Spots are Still Available for Remote Applicants

Trinity Hospital Twin City in Dennison, Ohio, is currently accepting virtual applicants for the fall 2024 session of its incredibly successful Fit for Life program.

The in-person class, which is completely filled, will begin on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, at the Dover Library, located at 525 N. Walnut St. in Dover, Ohio, and will meet every Tuesday evening for 12 weeks from 5:30 p.m. to approximately 6:30 p.m.

“We allow 50 in-person participants, and we have met that cap,” Kelly Bowe, Program Coordinator, said, adding, “After our local newspaper, The Bargain Hunter, covered our program, demand to join Fit for Life went through the roof. I was getting 10 to 15 calls per day!

“However, we’re still accepting virtual students, and I must emphasize, there is no limit on the number of virtual students who can enroll. If you’re not sure about joining an in-person class–and from experience, I know there are many people out there who are uncomfortable in that setting–this virtual class is perfect for you.”

Bowe stressed that virtual students have all of the advantages that in-person students have.

“They’re able to watch the Tuesday night class ‘virtually’ on the private Facebook page set up just for this class,” she said. “They can ask me questions during the class and I relay the questions to [Dr. Timothy McKnight, Founder and Director] and he answers them live.”

To register for the fall class, please go to www.trinitytwincity.org and tap on the Fit for Life picture on the front page. Then, tap on “Tickets” to register.

What is Fit for Life?

• Fit for Life is a 12-week, individualized program, conducted twice a year, that emphasizes realistic lifestyle changes resulting in enhanced levels of health and fitness.
• The goal of the Trinity Health System Twin City Medical Center Fit for Life program is to provide an innovative, multi-agency means to reduce the number of overweight and obese men and women of all ages in Tuscarawas County and the surrounding counties of Carroll, Guernsey, and Harrison.
• Participants meet once weekly for about 60 minutes, either in-person or virtually, and use customized fitness and diet plans developed by the Trinity Hospital Twin City Fit for Life team.
• The fall class, which began back in September, is the largest one yet, with 73 participants, 50 of whom are in-person and 23 of whom are virtual.
• Participants have joined the class virtually from Austin, Texas; Chicago, Ill.; Atlanta, Ga.; Utah; North Carolina; and West Virginia.
• The Fit for Life program was featured by the Rural Health Information Hub because of the many lives it has transformed.

How is Fit for Life different?

• Fit for Life is physician-led, Dr. McKnight said, which distinguishes it from other wellness and weight-loss programs.

“As a practicing primary-care provider and hospitalist, my day-to-day interactions with health and disease bring relevant and timely, crucial information about the latest disease states and healing opportunities,” he explained. “People love the fact that this program is physician-led and physician-inspired.”

• Fit for Life is comprehensive, while still allowing the individual to make personal decisions regarding their own lifestyle changes.

“They do this by the inspiration that comes to them after the information has been presented and key questions are posed,” Dr. McKnight said. “Based on current strategies in evidence-based medicine, it empowers people with information, so that they do not feel victim of a healthcare system that they often perceive wants to push prescription medication and rarely addresses the root cause of disease.”

• Topics cover the most common primary-care conditions seen in the office, which allows Dr. McKnight to assist patients in understanding why they have the condition and how the body will try to heal it. The key to this approach is learning to live in harmony with nature’s lessons of healing.

“This program reflects my passion for nutrition, exercise, and treating the entire person,” Dr. McKnight said. “This means treating their physical body, as well as their spiritual, mental, and emotional make-up. I really believe it addresses the entire person. I try my best to be a role model for class members. In my sixties, I am doing things physically that I never thought were possible. However, by applying the principles of this program, they are universal and they work.”

How are classes conducted?

• A private Facebook page is set up specifically for the current class.
• Three to four lessons are posted to that page; each of these lessons is approximately 25 to 30 minutes long.
• The class members read the “Chapter of the Week” and watch the lessons as their schedule allows.
• Their total weekly time commitment with watching the videos, reading their chapter, and attending the weekly meeting is approximately 3 to 3.5 hours per week.

“This makes it so nice for young parents and class members who work full time,” Bowe said. “They can watch during the time of day where they’re able to quiet down, relax, and concentrate on the lessons.”

• The Fit for Life Facebook page also offers support, encouragement, recipes, exercises, and demonstration videos from Dr. McKnight, Bowe, and other members of the class.
• By using this Facebook page regularly, the class members are able to get to know each other better.
• The participants then meet every Tuesday evening at 5:30 for approximately one hour.

“Dr. McKnight and I meet with the in-person participants at the Dover Library in Dover, Ohio,” Bowe said. “I weigh everyone weekly and counsel them through their journey.”

• Dr. McKnight facilitates a weekly PowerPoint presentation to quickly review the chapter and take any questions the class members may have. Dr. McKnight also invites guest speakers to talk with the class.

“Dr. McKnight shares so much more additional information to help them with their journey,” Bowe said. “He shares all of the new information he learns through

his research and medical conferences, and he offers each class the most up-to-date information as he learns it.”

• The virtual participants also tune into the Facebook page at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and are able to see everything the in-person class sees.

“They can ask questions and interact as well. I call them each week to record their weight, counsel them, and answer any questions they have,” Bowe said, adding, “I feel that our fall session is the very best version of Fit for Life to date.”

Testimonials number in the hundreds

At the end of each 12-week session, Dr. McKnight said they allow participants to share their stories.

“There have been so many moving stories over the years. They normally leave Kelly and me in tears and fill us with gratitude and determination to continue to reach out and touch as many people as are willing to listen.”

Of the nearly 4,000 Fit for Life graduates over the last 16 years, Dr. McKnight said all of them have given the program their highest recommendation to friends and family.

“We have seen people lose over 100 pounds of weight, reverse chronic pain, stop taking medications, start running 15 miles a week, and most importantly, have an excitement for new opportunities in life they did not anticipate,” he said. “We have seen people heal as they have forgiven others and most often forgiven themselves. We have seen lives saved, marriages healed, and hope restored.”

Bowe said her favorite success story belongs to Bob, whose name has been changed to protect his privacy. When Bob came to the first class, she said, he used a walker and could hardly breathe. He had to stop to rest several times before he could even make it into the classroom.

“He shared with me that his health was bad since he injured himself years before,” Bowe recalled. “He had become sedentary so his weight increased considerably. He shared that he had diabetes issues and congestive heart failure. He had tried numerous diet plans and nothing worked.”

Because of his health issues, Bob was unable to work and was mostly housebound. It was difficult for him to even go to the doctor, and friends had to drive him to the class.

“Each week I would weigh Bob and talk with him,” Bowe said. “His whole demeanor started to change. He followed Dr. McKnight’s program and did all of the assignments Dr. McKnight asked the class to do.”

By the end of the 12 weeks, Bob had lost over 40 pounds and was smiling all the time. He wasn’t using his walker, and he made it into class without stopping to rest.

“Dr. McKnight and I kept in touch with Bob, and after one year, he was down 125 pounds and was working,” Bowe said. “His lifestyle change improved his diabetes, and the weight loss helped the congestive heart failure symptoms.

Bob amazes me every time I see him. He praises Dr. McKnight and the Fit for Life

program and says that Dr. McKnight ‘saved his life.’”

“There are hundreds of people who have had these experiences,” Dr. McKnight added. “All of them are my heroes. They have each touched my heart and deepened my resolve to change as many lives as I possibly can.”

For more information and additional testimonials about Fit for Life, please visit their website by clicking here.

Registration to virtually join the Fall Fit for Life Class 2024 is ongoing. Go to www.trinitytwincity.org and click on “For Your Health” followed by “Fit for Life” and “Register Here” to sign up.

The next Fit for Life class will start, both in-person and virtually, on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, at the Dover Library in Dover, Ohio, at 5:30 pm.

Registration for the winter session will begin in early December, with classes starting mid-January.

If your media organization would like to interview Dr. McKnight, please let Laurie know (contact information in the header of this press release) and we’ll work out the logistics.

For more information, check out this extensive profile The Bargain Hunter recently did of Fit for Life.