--- title: Woman Loses 100 Pounds For Soldier Husband's Return Home description: When Larry Shaffer left for Afghanistan, his high school sweetheart Misty weighed about 260 pounds. When he returned after a year, she was less than 155 pounds canonical: https://time.com/29143/woman-loses-100-pounds-for-soldier-husbands-return-home/ author: TIME Video article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-03-18T18:29:41.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:07:55.152Z og:title: Woman Loses 100 Pounds For Soldier Husband's Return Home og:description: When Larry Shaffer left for Afghanistan, his high school sweetheart Misty weighed about 260 pounds. When he returned after a year, she was less than 155 pounds og:url: https://time.com/29143/woman-loses-100-pounds-for-soldier-husbands-return-home/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0ad3ee500898be35/69868603810bbb8ed0c908b6/surprise-1280x720.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1280 og:image:height: 720 og:image:alt: Weight Loss Story By Soldier’s Wife Makes Headlines og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Woman Loses 100 Pounds For Soldier Husband's Return Home twitter:description: When Larry Shaffer left for Afghanistan, his high school sweetheart Misty weighed about 260 pounds. When he returned after a year, she was less than 155 pounds twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0ad3ee500898be35/69868603810bbb8ed0c908b6/surprise-1280x720.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Woman Loses 100 Pounds For Soldier Husband's Return Home > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [TIME Video](https://time.com/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Mar 18, 2014 6:29 PM UTC  CNN by [TIME Video](https://time.com/author/time-video/) ## TIME Video Mar 18, 2014 6:29 PM UTC When Larry Shaffer returned from Afghanistan, he had no idea of the surprise awaiting him at home. When Shaffer left, his high school sweetheart weighed about 260 pounds. When he returned after a year, she was less than 155 pounds. At the airport, Misty Shaffer, 25, just ran and jumped into her Army specialist husband’s arms. It was the first time he’d been able to lift her. He said just one word: “Wow.” Misty Shaffer said that she decided to lose weight because she wanted to surprise her husband and have a better life. “I just sat in bed one night and was like, ‘I can do this,'” she [told CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/17/health/weight-loss-shaffer-surprise/). “‘I need to do this.'” Watch the video above for the details. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/29143/woman-loses-100-pounds-for-soldier-husbands-return-home/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/29143/woman-loses-100-pounds-for-soldier-husbands-return-home/"},"headline":"Woman Loses 100 Pounds For Soldier Husband's Return Home","datePublished":"2014-03-18T18:29:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:07:55.152Z","description":"When Larry Shaffer left for Afghanistan, his high school sweetheart Misty weighed about 260 pounds. 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