Signs posted at the FIT City Tyler Expo point people towards the weigh-in station.

The first Fit City Tyler Health and Wellness Expo on Saturday encouraged East Texans to connect with local health and fitness businesses, hospitals, clinics and organizations. In addition, the organization brought back Lighten Up East Texas — a program aimed at encouraging East Texans to lose weight — offering a cash incentive for the first time.

“We’ve never done an event like this in a big, open indoor facility,” NET Health CEO George Roberts said. The event was hosted at the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center. “So this is our first time .. I look around the room right now, it’s buzzing. I’m pretty excited.”

People in attendance could get information from the various booths, get their blood pressure checked and sign up for Lighten Up East Texas. After signing up, people can weigh-in. If they lose 5% of their starting weight, they are entered in the drawing to win $5,000. There are multiple locations open across East Texas for people to weigh in until Jan. 31 and weight-outs from April 29-May 3.

First-time participants found this an easier approach to losing weight as there is an incentive and people are doing it together. Christian Alexander, 35, signed up for the first time after hearing about Lighten Up East Texas from her mom. She hopes it will help her find motivation to lose weight. Similarly, Tyler resident Skyler Berry signed up after her mom, Jennifer Berry, told her about it.

“I have actually been wanting to lose weight,” Skyler said. “I was like, well, lose weight and have a prize, that sounds good to me. It’s easier too because it’s supported from the home and everyone’s doing it together.”

Some of the various organizations and businesses in attendance included: Bethesda Health Clinic, Special Health Resources, UT Health East Texas, CHRISTUS Health, City of Tyler Parks, Supplements Warehouse, University of Texas at Tyler School of Medicine, Clinic Under the Bridge, UT Health East Texas EMS, H2Go, Natural Grocers and Crunch Fitness.

Roberts and Dave Berry, former co-chair of Fit City Tyler and a former editor of the Tyler Morning Telegraph, founded Fit City Tyler in 2002 to help combat the rising obesity rates in East Texas. In 2010, obesity rates in East Texas were 29%. The rates have increased in East Texas to 38%. Through Lighten Up East Texas, people have lost 61,000 pounds from the last seven years the program was held, according to Roberts.

“We made an impact and we look at all of these people that are here today, part of the initial group from the city to our county to different hospitals and health clinics… and everybody else, they were behind us” Berry said. “I think we had a lot of community involvement and that made us successful. I think had the community not rallied behind us, we wouldn’t have made it to where we are now.”

Berry said people have told him how impactful Lighten Up East Texas was for them. It helped them lose weight when other attempts had not worked. Some people came back for second and third years to do the program.

Berry developed the Fit City Tyler mission: “One step, one bite, one health conscious decision at a time,” Roberts said. After people lose weight, Roberts asks them if they are excited about the prize. Many people will answer they are happy they feel better.

“My win here was I feel better,” Roberts said. “I’m actually feeling better now. People will tell you, they lose weight, they feel better.”