The Slimdown finale on Thursday December 6, offered families, friends and the general public a glimpse inside the world of the High Desert Slimdown contestants. Everyone came to support the challengers and to see who would win the new Ford Fusion, graciously donated by Sunland Ford in Victorville. This brave band of “Losers” went public in May 2007 with their weight loss struggles. Their weights and stories were available for all to see every week in the Daily Press and on highdesertslimdown.com. Along with way, we watched teams drop out due to personal challenges and we saw teams get eliminated as their weight refused to budge quickly enough. All the challengers were united in their goals and bravery.

The challenge teams learned the basics of healthy eating, label reading and general nutrition from Melanie Ajanwachuku, Registered Dietitian from A Dietitians’ Exchange. They walked through Stater Bros marketing in Apple Valley with Melanie to learn how to shop wisely. Dr. James Krider schooled the challengers about metabolism, weight loss science and fitness. Both of these professionals graciously volunteered their time to this project. They are dedicated and interested in the science of weight loss and it shows. The group was lucky to get to know them. Several contestants found they no longer needed medications to control cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes.

The challengers found that the secret to sustained weight loss was movement. Many of them had never stepped foot inside a gym and performed little or no exercise. With the help of World Gym in Victorville and some personal trainers, they learned the value of movement as both a method of stress relief and balanced fitness. World Gym donated free gym memberships to all the challengers.

The teams were also offered alternative exercise options to keep them engaged in the process of movement. Gary Gant of Desert Fitness Camp offered bootcamp classes and kettlebell exercise routines. Several 5k walks were available to the challengers. Dr. Krider even organized a paintball outing to show the team how to incorporate fun with fitness.

New relationships among the contestants were formed. They found themselves drawn together by their common goals. They partied and watched one another learn to eat (and drink) well despite temptation. They teased one another and gave one another encouragement and strength.

In the end, it was again all about the new Ford Fusion from Sunland Ford. The remaining three teams, the Silver Lakes Wild Ones, La Vida Lo Cal and the Over the Bulge Gang, anxiously awaited the final weigh in. The emotions were mixed, they wanted the competition to be over but their thoughts about how they would continue to eat right and exercise on their own prevailed. Plus, they were already starting to miss their new found friends.

David Tobacco lost 199 pounds and Harris lost 88 pounds (Team La Vida Lo Cal). They lost a total of 44.11 percent of their body fat. The team of MacDougal and Dienzo (Team Over the Bulge Gang) lost 38.18 percent; and Jumonville and Rosenberg (Silver Lakes Wild Ones) lost 25.56 percent.

Team La Vida Lo Cal won the grand prize, the new Ford Fusion from Sunland Ford. It was David that received the prize when his mother-in-law, Candy graciously proclaimed the car was his. Nevertheless, all the teams were winners at losing and everyone associated with this challenge was the better for it.

An exciting cruise for two was awarded to the team that was either eliminated or not chosen for the competition yet managed to lose the highest percentage of weight during the challenge period. The cruise was donated (along with numerous other fun travel prizes during the challenge) by World Ventures Inc, a local travel provider (see www.petersentravel.worldventures.biz. The team of See’s No More were awarded the cruise.

Special thanks to all the special sponsors and supporters of the High Desert Slimdown Challenge: Sunland Ford, James Krider, M.D., Melanie Ajanwachuku, World Gym, World Ventures Travel, Mimi’s Café, Desert Fitness Camps, Apple Valley Country Club, Terry Kurtz, Bear Valley Party Rentals, KFrog, Jumpin’ Java, Granite Hills March Band – The Mighty Cougar Regiment, the High Desert Mavericks, Victor Valley Community Hospital.

Photos and video have been added. Go check them out!

Businessman credits diet, contest for 77 pound weight loss

By Jason Smith, staff writer
BARSTOW — For many years, Billy Rosenberg maneuvered his 341-pound frame through Barstow Station, always stopping at fast food restaurants and candy stores for samples.

These days, after six months of exercise and 77 fewer pounds later, he’s more likely to be eating vegetables instead of hamburgers.

Rosenberg, the owner of Barstow Station, recently finished burning off pounds in the High Desert Slim Down, a weight-loss challenge sponsored by the Desert Dispatch’s sister newspaper, The Daily Press. He and other participants spent six months working with doctors, a nutritionist and a personal trainer as part of the contest.

Rosenberg said that heath concerns and the lure of the contest’s grand prize, a Ford Focus, motivated him to sign up for the competition. His doctors and friends were afraid that his weight could lead to a potentially fatal heart attack.

“I have a thriving business and beautiful family, how dare I risk that?” he said.

Rosenberg and his slim down teammate, Griffin Jumonville, together known as the Silverlake Wild Ones, spent eight months exercising, competing in challenges against other teams and changing their eating habits.

For Rosenberg, altering his eating patterns was the hardest part.

“I always ate for pleasure,” he said. “I used to get up in the morning and think ‘what’s for dinner?’ ”

Desmond Pennington, Rosenberg’s personal trainer at Main Street Fitness, said that daily hour-long workouts and changes in diet led to the weight-loss.

“You can work your butt off in the gym, but it won’t show if you aren’t eating right,” he said.

Pennington said that at the beginning of the competition, he could sense Rosenberg’s potential health issues by the heaviness in his breathing.

“The way he talked, it’s like you hear a bear coming,” he said.

Rosenberg and Jumonville led the other nine teams in pounds lost during the early part of the competition but were eventually surpassed by the La Vida Lo-Cal team, which lost a combined 287 pounds. Rosenberg said that after it became clear his team wouldn’t finish first, he and Jumonville were somewhat disappointed. They adjusted their eating habits to a healthier but more realistic diet.

“We said ‘now let’s eat like were actually going to eat,’ ” he said.

Rosenberg’s wife, Angela Rosenberg, said that at first the weight-loss effort seemed difficult to achieve, but the contest format and cooperation between the two men helped them accomplish their goals.

“They’re both competitive so that set the stage,” she said. “They were absolute support for each other.”

Billy Rosenberg said that he doesn’t mind that he didn’t win the car and estimates that the weight loss will add an additional 35 years to his life.

“Everybody says ‘did you win?’ I won the support and respect of my family, friends and employees,” Rosenberg said.