Taylorville Memorial Hospital Foundation completed their 34th session of the Lose-to-Win Challenge and Lisa Lash of Pana takes the win by losing 21.075% of her body weight. 

There were 150 participants who participated in the 14-week challenge and lost a combined total of over 993 pounds.  Of those, 32 of those participants lost 5% of their weight, 6 participants lost over 10% of their weight, 3 lost over 15% and 2 lost over 20%. Since the inception of the TMH Lose-to-Win Challenge in 2008, the total weight loss produced 59,591.4 pounds. 

“Studies have shown when an individual loses at least 10% of their body weight, they start to see significant health improvements such as decreases in blood pressure, lipid levels and blood sugar,” states TMH dietitian, Janelle Cornell.  “Participants do not follow any specific diet or exercise program, but are encouraged to eat healthy, cut down on calorie intake and increase physical exercise. Information on healthy eating and exercise are provided and the program is designed to provide an incentive for people to lose weight.”

Other top finishers who were also awarded cash prizes include: Kevin Hayes (Taylorville) 2nd place – 20.485%, Maureen Arcis (Taylorville) 3rd place – 15.249%, Amy Cluck (Morrisonville) 4th place – 12.544 % and Regina Gaynor (Taylorville) 5th place – 11.758%.  Rounding out the top 10 places included Caleb Dowdy (Stonington) 6th, Elisabeth Bandy (Bulpitt) 7th, Jayne Bethard (Morrisonville) 8th, David Rosenthal (Taylorville) 9th, and Dwighla Yard (Taylorville) 10th.

Team Navy came out on top of the team challenge with 9.841% lost and a combined weight loss of 63 pounds.  Members of the Navy Team included Lisa Lash, Connie Curtin (Stonington), and Melissa Denton (Pana).  Team Aquamarine placed second with a combined weight loss of 80 pounds or 8.048% and included Maureen Arcis, Elisabeth Bandy, Jessica Bandy (Bulpitt) and Laura Muraro (Taylorville).  Team members who were members of the top two teams in the team challenge earned prize money as well.

Participants also took on the challenge of donating food to what was called the Fill-the-Pantry Project.  Over 183 pounds of food were donated and will be distributed to local food pantries.  Total food collected from all the challenges is now at 7326 pounds.

Proceeds from the Lose-to-Win Challenges go to the Taylorville Memorial Hospital Foundation.  Since 2016, over $10,000 has been donated to the Foundation. 

The next 14 week TMH Foundation Lose-to-Win Challenge is scheduled to begin on September 4 and runs through December 11.  Weigh-ins are scheduled every other week on Wednesdays, with flexible times available between 6 am and 6 pm.  No one is eliminated from the program and winning is based on percent of weight lost.  Weigh-ins are confidential and take place in the privacy of TMH dietitian, Janelle Cornell’s office. 

Participants sign up as an individual or as part of a team.  Teams are formulated with family members, friends, neighbors, or co-workers and must have at least 3 people on a team. Individuals will be assigned to teams if they do not have a team of their own.  There is a one-time first-time participation donation of $25.00 per person while previous TMH Lose-to-Win participants donate $10.00.  Participation fees will fund prizes at the end of each challenge.  “Maintenance” teams are available for those individuals who feel they have reached a healthy weight and just want to weigh routinely to keep from regaining the weight they have lost.   

An informational meeting will be held at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, September 4 in Room 414 located at Taylorville Memorial Hospital.  In addition, on September 4, participants can sign-up and weigh-in at room 403 from 6-9 am, 11 am-1 pm, and 3-6 pm or after the meeting.  

The Christian County YMCA is partnering TMH for this next challenge.  Participants can join the YMCA during the time of the challenge and not have to pay the sign-up fees (a savings of $52/adult or $69/family.)  Arrangements can be made to do weigh-ins at the YMCA excluding the first and last weigh-ins.  Information will be available when people register and weigh-in at the hospital on September 4.

For additional information, contact Janelle Cornell at 824-1840 or by email at cornell.janelle@mhsil.com.