Dramatic makeover reveal held at Pearl Stable
Over the past three months, a dozen H-E-B Partners (employees) have been working hard to adopt healthy habits and shed pounds, and today H-E-B named Chris Sonnier, a shelf edge process manager at H-E-B headquarters in San Antonio, as the champion of its second-annual Slim Down Showdown competition.
Sonnier lost 53 pounds and nine inches, and gained a $10,000 grand prize.
Over the 12-week challenge, the 12 contestants lost a total of 460 pounds and 58 inches and showed off their healthier frames to hundreds of supporters in a dramatic makeover reveal ceremony at Pearl Stable.
The journey towards a healthy lifestyle not only changed their lives, but had a ripple effect on friends, family members and coworkers.
Contestants were allowed to choose buddies — husbands, wives, friends and family members — to cheer them on and accompany them on the journey, and more than 25,000 coworkers followed along via blogs and videos. In addition, H-E-B distributed a "Lunch and Learn" Slim Down Showdown toolkit to all its Partners to embark on their own 8-week challenge alongside the contestants. More than 4,500 participated, losing a total of 23,000 pounds.
Sonnier's "buddy," wife Donna Muth, received a $3,000 prize for helping her husband succeed, and each contestant received $1,000 for participating.
Veronica Diaz, a customer service specialist in San Benito, won the $2,500 Follower Favorite prize, and Albert Moreno, a team leader at the Weslaco Retail Support Center, won the $2,500 Wellness Wonder award.
The contest started in January with a weeklong wellness program at Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas, where contestants learned what foods to eat, how to control portions and how much exercise their body needs to stay healthy. Back home, H-E-B provided them with a therapist, nutritionist, life coach and gym membership to help them stay on the program.
"It is all mental," said Jessica Flores, a contestant from Houston in last year's Slim Down Showdown. "There is a reason why I got to where I was. If I felt bad, I went to sugar. Comfort was food."
The competition gave Flores the tools and emotional support she needed to change her life.
"It sounds like a cliché, but if I can do it, anybody can do it," Flores said. "I had been carrying these bad habits for over 20 years and I have lost more than 100 pounds. Every time I say it I am amazed."
H-E-B started the Slim Down Showdown as an internal competition, but is taking it public this year in its first-ever community Slim Down Showdown, a 16-week competition beginning in June.
Earlier this year, H-E-B invited Texans to apply online at Heb.com and received more than 500 applications. On May 14, H-E-B will announce the 25 Customers selected to compete for a $10,000 grand prize and a $5,000 "fan favorite" prize.
Contestants will be selected based on their willingness and ability to publicly share their journey through the wellness program and the resulting lifestyle changes through blogs and vlogs.
All contestants will come to San Antonio to participate in an intensive three and a half-day wellness program with experts from H-E-B, Methodist Healthcare and Cooper Aerobics Center. H-E-B will manage the contest, as well as nutritional and fitness education. Methodist Healthcare will provide medical oversight for the program, and Cooper will provide speakers for the program and manage health coaching.
Once they return home, contestants will receive weekly coaching and support in addition to the meal plans and fitness goals established during the wellness program. Overall winners will be announced in October at a Healthy at H-E-B Food & Fitness Festival in San Antonio.
H-E-B started the competition internally in 2011 with 15 Partner contestants, who participated in a 12-week transformation that inspired more than 15,000 other Partners to follow them along on their journey.
Together, the "fantastic 15," as they became known, lost more than 550 pounds and saw significant improvement on both their biometrics and their overall physical and emotional wellbeing.
Daniel Garza, an H-E-B store director in Brownsville, lost more than 60 pounds and won the $10,000 grand prize.
Married with four young children, Garza now cringes at the fast food he used to put on his table, and at the wing-eating contests he held with his daughter. His career had hit a plateau, his marriage was strained, and he blamed everyone but himself.
"In the morning when I woke up, I had five to 10 seconds of nothing, where my brain was still asleep and I couldn't remember what happened yesterday. I used to live for those few seconds," Garza said.
Changing his habits — and his family's habits — transformed his life.
"Now I wake up with a sense of being," Garza said. "If there is a problem from the previous day, I want to tackle it. It is like I'm drinking jet fuel for breakfast. Get up and go."
The Showdown is part of "Healthy at H-E-B," a comprehensive, long-term commitment to improve the health of Texans and provide them with fresh, healthy food that is affordable and easy to prepare.
H-E-B aims to inspire millions of Texans to adopt and stick to a healthy lifestyle through special offers on healthy food, fitness groups, events and competitions organized around the three critical pillars of health— food, body and life.
The initiative includes an estimated $20 million investment in lower prices on fresh produce as well as Healthy Savings meal solutions, a bundled offer with four items and recipes to show customer how to prepare a tasty, healthy meal. After a $4 coupon, the meals cost less than $8 to feed a family of four.
"We want to do everything we can to give customers the tools they need to adopt healthy habits such as cooking and eating healthy meals at home and getting at least 150 minutes of exercise per week," said Craig Boyan, President and COO of H-E-B.
The company launched "Healthy at H-E-B" in 2004 with its 76,000 Partners with overwhelming success.
"Over the past year, we've focused our energy on developing a culture of health for our Partners," said Kate Rogers, Vice President of Partner Communication and Engagement. "It seems like every day we hear about another great success story from a Partner who has decided to make a positive change. The next big step is engaging our customers in our health journey. Our goal is to be the health resource for all Texans who are looking for guidance and support."
About H-E-B
H-E-B, with sales of more than $18 billion, operates more than 335 stores in Texas and Mexico. Known for its innovation and community service, H-E-B celebrated its 105 anniversary in 2010. Recognized for its fresh food, quality products, convenient services, and a commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainability, H-E-B strives to provide the best customer experience at everyday low prices. Based in San Antonio, H-E-B employs more than 76,000 Partners and serves millions of customers in more than 150 communities. For more information, visit www.heb.com.
Contacts:
H-E-B
Shannon Hernandez, 210-316-2735
or
The Deberry Group
Melissa
Ludwig, 210-380-0733
Photos available upon request