People all across KELOLAND have made a serious commitment to losing weight.

For the second year now, more than 200 teams have signed up to end the obesity epidemic through the Avera Community Weight Loss Challenge.  And those teams are holding each other accountable.

It’s a 12-week program but team members at SDN Communications only have a few months left to shed the weight.  Four teams have come together and of course, there's a little bit of competition

Don't let the name fool you; team members of SDN BROAD band are determined to slim down this summer.

“It's about getting healthy and keeping the company motivated as a whole to eat healthier, lose some weight and just all around feel better,” team leader Lynne Robertson said.

Robertson says the company has really stepped up. Three teams of eight and one of three are making the challenge all the more worthwhile.

“It seems that since this challenge has come about, we all kind of end up in the break room at the same time making our lunches and we're a lot more aware of what everyone's eating. So I think we're keeping each other a little bit more honest as far as not trying to sneak in burgers and fries,” Robertson said. 

The challenge within these walls hasn't come without a little incentive. Robertson offered her team $20 to whoever beat her weight loss during the second week of the challenge.  And team member Kerry Mulder accepted it with open arms.

“I've been struggling to lose weight my entire life and now that I've had a baby, it’s now even more in focus,” Mulder said.

Mulder became a new mom in December and is determined to lose 40 pounds by the end of the challenge.

“I count calories every day. I have to write it down or else I don't stay honest with myself. I've been trying to go to the gym over lunch,” said Mulder.

She's lost eight pounds in less than a month and with help from the company and Avera online, she's determined to shed the extra weight.

“It gets everybody's focus on eating healthy and we talk about eating healthy and share ideas. It’s great to have everybody on the same path,” Mulder said.