Supportive emails strengthen this tight group

On the day before the final weigh-in for the Fittest Loser Challenge, John Novak sent Bob Pearson a good luck present.

It was a pizza, loaded.

“It was just for fun,’’ Novak said.

But the pizza represented the close relationship that developed between competitors in this year’s contest.

In the third annual Daily Herald competition, during which five readers compete to see who can lose the most weight (by percentage) in three months, the contestants really got to know each other. Jayne Nothnagel, a customer service representative for Waste Management, thought it would be a good idea for the group to communicate via email as a way to help them get through the rigors of the training and diet.

“I thought we could learn a little bit about each other and we could feel a bit connected with each other,’’ Nothnagel said. “I think it worked. I’m sure that all of us will stay friends, and we are talking about meeting up throughout the year. It was a great experience to do that.”

“I think that was critical,’’ said competitor Kristen Kessinger, 28, of Volo. “We communicated several times a week. There are times when you think it is so hard you want to give up. You go to a party and your friends are eating pizza and you can’t; you go out and there are drinks and you can’t. Knowing there are four other people doing the same thing, you know if they are doing it, you can do it, too. I don’t know if I would have done nearly as well without their support.”

It was Kessinger who had perhaps the greatest individual triumph during the three months. She ran a 5K race in mid-April with her best friend, after an entire lifetime of avoiding physical exertion. After the race, she emailed the other contestants to tell them what she had done.

“We all sent her congratulations,’’ said Dee Levine of Hoffman Estates, who lost 43 pounds during the competition. “The communication was awesome. We could lean on each other. When someone felt really down, we said ‘Look at what you have done.’ They have become my sisters and brothers, and we owe that to Jayne.”

An addition to the contest this year were boot camps offered at Pilates Plus in Schaumburg. Attending boot camp at least once a week was required of the contestants. Often, on Saturday mornings, competitors participated together in an intense one-hour workout session. It became another bonding moment for them.

“We would email each other about boot camp as soon as it was over,’’ Pearson said. “It’s like I have four new friends for life.”

Novak’s good-natured pizza delivery was an indication of the kind of friendship the contestants developed.

“We all discussed this, that someone was going to come out on top, but all of our lives have improved,’’ said Novak, a school administrator from Mount Prospect. “It was great sharing the journey with them. It made a big difference.”

“We all know this is our first step, the first phase,’’ said Pearson, the 38-year-old house painter who won the challenge by losing 78 pounds. “Even though this is going to be over, we are going to keep in touch and support each other through our long-term goals.”