Dean
Dean
This lady is a true inspiration to everyone who meets her. To see what Carol has achieved since she has been training at Get Fit NH Bootcamp goes well beyond weight loss. To see her gain strength, learn how to balance again, and even win the calf-raises during ladders last week (with 1 and less than 1/2 a calf muscle) is humbling and mind-blowing. Carol is much, much more than a survivor! – Coach Dean
I want to climb a mountain again. For now I will settle for being able to walk to the lacrosse field without limping.
Three years ago I was diagnosed with sarcoma-cancer that threatened to take my leg and my life. I am very fortunate to be working with a wonderful team of doctors who now call me a survivor. My treatment is complete, and I am now learning the new “normal”. I am finding that the journey involves both physical and psychological challenges.
The physical challenges include long term disabilities related to physical losses, as well as more tangible issues such as chronic pain, fatigue, lymphadema, and nerve damage. Psychologically, cancer is a lonely place and it is difficult to learn the way back.
Last fall I made the decision to reclaim my body, and weight control is an important part of what I needed to do. I had so many issues it was almost overwhelming. So I decided I needed to do one healthy thing and find the best physical solution to manage my symptoms. Cancer survivors are generally expected to live with fatigue, insomnia, and stress.
I find that lack of physical conditioning has a profound effect on how I feel. Before I can accept what cannot be changed I want to heal as well as I can-it is a journey that in so many ways is just now beginning.
When I joined Bootcamp, the activities presented huge challenges for me. At the same time I found the support of the women in my class to be a great strength-the emotional strength they provide continues to be greater than any of my perceived physical limitations! The S3 Contest came at a perfect time for me: I was in the habit of attending class, I enjoy the socialization, I was having fun, variety is incorporated, I had been meeting some goals…..Now time to actually measure the progress!
I found that documenting my weight and measurements was helpful. Keeping my nutrition log on my kitchen counter was key in managing my eating habits and encouraging myself to choose foods wisely. So I started out to improve my overall health, and now have lost weight, increased my cardiovascular fitness, improved my posture, and have made friends along the way.
My stamina is so much better and I am enjoying life. I have the knowledge, tools, and support to take care of myself. I do have scars that serve to remind me that there is no normal yet, but I am walking to my boys’ lacrosse game without a limp!
– Carol H.
For those of you who don’t know Jeff, you are really missing out! This guy gets in here and makes it happen every single day! In the story below he references that his weigh in November of 2010 was over 375 pounds. Here we are in mid-May 2011, and at last weigh in Jeff was 286.4. Do the math, that is nearly 90 pounds lost since that time – that’s Making It Happen! Read Jeff’s story below for his “super secret” strategy 🙂 Great work Jeff! – Coaches Dean & Nancy
Well let’s see here, where do I start? For those of you who do not know me my name is Jeff and I am one of the crazy people who drag themselves into the Concord gym at 5:00 in the morning.
I have fought with my weight my whole life and by November of last year tipped the scale at 375 plus pounds. I knew something had to be done to lose the weight and improve my overall health but also felt as though I had tried, and failed at, everything.
In the preceding year I watched three of my overweight coworkers lose dramatic amounts of weight. Two of them had bypass surgery and took the weight off at an amazing rate. This “easy” option intrigued me and I had many very candid conversations with both people. I even went so far as to attend a seminar at CMC with one of them and get my doctor’s blessing to take the next step.
This option comes with many risks, no guarantee of success, and quite frankly scared the %$*# out of me. This being said, I was still seriously considering it.
Over the last year, I had also been watching my good friend Karl very closely and started to notice several changes. Even before his weight loss became obvious his lifestyle changes stood out to me. Here he was still eating a good amount of food, although very different types then before and losing weight at a steady rate month after month.
I also would see him leaving work in shorts and a tank top wearing shoes that made him look like he had monkey feet. Dean may know the type of shoes I am talking about. I started talking with Karl more and more about what he was doing and he convinced me with his words and actions that this was for me.
The next thing I am about to say is perhaps one of the more difficult things I have ever had to admit. So here it goes “Karl was right.” There I said it. If you’re reading this Karl take a minute to enjoy it because you are not likely to hear me utter those words again. On a serious note, thank-you for steering me towards boot camp.
It was November and I had made up my mind to give boot camp a try before I move any closer to the surgical option. I figured if nothing else it would help me lose the required amount of weight mandated before I could qualify to go under the knife.
I was on Dean and Nancy’s waiting list for around two months when I got the call to come give boot camp a try for a couple of weeks. I enrolled in the program full time starting the first of January.
I showed up to boot camp on the first morning expecting that it would be like a fat farm or an episode of the biggest loser. Boy was I wrong. The first member I met was Dennis, a tall thin man in incredible shape. In the name of conversation, I asked “what are you doing here?” He answered by saying that this is how he stays in shape during the triathlon off-season.
I remember thinking to myself, “Boy am I in trouble!” and I was right.
I remember watching as the rest of the members walked in, most only slightly overweight if even at all. I was and still am by far the largest person in our class. By the end of the first “active warm-up” I was ready to start cooling down. I did what I could on that first day and left feeling pretty discouraged by the end of class. Everyone was patting my back and telling me I did a great job, and that I started one of the most difficult days that they had ever seen, it will get easier.
Looking back, I greatly appreciate the positive commentary even though the truth may have been being stretched just a little bit. In the past few months I have seen several new people start the program and amazingly, just like me, they have all started on one of the most challenging days ever.
The truth is every day is challenging for me, and everyone in every class. There is no finish line, if you can do ten push-ups today, try for eleven tomorrow. The first two weeks were definitely the most difficult for me. I remember wishing that my truck had an automatic transmission because shifting was so painful. I hurt in places that I didn’t know I had muscles.
Since that first morning my overall health has improved dramatically. I feel that I have made positive and meaningful changes in my life that I can live with long term. I try to follow the PPW (Protein, Produce & Water every 3 hours) concept 95% of the time; however I do allow myself to indulge also. In the past I have been way too strict on myself, causing me to fall off the wagon completely and regain all the weight I would lose along with a few bonus pounds. Now, if I have cake and ice cream at a birthday party this afternoon I enjoy it and eat a healthy dinner.
As far as exercise goes, I am hooked on boot camp. On the days that we do not have class I seek out other ways to fill the void. I spent the winter months on snowshoes and am now starting to do some running. I have worked up to the point where I can jog five miles fairly comfortably. I feel that I am a positive person for the most part. I love life and hope that these changes will give me a few extra years of it.
The most important factor for success is anyone’s life is their support structure. Mine is huge and solid as a rock. My wife is a constant source of encouragement. Although I know she would still be there for me if I weighed 500 Lbs., I also know she is pleased to see my overall health improving. Karl’s and Jill’s continuing success and his constant ribbing keep me motivated. Dennis has been so supportive and has encouraged me from day one. The poor man has sacrificed himself as my band-buddy.
Considering the size difference he is incredibly hard to drag across the floor. I am looking forward to doing a 5K with him by the end of the summer. Dean and CJ do an incredible job keeping the workouts fresh and fun. They really do believe in what they are doing and are great at it. I have never met Nancy in person, but according to what I have heard she is a lot like Dean only better at everything she does. (Sorry Dean, but that’s the word on the street)
The entire 5AM class in concord is AWESOME. Thanks for the encouragement and sorry to anyone who has slipped in one of my puddles of sweat. Finally, I would like to thank the five pounds of simulated fat that occasionally shows up for a work out, gets tossed around the room, and motivates us all.
Thanks to everyone, Jeff
Don’t forget! This Thursday May 19, 2011 is the 9th annual Rock N’ Race 5K run/walk to benefit the Payson Cancer Center at Concord Hospital. You guys are amazing, as the “Get Fit NH & Beat Cancer” team is 71 members strong and has raised $3620 so far – Wow!
Did you know you are participating in the biggest 5k north of New York City? Amazing!
Clock Tower at Bicentennial Square, Concord NH
Here’s the deal for T-shirt and bib pickup: The awesome Mary Davidson of 8:30am Concord will be delivering the whole teams shirts when she comes to class Wednesday morning. Coach Erin and I will be separating them out and bringing the ones that belong to Epsom clients to the Epsom gym by early afternoon. You can pick yours up at the appropriate location after 4:00pm Wednesday.
For those who are not able to pick them up Wednesday, not a problem. Coach Erin will be at the Get Fit NH Bootcamp Concord after 4:00pm on Thursday as well. Coaches CJ and Erin will be at the Clock Tower near Eagle Square at 5:30pm Thursday, the day of the race, to distribute the rest of the shirts and get a “Get Fit NH & Beat Cancer” team photo – Thanks!
If you have any questions drop us a line or give us a call.
I am proud of all you all and I know you will have a blast!
Make It Happen,
Coach Dean
Jeff Huckins wins the Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown 2011 with 37.6 pounds lost in 8 weeks!
Earlier in the week we announced our Sizzlin’ Summer Slimdown class contest winner (The Cranking 6:15am Epsom), who is busy designing their own custom class “T”.
In addition we announced the “Perfect People” who all achieved perfect scores – stay tuned for a bonus “Perfect People” cookout for all these superstars in the next few weeks!
Today, however was THE BIG DAY. The day you were all waiting for. The day we unveiled the Grand Prize winner of S3!
Jeff’s 5:00am Concord Support Team
Jeff Huckins is an amazing guy. He started training with Get Fit NH Bootcamp after he saw the amazing transformation his co-worker Karl Edelmann achieved last year. He is well on his way to reaching the 100 pounds mark, and more likely well beyond, considering he has lost nearly 80 pounds since January.
The bottom line is Jeff is rock solid consistent. He has not missed one day of training since he has been with us. He has a tremendous positive attitude, I don’t think I have ever seen him have a rotten day. Jeff has made the nutritional changes he knows he needs to – no excuses.
His results over the last 8 weeks are a testament to his consistency – 37.6 pounds! We are working on getting an exclusive interview with him in the very near future!
Runners Up Carol lost 10.1% and Abby 9.2% – Great Job Ladies!
We also wanted to recognize two ladies who also did an amazing job! In fact we couldn’t let them go unrewarded for all their hard work, so we came up with some additional prizes! 3rd place Abby went home with $50 cold hard cash, and runner-up Carol has $100 in her pocket for her incredible achievement. Check out their incredible results in the picture!
Check out the video of all the festivities!
Online registration closes on Wednesday May 11 at Midnight!
We are 71 strong and have raised over $3400 – Amazing!
Last chance to register: Click Here
The 6:15 Make it Happen Crew
Guess Who! 🙂
The 6:15am Epsom class absolutely cranked this contest! It was possible to score 220 points each, and this class averaged 175 points – that is amazing and a testament to sticking together and making it happen!
Can’t wait to see the “T” design they come up with – they have big shoes too fill, last years winning shirt was the bomb!
Congrats Guys – Keep Up The Great Work!
We are crunching the numbers and the first results are in! Here are the amazing Get Fit NH Bootcamp clients who had an absolutely perfect score – well done!
Maura Carroll
Jill Edelmann
Karl Edelmann
Taylor Frazao
Barbara Guerrier
Carol Hawkins
Deborah Heckman
Betty Holmes
Jeff Huckins
Kathy Nourse
Katy O’Gorman-Rhodebeck
Louise Palmer
Dawn Preston
Terry Reed
Susan Strogen
Greg Swain
Judy Swain
Susan Tardiff
Abby Tomich
More results on the way – stay tuned!
The month of May is Cystic Fibrosis Awareness month.
What Is Cystic Fibrosis?
Cystic fibrosis is an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive system of about 30,000 children and adults in the United States (70,000 worldwide). A defective gene and its protein product cause the body to produce unusually thick, sticky mucus that:
In the 1950s, few children with cystic fibrosis lived to attend elementary school. Today, advances in research and medical treatments have further enhanced and extended life for children and adults with CF. Many people with the disease can now expect to live into their 30s, 40s and beyond.
My girlfriend Christie, who has been my bestie since the 8th grade has a little boy named Trevor who has CF. I’ll never forget the day she told me and my 2 other grammar school besties (the YAYA’s) 12 years ago. Their only indication was when pressing small kisses to his face, it felt like you were kissing a salt-lick. They soon found out that their world was about to drastically change. Now, their days are filled with therapies, enzymes & other pills/meds, and being diligent to sanitize everything they come in contact with. They are truely amazing people! They are huge advocates to finding a cure, so while they are making sure Trevor goes through his daily regime, they are constantly organizing numerous fundraisers throughout the year. Check out their website for a day in the life of CF (www.teamtrevor.org)
While I wear my TeamTrevor shirts at Bootcamp, it turns out Lori from 6p has a nephew who has CF. She is also a Cystic Fibrosis Warrior, raising awareness and helping to find a cure. She is organizing an 80’s Dance at the Elks Lodge in Epsom(the Old Mill) on Saturday May 14th 7p-11:30p. Come on by, lets make this event a HUGE success, and help CURE CF!!
Of course that got the wheels turning… and I believe we at Bootcamp should have an ’80’s week’ to gear up for… S-A-T-U-R-D-A-Y Night (yes, the BayCity Rollers!). Lets have some fun, it’s a short week with class Mon/Tues/Wed … everybody cut loose, FOOTLOOSE!
Blog you later.
gretchen
Ok now that I have your attention, there’s a lot more to eating excess sugar than the extra pounds it packs on.
You may not want to hear it, but if it seems like you are constantly fighting off illness, the amount of sugar you are eating probably has a lot to do with it. Studies show that eating 75-100 grams of sugar (the amount in two 12 ounces sodas) can suppress the bodies immune system, and simple sugars like table sugar and honey can cause a 50% drop in the ability of white blood cells to engulf and destroy bacteria. This effect starts about 30 minutes after ingestion, and can last up to 5 hours. If you are constantly feeding your body sugar-laden foods, you are probably going to get sick a lot more often.
Other factors that weaken your immune system include stress, lack of sleep, lack of exercise, and being socially isolated. The choices we make in these areas directly affects how healthy we are.
When you train with Get Fit NH Bootcamp, you are directly affecting three of those factors:
You are exercising in a fun, team-oriented atmosphere, which in turn helps relieve stress – well done! As far as the sleep goes you are a bit more on your own, but turning the TV off before midnight would probably help!
But I digress, so let’s get back to taking care of that sweet tooth.
Here’s just a few of the names of sugar you will find on the back of a food label, and they all have the same affect on your waistline and your overall health:
Barley malt
Cane juice crystals
Demarara
Dextran
Dextrose
Diastatic malt
Diatase
Ethyl Maltol
Fructose
Fruit juice
Galactose
Glucose
Golden syrup
Lactose
Maltodextrin
Maltose
Malt Syrup
Maple Syrup
Molasses
Muscovado
Panocha
Refiners syrup
Rice syrup
Sorbitol
Sorghum
Sucrose
Treacle
Turbinado
Go to your cupboard right now, pull out that box of cookies (that are there for the kids of course 🙂 and see how many of these you can find!
Here’s another way to look at sugar. I found this eye-opening website called SugarStacks.com
What they have done is stacked up sugar cubes to illustrate how much sugar is in many of the common foods we eat. It is incredible how much sugar we can consume without even realizing it, even in so called “healthy foods”. Here are some links to specific pages on the site:
and while eating fruit can be a very good thing to do, you still have to watch your overall sugar and calories
You probably aren’t going to get fat eating carrots
Another cool thing SugarStacks.com has done is offer some perspective on a “high sugar” vegetable – carrots. Take a look at how many carrots you would have to eat in order to get as much sugar as in some favorite beverages and snacks
That’s a lotta carrots, and the bottom line is that it’s a lot easier to down a mocha latte and a cinnamon bun, with all the extra sugar, fat and calories than it is to eat whole, natural, vitamin rich and health supporting foods.
How much sugar are you eating? If you don’t know, it’s time to find out, and then do something about it!
For more info on the health affects of sugar and how to beat the sugar craving, read Dr. Al Sears article on sugar here
Make It Happen!
Coach Dean
Dean Carlson is a Certified Professional Fitness Trainer with the National Exercise and Sports Trainers Association, a Level 2 Youth Conditioning Specialist with the International Youth Conditioning Association and is a Level 1 Certified Precision Nutrition coach.
I am sure most of us have heard that little ditty, but is it true? Turns out when it comes to exercise it is! Researchers put new exercisers on a conditioning program for eight weeks, which resulted in dramatic improvements in cardiovascular fitness and aerobic capacity. After the eight week period they stopped exercising altogether for another eight weeks, then tested them again. The results? They lost all their aerobic gains and returned to their original fitness levels – not cool! Other studies have shown that deconditioning can occur in as little as three weeks!
The take home? If you want lifelong fitness, training has to be a lifelong pursuit. Regular exercise (3 or more times a week) is best, but your gains can be maintained with as little as two days a week of hard training. Spring is here and summer is coming, but training doesn’t stop. Coach Nancy rightly says that we train hard so we can get out and hike, and bike, and garden, and do other outdoor activities without being miserable the next day. It’s always cool when a client comes up to us (like happened 3 or 4 times to just me in the last couple weeks) and says “I (gardened, packed all my stuff because I am moving, chopped firewood) and I wasn’t sore because of the training we do at bootcamp”. There’s nothing like a hard days work and having energy to spare!
Your health and fitness doesn’t take a vacation. Your lungs keep breathing and your heart keeps pumping. Without exercise your muscles get flabby which makes you crabby. 🙂
Start planning now to keep fitness in your life all year long!
Make It Happen,
Coach Dean
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