S5: Episode 9 - 20 Pound Overcomers | Weight Loss Success Stories

Janice Bennett

After several short starts and stops with Journey Fitness (and fitness in general) over the last 5 years, Janice Bennett finally decided to get serious mid-July 2021...weighing in at 167 pounds.  Today she is 27 pounds lighter, at 140 pounds, and continues to get stronger and fitter.  Simple tasks are no longer a burden for her.  She works at Guthrie in Training and Development, is married with 3 kids, and enjoys camping and all fun activities in the great outdoors of God's creation.  Her fit-fam at Journey Fitness is also a blessing to her.  

Dana Comstock

Dana is a 43 year old wife, mother and Occupational Therapist!  She joined Journey Fitness during a 3 week challenge that ArnotHealth was having in October of 2017 and she hasn't turned away since!  She is proof that with hard work and consistency, you CAN achieve your goals!  She reached a 20 lb weight loss within 5 months of joining JOURNEY.  And since then, she has lost 10-15 more but has also increased muscle mass and GAINED confidence!  It’s not been a fast sprint for her, but a steady pace, which has been challenging but she KEEPS SHOWING UP which is the most important thing to do!  

Curtis Cook

Curtis Cook started Journey about 7 months ago. He has made this a life choice. Starting out he was never a very fit person. He started his journey because of how he was feeling. Chronic pain/aches due to his weight and physical health not being what it should be. He now feels 100% better after 7 months of giving his all. (All In). His sleep, pain, endurance, general all around is better. Journey has helped him reach farther in accomplishing new and more goals that he is able to set for himself everyday. If he were to give advice to anyone it would be that if you are feeling any way close to what he was feeling, step out of your comfort zone and act without thought. Find a time and just show up.

Ariana Deming

Ariana has lived with Multiple Sclerosis (potentially disabling disease of the brain and spinal cord that can cause problems with vision, balance, muscle control, and other basic body functions) since she was 15 years old. If it wasn't for the medication she is on now, she wouldn't be able to workout as much as she does! Coming to Journey Fitness has changed her life!

Jillian Mastronardi

Jillian is a PreK teacher and is 47.  She is married and has one son and a step daughter. She got her start with exercising/sports in second grade, so being in shape was just a natural thing. After having her son, the sports stopped and she gained weight. She did yo-yo dieting and did some exercising on her own, but nothing seemed to work. She struggled with not eating enough. So in May of 2019 she started a teachers challenge with a friend from school at Journey. She lost 20 pounds in a little over 3 months and then another 20 pounds to meet her goal. She has been going to Journey Fitness for almost 3 years and even sticking with it through the pandemic, either doing outside or virtual workouts. She isn’t going to say it was easy, you have to put the time in, work hard, have the right mind set, and trust your coaches and most importantly yourself. 

Kristen Swonger

Kristen is a 42 year old mom of 2, a full time chemistry teacher at Columbia City High School and suffers from Lupus, Celiac disease and Stage 1 CKD. She joined Journey in March of 2021. She knew something had to change. She needed to get healthy for her family.  One year later, she’s still going strong. She has completed 2 DEKA events and hit her 20 pound weight loss goal in August 2021. She loves Journey so much, she even got her husband to join her.

Andy Wales

Andy Wales is an active member at Journey fitness. He’s a busy teacher and family man. With the help of the coaches at Journey fitness he has changed his life through fitness at the early morning workouts. He lost twenty pounds – and then forty more. He has reversed his diagnosis of diabetes – he no longer has it!  He is off all the medications he used to be on for health issues.

Kristan Wales

Kristan is a wife, a mom, a grandmother and an active member at Journey Fitness Sayre. Her motivation for losing weight was to feel better and look better. Ironically, having chronic pain was one of the things that kept her from exercising, but after consistently training with Journey for over a year, she says her pain has definitely lessened. Kristan loves the high energy and motivation that the coaches offer and encourages people to get out of your head and stop listening to your negative self-talk. When you can’t pull yourself out of a pit, Journey’s coaches are there to help you out and lift you up.