For 10 months in 2019, the city’s Facebook page for its new weight-loss and wellness initiative featured regular posts about exercise opportunities and healthy eating tips. Then in December, 2019, the posts stopped.

But by the following new year, Take if Off, Toledo seemed to have fizzled. And now all that’s left is a Facebook page and Instagram account. Even its website, takeitofftoledo.com, is no longer active.

Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz had announced the “Take it Off, Toledo” campaign during his 2019 State of the City address to encourage residents to lose a collective one million pounds. The initiative was modeled after a similar effort in Oklahoma City a decade ago, and challenged Toledoans to make healthier choices.

“I know we can lose a million pounds, and that’s if I’m the only person who signs up,” the mayor quipped in his address acknowledging his own struggle to lose weight. “We’re going to do this together, and I’m going to do this too, because the stats are heartbreaking when it comes to the citizens of our community.”

In 2017, when Mr. Kapszukiewicz was running for mayor, his health report came with a letter from his doctor, Dr. Sarma Katrapati.

His letter to The Blade dated said that, "in my medical opinion, Mr. Wade Kapszukiewicz is in sound physical and mental condition to perform duties as the mayor of Toledo if elected."

In response to the details sought by The Blade, Mr. Kapszukiewicz reported cholesterol and triglyceride numbers that were "desirable." His blood pressure at the time of his visit was 132/88 mm/hg, with a resting heart rate of 72 beats per minute.

The Blade was told that Mr. Kapszukiewicz stands 6 feet, 2 inches and weighs 240, which gave him a body mass index of 30.8. That body mass reading put him in the obese category. His current weight wasn’t available. 

In March of 2019, the mayor said he was wanted to be upfront about his own weight struggle, and that he had previously discounted the health risks because his blood pressure and cholesterol are in a healthy range, but realized the extra pounds will have more consequences at age 66 than at age 46 in 2019.

His very public persona also came with responsibility, he said.

"I have come to understand that ... a big part of this job is setting an example, starting conversations, [and] showing leadership," he said.

Today, many Toledo and Lucas County residents struggle with weight-related health concerns, according to local data. Three in four adults in the county are overweight or obese, according to the most recent Lucas County Health Assessment. One-fifth of adults surveyed had not exercised once in the past week.

According to the Take it Off, Toledo Facebook page, the initiative garnered 500 sign-ups after its April, 2019 official start. Area hospitals, the YMCA, United Way, Metroparks Toledo, and the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department partnered with the city to host events and promote the effort.

City leaders attribute the program’s failure to the coronavirus pandemic. As it became clear in early 2020 that the deadly virus was spreading through the United States, preparing for and responding to the crisis took over the bulk of the Kapszukiewicz administration’s time, the mayor said. 

“It gradually got moved to the back shelf of all the things we had to do, and that’s a shame. It’s something I wish hadn’t happened, but it’s the reality of what the pandemic did to us,” he said. “There were other things that got sidetracked as well. I still believe it was a good idea, a good initiative, and something I’m willing to entertain reengaging with as our world goes back to normal.”

Gretchen DeBacker, acting spokesman for the city, said the administration spent a few hundred dollars for printing and marketing, but that’s it. The logo design was donated, and the community partners worked on the project at no cost. Between Facebook and Instagram, the initiative had about 1,600 followers, she said.

“We had $10,000 dedicated to the marketing and promotions,” Ms. DeBacker said in an email. “We just never got to it in 2020.”

Toledo-Lucas County Health Commissioner Eric Zgodzinski said the program “had a fantastic start,” but new initiatives take time to build momentum. Once the pandemic hit Toledo in March, 2020, it was clear Take it Off, Toledo took a back seat.

Mr. Zgodzinski said beyond that specific program, health and wellness in general took a hit. People stopped going to the gym and delayed doctors’ appointments and health screenings because they did not want to risk coronavirus exposure. 

“We put a lot of things regarding health on hold during the pandemic,” he said.

Now, even with the delta variant of the coronavirus circulating, Mr. Zgodzinski said it’s time to ease back into a wellness routine, whether that’s masking up and going to the gym, walking the dog around the block, or quitting smoking. 

“You need to get back to the doctor, and you need to get those screenings,” he said.

First Published October 31, 2021, 12:00 p.m.