If you're seeing less of Dunedin Mayor Bob Hackworth these days, there's a reason. There's 46 fewer pounds.

The longshot Democratic challenger to Republican U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young started a 1,500-calories-a-day diet after his doctor told him he had two options: take blood pressure and cholesterol medication or drop some weight.

The former bike racer weighed 238 pounds at the time. He opted for the exercise and diet and within three months was down to 192.

Hackworth, who turns 53 next week, said his health, not his campaign, drove him to lose the weight. But the results pay off on the campaign trail too. “There’s no way I could be doing the schedule I’m doing if I was still 40 pounds heavier,” he said.

— Tamara El-Khoury, Times Staff Writer