Get fit: They did it! - Women feel better and live healthier after boot camp

This is the last in a six-week series, Get Fit Carson City, following three local women as they complete a fitness boot camp, and offering advice and resources for anyone who wants to get fit and live a healthier life.

Jill De Pasquale

After losing 15 pounds, 10 percent body fat and nearly 17 inches from her hips, waist, bust and thighs, Jill De Pasquale was named the biggest loser for the six-week Kaia Fit boot camp.

But she's more satisfied, she said, with what she has gained.

"I'm inspired," she said. "I feel like a kid again. I feel like I did when I was younger that I can do anything."

She recently attended a pediatric cancer camp with her 8-year-old daughter, AnneMarie, who has non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The year before, she said, she realized she was too heavy and not strong enough to complete the ropes course there.

"This year, I climbed right up the pole and went across the rope," she said. "It was great."

She said the greatest contributing factor to her weight loss was a change in diet, cutting out sugar and flour and restricting her dairy. She also had to give up her late-night snacking after putting her four kids to bed.

"I used to just sit on the couch and relax and eat," she said.

By changing her eating habits, her family now eats healthier and is more active.

"They're riding their bikes now," she said. "They're doing their scooters. We walk the dog more."

Her main goal, she said, was to change her family's eating habits by September when AnneMarie concludes chemotherapy.

"I wanted us to make these lifestyle changes so when she's off chemo, we're already in full gear," De Pasquale said. "That's going to help her long-term."

In addition to weight she lost before starting the program, De Pasquale, 35, dropped from 225 to 200 pounds. She wants to continue losing 15 pounds every six to eight weeks.

She hopes to prove to herself and other mothers it can be done despite a busy schedule, even while battling a life-threatening disease in the family.

Along the way, she's celebrating every success - including the recent purchase of a pair of capris pants.

"There was no 'W' behind the size," she said. "Yay! I was so excited."

When Tamsen Bradley, 41, went to try on wedding dresses last week, she grabbed the size she'd tried on months ago.

"It felt a little loose," she said. "So I tried the next size down."

She ended up buying a dress three sizes smaller than the original gown she was looking at.

She lost 10 pounds over the last six weeks, bringing her total weight loss to nearly 20 pounds and 16 inches.

"I feel stronger," she said.

Not only is she stronger, but her soon-to-be blended family has made fitness changes as well.

Her fiance has now joined the men's program and her teenage daughters are working out, too.

She includes the children in preparing healthy menus.

"We work on meals together," she said. "They're teenagers, so it's hard for them to make these decisions on their own."

Being profiled in the newspaper, she said, helped to keep her accountable when she left her home.

"Everywhere we went, somebody wanted to know how my results were coming," she said.

She expects the improvements the family has made with their health will make them a stronger unit after the July 31 wedding.

"It's brought us all together as a family," she said.

Before joining the Kaia Fit program, Robin Christy, 43, felt hopeless. She'd been overweight most of her life and suffered the consequences.

She was in failing health and being active was too painful.

Now, she's lost 12 pounds, feels healthier, even rides her bike to and from work most days.

"The bike is really helping a lot," she said. "I feel great. I feel a lot better than I did."

Her diet now consists of less sugar. She uses a juicer to make fresh fruit and vegetable juice in place of drinking soda.

She said she's noticed substantial changes in her mind and spirit, as well as her body.

"The exercise program has been one of the biggest blessings in my life," she said. "It's bringing my bones alive - makes me feel alive."

She plans to continue working out as well as making her three-mile commute to work on a bicycle as often as possible.

"I'm addicted," she said. "Your body just gets used to exercise. I can't go back now."