Retro Fitness gym members were given quite the incentive to really take their New Year’s resolutions serious this year and put their health first. The nation’s leading low-cost, high-value fitness franchise recently completed a 90-Day Challenge – with the grand prize of $10,000 going to the member who achieved the greatest overall percent decrease in body weight.

During the 90-Day Challenge, Retro Fitness personal training clients had 90 days to transform their bodies and lose unwanted pounds. An initial weigh-in took place in the beginning of the competition, followed by a mid-challenge weigh-in after 45 days and the final weigh-in after the 90 day period. The top three participants came away from the 90-Day Challenge with prizes; the third place finisher received $500 and a free 12-month membership and the runner-up took home $1,000 and a free 12-month membership. The member who experienced the greatest percent change in his or her bodyweight won the grand prize of $10,000.

“We are continuously impressed with the commitment level we see during the 90-day challenge, the numbers are striking but it’s the inspirational stories and transformations that are really jaw dropping,” stated Eric Casaburi, CEO and founder of Retro Fitness. “We hope our members’ perseverance has the power to inspire and drive others to prioritize their wellness.”

The first place winner of the 90-Day Challenge was Giovanna Baratto, a member of the Florham Park  Retro Fitness. She took the lead of the 90-Day Challenge with a drop in body weight from 181.2 to 128.4 lbs., totaling a 29.14 percent decrease.

Baratto is a single mom, veteran, and cancer survivor who pushed beyond her circumstances to achieve her fitness goals and hopes to inspire others to do the same.

Baratto was in the U.S. army as a computer hardware/software specialist for 11 years before she was medically discharged due to thyroid cancer in 2005. Although she was devastated, it was a blessing in disguise because her unit was being deployed to Iraq and her son was only 10 at the time.

Initially she was misdiagnosed with asthma and was pumped with heavy doses of prednisone steroids.  She went from a size four to a size 20 in one year. That’s when she went to an otolaryngologist on her own for a second opinion. The specialist found thyroid cancer. Her thyroid was also the size of a grapefruit which was cutting off her windpipe and was removed within the month. Your thyroid controls your metabolism and your energy level.

Both her endocrinologist and family doctor told her not to expect to get back into her size four ever again mostly because of her age and lack of metabolism. However, she wanted to join the Wounded Warrior’s cycling team to support disabled veterans so she had to get back to cycling more than 100 miles. She teamed up with personal trainer, Justin Roberts, at Retro Fitness in Dec. 2015 and, when he saw how determined and strong she was, he told her about competing in the 90-Day Challenge.

Retro Fitness was founded in 2004 by entrepreneur Eric Casaburi. It has evolved from a regional Northeast gym concept into a national fitness system with more than 145 gyms open in 16 states. Under Casaburi’s leadership, Retro Fitness is expanding its footprint with more than 100 gyms in its development pipeline and plans to open 200 gyms in the next two years in new, major markets throughout the U.S.

Each Retro Fitness location is equipped with a full-service fitness center, including 60-100 pieces of equipment supplied by leading manufacturers. For more information, visit www.retrofitness.com.