By ALESHA CAPONE
AFTER Olga Miritis lost some weight, her son Zachary was delighted by his ability to hug her with joined hands.
Ms Miritis said she “nearly started crying in the middle of a soccer field” when her son made the observation at a sports game, after she lost several kilos.
“It was the first hug my son gave me where he could get his little arms around me,” she said.
Ms Miritis recently lost 27.6kg and won the Fernwood 12 Week Challenge – an annual competition which aims to help customers become fitter.
Ms Miritis said she won the Lighten Up category of the challenge, through healthy eating and exercising at the Tullamarine Fernwood Fitness gym.
Ms Miritis said one of her main motivations for taking part in the challenge was to set a good example for her children Kira, Jemma and Zachary- aged 12, nearly 11 and eight years respectively.
“I told them the healthier I am, the better mum I could be for them,” she said.
“I decided in 12 weeks I would give it 100 per cent and trained seven days a week.”
In addition to exercising, Ms Miritis attributed her weight-loss success to using her “common-sense” to eat healthy food, plus avoiding processed cuisine and saturated fats.
“You can have the best gym and the best nutrition, but it won’t work unless you have the right mindset,” she said.
Ms Miritis said she was determined to complete the challenge for her children and best friend Tina, who worked at Tullamarine Fernwood Fitness.
The newly-buff mother said she hoped to run a half-marathon with her husband in October.
She is also completing her Certificate IV in Fitness and is set to become a qualified Zumba instructor in August.
“The vanity side – looking nicer in clothes and being able to buy more lovely new clothes – is just a side effect of being fit,” Ms Miritis said.
She also won a new Suzuki Alto GL car after winning the Fernwood Challenge.
