Obese cops start losing weight

MANILA, Philippines — Officials of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) busted some moves on Tuesday as they stepped up weight reduction efforts for over 750 obese policemen to improve their mobility.

NCRPO director Maj. Gen. Debold Sinas led hundreds of police officers in a Zumba session in the first day of the project dubbed BMI (body mass index) reduction program at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig.

The program, which will run until end of March, targets Metro Manila police officers categorized as obese 2 (moderate-risk) and 3 (high-risk). 

“From this day until Feb. 18, you will be weighed daily. On March 31, if there is no substantial change, you will be administratively relieved from your posts to undergo training,” Sinas told policemen.

The police officers danced to the moves of Mocha Uson, who served as Zumba instructor along with two fitness coaches.

“The approach would be comprehensive and tailor-fitted for our target people. We divided them according to their BMI and they won’t be forced to suddenly shed weight,” Toni Saret of Fit Filipino Movement said.

Uson vowed to bring the whole crew of the Mocha Girls in the next physical exercises to “inspire” policemen.

Sinas, who weighs around 150 kilos, said he wanted to trim down to 110 kilos, which is the ideal weight for his height.

“But if I couldn’t I would not force myself to lose that much, I’m getting old. I will do it to the best of my ability,” Sinas told reporters, adding that he hopes to lose two kilos per week until the end of March.

He said those who would fail to shed excess weight would undergo summer camp for a month, where policemen would exercise daily every morning and afternoon and observe a planned diet.

The NCRPO Regional Mobile Force Battalion has crafted an obstacle course for the summer camp.

“If one month of summer camp will not suffice, we will push through with another month of rigid training and exercises” Sinas said.