'Extreme' Contestant on His 221 lb Transformation

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On last night's edition of ABC's Extreme Weight Loss, contestant Mike Epstein documented his one-year journey to lose half his body weight during a life-changing transformation. We recently sat down with Mike to find out what motivated him to shed a whopping 221 pounds and to get an update on how his life has changed since being on the show!

Mike, 50, said he got a wake-up call a year earlier when doctors warned him he was morbidly obese and had signs of blockage in his arteries. "One of the biggest things that also impacted me was the fact that I was getting older," he said. "A lot of times I just took it for granted that I would live forever. So I decided it has got to stop. And fortunately I was given this wonderful opportunity and I took full advantage of it, and now everyone's in a much better place."

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Another motivating factor was the effect his weight-related issues were having on his whole family. "There were too many times when I didn't keep promises to my family, and that just killed me. And now when I'm setting my goals, I make sure I hit them."

As far as his current health, Mike says he's gained some weight back, but he emphasized that the new pounds represent positive muscle weight. "A lot of people look at it as, now that I'm done, how am I going to keep the weight off? I look at it as, ‘I'm setting a new goal -- how do I hit the new goal?’ I would love someday for my next goal to have a six pack!"

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Watch the video to also hear the show's trainers -- real-life couple Chris and Heidi Powell -- share their thoughts on Mike's inspiring story.