Could Going Social Save Your Life? Benefits of Social Media that You Might Not Think About

David Egger is Lead Marketing Manager for AT&T’s IRU (Individual Responsibility User) Mobility Programs. You can find more blog content from David and other experts on emerging technologies and mobile application on the AT&T Networking Exchange Blog. AT&T has sponsored the following blog post.


I’ve spent just about my entire life being the fat kid. Numerous crash diets, exercise regimens and scams have been tried over the years from the plausible to the ridiculous. I remember in 9th grade I tried eating nothing but sugar free jello for three weeks. That didn’t work out. In college I tried Atkins, and while I lost a bit of weight, the SAE house with its chicken wings, Marvin’s Garlic Cheeseburgers and school lunch pizza was far from conducive for a strict diet like that. Then I went on the road as an Account Executive for Apple’s Higher Education team, living out of Hampton Inns and on delivered pizza. Suddenly, I was 27 years old and 350 pounds.

I knew it was my fault, I just never had the willpower or motivation to make the real change happen. Everyone has felt this way about one thing or another, whether it’s losing weight, building a new website or mobile app for your business, or just needing to make a load of sales calls.

So there I was, 27, about to finish my MBA and so big that I was pushing the limits of Men’s Wearhouse’s big and tall department. Then I discovered RunKeeper, a mobile app and website that lets you easily track your physical activities. Read More