Mandie had been overweight most of her life. She had gained and lost weight on all types of fad diets throughout her life, but as an adult (and after her pregnancies) she became obese. One day in September of 2013, Mandie decided to go for a walk with her daughter and her life was changed. They only walked a mile or so, but she felt hot…sweaty…and alive! That very day she made the decision to change her ways.
Her life changes happened quickly. Mandie signed up for a 3k local run that was at the end of the same September. She would get up between 4:00 and 5:00 every morning to train and run. Mandie was able to transform a room in her house into a makeshift gym and started her training at home. Her main goal for the 3k event was to not walk any of it and she was able to accomplish that goal. Although it took her 28 minutes to do a 3k, she didn’t walk and that’s all that mattered.
The next week was her birthday and she wanted to celebrate with a 5k run. Mandie loved the way she was feeling and she knew she had to just keep going! She discovered an ad on Facebook for Spartan Race. It looked like something so cool and different that she knew she had to try it. That June, Mandie convinced her sister to do the Hurricane Heat and Sprint back to back.
This race was her most sentimental event to date because she did it with her sister. Each year they make sure to do that race together for their “Spartan anniversary”. Also, from this event Mandie’s training changed and she was able to add in a mixture of weights, cardio, and some OCR specific routines. Mandie continued to use her home gym and she would teach herself workouts through research on Spartan and other OCR sites.
In September 2014 (one year later), Mandie started working at a local fitness facility…Peak Fitness. Her boss, Nic Palidwar started helping her with her training. She had lost about 120 pounds by this point and went for an abdominoplasty to remove about 10 pounds worth of loose skin along her core area. In January of 2015, Mandie was able to resume her training and she has been training with her boss ever since. Her parents have also helped her along her journey by providing encouragement; love, support, wisdom, and a swift kick in the butt when needed.
The hardest and most challenging event that Mandie has participated in was the race in Owls Head in Montreal this year. Mandie and her racing buddy, Keith Oftebro, have been traveling around this season doing a bunch of races together and they raced both days. Both days they raced elite…the super the first day and the beast the second day. The super was so hard that she contemplated not even doing the beast the second day, but she knew she had to. She knew that her training would help get her to the finish line. Although it took her just over 7 hours, Mandie was able to cross the finish line and earn her double trifecta for the year.
Mandie’s current training schedule is Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are functional weight training. Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays are endurance days (teaching classes at peak, long runs, hill repeats, etc.). Sundays are used for “rest” days, but as a single mom of two…Mandie doesn’t know what “rest” means. She also uses Sundays as her meal prep days so that way she is able to stay accountable for what she eats. Mandie was heaviest at 310 pounds and she is currently about 170 pounds.
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Allison Dacus
Latest posts by Allison Dacus (see all)
- OCR Transformations- Tara Lind - December 18, 2016
- OCR Transformations- Amelia Koeppel - November 1, 2016
- OCR Transformations- Mandie Hoppe - September 11, 2016
