The Fitness Challenge held its first Warm-up Challenge event on October 24, 2009, at CD-REC headquarters at 72 Bank Street. Personal trainer Amy Jones of  Where Is The Work-Out led participants through a series of events designed to begin the process of getting fit. "This event puts people through their paces and helps them learn what they'll have to do to get into shape over the coming weeks," commented Jones. Sponsored by the Diabetes Association, Inc. (DAI), Children In Balance, Community Development Recreation (CD-REC), the Fall River YMCA and Healthy City Fall River, the Warm-up signed up over 125 participants including over fifty nursing students from the Diman School of Practical Nursing and the UMass-Dartmouth College of Nursing. Students are each paired with a partner who also wants to improve their health status. Click here for photos of the sign-up event. Click here for photos of the news event. For more information, contact CD-REC Program Director Jamison Souza at 508-679-0922 or Healthy City Coordinator Dave Weed at 508-324-2411.

(Top row, left) Diman students Kelly Camara, Rachel Levesque, Theresa Moniz and Robin Bouchard are challenged to do 100 leg lifts. (Top row, center) Personal trainer Amy Jones meets with the participants. (Top row, right) Jennifer Mello and Heather Pacheco do their quota of leg lifts. (Middle row) Students complete 20 laps around the gym before running up and down three flights of stairs ten times. (Bottom row, left) Warm-up participants Jeff Estrella and his son, Jeff Jr., work on leg lifts. (Bottom row, center) Students Kelly Camara, Theresa Moniz, Donna Castro, Michelle Ferguson, Lina Rebelo and Donna Lauzon-Tavares applaud some of the winners of last year's Challenge who are participating in the Warm-up. (Bottom row, right) Diman Regional School of Practical Nursing student Jessica McLaren checks Warm-up participant Kerry Carbone's blood pressure.