Lincoln County

SNAP-Ed Assistant, Kayla Gibson

Success Story #1 “Spring Slim Down”- 2018

In the spring of 2018, at the Lincoln County Extension Office, a class was started which focused on the "Healthy Choices for Every Body" curriculum. To incentivize the program and hopefully generate new interest, a challenge was added called the "Spring Slim Down". In the class, participants would meet weekly to try a new recipe and go through the 7 core lessons of the curriculum. The added challenge would be an optional weigh-in each week of class. Not everyone had to participate in the weigh in who were in class, but those who did would enter a friendly competition to see who could lose the most weight in the 7 week span. To be eligible, the participants also had to attend every class. This worked well to keep people interested and coming back, because not only did they have an educational experience and exposure to healthy, cost efficient new recipes, but they also had a challenge which provided extra motivation. 

The winner of the competition lost nearly 10 pounds and received a new food processor which was purchased through county program support funds. Everyone who participated in the competition lost several pounds and nobody gained weight. While the class had about 7 to 8 usual members, only 3 were financially able to be graduated. Of those 3 members, several positive behavior changes were shown. A large increase in produce consumption was evident. 67% were shown to eat more fruit at exit, while 100% were shown to have increased their weekly consumption of red and orange vegetables. 67% reduced the amount of soda they consumed.  Lastly, 67% showed an increase in the amount of days they exercised for at least 30 minutes. Over all, the program emphasized the importance of utilizing MyPlate, avoiding oversized portions and exercising for at least 30 minutes each day. Emphasis was not placed on any crash dieting or extreme fads, but instead on using moderation and losing weight in a slow, sustainable way.