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Hello North Carolina!
Hello North Carolina!
Greetings to the people of the southern “barbecue belt.” I’m
thrilled to be back here walking 600 miles on the Million Step March.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina has put
together an unprecedented walking and fitness campaign, and I’m thrilled to be
a part of it. Four years ago, in 2004, I walked through this state as part of
The Million Calorie March – a 1,200-mile grassroots walking campaign from Florida to Boston.
I lost 110 pounds before that walk (from 397 pounds to 288) by
eating right and getting physical activity, and then another 40 pounds on the
cross-country walk itself. Since then I’ve been taking my message all around
the country – that anyone can achieve a measurable degree of health if they
make the commitment. I’m still struggling to lose more weight, but I think I’ve
achieved the better health part.
Has anybody out there ever run a marathon? A couple of years
ago I ran the Boston Marathon. Now don’t get me wrong – the winner was shaved,
showered, had his check cashed and on the plane back to Kenya before I hit the
finish line – but I finished, and that’s the message I am bringing to the
people of North Carolina. I want you to think about achieving good health – not
just looking good. It’s about being around for your kids and grandkids.
I come here to North
Carolina not as a pitchman for weight loss, but for
commitment. If Kathy Higgins from Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina can
make a commitment to walk 600 miles – from the mountains of Asheville to the
shores of Wilmington
– can you make the commitment to build 30 to 60 minutes of walking into your
life on most days?
I look forward to spending time in places like Asheville, Hickory, Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Chapel Hill, Durham,
Raleigh, Fayetteville,
Wilmington and
many places in between. In this corner of the world, and in this great state, maybe
we can make a difference and inspire, educate and motivate people to dig deep
to improve their health – once and for all.
See you on the road when we come through your town! Keep
checking at this site, www.BetterHealthNC.com,
for details and to see how we’re doing.
Posted by Gary Marino on March 16, 2008
Tagged: blue, carolina, cross, gary, march, marino, million, north, shield, step
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7 Comments
Gary Marino
Nicole: Great! That's what the Million Step March is all about - inspiring you to stay in the fight. To make a brand new commitment, I'll let you in on a little secret. After losing 150 pounds I was struggling a bit like you are. Life can certainly throw your exercise routine off a bit as well as give you a case of severe "Post-Traumatic Stretch Disorder" (my term for emotional eating), can't it?
So after struggling for 18 months to maintain my weight loss as well as push on to my goal weight - I too am choosing April 1 and the kickoff of the march to recommit and refocus on my health and weight loss goals. I hope you can come out to one of our events on the road. I'll guarantee you'll be motivated by our speaking presentations, healthy cooking demonstrations and Blender Bicycle Smoothie Challenge.
Jeff Dagostino
Hey Gary. Good luck this year from the BSC Lexington!
Nicole
This was right on time for me. I have lost about 40 pounds in the last year and a half. I am staying around that mark and have had some things happen in my life that have gotten me off track. But I am officially back. I choose today as my start day to begin exercising again. I am looking forward to really doing this.
Jill C.
Thanks Gary and everyone that put this together. It definitely takes commitment and you have inspired me to also make that commitment to get moving again. Getting back on an exercise routine has been in the back of my mind for some time but this is what has made me want to step up to the plate! (Healthy plate!)
Gary Marino
Hey John, thanks! That's exactly what the Million Step March is about. Kathy and I will inspire you every day, and in turn you and others in North Carolina will inspire us. 60 days, 600 miles, one step at a time. Hopefully we can all motivate each other.
By the way, I'm pledging an additional 45 to 50 pound weight loss on this march. And that's no April Fool's gag either!
Laura Briscoe
Time to get the pedometer out...perfect motivation to lose that "winter coat!"
John Roos
I can't wait for April 1 to arrive to get started on the MSM Challenge. This is not an April Fool's gag....it is for real and if Kathy Higgins and Gary Marino are walking over 600 miles across NC, I think I can commit to get in step at home... every day towards better health!
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