Most people believe that the reason they fail to achieve their health and fitness goals is a lack of willpower. What we need, we tell ourselves, is a personal trainer — then we would definitely go to the gym and give up smoking and drinking. If, like many Hollywood stars, we had a "diet cop" on hand to patrol the fridge and cook for us, then of course we would eat healthily and lose weight for good.

Heavyweight tenor Luciano Pavarotti is treading lighter on the scales these days. The 136kg-plus star has shed about 36kg on his own "imprisonment diet" which included hiring three "diet cops" to make sure he did not sneak to the fridge during the night.

Schulz, whose weight had peaked at 513 pounds, accepted O'Donnell's offer to become county budget director here, even though it meant a $10,000 pay cut. He has dropped almost 150 pounds since then—"Thanks to my wife (JoAnn), the diet cop," Schulz said.