Clinton Educators Shed Nearly 700 Pounds

Team Clinton

When 33 Clinton educators shaved off nearly 700 pounds, a number of Mississippi College graduates were among those pumped about their success in this summer’s weight loss challenge.

Lindsey Clements, 28, was among the “Team Clinton” survivors of the grueling 10-week fitness boot camp run by former NFL player Paul Lacoste. A counselor at Clinton Park and Northside elementary schools, she sweated off 21 pounds and shed 16 total inches in her waist and hips.

“Sometimes it takes a drill sergeant personality to get your attention and wake you up to reality,” says Clements, who earned a master’s degree in school counseling from Mississippi College in August 2009. “The first two weeks were brutal. I was sore every day, and then week three felt much better.”

There were still plenty of painful moments to endure, but the Madison resident finished the “life changing” Paul Lacoste Sports Fit for Teaching boot camp.

“The teamwork, leadership, intensity and perseverance learned this summer will last me a lifetime,” Clements said. Loads of cardio exercises, weight training and other activities in the gym were part of the fitness package along with constant barks of encouragement from Lacoste, a former Mississippi State University football standout.

Lacoste is the fiery fitness guru whose energy-bursting camp has caused 200 educators in metro Jackson to lose a whopping 3,073 pounds. He issued a similar challenge to Mississippi lawmakers at the Capitol in Jackson earlier this year.

Part of this summer’s campaign targeting educators, the vigorous workouts by “Team Clinton” led to the team losing 10 percent of their body weight, says Sandi Beason, the district’s public information officer.

And MC grads were a big part of it.

“I loved the accountability of the program and my Clinton Team,” said Mississippi College graduate Deedra Watts, an interventionist at Eastside, Northside and Clinton Park elementary schools. “We have encouraged, motivated and bonded this summer because of the program.”

For the 34-year-old Watts, the boot camp resulted in her losing 34 pounds and she’s not going to quit now. Many of the Clinton participants are continuing their workouts at the Baptist Healthplex on the MC campus, she noted.

The Paul Lacoste Sports Fit 4 Teaching challenge led Susan Rayborn, 42, an MC graduate who teaches kindergarten classes at Clinton Park Elementary to say goodbye to 37 pounds. “I think the program was a great investment in my life. People asked me if it was fun – I had to say that no, it was not fun, but I would definitely do it again. It challenged me not only physically, but mentally as well.”

When it comes to a healthy diet, Rayborn said, that’s definitely hard to do, but she promises to follow Lacoste’s advice and “eat smart. Diets come and go, but a healthy lifestyle can be forever.”

Other MC graduates participating in the fitness boot camp included Jana Carter, a Northside Elementary physical education teacher, head volleyball coach and assistant soccer coach at Clinton High. She’s now enrolled in the master’s program in educational leadership at Mississippi College. Laurie Campbell, an MC graduate and math teacher at Clinton High, also took part.

The boot camp also led to some financial gains for local schools. Jill Penick, Lisa Burgess and Joy Tyner were the three winners of weekly challenges and that resulted in three grants of $500 each going this week to Clinton Junior High and Northside Elementary from the event’s major sponsor, the Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation.

During the 10-week camp, Penick, an MC grad who’s in her third year teaching 7^th grade English at Clinton Junior High, lost 18 pounds and 10 inches from her waist and hips. She discovered through the program that she’s a runner and really enjoys that form of exercise. Penick also said she “gained knowledge in nutrition and fitness. It is not about how much skinnier I look; it is about how much better I feel on a day to day basis.”

The elements that Penick enjoyed the most about the boot camp were “the focus on team work and pushing oneself to the next level.”

Many of the fitness participants from Clinton and the Jackson area will put on their running shoes this weekend and join a 5K race at the state Capitol Saturday morning.