USA Fit members come from different backgrounds and have varying goals. The common themes are their commitment to their training and their enthusiasm for reaching their goal. Read below for some of our members and coaches successes!

Rich, Woodlands Fit, Organizer

I was a runner in high school and part of college. I had run three marathons in those years with my first one being at 17. I even ran a 3:15 when I was 20 years old.

But then I went away to college and got sidetracked, discovered beer and cigarettes and that was the end of my running career. 12 years later I woke up and looked at myself in the mirror. I was fat, unhappy with my life in every aspect and decided I wanted to do something about it. So I hired a personal trainer, changed my diet, quit smoking and with her encouragement decided to start running again. That is when I heard about Houston Fit so I signed up.

My first year was in 1997, I was lucky. I met a great Houston Fit coach and she asked me to be an assistant coach because of my previous running experience. I finished the marathon that year which was the famous ICE STORM Marathon. I lost 50 pounds that year. I realized that if I could finish a marathon that I could do anything I set my mind to. With my new attitude and confidence my career and personal life took off. I met my wife Ginger the next year, we married in 1999 and two years later had our first son Davis.

So when I say I'm living the American Dream I really mean it. If I would not have joined Houston Fit I don't know where I would be right now. As organizer at Woodlands Fit I tell my story every chance I get. The main message is YOU CAN DO ANYTHING YOU SET YOUR MIND TO. Dreams do come true. All you have to do is have the courage to work hard to get them.

I love the idea of helping people make those life changes.

Carrie, Round Rock Fit Member

Round Rock Fit is responsible for helping me get back in shape after having my third child last spring. I was able to lose 20 pounds as well as take up a new form of exercise. I had never been a runner in the past and now I am thanks to Coach Kat! Five years ago I was diagnosed with a melanoma and I thought I was going to die at the ripe age of 28. It has been a hard five years since I have 3 small children under the age of 5. I was pregnant at the time of my diagnosis. Round Rock Fit has helped take my mind off my problems and helped me get on with my life! I am forever grateful and have found Both Coach Kat and Mark to be very inspiring. I hope I get to be around another 60 years! I feel optimistic when I run and it has really given me renewed purpose in life!

Thanks a million!

Bobby, Bay Area Fit Member

Since joining BAF, I've gained 20 new friends and lost 30 pounds. I've connected with a whole new group of people with widely diverse interests while my favorite food list has changed from donuts, mashed potatoes and chicken fried steak to oatmeal, fruit smoothies, and rice cakes with honey. Personal energy, patience with the family, and self-confidence at work are through the roof while blood pressure, triglycerides, cholesterol, and resting pulse rate have fallen off the table. I'm 49 years old, in the best shape of my life and have no doubt added 10 years to my life expectancy. I joined Bay Area Fit in the hopes that the program would allow me to run in a marathon. What I found was a bunch of new friendships, a profound improvement in physical conditioning, and a reawakening of spirit such as I have not felt in many years. Oh yeah, I also came dangerously close to qualifying for Boston in my first marathon - a piece of unfinished business that will be addressed within the year - but that's truly secondary. Perhaps you've heard the motto "Marathoning - It Will Change Your Life"? I guarantee it changed mine; and in no small way. Thanks Bay Area Fit!! See 'ya Saturday morning!"

Patty, Bay Area Fit Member

I have watched many friends complete marathons and was always a spectator on the sidelines, thinking I could never achieve what they had done. When I decided to train for my first marathon, I knew it would be a significant physical and mental challenge - like no other I had faced before. I don't think that I would have completed my training without the support of this group - in fact, I know that I probably would have quit had I been on my own. The long, hot Saturday mornings seemed endless, but on January 16, 2005, I started and finished my first marathon, and it was totally worth it! Finishing is an awesome experience and I can't wait to do it again!

Ed, DC Fit Member

One day in April 2003 I was walking my dog on the Mt. Vernon trail with my girlfriend. I weighed about 298lbs. When I got back to my car, there was a DC Fit flyer on it. It said "Run a marathon, you can do it! Train with DC Fit!". Something inside me just clicked, and I was never the same person from that moment. "I'm going to do it", I told my girlfriend, who didn't really believe me. I told her that I was going to run a marathon even though I couldn't even run a mile without stopping to walk.

I trained all Spring, Summer and Fall and ran the Marine Corps marathon later that year in under 5 hours. I've lost 100lbs since then and my life has completely changed. During training there were many obstacles, many doubters, all of which I was able to conquer through positive thinking. The lessons I've learned are to focus, set goals and NEVER QUIT! I use that philosophy when training as well as in life. That flyer on my car made me a better person.