We are only a couple of months away from the start of a new year and another Michigan winter. Luckily we have just the solution for fending off those winter blues: the 2016 Transformation Challenge! For our sixth consecutive year, the Challenge is back in 2016 with a format that seems to have achieved the Goldilocks effect: neither too much nor too little, but just right. In 2015, we conducted our largest and most successful Transformation Challenge yet. In only eight weeks, the average participant who finished the Challenge lost 8.2 pounds of fat and gained 1.8 pounds of muscle. However, weight loss wasn't the only focus of the 2015 Challenge. As part of the Challenge, participants received points for trying new classes, staying hydrated and even getting the recommended amount of sleep. There was also a simplified assessment format in which only body composition and body weight were measured at the beginning and end of the Challenge. The Challenge concluded with the first Challenge Celebration, a fun way of recognizing eight weeks of hard work as well as announcing team and individual winners Challenge winners. 

With such great results and a format that seemed widely recognized as the best version of the annual Transformation Challenge, there will not be any major changes to the format in 2016 version of the Challenge. We will still have teams of four compete for eight weeks to make improvements in body composition and weight; while simultaneously earning points for exercising and practicing healthy habits inside and outside of the club. Winners of the $1000 grand prize and second and third places prizes will still be determined by combining changes in assessment scores with the total number of points earned during the Challenge.

Although the format in 2016 will look very similar to the 2015 version, we will be introducing the first Challenge Check-in. Eight weeks after the initial Challenge concludes, participants that completed the first eight weeks of the Challenge will have the opportunity to be reassessed in body composition and body weight. The Challenge Check-in will not require any point counting or additional activities, but rewards (e.g. guest passes, discounts on Liberty services, etc.) will be given to each person that maintains his or her initial post-Challenge assessments. There will also be prizes awarded to the top three individuals who show the most improvement in their post-Challenge assessments. 

With a format proven to provide results and the addition of the Challenge check-in, we are prepared for the 2016 Transformation Challenge to be the most fun and rewarding Challenge yet. Registration for the 2016 Transformation Challenge opens on Tuesday, December 1st. Registered participants may also schedule their pre-Challenge assessment at this time.