MAT-SU �” There’s less than a month until the April 8 final weigh-in for the first Trim to Win community weight loss challenge.

Since January, 740 area resident �” to varying degrees of success �” have been committed to a healthier lifestyle. The contest, sponsored by the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman, AT&T Sports Center and Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, has featured an online community of support, blogging and recipes.

Going into the home stretch, here are some excerpts from this past week’s Trim to Win blogs and comments. Kari Sleight wrote:

No regrets

Four weeks left to go in the challenge. Every day and every pound counts as we wind down this challenge.

I spent some time discussing and reflecting on the past two months as I wrapped up a business meeting today. My visitors asked how the challenge has been going and as I discussed it with them, I realized how far I had come in a few short months.

As I’m writing this, a commercial for the lap band system is playing on television. Not too long ago I was seriously considering undergoing this procedure. I felt I had tried everything and that weight loss was beyond reach. I had given up.

This challenge has made we realize that I’m stronger than I had given myself credit for and that it is possible to overcome some of life’s greatest obstacles with the help and support from others and with some good old-fashioned determination.

Two months down,

one to go

Whew! Finally, the end of another hectic work week and the beginning of what I hope to be a quiet weekend.

Tomorrow marks the end of the second month of the Trim to Win weight loss challenge, meaning we only have ONE MORE MONTH to lose all that weight we promised ourselves we would when we signed up for this. It’s time to hit the gym or your favorite workout place with earnest!

I picked up our wonderful 5-year-old grandson for the weekend and spent the evening with him playing Mario and Sonic Go to the Olympics on the Wii, which counted for a great mini-workout. I gave up after an hour and a half, but he’s still going strong. It was hard talking him down for dinner, but he finally gave up and broke away just long enough to chow down on chicken.

Long Distance Runner

wrote:

Congrats to all

I started on the first day with the intention to lose 26 pounds. That would be 12 percent of my body weight.

It has not always been easy and there were more times than I can count that I walked by the kitchen of our home and longed for some type of sweet snacks. I even succumbed a few times and grabbed a small bowl of ice cream or another item that, if I was totally focused, I would not have had. But, darn, they tasted good. Knowing that this was not a sprint, but a three-month marathon helped.

I am pleased to say that with slightly over three weeks to go I am right on track to finish the race strong and on target. I can see the light at the end of this tunnel and hope that all of you can as well. Give it the extra push for the duration and it will reward you with better health and a better feeling about yourself that you can accomplish anything that you put your mind to. And maybe, just maybe, a few extra dollars in your bank account.

Keep plugging.

Linda Henning wrote:

Read a book

while walking

The realization of the two-month mark really impressed me this past weekend. I stood on the scale still a minus 16 pounds.

So, I refocused. I’ve been going to the Wasilla Sports Complex to walk. I ramped up the walking time from 35 minutes to 60 minutes and do I feel it. Here is my theory: It’s the wine, cheese, snacks, inactivity that I did every day that made me this big. What can I cut out that I do every day? What can I add to every day to help me lose? After I stopped walking my dogs every night seven years ago the big gain started, as well as pain and loss of coordination. Just two weeks of walking no less than five days a week and some of my endurance and coordination is coming back. My jeans are so loose I’ll have to go buy my old ones back from Sally Ann.

But, I still have to fight the tedium of walking for an hour, drown out the two women yakking incessantly behind me and the screaming infant in the stroller. Then I remembered the downloadable audio books from the Mat-Su Library Network. I have an MP3 player. First, I listened to a Ray Bradbury stage play, “Dandelion Wine.” That almost made two walks. Yesterday, I started on “The Da Vinci Code.” I never have enough time or patience to sit down and read a book. I can’t believe I look forward to 17 uninterrupted hours to “read” the book and maybe lose some weight.

You can get a book off the library site at www.matsulibraries.org with your library card.