By Carlena Knight
Winner of the first ever Antigua and Barbuda Institute of Technology (ABIIT) weight loss challenge, Robert Williams, revealed that it’s been a challenging few months for him on his journey.
The father of three credited his 30-pound weight loss to better nutritional practices.
Williams began the three-month-long challenge at 304.6 pounds and ended with 278.2 pounds making him the overall winner of the wellness competition.
“At first, it was kind of annoying with the way that it was up and down, but then you start to learn and understand what works with your body. After that, I started to time my meals, do a bit of fasting. Someone said you can’t outwork your nutrition. So, working out helps, but I think nutrition was key for me.
“I used to be in the gym a lot, but I was gaining more weight so I started walking. I wasn’t big into walking because I thought it was more for older people. I thought you had to go to the gym and work hard. I started walking a minimum of 15000 steps per day about five to eight miles and then I just saw the weight just dropping. When you study the science of waling you realise that it is actually the best way to lose weight,” Williams said.
He admitted that it was discouraging at times, but thanked his wife and the ABIIT crew for introducing him to these new healthy practices which he says he will continue to abide by as he still has not reached his personal weight loss goal.
He is now encouraging others to start their own weight loss journey.
The top finishing female Sandy Tonge shared that it was not as difficult for her as she already had a fitness routine before entering the competition.
“When I started this challenge, I weighed 199, and now I am 160 and a little bit. It wasn’t really hard I would say because I have a routine. In the mornings at 4:30 I would get up every morning walk from KFC on Fort Road up to Halcyon Heights round to Extreme Gym and to my house in Gambles. Even if it’s raining, I would put on a rain coat and do my thing. I also hike on the weekends. So, it wasn’t really a challenge, but it was something for me to look forward to,” Tongue explained.
A cash prize of $2500 was up for grabs in this tournament which saw participants weigh in on April 1, and undergo three months of strict routines to lose weight.
There were several different categories depending on the amount of weight lost with Tier 4 being the highest and Tier 1 the lowest.
Participants had to weigh-in once every six weeks to track their progress.
Roberts’ wife, Megan Williams, was the Tier 3 winner, Sherry-Ann Davis the Tier 2 winner and Camille Thorpe Tier 1 winner.
There was also an award given out for the person who gained the most weight. That was won by Kyla Nanton Warren.
All of the winners received an array of prizes.
The hope is to make the event an annual affair for the school.