An aficionado of high-intensity programs such as P90X and Insanity, Parker says he went from being an active person to one who was afraid of exercise.

“I didn’t dare do anything,” Parker says.

After a year of inactivity, Parker, a business analyst at Logan Regional Hospital, decided to make some changes. His first act was to cut out sugar and white flour for six months, and to boost his exercise. During that time he lost 20 pounds, which gave him the motivation to do more. He worked his way back into P90X and put together a LiVe Well team at LRH. Intermountain Healthcare’s LiVe Well program incentivizes employees to make positive behavior changes in diet, exercise, financial management and relationships.

“I decided that nothing’s going to stop me,” Parker says. “Exercise helps me feel better, and it gets my mind off other things.”

Parker still experiences pain during exercise, but says the rewards of being active outweigh the discomfort. For his efforts, Parker has been chosen as an Intermountain LiVe Well Health Hero for 2015. He and the other LiVe Well Heros will be honored at a celebratory luncheon on Jan. 27 at the Little America hotel in Salt Lake City.

“It’s an honor,” says Parker, whose wife, Cindy, works in the library at Logan Regional. “It’s definitely not something I was planning on. I just do it for the fun of it, to put a smile on my face, and hopefully put a smile on someone else’s.”

Intermountain’s LiVe Well Health Heros are lauded for their example and enthusiastic encouragement of others. Parker says that each quarter he chooses a theme for his team, based on a movie (Wreck it Ralph, Star Wars and Minions are among recent choices) and creates a logo. Exercise plans are modified to each team member’s abilities and health goals, and he sends out weekly reminders based on the chosen theme. Twice his teams have taken first place in LiVe Well challenges.

“I nominated Shawn because I feel he is a good example of living well,” says co-worker Jeremy Peterson, noting that Parker sends his LiVe Well partners regular updates and inspirational quotes. “The team challenges and follow-up help me to participate in core challenges. … I appreciate his example.”

Parker says he thinks exercise “flat-out bites, so I make sure to have fun with it. I have found the challenges motivate me to keep going and work on getting better one week and one challenge at a time.”