Peggy Haag of Great Bend lost her mother eight years ago, and has been raising two small children without the wisdom and guidance of their grandmother.
Realizing she didn’t want the same situation for her daughters, Haag took a look within, realized her health had not been the priority it should be, and made some drastic changes in her diet and level of physical activity.
She lost 60 pounds in the last two years and has been running with a local group, Runners of Barton County, to train for a half marathon in Hutchinson.
“I started out thinking, ‘If I could lose 20 pounds, that would be amazing,’” she said. “I had success and I just kept going. We can prevent our kids from losing us too soon, so they don’t have to go through that pain.”
Haag said her transformation was holistic, from making exercise a priority to a drastically improved diet.
“Before, I had a lot of processed foods, large portions and was eating ice cream every single night,” she said. “I had to change what I ate to lose some weight so my fitness could catch up. Now that I exercise regularly, I can have some of those treats once in awhile, but definitely not every night.”
Haag said the difference these choices have made in her life is dramatic.
“I’m six sizes smaller. I have more muscle than I’ve ever had and I have more energy and am more fit than ever before,” she said.
Having lost weight while training for a race, Haag has chosen to volunteer for the upcoming #YP5K and Half Marathon on Oct. 10, the mission of which is to foster awareness for prioritizing a healthy lifestyle and taking care of oneself. Haag said making yourself a priority is not selfish; in fact the opposite is true.
“You have to make your family the reason, not the excuse,” she explained. “I do it for my kids.”
The #YP5K & Half Marathon is set for Oct. 10, starting at Veterans Memorial Park. The half marathon starts at 7 a.m. and the 5K begins at 8 a.m. Registration for the 5K is $35 and the half marathon is $55. Registration can be done online by visiting runsignup.com/races and searching for “YP5K.” The event can also be found on Facebook.