Community Corner
Prior Lean Machine Winner Praises Competition
The Darien YMCA’s third installment of the Lean Machine Fitness Competition will be held for eight weeks starting Saturday, May 3rd and ending Saturday, June 28th. Registration opens Monday, April 21st in the Wellness Center. The Lean Machine competition is a customized system for losing weight and getting fit. The competition is designed for all ages and fitness levels, and winners are judged based on body fat lost, as opposed to weight lost.
According to the winner of the second round of the Lean Machine competition, Gillian Nelson, “In my opinion, the coupling of the nutrition and group training really worked. It had you thinking of both mind and body. The nutrition class was amazing, it wasn’t about losing weight, it was about wellness, and learning how to fuel your body.” Nelson won the winter round of the competition by losing 7% of her body fat.
Competitors are eligible to win over $3,000 in prizes. The biggest prize, however, might be the new lifestyle that comes from competing in Lean Machine. “One of the biggest indicators of the success of the program is that the participants all keep up their newly formed routines post-competition. This is a true lifestyle change. There’s no reverting back to bad habits,” says Suzanne Vita Ponticello, Director of Health and Fitness at the Darien YMCA. Nelson would agree, explaining how both Ponticello and her trainer Dylan provided simple at-home exercises participants could continue to use when the competition had ended. Nelson concluded “If you set your mind to it, you can do it. Its hard but it’s worth it.”
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All of the participants will receive the following throughout the 8-week competition: 2 group training sessions per week with a personal trainer, 1 weekly nutritional class taught by Suzanne Ponticello, a weekly food and exercise plan provided by email, optional weekly weigh-ins and before and after pictures, a 10% discount at Embody Fitness Gourmet throughout the duration of the competition, 10% off all personal training packages purchased from May 3rd - May 10th,a Living. Longer. Stronger. T-shirt, and a chance to win one of three amazing prizes. There will also be a private Facebook group to share tips and questions with Lean Machine coaches, which Nelson credits for allowing her to continue training even after the competition ended; “The trainers would give us a program to follow at home during vacation week. They were so great and gave us easy to follow programs, that were easy to carry over for home.”
Lean Machine program fee is $450 for members of the Darien YMCA, and $550 for non-members. There will be a Q&A session on Monday, April 21st at 6:00pm to meet the trainers and nutritionist, and have your questions answered. For more information regarding Lean Machine, email wellnesscenter@darien-ymca.org or call 203.655.8228 ext. 1322.
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