Join Sara Kevern, your FFC Dietitian, on Wednesday, May 8 from 6:30pm-7:30pm in the FFC Lincoln Park community room for a complimentary nutrition workshop, “Eat to Sculpt.” Learn what diet guidelines are most important for amplifying those six-pack abs, take away tips to get your nutrition on track, get answers to your burning nutrition questions, and take home helpful recipes. Contact Sara Kevern for more information at skevern@ffc.com.

Try out this summer corn salad recipe and “eat to sculpt.”

Summer Corn Salad
1/2 c corn
1/2 c black beans
1/2 c salsa
2 T chopped cilantro
1/2 roma tomato, chopped
1/4 chopped red bell pepper
1/2 avocado, chopped
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
Juice from 1/2 lime

Mix all ingredients together except lime juice and avocado. Chill until ready to serve. Add avocado and lime juice just prior to serving and mix well. Serve with lettuce wraps, corn tortillas, or eat as is.

Let me tell you God had another plan. As I walked out of the hospital after my appointment, I not only completed all of my tests, but I was on track to be listed. As of April 5, 2013 I am officially listed on the Illinois Organ Transplant Registry. At any given time I anticipate a phone call telling me that a kidney has become available and it has been matched for me. This was not supposed to happen for at least another year, but as I said God had other plans. As exciting as this news is, and trust me I am OVER the moon about this, what filled my heart with the most joy was the support and reactions I received from the great people at Fitness Formula Clubs.

I waited days to tell my trainer, which wasn’t an easy task, because I wanted to see his reaction. To see how moved he was about this milestone helped me to understand how invested he is in my health. Having staff and clients approach me after hearing this awesome news with excitement and well wishes…I can’t possibly put into words how grateful I am. I feel so fortunate to be at a health club so supportive and concerned not only about my health, but when I reach these types of personal goals, they’re beside me cheering me on. That is what makes Fitness Formula Clubs special… not only do they go the extra mile, but they genuinely care about its members.

FFC Union Station: 8:00am – 2:00pm
FFC Oak Park and FFC Old Town: 7:00am – 5:00pm
All other locations: 7:00am-7:00pm

Remember to also check the group fitness schedule for holiday class times.

2013 marks the 14th season for the Indoor Triathlon Series, which continues to be Chicago’s oldest and largest indoor triathlon circuit. We had 200 participants compete this year.

An indoor triathlon consists of a 15 minute swim, 20 minute bike, and 15 minute run. Winners are determined by accumulated mileage over the three events.

These events provide great opportunities for both rookie and veteran athletes. Participants are grouped according to their experience with outdoor triathlons. They are assigned into Beginner or Experienced Divisions, and race with peers of similar abilities.

Participants completing in at least three of the indoor triathlons were included in the TriMonster® Triple Triathlon Challenge. Total distance from the participants’ top three indoor triathlons were added together and ranked. The top three overall male and female participants in the challenge received FFC gift certificates good for FFC Spa services, personal training, or TriMonster® endurance training programs!

First Place: $100 FFC Gift Certificate
Second Place: $50 FFC Gift Certificate
Third Place: $25 FFC Gift Certificate

For long-course triathletes, the “Extreme Events” were added in 2013. The Extreme Equalizer Indoor Triathlon included a 30 minute swim, 30 minute bike, and 30 minute run and was available at the FFC East Lakeview, FFC Gold Coast, FFC Union Station, and FFC West Loop indoor triathlons. The inaugural Extreme Olympic Indoor Triathlon at FFC Lincoln Park included a 1.5K swim, 40K bike, and a 10K run. Unlike the traditional indoor triathlon, which is accumulated mileage over three events and determines the winner; the Extreme Olympic Triathlon ranks participants by the fastest times to complete the total distance.

The top overall male and female from the four Extreme Equalizer Triathlons and Extreme Olympic Triathlon received a $100 FFC Gift Certificate. The male and female Extreme Olympic Triathlon champions also received an entry to Leon’s Triathlon on June 2, 2013.

Beginners can experience triathlon without the intimidation of mass swim starts or having to own a special road bike. Experienced participants can work to establish their fitness levels over the winter, focus on discipline that need more attention, and ensure a great outdoor race season.

The events could not be successful without the support of our sponsors Muscle Milk and Leon’s Triathlon. And media sponsors Triathlete magazine and Competitor magazine.

Hope to see you back in 2014!

Check out upcoming spring and summer TriMonster® Endurance Programming at ffc.com/trimonster.

TriMonster® Triple Challenge Champions
Women’s Division
o 1st Place: Kennon Meyer (31.83 miles)
o 2nd Place: Kathy Daniels (30.35 miles)
o 3rd Place: Keri Rainsberger (29.56 miles)

Men’s Division
o 1st Place: Chris Navin (37.17 miles)
o 2nd Place: Michael Lucci (34.15 miles)
o 3rd Place: Gerald Bagnowski (33.28 miles)

Extreme Olympic Triathlon
o 1st Place Male: Charles Wu – 2:20:38
o 1st Place Female: Kate Kostal – 2:32:30

Extreme Equalizer Triathlon
o 1st Place Male: Bryan Mason (17.37 miles)
o 1st Place Female: Kathy Daniels (16.46 miles)

Individual Race Champions
#1 – Oak Park, Feb 9
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o John Reale, Men’s Division

#2 – East Lakeview, Feb 16
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o Chris Navin, Men’s Division

#3 – Gold Coast, Feb 23
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o Chris Navin, Men’s Division

#4 – Union Station, Mar 9
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o Cooper Gillan, Men’s Division

#5 – West Loop, Mar 16
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o Fred Critch, Men’s Division

#6 – Lincoln Park, Mar 23
o Kennon Meyer, Women’s Division
o Chris Navin, Men’s Division

April Fun Run Locations:
April 2 – East Lakeview
April 9 – Halsted Street
April 16 – Lincoln Park
April 23 – Old Town
April 30 – Gold Coast

East Lakeview
Male – Stephen Reimbers (22.38%)
Female – Jenni Gordon (8.25%)

Gold Coast
Male – Ryan Wagner (11.85%)
Female – Jessie Moskowitz (4.07%)

Halsted Street
Male – Shawn Davis (13.04%)
Female – Carolyn Zens (5.42%)

Lincoln Park
Female – Caryle Johnson (2.02%)

Oak Park
Male – Tanveer Ansari (11.11%)
Female – Beth Christian (9.63%)

Old Town
Female – Lindsey Sikora (5.95%)

South Loop
Male – Manny Ozeta (4.29%)
Female – Jenny Han (5.82%)

Union Station
Male – Ed Mahoney (11.31%)
Female – Emily Starks (5.38%)

West Loop
Male – Bryan W. (10.23%)
Female – Heather H. (8.99%)

Winners of the Club Champion Raffle:
Winner of 26 sessions: Ryan Wagner
Winner of 12 sessions: Caryle Johnson
Winner of 4 sessions: Jenny Han

Congratulations to our winners, and don’t forget that our next Club-wide challenge is Team Trek, coming in July.

FFC East Lakeview
FFC Gold Coast
FFC Halsted Street
FFC Lincoln Park
FFC Oak Park
FFC Old Town
FFC South Loop
FFC Union Station
FFC West Loop

I’ve always been a little…bigger. Bigger includes height and weight. While the height didn’t bother me much, the weight did…a lot. Unbeknownst to most, I tried every diet known to man in hopes of losing 100 pounds in a few weeks. Sorry to disappoint everyone, but those diets didn’t work. I figured I would go away to college and start over and come back looking like a new person. Sorry to disappoint everyone again, but that didn’t work either. Instead, my body started doing some very strange things. I got very ill and ended up returning home and was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. I went on to graduate, and then went to Graduate School, and had a decent job. Suddenly my kidneys began to fail and fast. After a year of surgeries, I found myself on dialysis at the age of 27. At the age of 27, I dreamed of taking over the world and instead my world had been turned upside down. I’m not the type to wallow, so I decided that I would be proactive about getting a kidney transplant.

Now, I’m a realistic person, so I knew my weight was going to be an issue, but I had NO idea that it would be THE issue. That’s when losing weight was no longer a vanity problem…it was an “I have to do this to improve my life” problem and that’s when I decided that I needed to make real changes.

I came to Fitness Formula Clubs having never worked out in a Chicago health club in my life prior to winning the Year of Wellness promotion. This has given me a new incentive in reaching my goals. I’m more motivated than ever because there are no excuses. The wonderful prizes that FFC have awarded me have already enhanced my workout regimen. My trainer has definitely changed my sessions to “winner” caliber. And having my personal supply of KIND bars, Protein Bar smoothies, and vitaminwater will help my nutrition stay on track. I’m looking forward to my upcoming Pilates sessions and being able to work my body out in a whole new way. As if all of those things aren’t enough, I’m lucky enough to receive a massage for relaxation which is very important.

The best thing about all of this is the wonderful staff at FFC who is taking this journey with me. From the cheers and support when they found out I won, to the way everyone has been so accommodating with helping me utilize all of my newly acquired services, to those who know why I’m doing this and getting just as excited as I am, when I get one step closer to my transplant. I really feel like they believe in me and it makes me feel so empowered and that there isn’t any limit to what I can do as long as I believe in myself. I couldn’t be happier to share this journey with FFC and everyone who chooses to follow me on this journey.

Friday, March 29:
All Clubs open regular hours.

Saturday, March 30:
All Clubs open regular hours.

Sunday, March 31:
East Lakeview:
Open 7:00am – 3:00pm.

Gold Coast:
Open 7:00am – 3:00pm.

Halsted Street:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

Lincoln Park:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

Oak Park:
Open 7:00am – 3:00pm.

Old Town:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

South Loop:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

Union Station:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

West Loop:
Open 8:00am – 3:00pm.

We are always here to support your healthy food needs, whether it’s a quick meal after a workout, a catered lunch for your office, or helping you get started in our five or seven day healthy eating meal plan. For more information visit FFC South Loop.