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One Thomasville resident doesn’t mind being called a big loser.
Shane Bailey decided to participate in Proehlific Park ’s “Most Proehlific Loser” competition, and it turned out to be a life-changing event. He’s lost more than 100 pounds since January.

“I had already been called to be saved, and I was working on being a Christian,” he said. “And I decided that it’s time to work on my temple.”

Bailey joined about 31 area participants in the journey to get fit and healthy.

“We wanted to do something to promote overall health and to beat the American epidemic of the couch-potato syndrome,” trainer and dietician Gabe Staub said.

With such a large group, Staub and fellow trainer Erinn Yelton worked out with the participants in two groups based on their schedules.

Over the course of the six-month competition, participants lost more than 1,000 pounds collectively.

Jeff Leonard lost 70 pounds during the competition.

“I was tired of being tired,” he said. “Tired of looking in the mirror. And I have two young boys I need to be around for.”

At 41, Leonard said he’s in better shape than he was at 28.

“The first two weeks were hard to make the effort to be there to do what I had to do,” he said. “After that, it became routine.”

Bailey agreed, but said it took him a little longer than two weeks to get in the groove.

“For those first two or three weeks, it was all I could do to get off the couch,” he said. “The whole first month was hard.”

But after a few weeks of working out and changing his eating habits, Bailey started to see a lot of progress, he said.

“I believe in commitment, so if I say I’m going to do something, I do it or die trying.”

Since learning portion control and how to push himself at the gym, Bailey has lost 129.6 pounds.

“I lost weight every week, and that gave me the extra motivation to accomplish what I wanted to do,” he said.

Bailey won a family membership to Proehlific Park and $1,000. The second and third place winners also won a family membership and other prizes.

Staub and Yelton have both said they would like to have this program again, but with some changes.

“We would like to work on getting a grant to offer a medical component,” he said.

Both believe that the participants will have a better gauge of their progress if they are given a complete physical and blood workup.
“We really saw a difference in the folks who did come in with their labs,” Yelton said. “They made some great improvements.
Personnel at Proehlific Park have indicated that they will continue the program, perhaps this fall.

For information, visit www.proehlificpark.com .

Contact Tiffany S. Jones
at 373-7157 or tiffany.jones
@news-record.com