Make time to lose weight, gym owner says

Fitness and weight loss takes time and dedication, Gold’s Gym co-owner Eric Plinske told the members of the Rotary Club during their weekly meeting yesterday.

Plinske was at the meeting to discuss the results of the first-ever “Body Success Challenge” that ended last week.

The 29 people who completed the challenge dedicated themselves to becoming healthier, he said.

“What you’ll see about all these folks is they have different lifestyles and different challenges,” he said, adding that they all made the time to change their bodies.

“You see here it can be done,” he said. “Even if you are busy, you can do it like these guys did.”

Some of the participants made it a family affair or worked out with significant others, he said.

He said The Body Success Challenge is just the first step. It’s important the participants continue with what they’ve learned, or else they might have to take part in the next competition in January, he added.

“I hope I don’t see a bunch of these people back 20 pounds heavier,” he said.

Plinske said the next challenge would be held in January to go along with the common New Year’s resolution to lose weight. Hopefully, he added, it will push the challengers to follow through and not give up by February or March as a lot of people with New Year’s resolutions tend to do.

“But once you do it for three months, you are able to make life long decisions,” he said.

During yesterday’s presentation, Plinske displayed before and after shots of some of the participants who took part in the challenge. There were two categories: weight loss and total body transformation. Winners received prize money and Gold’s Gym memberships.

The winners of the women’s weight loss category were:

* 1st Place: Fe Mamuyac (lost 37.60 lbs; loss of 24.87 percent of initial body weight);

* 2nd Place: Janel Villegas (lost 33.80 lbs; loss of 18.53 percent of initial body weight); and

* 3rd Place: Celina Babauta (lost 24 lbs; loss of 14.67 percent of initial body weight).

The winners of the men’s weight loss category were:

* 1st Place: Jack Kiyoshi (lost 57.60 lbs; loss of 23.30 percent of initial body weight);

* 2nd Place: David Attao (lost 65.20 lbs; loss of 18.94 percent of initial body weight); and

* 3rd Place: Francis Mendiola (lost 52.80 lbs; loss of 16.49 percent of initial body weight).

The winner of the Most Amazing Transformation was Jeff Boyer (lost 20 lbs; loss of 10.96 percent of initial body weight; loss of 38.80 percent of initial body fat).