Welcome to Kenmare

Feature Stories (Vol. 110 No. 12--3/19/2008)

Jessy Fred offers help in battle with weight

By Caroline Downs

Jessica Fred of Carpio takes a straightforward, no-nonsense approach when she describes a nutritious recipe modified for lower calories or demonstrates exercise equipment that will aid weight loss and muscle tone.

However, the trim 5’6" blonde, mother of two sons ages five and seven, knows exactly where her audience is starting from when they attend one of her "Fit to Be Me" sessions at the Kenmare Wellness Center on Wednesday afternoons.

"I used to weigh about 300 pounds," she said. "As a child even, I was overweight all the way through school."

She formed the new weight loss support group in Kenmare based on her own battle with weight that led to a drop of 125 pounds, her empathy for others going through similar situations, and her absolute conviction that anyone can choose to follow a healthy lifestyle.

"Before you can change your body, you have to change your mind," she said "Once you put your mind into it, it’s really pretty easy."

Jessy, as she prefers to be called, recognized her struggle with weight while growing up in Newburg and managed to lose weight in high school. "As a kid, I liked cooking and baking," she said, "which was part of the problem that got me to the weight I was at. I grew up in a family where your cleaned your plate. We didn’t throw anything away, and we didn’t consider portion sizes."

After graduation, however, the pounds returned, starting with her first job as a waitress and continuing through her time in college and then having children. "When I was pregnant with my second son, I weighed 300 pounds," she said. "After his birth, I struggled to get up and do anything during the day." She sought medical attention, but her weight gain could not be attributed to any physical factors.

She was frustrated with her extra pounds and low energy level, when a friend convinced her to attend Weight Watchers meetings. The first session completely changed her perspective. "I thought, ‘Now I know what’s wrong with me. It’s me!’" she recalled. "I wasn’t taking care of me."

She couldn’t attend the regular weekly sessions, but managed to go once every few weeks and recorded a steady loss of pounds. "I was determined, and I knew there wasn’t any reason I couldn’t lose weight," she said. "As women, we tend to take care of everyone else. We think, ‘I don’t have time to worry about what I’m eating. I don’t have time to worry about exercise.’ Well, I made up my mind I can take the time."

Her decision involved more physical activity. "I shut off the TV," she said. "I still don’t subscribe to cable or satellite. It’s amazing how much time you can find!" She used that time to exercise, sometimes as much as two hours a day, beginning with a single piece of exercise equipment and later purchasing videos to learn other activities, including pilates, yoga and dance aerobics. "I do all kinds of things," she said. "I still like step aerobics and kickboxing. Right now, I’m more into strength training. And I like to be outside in the summer, so I’ll walk and bicycle."

She admitted she likes to challenge herself by trying new activities, but she does not participate competitively. "I’m all about health and fitness," she said, then laughed. "I don’t want to hurt myself!"

The weight continued to drop as Jessy changed her eating habits and exercised regularly, totalling a loss of 125 pounds she has kept off for nearly five years. "It’s about taking responsibility for our own choices," she said. "I have control over what I’m putting into my body. I don’t have to eat like my family."

Her children remained her top priority and she arranged her work and exercise around their schedules, but she discovered another interest as she improved her own fitness. "After losing all of the weight, I was figuring out where I was in life and what I wanted to do," she said. "I realized this is a passion for me. This is something I’d like to do to help other people."

She enrolled in a study program with the National Council on Strength and Fitness, and earned her certification as a personal trainer in July 2007. "It’s given me an overall broad base of information on nutrition, exercise and behaviors related to health and fitness," she said, adding she has studied special needs related to back problems, heart disease, diabetes and other medical conditions. Currently, she is continuing her education with a specialized course on nutrition and weight loss management.

Her studies and her part-time work at the Kenmare Wellness Center since November 2006 led to the new support group in Kenmare. Several employees at Kenmare Community Hospital expressed an interest in Jessy’s knowledge, and her request to use the Wellness Center for meetings was approved by the administration.

"Fit to Be Me"etings are held each Wednesday at 5 pm. Jessy intends to hold weekly weigh-ins for participants and to measure body fat composition monthly, depending on the size of the group. She started regular meetings March 5th. Men and women of any age are welcome to participate.

During the sessions, Jessy will share information about nutrition, eating habits, and behaviors related to healthy and unhealthy eating patterns. "Each week, I also plan to have a nutritious recipe and to give some general exercise information and a demonstration," she said. "The ladies (at the first meeting) were really interested in the strength training."

"Fit to Be Me" is not affiliated with any particular weight loss or fitness franchise. "I want it to be more personal," said Jessy. "Some programs focus on selling products or supplements. I’m pulling together information I think will be useful. The more input I can get from my group, the better. I want it to be for them."

According to Jessy, changing unhealthy behaviors will be a major emphasis of the group. "Don’t consider this a diet," she said. "This is something you have to incorporate into your life. We’ll find healthier alternatives to some other food you really desire."

Given Jessy’s own experiences, her suggestions are sure to be practical and tasty. She still works around food with a part-time waitress job at the Valley Inn Cafe in Carpio. She still enjoys baking and cooking, but now she shares the results with friends, family and co-workers.

Then, too, her ideas about food have changed. "There’s a lot of things I don’t eat anymore," she said, adding she takes calories, fat content and fiber content into account as she plans her meals and snacks. "There are boundaries, but it’s not that I don’t splurge sometimes. I just don’t beat myself up over it, and I start over."

She has developed her love for cooking into a means of redesigning recipes. "I like to make recipes healthier," she said. "And you don’t want your food to be boring! I never make the same (supper) twice in a month."

Jessy recognizes the deliberate choices she makes every day to maintain her health, and she wants to help other individuals recognize and make similar choices. "You can get so overwhelmed with information that you don’t know what’s right and what’s wrong," she said. "Then there’s the money that will be spent on health care costs if you don’t take care of yourself now. Much of that, you can so easily control with diet and activity. It takes just a little bit of extra thinking and planning."

The "Fit to Be Me" sessions are a way for people to begin, with Jessy’s skills and experience to lean on. "I want people to know that I’m here and ready to be of assistance to them with whatever weight loss or fitness goals they may want to achieve," she said, adding she is also willing to support members through e-mail and telephone calls as well as the weekly meetings.

Persons with further questions about the program are welcome to attend a "Fit to Be Me"eting at the Kenmare Wellness Center Wednesdays at 5 pm or to contact Jessy at 701-468-5942 or 701-833-1366. She can also be reached by e-mail at JessyFred@srt.com.

"I want people to realize this is not just a diet program," she said. "These are life changes!"