories and ate healthier food," he said. "And I ran every day. I had to."
He picked his MOS in part to stay active. As a cavalry scout, he said, he will perform a lot of reconnaissance and stay mobile. He plans to have at least a 20-year career in the Army.
Down the road, he has an eye toward becoming a lineman, or possibly to move into an electrician-type job.
"If I can do it, anyone can do it," Milbrat said. "When recruiters say, 'You need to lose 20 pounds,' I lost 200. Get your butt out there and do it."
