Page 38 - South Mississippi Living - January, 2016

PHYSICAL & FISCAL FITNESS dedication
TRANSFORMATIONS
Before
story by Ed Lepoma photos by
John Strickland and courtesy of Cherie Payne
4
An invitation to be a bridesmaid in a friend’s wedding two years ago was an incentive for 37-year-old Cherie Payne to
take a good look at herself. The mother of two, who teaches fifth grade at North Bay Elementary School in
Biloxi, was carrying around 184 pounds on her 5-foot- inch frame.
“I signed up for Get Fit, a weight loss competition at Cycology Fitness on Popps
Ferry Road in Biloxi,” she said. “From the moment I stepped through the doors, I
knew it was the gym for me.” She attended spin classes, Zumba, and Kickfit
— a high-energy fitness class — almost daily. “I also watched my diet, very closely, cutting
out those foods we love to eat such as bread, pasta, rice and sugar.”
Within 12 weeks, Payne had lost 24 pounds, but she vowed to push herself even more. She joined Brantley’s Ellison’s B.E. Fit Boot Camp, working out at venues all over the Gulf Coast. “We go to Jones Park, Hiller Park,
the Ocean Springs Bridge and other areas to run,” she explained.
“I will be running my first half-marathon in February,” she added.
Payne credited, “Brantley Ellison, Linda Buford and my B.E. Fit family who pushed me to reach the weight loss
goals and obtain a level of fitness that I never thought was possible.”
She competed in her second weight loss competition and won, having lost a total of 50 pounds. She is now down to 134, and credits part of her success to her husband and children who lent her daily encouragement.
“Although I have surpassed my goals, I continue to push myself every day. Working out and eating healthy is no longer
something I just do, it’s a way of life for me, and I wouldn’t change it for the world,” said Payne.
38 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • January 2016
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