YELLOW TEAM – Father and Daughter

This family lives in Minneapolis, MN.  O’Neal, 51 works as a USPS station manager.   He loves sports, especially football, having been both a player and a coach.   His brother’s recent death at 57 shocked O’Neal.  It also forced him to realize that his extra pounds could get in the way of living a long, healthy life.

O’Neal’s daughter Sunshine is 24 and is a restaurant server.  Like her dad, Sunshine is a former athlete, having competed in synchronized swimming.   She’s always been on the heavier side and has never made weight loss a priority.  Surrounded by unhealthy food at work and at home, Sunshine is unable to resist the temptations and has continued to gain weight.   She hopes that by teaming up with her dad, they’ll be able to tap into the competitive spirit that brought them success as athletes – and dump the unwanted pounds for good.

GREEN TEAM – Mother and Daughter

Mother Miggy is 48 and a chef from Pemberton, NJ.  She moved from NYC to Puerto Rico in her teens and was married, then divorced by 17.   She tries hard not to feel sorry for herself or her kids.  Her weight has fluctuated as many times as her careers.   Heaviness is prominent in her culture, but Miggy wants to prove to the Hispanic community that it’s possible to be lean and healthy.

Her daughter Migdalia is 28 and a homemaker living in Sanford, NC.  She says what’s on her mind, even when it causes disagreements with her mother.  Her family lacked the basic essentials when she was growing up and continued to struggle when they moved back to the U.S.  from Puerto Rico.   She attributes most of her weight gain to overeating as result of stress and the birth of her second child.  Her husband, a soldier, returned from Iraq and may be redeployed shortly.  Migdalia worries that her medical problems will continue to worsen if she doesn’t lose the extra pounds.

BLUE TEAM – Mother and Daughter

Cherita is 50 and is a homemaker in Houston, TX.  She feels great on the inside, but her body doesn’t show it.   Focused on her marriage, children and career for many years, she now realizes that it’s time to take care of herself.  She’s beaten cancer and wants to improve her health by losing weight.  Her goal:  to spend the next 50 years fulfilling the dreams she set aside in her first 50 years.

Daughter Victoria “Vicky” is a 22 year old student in Houston.   Always encouraged to dream big and achieve, the goal of a thinner body eludes her.  Vicky wants her outside to finally match her inside, so that she can impress the world with her beauty and brains.   In addition to cancer, her family has a history of diabetes, obsesity, stroke and heart disease.   Vicky and Cherita want to change their family’s medical legacy by embracing a life of fitness.