Once again in 2012, Get Fit Fennimore will bring healthy options to the people who live and work in the community. But for the fourth year, a few adjustments have been made to the competition with hopes that participants will be more successful in their goals of weight loss and healthy living.
Brent Sheckler, owner of Fennimore Fitness and the chair of this year’s annual Fennimore Area Chamber of Commerce activity, is excited about the new changes and is optimistic that success stories like those of the past can continue.
“We’ve had some tremendous stories come out of the Get Fit competition. We’d like to see more people finish the competition as well,” Sheckler said.
In the past, Get Fit’s promoters have become frustrated with the low turnout of people finishing the competition, compared to the number of people who have joined in the beginning.
“Only about 10 to 15 percent of the people have finished,” Sheckler noted. “We’d like to kind of hold the hand of the contestants and give them a little more guidance.”
The additional resources offered this year include weekly nutritional and exercise classes led by Registered Dietitian Chris Swan, Fennimore, and Fennimore Fitness instructors/trainers. The classes will be held at the Memorial Building and will be provided as part of the $20 fee to participate in Get Fit for 10 weeks—a shortened period of time than in the past.
Some of the nutrition class topics may include weight management, measuring success off the scale, shopping strategies, impulse eating, lapse and relapse, strategies for dining out and eating holiday meals, what and how much to eat, label language, maintaining success, etc.
“The exercise classes will be a group setting for support,” Sheckler stated. “If anything, the classes will also provide one more workout each week that people might not have gotten otherwise.”
Also, kicking off this year’s Get Fit Fennimore activities, a Health and Wellness Fair has been scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 14 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Fennimore High School.
“We prefer that people sign up at the wellness fair, but if they can’t, they can contact me and we’ll provide a time,” Sheckler said.
At the fair, informational booths by local businesses associated with a healthy lifestyle will be featured. Plus, seminars will be offered throughout the day on topics ranging from health foods and questions for your health care provider to exercise and energy techniques.
Weekly weigh-ins will be done on the honor system and logged at getfitfennimore.com by using the number assigned to each participant at sign-up time. Each person’s first and last weights will be monitored by health professionals.
As in the past, Get Fit will award prizes to those who lose the highest percentage of weight at each weigh-in. On March 28, Fennimore’s “biggest loser” will be crowned, and grand prizes will be given away to those participants who experienced the most success throughout the 10 weeks.
The 2012 Get Fit Fennimore committee includes Sheckler, Karla Witzig, Sandy Lofthouse, Vicki Marish, Rosemary McGinnis-Seim, Kara Stewart and Mary Sprosty.
For more information on the wellness fair visit getfitfennimore.com­­ or contact Sheckler at 822-4066.