As a new year approaches, there will be New Year’s resolutions made to get in shape. That was and still is the motivation for Marion Wells of Flossmoor and Michelle Manuel of Homewood, who met at the H-F Racquet & Fitness Club’s Fit Body Challenge in January.
after being paired in the H-F Racquet Club’s Get Fit Challenge
in January. (Marilyn Thomas/H-F Chronicle)
“I guess it was meant to be because we’re workout buddies holding each other up,” Manuel said. “Knowing that somebody’s here, or she texts ‘See you tomorrow!’ even when you don’t feel like it, it helps.”
Now 11 months later, the pair has gotten into such a routine that they are at the club Monday through Friday taking strength and conditioning classes to keep in shape. They say they’re up for their second Fit Body Challenge this January.
Their words of advice: Make the effort. As hard as it will be in the beginning, the time spent will pay off.
Both had been members of the racquet club, but they weren’t good at keeping a gym schedule. For Wells, getting fit for her son’s wedding in April was the motivator. Manuel said she wanted to get in shape and tried to find a girlfriend buddy to join her, but nobody was interested, so she signed up for the 10-week fit challenge.
During the hour-long program, participants do a weigh-in, take a class with a personal trainer and learn nutrition tips and new recipes.
Initially, 47 people were in the class. They divided into small groups. Manuel and Wells were in the same group. Manuel was the group captain who collected participant data on the number of steps walked, number of times in the gym, what was served at dinner, etc.
By the end, only half the class finished. Wells and Manuel said they finished because of each other. They lean on each other and motivate each other.
“I had no intention of coming back after (the challenge ended),” Wells said. It was at a weigh-in when in conversation Manuel said she was coming to the gym every day “and I said, ‘I’m going to come to the gym every day with you.’” That’s how this workout buddy/friendship started.
Wells recently turned eligible for Medicare. She said her first physical gave her pause, she thought her cholesterol, blood pressure and sugar numbers were too high. A year later, after being at the gym for months, she’s had great results.
“When I tell you they (numbers) dropped, they dropped significantly,” Wells said. She’s lost weight, and “I notice my metabolism changed, my whole body changed, and how we eat changed.
“For me I had a false sense of reality because I never had to work out,” Wells said. “I was traveling, working and then I hit 60 and I noticed a few extra pounds. When you go to that first Medicare physical and you get those numbers and they’re creeping up a bit.” Wells realized something needed to change. “I don’t want to be on any pills.“
Manuel put herself through a second challenge this summer doing “The Beast,” the club’s course of six obstacles, including throwing tires, walking a balance beam, and hay bale climb, combined with running between each event. It rained in July when Manuel took to the course. She finished, thanks to Wells cheering her on.
Manuel’s employer also encourages good health habits, and the past several years she’s won $500 for having a healthy weight and BMI numbers at her yearly check-in.
“The lesson is: If you come into this kind of journey expecting to get immediate results, it’s not going to happen,” Wells said. “For some people it takes them awhile. It’s a journey not a destination. A life-long journey, a lifestyle change” that she’s happy she’s on.
The 2025 Fit Body Challenge will meet at 6 p.m. Thursdays, Jan. 2 through March 6, at the H-F Racquet & Fitness Club, 2920 W. 183rd St. in Homewood. The challenge is open to those 21 and older. The fee is $120 for residents and $145 for non-residents, with a $20 discount for racquet club members. Details are at hfparks.com or 708-799-1323.
