Mayor Cocchiola Announces New and Improved 2011 Challenge

Nutley, NJ—Mayor Joanne Cocchiola announced plans for the 2011 Mayor’s Wellness Challenge, formerly the Mayor's Weight Loss Challenge. In its third year, the Challenge is being supported by many local companies including, Roche, Mountainside Hospital, Montclair State University, Focus Physical Therapy, Partners in Health, Signature Fitness of Belleville and Starlight Fit & Dance of Nutley to name a few.

“Last year's program was a huge success and I am happy to make it available to the community once again,” stated Mayor Joanne Cocchiola. “We are constantly working on new ideas and adding enhancements to our program so that our Challengers can really benefit from all that it has to offer,” the Mayor added. The Mayor went on to explain that the name change from "Weight Loss" to "Wellness" was a reflection of the township's new designation of New Jersey Healthy Town, a designation given to the township back in May of 2010 by the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute. Nutley is only one of eight towns in New Jersey to receive this designation. "We are very proud of this designation," Mayor Cocchiola commented. "Our challenge now totally reflects our 100% dedication to wellness, and not just weight loss," the Mayor added.

The 16-week program is slated to begin Monday, January 10th with the last official weigh-in scheduled for Monday, May 2nd. The program is open to those 18 and older who are either Nutley residents, Township and/or BOE employees, or those that work in Nutley. This year there is a $10 registration fee to cover administrative costs that come with managing a program of this size. The fee will insure that costs are not passed on to taxpayers.

As in the past, participants registering can chose to compete on a team or as an individual. Teams can consist of 5 to 7 people in size. “People really seemed to like the ‘team’ option since it is a great way to stay motivated,” Mayor Cocchiola noted. “I enjoyed seeing teams of teachers, parents and friends getting together to make a change. It’s also a great support system,” she added.

Weigh-ins will be conducted every other week and there will be convenient daytime and evening hours available. Teachers and BOE staff can weigh-in at their respective school locations for convenience, as each of the school nurses will be assisting in monitoring the program. Township employees and residents, as well as those BOE employees who choose not to weigh-in at a school location, will weigh-in at the Nutley Department of Health, 149 Chestnut Street, between 12pm-2pm or 6:30pm-7:30pm on designated weigh-in days.

On January 10th, kick-off day, representatives from Mountainside Hospital will be at the ready to give free, individualized health evaluations to participants with appointments. Participants will meet with a nutritionist and an exercise physiologist to discuss individual goals, including lifestyle changes and an exercise plan to attain those goals. New this year, Mountainside will also offer blood pressure screenings, glucose and cholesterol tests free to the first 50 registered challengers who make appointments. Screenings will be offered for a nominal fee to other pre-registered challengers. The kick-off will also include a meet-and-greet with representatives from supporting businesses and sponsors of the program. And, "before" photos will be taken so that comparisons can be made at the completion of the Challenge. Mystical Entertainment will DJ and MC the evening.

Plenty of resources and group exercise classes will be available throughout the 16-week program that will allow participants to put those plans into action. In addition to Mountainside Hospital providing support by answering basic weight loss and exercise questions via email throughout the program, there are many others who are showing their support.

“I am grateful for the generosity of our supporters. Everyone wants our community to succeed with the program…to BE healthy,” commented the Mayor.

Mountainside Hospital is back offering health evaluations and screenings, plus additional registered dietician support and motivational speaking engagements and lectures will be announced once the program gets underway. Signature Fitness is putting together a great plan including discounted rates and free trial classes. Mr. Joe Piro, Nutley High School Athletic Director, also plans to support the program again by opening the Nutley High School weight room to all participants each Monday and Thursday evening from 6pm to 8pm. Starlight Fit and Dance is on board and will offer free exercise classes to participants, as well as discounted rates throughout the duration of the program. Focus Physical Therapy is returning with a support group that proved to work very well during last year's Challenge. Fleet Feet Sports will train our Challengers to be 5k ready. Plus, Montclair State University is back with a full line-up of educational lectures and exercise classes. Many other local establishments are currently being added to the line-up, with Zen with An Edge, ShopRite, Marsha Rosa-R.D., XCEL Fitness, Curves for Women of Nutley, Salon Si and Krank all working on programs to add to the Challenge.

“This program is constantly evolving,” commented Loren McCreesh, the challenge coordinator. “Our goal is to offer as many health and wellness options for our challengers as possible, so they can learn what works best for them. We want our challengers to think beyond the 16-weeks at how they can apply what they have learned to their everyday lives,” Mrs. McCreesh added. The program coordinator also hopes to involve many local Nutley restaurants by encouraging them to promote and or add healthy meals to their menus.

There will be plenty of incentives offered throughout the 16-week program. Prizes will be awarded to both the individual and team who lose the highest % of body weight by the end of the 16 weeks. An awards ceremony is being planned for Monday, May 2nd.

Challengers lost a total of 2,326 pounds in the 2010 challenge. The goal for the 2011 challenge is to surpass the 3,000 pound mark.

The Mayor’s Wellness Challenge: A Nutley Healthy Town Initiative is part of the overall Mayor’s Wellness Campaign, an initiative introduced four years ago targeting the youth of Nutley, bringing attention to the growing obesity problem in our nation. The Township is currently working with the Nutley Board of Education along with a committee of Nutley residents to design a comprehensive Junior Healthy Town Challenge to be introduced in the 2011-2012 school year.

Register on-line or visit the Mayor’s Office—the Department of Public Affairs—at 149 Chestnut Street, Nutley. Registration closes on Tuesday, January 4th. Once your registration is successfully received, you will receive a confirmation by e-mail which will include all important information about the January 10th kick-off. The first 500 applicants will be accepted.

For more information about the Mayor’s Wellness Challenge, please visit www.nutleynj.org or send your inquiries to mayorweightlosschallenge@nutleynj.org.