For me, losing weight was not a problem, keeping it off was hard. In May 2000 at age 33, I weighed 345 lbs. I did the Subway diet and lost 165 lbs, weighing 180 lbs. I lost the weight by eating less but not always eating right. LIKE MOST DIETS, I eventually started gaining some weight back. I was nearly 230 lbs. (that’s a 50 pound weight gain) when I joined the challenge and I would have been glad if it helped a little or at least just stopped the weight gain. What I did not expect was the dedication and involvement of the people running the class. They treated everyone special and ALWAYS had a positive attitude with everyone, whether they lost or gained. Their attitude rubbed off on the participants and we all would cheer each other, share, and help each other. Someone was always willing to help you improve you, and stressed that we are in charge of our choices and we must make the changes. The tips they shared are things I never will forget, for their lessons helped me. I felt so good after the first challenge that I joined the second one.With the support, I was able to lose 51 pounds (25% of my body weight) to get me to my goal weight.This class was the smartest thing I could have done for myself, and I feel it would be the smartest thing for anyone to do for themselves as well!