By Liz McBreen
"Before I started the program, I felt like I had hit rock bottom. I was praying everyday for some kind of transformation. I finally decided to enter the challenge, and my husband and I began together," said Augello. The 33-year-old is now living out her dream working to rescue animals in need full time. "I just did not have enough confidence to do what I wanted to do before." She and her husband are also planning to move to Los Angeles in two months so that he can pursue his musical career.
The book by Phillips has been a best-seller since it hit the stands in 1997. Around the same time, the Body for Life competition began. The contest challenges individuals to change the way they live, and to begin following a healthy and active lifestyle.
The competition follows contestants from around the globe through a 12-week health and wellness program. At the end of the program, the candidates are ranked according to their physical transformation, apparent by before and after pictures, and their mental and emotional transformation, which is based on a questionnaire.
Augello explained that the program is based on a balanced diet. "There are no dips or mood swings. I constantly have energy, because I eat a nutritious diet." Although she has undergone a substantial physical change, Augello said that the mental change is more rewarding. "The changes come from the inside. The program makes you want to be a better person."
Shane Thomas has been a judge in the competition for three years. "The before and after pictures are really an amazing testament to what this lifestyle can do for people. Most of the contestants lead busy lives. They work full time, have families, and through the program, they learn to set goals and make changes," said Thomas.
When all the applications have been submitted, the judges evaluate the contestants and rank them in different categories. The person with the highest rank is deemed the Grand Master Champion, and first, second and third place winners are named in different age categories based on their rank.
According to Scott Carpenter, one of the coordinators for Augello's surprise visit, there has only been one Grand Master Champion in previous years. "This year there is one female and one male winner. Both were chosen because the results of the judges' evaluations were so similar." Each winner was awarded with a check for $50,000.
Augello and the male winner of the contest, Thomas Phillips, were chosen out of the 600,000 people who competed. The contestants turned their sedentary lifestyle into one of activity and high energy.
"These people are two classic examples of how everyday people can turn their lives around. They are positive role models, and others can look at them and say, if they can do it, I can do it," said Carpenter.
"When I met Thomas, we just instantly bonded, and totally related to each other. We felt the same way about the program," said Augello.
Phillips lives in New Jersey, and began the challenge because he had a lack of energy. "I am a post grad student, I work full-time and I have two children, and my relationships were beginning to suffer. I felt lethargic all the time." Looking for a way to change his lifestyle, Phillips began the program. "I have changed in such a positive way, and the results have been unbelievable."
Augello said that the program has changed her life completely. "I am more confident, and it feels like there is nothing I cannot do. I have learned to set goals, and I know now that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to, and it is all in this one book." Augello and her husband have encouraged friends of theirs to join the program as well, and she says that watching others succeed at it is just as rewarding as completing the challenge herself.
After the announcement, the winners were brought into Manhattan to visit two vitamin stores where they met with a large contingent of people who have taken on the Body for Life way of living, and the Augello and Phillips had a chance to mingle with them. "It was great to meet all those people who have changed their life this way. It is hard to understand the impact it has until you try it," said Augello, adding, "everyone who completes the twelve weeks is a winner."
