Lebaron Burston holds pictures made in 2009 when he weighed 320 pounds. Burston decided to lose weight so he could follow his dream of acting and modeling. He's had several small roles and will be a guest in two episodes of an upcoming Tyler Perry show.

Lebaron Burston of Cherryville stopped eating cheeseburgers in 2010.

The Burns High School graduate decided a career in acting and modeling was more important to him than the three 520-calorie sandwiches he could eat in one day.

"I basically stopped eating everything that I like - all sweets, all sodas, all starches and minimum bread," he said.

The only meats he ate were grilled chicken, turkey and bacon. He started an exercise program and, in 14 months, he lost 130 pounds.

While Burston, 26, made the difficult decision to change his eating habits, many people in Cleveland County struggle with obesity, smoking and diabetes.

An annual study by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation showed that Cleveland County continues to lag behind the majority of the states other 99 counties and the nation as a whole in key areas.

The county's health ranked 84 out of 100 in the study. The ranking is based on physical inactivity, limited access to excercise opportunities and social and economic factors like poverty and education. At the same time, the county experienced a modest improvement from 2013 in adult smoking rates, adult obesity rates, an increase in diabetic screenings and a lower unemployment rate.

'A lifestyle change'

Practicing self-control was hard at first, Burston said, but the longer he stayed with his new lifestyle, the easier it became to make the right choices for his health and career.

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Balancing choices: Losing weight pays off with roles in movies and TV for 26-year-old