Since making a commitment to his most extreme fitness challenge yet, Samir Becic, Harper Collins author of the book ReSYNC Your Life and four-time winner of the award of No. 1 Fitness Trainer in America, has passed the halfway point of his quest to complete eight marathons in eight weeks while wearing compressed weights that match the equivalent of an obese person’s weight. Becic has officially completed five out of the eight marathons, with his sixth event slated for Sunday, March 3, at the Woodlands Marathon in Texas.
The Woodlands is a popular race in Texas, and is often used as a qualifier for the Boston Marathon, which is known as the world’s oldest and best known marathons. During each marathon, Becic wears a 73.5-pound weighted vest and shorts equivalent which, when multiplied by 1.6 to simulate the human mass of 117.6 pounds. With Becic already weighing in at 215 pounds, the total loaded weight on his body equals 332.6 pounds, which is equal to an obese weight.
Statistics show that 1 in 3 Americans are obese, and 360,000 deaths occur annually due to health complications related to obesity. Becic believes this epidemic needs to stop, and he needs the community’s help in order to end this crisis. “America currently holds the highest percentage of obesity in the world, at 35 percent nationwide,” Becic said. “My goal with this extreme fitness challenge is to raise awareness of the obesity epidemic in America, and hopefully bring it to an end so that we as a country can become the fittest nation in the world.”
Becic’s extreme fitness challenge began on Jan. 14, 2018, with the Chevron Houston Marathon, and will end on March 11, 2018, at the I Ran Flagships Marathon Bosnia and Herzegovina in Navarro, Texas. Becic completed the full 26.2-mile Chevron Houston Marathon in 5:52:48, and his live updates can be seen here. Prior to participating in the Chevron Houston Marathon on Jan. 14, Becic had never before run a marathon, and he is not an avid runner. On Jan. 20, he completed his second marathon in Dallas, and his live updates can be seen here. On Jan. 28, he ran a marathon in Sugarland, Texas, and finished with a time of 5:49:39, and his live updates can be seen here. On Feb. 4, he completed his fourth marathon in San Antonio, Texas, and his live updates can be seen here. On Feb. 18, he completed his fifth marathon in Austin, Texas, with his best time yet of 5:43, his live updates can be seen here.
Stay tuned to the Health Fitness Revolution magazine for Live Updates during his race!