This ain't no summer camp, kids

It's a lot like summer camp. Not the crafty, archery, campsong, outdoor gettin’ dirty camp of our youth but I've discovered some distinct similarities that exist between the Largest Loser Competition teams and Summer Camp.

Or perhaps it’s just a group thing.

Largest Loser: 12 complete strangers form a group with a common goal. Lose weight. But that, in and of itself, is not the goal. We, as a team, are expected to perform as a cohesive unit. We run together, sweat during the same workouts and eat following the same guidelines. The workouts are strenuous and sometimes, seemingly impossible. But as a group, we make it work.

Summer Camp: 8 complete strangers, form a ‘cabin’ with a common goal to not let the others know the extent of their homesickness. And to be the beat out ‘wolf’ cabin for first dibs to the canteen line or achieve the white swim bracelet, (which means you could swim to the middle of the lake and back) or hit that bullseye in archery.

Fast forward a few weeks.

Summer Camp: You had people you couldn’t remember ever not knowing, pen pals for life, friends to complain about the hike with, roll your eyes at the counselors and make up silly skits with.

Largest Loser: Over our past 4 weeks, Green Team has bonded over our common goal. The team goal of winning: or at least the understanding that we will do better than the others.  Which isn’t to say we WILL win.  Confused? Our trainers are focusing on getting us to do the best we can as a cohesive unit. Working together to accomplish a common end.  Stand up and finish as an individual for the good of the whole team. There are no magic numbers, no speeds by which we are meant to excel, no past achievements or records to break. Because the competition is as unique as we are. Made up of individuals and teams of strangers.

Yes, they are looking at the scale, but it represents only one aspect of what it says about our team.

In four weeks (going on five now…) new friendships have been made. Despite differences in fitness history, personal backgrounds, our family lives and jobs, we have forged friendships that intertwine outside of the ‘training’ sessions. Remember the first anxiety filled days of summer camp? Nervous laughter, small talk about an aspect of life back home, as you try to find common ground; a beginning to this year’s ‘camp story’. We were thrown into this, with that same first few days. As the weeks progress, our definitions of  ‘can’ and ‘can’t’ are re-defined. We’ve found common ground as we push through our workouts, support and nurture our teammates through inspiring emails, texts, random shouts of ‘Go Green!!’ on the fitness floor. We are a force to be reckoned with, an army of people on a mission. To get fit, to eat better and live healthier.  Like summer camp, these 12 strangers are learning new skills, bonding (and sometimes whining or rolling our eyes at the trainers, I’ll admit it) over the challenges, having some fun in the process and making some memories that will stay with us for life.