Pastor Apelu Tapuai of the Assembly of God at Faia'ai in Savai'i is making it his New Year's resolution to continue reaping the benefits of healthy living - a message he also wants to impart to others. 

His mission came after he conquered a weight loss challenge put together by Kingdom Fitness in Savai'i that went on for eight weeks and was concluded in the last week of 2020. 

Pastor Apelu weighed 152 kilograms when he registered for Kingdom Fitness' eight-week weight loss challenge. 

His weight dropped down to 128 kilograms after just eight-weeks: a loss of more than 23 kilograms. 

The results of the eight-week challenge were satisfying to see, said the founder of Kingdom Fitness, Pauli Tevita Tariu. 

"This is our third weight loss challenge and we are happy to see that the numbers of participants have increased and so as the motivation of the participant to lead a healthy lifestyle," Pauli said. 

"For this challenge, our heaviest participant weighed 172 kilograms. We've also had participants come all the way from the other side of the island to join and exercise with us during this challenge. 

"We've had a participant from Samalaeulu and one from Fai'aai. It was such a great joy to see the end results and to see them motivated to exercise and try their best to lose weight."

The type of workout carried out at Kingdom Fitness is called "zumbata" Pauli said. 

The exercise is a combination of two different exercise programmes: Zumba and tabata. Pauli also acknowledged the support of Fana Lee Zumba Fitness who shared their expertise in coaching Zumba with Kingdom Fitness trainers. 

Pauli also made special mention to the generosity of New Zealand company Henderson Cars who have offered to sponsor any of Kingdom Fitnesses weight loss challenges: 

"They've given us their support and said they will sponsor whatever health challenge we plan in the future. 

Pauli said every weight loss challenge is also about imparting messages and lessons to participants: "For any challenge we have, we focus on four things not only to help them with their weight loss journey but also to help them maintain their healthy lifestyle even after the challenge. 

"Those four areas are nutrition, hydration, exercise, and getting enough rest." 

Taratoa Matamua who weighed 118.4 kilograms won second place after eight weeks, after losing 17.2 kilograms. 

Moefiti Moananu who weighed 145.6 kilograms won third place with a final weight of 125 kilograms. 

Kingdom Fitness Savai'i started in 2018 after Pauli participated in the Fika Fou program by TV1.

Their first weight loss challenge began in August 2020, and continued for six weeks.