Healthy Community Story by Ted Heyd
Winter’s shorter days and cooler temperatures often drive many away from getting the exercise they enjoy through the warmer months. Not Lindsey Morgan. A stay-at-home mom from Arvada with two young children, Lindsey is in full gear through the Wheat Ridge-based Winter Fitness Challenge. The Challenge is a 3-month physical activity program integrating yoga, pilates, and running. It was created and is being lead by Live Local Active, a community-building group under Wheat Ridge 2020.
Since last summer, Lindsey had been looking for a fun group activity through which she could get some regular exercise. She started a diet last August and when the pounds started coming off, she hoped to find a means for keeping them off. The Challenge has delivered. Each week, through her enthusiastic involvement in a group activity, Lindsey feels a bit better, stronger, and faster. She has lost 28 pounds since August and 15 pounds in the last month and a half.
Asked about her accomplishments, Lindsey says, “I never knew that exercising could be fun before the Winter Fitness Challenge. I needed to find something that would really change my lifestyle and anytime I can get hooked up with other people to exercise, it’s a great thing. The Challenge has been a blast.”
Through the Challenge, Lindsey also learned about the free Weigh and Win program http://www.weighandwin.com/ that is available to all Colorado residents. Through a program kiosk in Westminster, Lindsey weighs herself every week to track her progress. As she says, “It keeps me accountable and aware of how I’m doing in relation to my weight loss goals.” She recently won a $15 prize for participating and she used it toward the purchase of a heart rate monitor that will help ensure she is burning more calories per day than she is consuming; a key part of her ongoing efforts. Building on her personal success, Lindsey is branching out to others and creating a Weigh and Win team including four other moms. Together, they will compete against other teams striving to achieve collective weight loss goals. All participants are eligible for prizes.
Looking ahead to the spring, Lindsey is also exploring 5K or 10K running races that she hopes to do with new friends made through the Winter Fitness Challenge. As she says, “I never knew that running could be so enjoyable. Getting out there with friends and doing it together just makes it a lot of fun.”
Keep up the great work Lindsey! You’re an inspiration.
Additional information on the Winter Fitness Challenge can be found at the link below.
http://www.wheatridge2020.org/community-residents/live-local/2013-winter-fitness-challenge/
Blog post gratefully supplied by Ted Heyd of LiveWell Wheat Ridge
Posted: under Wheat Ridge 2020, Wheat Ridge Business, Wheat Ridge Community.
Tags: Active, fitness challenge, Live Local, LiveWell, Wheat Ridge, Wheat Ridge 2020, WR2020
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Feb 28 2013
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