(CNN) -- Doug Skinner held up the pants in the tiny dressing room and shook his head. There's no way, he thought. No way I'm at a size 48. 

This was 2004. Skinner was fresh out of college, recently married and just starting his career as a technology coordinator for a local school district. I refuse to go any bigger than 46, he thought vehemently. 

"Unfortunately, that day I did have to buy those [pants]," Skinner remembers. "But I didn't go any higher than that." 

Skinner always had an excuse for his obesity as a young adult. The self-described "stocky" man was just big-boned, he told himself. In reality, he weighed close to 300 pounds. 

"It wasn't like we were stopping on the way home at McDonald's every night -- it was just portion sizes," Skinner says. "The easiest thing in the world [for me] is to eat. I'm a food guy. I love food. I love dessert." 

But that day in a badly-lit discount clothing store in New Jersey, something clicked. He walked back over to his wife, Denise, who looked unhappy with her clothing selections as well. They decided right then to make a change. "We said, 'Look, this is it. Let's not kid around anymore." 

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The couple went home and borrowed a few Weight Watchers books from a relative and began to eat less. 

"The first month, I was starving," Skinner says. "After the first month it was easier. It's still not easy today, but it's easier." 
was it always like that
After the first month it was easier. It's still not easy today, but it's easier."