Boxing a favorite among Fittest Loser contestants
Three days a week, the five Fittest Losers go for an hourlong workout with their personal trainers.
They have been doing so for six weeks, exercising like they have not exercised in years, or perhaps ever.
Their goal is to lose weight, and if they can lose more weight by percentage than the other Fittest Losers, they will win the third annual competition sponsored by the Daily Herald and Push Fitness in Schaumburg.
Over time, the three women and two men have come to find some workouts almost pleasurable, while others are unbearable.
Let's start with the pleasant, or perhaps pleasing exercises, and the overwhelming favorite seems to be boxing because it relieves stress. Kicking and punching things were the favorites of the three competing women.
“I love boxing,” said Kristen Kessinger, a public relations assistant from Volo. “It's very empowering and feels like fun rather than work.”
Jayne Nothnagel, a customer service representative from Bloomingdale, loves boxing punches and kicks. “I think I'm going to check out eBay and get a set of gloves and pads and make this an exercise to share with our two grown kids,” she said.
“I can punch as hard as I want and get rid of all the tension and stress,” said Dee Levine, a nurse from Hoffman Estates who also voted for boxing. “I like it better than yoga. It gives me a chance to work on my upper-body strength.”
Other than boxing, the exercises preferred by the contestants are those that allow them to see or feel improvement on a daily basis.
“Push-ups have not been bad, as I have seen a real improvement in this area,” said John Novak, an assistant principal at Hersey High School. “Also, any exercises dealing with my back, such as upright rows or bent rows, are fun because I can actually feel my form getting better. It's nice to actually see and feel improvement in areas.”
Levine said she likes the upper-body strength workouts the best. “I see my progress the most with the weights that get heavier and heavier with each of Steve's workouts,” she said.
“I like lifting the heavy stuff,” said Bob Pearson, a painter and home inspector from Hampshire. “I like anything he has me doing with my upper body. I like the challenge of lifting the weights.”
Not every exercise is as enjoyable as punching things.
Nothnagel was afraid to admit which exercise she hated the most because she knows her trainer reads these stories and might get evil ideas.
“Jumping jacks are an old-time exercise that go way back,” Nothnagel said. “I can remember doing jumping jacks back in the third grade. But try jumping jacks with a 10-pound weight in each hand. I hate them. You start off gung-ho and within what seems like a few seconds you are fighting to get your feet off the ground just a fraction.”
Pearson is trying to fake out his trainer, Josh Steckler, into thinking he likes squat jumps, which are his least favorite exercise.
“He says ‘let's do some squat jumps,' and I will say ‘Great!' hoping he will change his mind,” Pearson said. “But I hate them. Anything that has to do with my legs is just hard. Josh is well-aware of that, and that is probably why he has me do them.”
All of the competitors do an exercise called burpees, where you throw yourself to the ground while kicking your legs out, then jump back up into a standing position.
“My least favorite exercise is burpees,” Kessinger said. “Even the name is awful! They're exhausting and I inevitably wind up feeling like I'm going to throw up after doing them.”
Levine agreed. “I detest them,” she said of burpees. “I am getting better flexibility-wise, but I feel so clumsy going up and down.”
Love them or hate them, the exercises have worked. The Fittest Losers are losing weight and feeling better about themselves, in part because they can do the exercises quicker and easier than before.
“I am learning to know the limits of my own body and can try some things I never thought I would be able to do,” Novak said.
Status report for our Fittest Loser contestants
<b>Kristen Kessinger, 28, of Volo</b>
<b>Current weight: </b>
239 pounds
<b>Weight lost this week: </b>
2 pounds
<b>Total weight loss:</b>
24 pounds, 9.2 percent
<b>Dee Levine, 59, of Hoffman Estates</b>
<b>Current weight:</b>
226 pounds
<b>Weight lost this week: </b>
2 pounds
<b>Total weight loss: </b>
23 pounds, 9.2 percent
<b>Jayne Nothnagel, 52, of Bloomingdale</b>
<b>Current weight:</b>
190 pounds
<b>Weight lost this week: </b>
2 pounds
<b>Total weight loss:</b>
23 pounds, 10.7 percent
<b>John Novak, 46, of Mount Prospect</b>
<b>Current weight: </b>
283 pounds
<b>Weight lost this week: </b>
4 pounds
<b>Total weight loss: </b>
41 pounds, 12.6 percent
<b>Bob Pearson, 37, of Hampshire</b>
<b>Current weight: </b>
255 pounds
<b>Weight lost this week:</b>
4 pounds
<b>Total weight loss:</b>
41 pounds, 13.8 percent