Local News
May 2, 2008
‘Subway Guy’ Chews The Fat
‘Subway Guy’ Jared Fogle chews the fat with the Jewish Times.
Phil Jacobs
Executive Editor
Jared Fogle, the man who has put Subway on the caloric sonar screens of untold numbers of Americans, will be in Pikesville next week.
Mr. Fogle, 30, will be at the new kosher Subway, located at 706 Reisterstown Road in Pikesville, from 5 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 6, and from noon to 2:30 p.m. the following day.
The kosher Subway restaurant is one of the first to open in the nation, and there are plans to open even more in the Baltimore-Washington suburbs, according to Pikesville partner and operator Harry Kozlovsky.
It was in March of 1998 that Mr. Fogle, a 425-pound Indiana University student, saw an ad promoting a local Subway’s “7 under 6” menu, submarine sandwiches with 6 grams of fat or less. Mr. Fogle started a daily diet of a 6-inch turkey sub for lunch without oil, mayo or cheese, a bag of Baked Lays potato chips and a diet soda. For dinner, he’d have a 12-inch vegetarian sub. In about a year, he dropped 245 pounds between his Subway diet and a commitment to exercise walking.
His accomplishment was first noted in the school newspaper. A writer for Men’s Health magazine included Mr. Fogle’s story in a piece called “Crazy Diets That Work.” This led to TV ads for a Chicago area Subway franchise, followed by appearances on “Oprah,” “Larry King Live,” “Good Morning America” and others.
This led to his current position as national spokesman for Subway restaurants. In an interview last Friday with the Baltimore Jewish Times, Mr. Fogle came across exactly like the young man we watch on television — nice, friendly and real.
He said he’s extremely excited about the opening of the kosher Subway in Pikesville. A Jew affiliated with the Reconstructionist movement, Mr. Fogle said he grew up in an Indiana home with a strong Jewish identity.
“It’s neat to see how excited the Jewish community is to get behind the kosher Subways,” he said.
He was on his way toward the world of marketing when Subway entered his life. Those aspirations have sort of been sidetracked.
“We’re going on 10 years keeping the weight off,” he said. “I’ve been doing the ads for nine years. When I was a marketing major at IU, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I was intrigued by the travel business. Be careful what you wish for.” Mr. Fogle now travels some 200 days a year all over the country.
“Subway learned about me from newspaper articles,” he said. “They brought me in to do a test commercial; it was insane.”
Yes, he does pop without fanfare into Subways when he’s on the road to grab lunch or dinner. No, he doesn’t eat in any other restaurants remotely similar to Subway. But yes, he does eat foods other than Subway. In other words, he’s a normal, easygoing, happy person.
And yes, he loves sports, especially the Indianapolis Colts. But this reporter told him that probably wouldn’t be a great topic of conversation while he’s in town next week.
His favorite band? The Police.
His favorite TV show? “Entourage.”
He’s even been the subject of TV shows such as “The Simpsons,” “Friends,” “South Park,” VH-1, You Tube and “Saturday Night Live.”
Mr. Fogle also speaks to schoolchildren about nutrition and exercise. And he and Subway are active American Heart Association Heart Walk supporters.
He started the Jared Foundation to further his message and to provide financial grants and programming in the area of childhood obesity prevention.
Mr. Kozlovsky, who opened the restaurant several weeks ago, said that this grand opening might also include prizes to those who have registered on the http://www.koshersubs.com Web site.
He is grateful, he said, for the community’s support of this new venture. “We appreciate the numerous suggestions, and we exceeded our pre-Pesach expectations,” he said. “Thank you for the many kind comments and suggestions.”
Slim Chance
No, it’s not “Eats Chaim,” it’s Etz Chaim, and that is where Jared Fogle will speak at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 6.
The event also will feature Rabbi Eli Glaser, director of Soveya, an expert on weight loss counseling, who will be speaking on the topic of obesity in the Jewish community.
Etz Chaim is located at 3702 Fords Lane. For information, call 410- 764-1553, ext. 205.