Employees in Weight Watchers Shed Half a Ton

 HR Analyst Anne Calle is seen here before and after she lost 50 pounds while enrolled in Weight Watchers at Work.

What do a Jersey cow, four NFL players and a Harley Davidson three wheel motorcycle have in common?

They all weigh about a half ton, or 1,000 lbs.   

That’s also how much weight a group of county employees has shed in recent months.

As of the end of April, 75 county employees enrolled in a Weight Watchers at Work program had lost  a combined 1,002 lbs., said Gabriela Berry, Human Resources Services Manager in the County’s Department of Human Resources. Berry and Deputy Human Resources Director Jan Mazone coordinate the San Diego County Employee Wellness Program, which launched in January. 

“I just gave away my whole wardrobe,” said Anne Calle, a Senior Human Resources Analyst for the County.  

Calle, whose Weight Watchers group meets at the County Operations Center, has contributed 50 lbs. towards the staggering overall total. And she says she’s not done. She hopes to lose another 30 lbs.

She credits her regimen of counting food’s point values, eating healthier and rising early to work out six days a week. The program is flexible enough that she didn’t have to drastically alter her lifestyle.

She said the shared common goal with her colleagues – and weekly weigh-ins--have inspired her too.

Calle’s group is one of five around the county that meets weekly. County employees have also formed Weight Watchers groups at the Hall of Justice downtown, the County Administration Center, the Public Health Services Complex - Rosecrans and the Mills Building/Trolley Towers on Imperial Avenue.

An initial pilot program launched last summer at the County Operations Center. Berry said that the effort worked out so well that the County expanded the program in February as part of the County’s Wellness Program.

County employees enroll in the Weight Watchers program and cover the costs. To start a new group, at least 15 employees must sign up and agree to meet regularly with a Weight Watchers representative.

There’s no end date in sight for the programs, said both Calle and Berry.

“I plan to become a lifetime member after I reach my goal weight,” Calle said.

She’s already bought some new clothes—and taken them to the tailor for re-fitting.