It began with a bet.

"It was New Year's Eve, Dec. 31, 2004. At a family party we were all sitting around talking about losing weight. My stepson, Adam, challenged me to lose 15 pounds in 90 days. I took the challenge. Hey, it was New Year's Eve and I was ready to take on the world, right?" said Barbara Uphouse Wong of Mo'ili'ili, a retired assistant chief of police who is now an attorney.

Adam didn't make it easy. He made a point of waving trays of fresh cookies straight from the oven in front of Barbara's nose. He tempted her with bread. (He is the owner of Great Harvest Bread Company, so baked goods are always handy — not to mention irresistibly delicious — in the Wong household.)

Against all odds, Barbara exceeded her goal, losing 20 pounds in three months. On April 1, Adam and his wife Chelsie took Barbara to dinner to celebrate. For Mother's Day, they gave her a reclining stationary bicycle.

How did she do it? Wong formed an early morning exercise hui with three neighbors. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at 5:30 a.m., the four friends gather in Wong's garage, which she has transformed into a well-equipped gym. They work out for an hour, rotating among the stationary bicycle, treadmill, elliptical and weight machines, as well as free weights. The most recent addition is a punching bag Wong's husband, Dennis, bought for the group last week.

"This gang makes all the difference in the world," said Wong. "I have to get up early and open the garage. It's a motivator."

Early? Oh yeah. She gets up at 4:30 a.m. to use the cardio machines, just to make sure everyone can get adequate time with the equipment after they arrive at 5:30.

As a police officer Wong was always able to work out in the department's gym, with coworkers and instructors to keep her motivated. As a law student she had access to the fitness facilities at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa.

Once she was on her own, however, it was far more difficult to keep fit. When she was trying to work out alone, it just didn't happen. "It was too easy to go back to sleep. When I know everyone's coming over and depending on me, I have to get up."

THE COCONUT WIRELESS

Wong's workout hui consists of neighbors Betsy Hata, director of admissions at Punahou School, Bette Takahashi, a retired nurse who is now a consummate volunteer and caregiver for several elderly people and Sandi Tuitele, a fourth grade teacher at Kamehameha Schools.

Their workout sessions are lively, energetic, fun and punctuated with stories and anecdotes. Much of the discussion is about, of all things, food. They love to gab about the menus at new restaurants, as well as sharing recipes and cooking tips. However they also discuss current events and neighborhood news in great detail. A current topic is the crime wave of burglaries that seems to be hitting Mo'ili'ili and has struck far too close to home.

"We're the coconut wireless," Hata said with a wink.

"It's funny, but there's no pain when you're yakking," Wong added.

Before joining the hui, Tuitele said, "I had good intentions (to exercise), but nothing much happened. I intended to go after work but I never seemed to actually do it. I got some walking tapes, but. ..." Her voice tapered off, much like her previous exercise plans.

The morning group, she said, "energizes me for the day. It keeps me on track so I get my exercise into my schedule and keep it up." When Tuitele joined a gym and tried to work out at pau hana time, "Work always seemed to creep up and get in the way. In the morning, other things can't override my intentions to work out."

Hata said that before she joined the hui, she would walk around the neighborhood three or four times a week. However during the winter she got less exercise because her husband didn't like her walking in the dark. Now she walks on Tuesdays and Thursdays with Wong. She also loves line dancing classes.

Hata's workouts are fueled by her appetite, she said: "I love to eat and I consume a lot of food. If I exercise I can still eat."

Takahashi, who is an active member of her neighborhood board, said her motivation is "Just to be physically fit." She takes a tai chi-type class at Stadium Park on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, alternating it with her workouts at Wong's. She will soon be contributing a trampoline to the hui's gym, which just keeps on expanding.

Even if she had a complete home gym in her own home, Takahashi said, "I would say I was going to do it, but I wouldn't actually do it. Maybe I'd do it for one week and then I wouldn't do it any more. It would just be too boring."

Hata concurred: "I would not work out in the morning if I didn't come here." That's enough to keep Wong opening up those garage doors at 5:30 a.m., regardless of how much weight she loses or how many bets she wins.