Thank you Steph!

Thank you for being in charge of all this during all of your travels and busy life! 

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Silk Touch MD

Erica K. Peterson

Final Challenge Results and Week 7 Prize Winner

Well, I have learned a lot this challenge.  I have learned that summer time is a really tough time to do a challenge.  In fact, I only had 3 people report to me their final weight and inches...but I went with the top 5 points totals at the end to divvy out the prizes.  I'm hoping that even if the majority of the group didn't see a lot of progress on the scale, that habits are healthier and everyone felt some positive changes just by participating.

So without further ado, here are the results:

1st Place ($100):  Amber, 687 points, 1.6% weight lost, 4.3% inches lost
2nd Place ($75):  Erica, 623 points, 2.8% weight lost, .5% inches lost, and maintained goal weight 6 weeks.
3rd Place ($50):  Melanie, 614 points, 2% weight lost, 3% inches lost.
4th Place ($25):  Cam, 610 points
5th Place ($15):  Sarah C., 496 points

Week 7 Prize Drawing:
Prize up for grabs is a $10 Walmart gift card.

Challengers in the drawing:  Trishia, Danica, Erica, Cam, Amber

Way to go Amber!  I will get all final prizes and weekly prize drawing prizes sent out tomorrow!

Frustrated!

Ahhh! I am so frustrated with myself.  I forgot to blog last week.  We have two back to back vacations and then school starts so I was frantic last week trying to get everything set.  I am home for 1.5 days between vacations.  Just long enough to do laundry, repack and go.  I am also irritated that I didn't keep a food log on Monday while we were camping.  I didn't get service so I didn't know I had to log mon-thur. to get the points.  I just planned on having Monday one of my days off.  Oh well...  Thanks again to Steph for hosting this challenge.  Some weeks were better and more focused than others but it was always good to have this in the back of my mind to help push me back on track.

Not eating after dinner and water only challenge

Well the only way I could cut myself off was to stop eating after dinner. Brush your teeth and be too lazy to want to brush them again and poof!!! Done. It was hard but I'm proud I did it.

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Silk Touch MD

Erica K. Peterson

Wrapping up this challenge

I'm flying out tomorrow to go to Nashville while my husband attends a conference there.  I will be home Sunday and will have our final prize drawing for last week and figure out the final results.  Thank you to everyone who participated this time around!  I'm so impressed with everyone!  I'm excited to hear about your successes and final results!  Please let me know if you have any questions.

The Home Stretch

I've tried my hardest to give this challenge my all and despite a few obstacles, I've definitely seen results and pushed myself even on hard days! But lately (the last week) I've felt like I've plateaued and that has been really un-motivating...I was seeing good results immediately at the beginning and now I feel like I hardly see anything several days in a row. I know its a slow process and I can't give up, so that I have been proud of myself for doing!! Hoping to kill it this final week and really show my mind set what I'm made of!

Week 7

This past week I had a family reunion.  We decided to all eat meals together.  I really wanted to achieve the group goal for the final full week.  One of the goals I picked was to eat enough fruits and veggies.  I knew this would be a difficult task because of all of us eating together.  I brought the fruits and veggies for the meals so that I would be sure that they were available for all the meals.  It worked out great and helped me achieve half of the group challenge.

Watching my calories and no eating after dinner

This last challenge was a good reminder of control and working out vs. no eating after dinner. I am glad that I was able to do that, but it wasn't easy. Logging my food in the morning helped me keep a good mind on what I needed to do to hit my calories. I also pushed myself in the gym so that I could earn a few more calories and have a little luxury that way. That extra scoop of peanut butter sure hits the spot. I am weirded out that this challenge is almost over and I didn't get to exactly where I wanted to, but have learned a few things about myself and eating. Its been a good challenege

Keep on Trying!

This has been ROUGH! And even though it's frustrating to not be doing GREAT...I am proud that I haven't stopped trying. I am guessing I would have put back on all the weight from the last challenge had I not done this challenge. It's kept me aware, and wanting to try harder. The water intake has been continuing to be successful for once in my life...so I'm excited to keep with that! Thanks Stephanie for helping inspire everybody to get some healthy habits in their lives!

The difference maker...

I have always been big on exercise and actually consider it a "Like" for me. I love the feeling I get from a good workout! But I typically do the same work outs week in and week out and I enjoy them...the amount of time I have to commit...etc. AND I always justified eating what I wanted because I would exercise it off later. This challenge has REALLY made me focus on the opposite. Eating healthier to see the results I want. I've tried REALLY hard for the past 3 weeks and seen awesome results. I'm down 6 pounds, have a much better game plan for making this long lasting, and I love that I have more energy from clean eating (cutting out sugar and processed foods). Also I actually know how to cook vegetables I like! Weeee!

Week 6 Results and Prize Winner

Week 6 results, or should I say WEAK 6!  I now how hard it is to do a challenge in the summer.  I only heard from a few of you this week.  If you are still tracking, get me your points as soon as you can!

Week 6 Results:

1.  Amber F.                  536
2.  Cameron                  522
3.  Sarah C.                   496
4.  Erica                        394
5.  Stephanie                 344
6.  Trishia                     313

Week 6 Prize Winner:

Click Here

Fruits and Veggies

Can't believe this is the last week of this challenge, but here we are. Fruits and veggies were good to eat. I usually do a decent job of eating them and there were some days that made me want to not eat just to be rebellious for the challenge, but overall it was good to see what different options were and everybody's different ideas on how to eat them. I'll usually eat a cup or more of veggies for lunch and need to up it throughout the day. It was a good reminder. Tracking my food has really helped as well and look at the nutrition tab in myfitness pal. This week i'm working on calories and no eating after dinner. This last week I got in the bad habit of snacking on whatever/whenever so i'm trying to get back to my good eating habits.

Keep Truckin' Along!

I haven't done as well as I had hoped on this challenge, but I love the weekly group challenges to help me get refocused on those areas where I have completely fallen off the wagon.

Whew

Well, I haven't done as well as I had hoped. I had a strong start, not so good in the middle, and hopefully I can finish strong! Good luck everybody!!!

Things are going well. Not loosing what I hoped I would by now but I'm feeling motivated for this next week.

This challenge is a harder one for me.  I love fruit and eat a ton of it but it's harder for me  to remember to eat veggies.  It makes me more aware of what I'm eating and how much I need to eat. I've noticed with myself that after buying groceries I have to cut up fruit and veggies right then. If I wait I forget I have them and they go to waste.  Here's to more veggies in my daily routine:)

Week 5 Final Standings

The temperature is rising and so are the stake's of this challenge!  I'm so impressed with those that are sticking with it!  Way to go!

Week 5 Results:

1.  Amber F.                  444
2.  Cameron                  434
3.  Linsey                      426
4.  Sarah C.                   422
5.  Sarah V.                   414
6.  Melanie                   388
7.  Erica                        349
8.  Stephanie                 344
9.  Danica                     325
10.  Trishia                   244

Week 5 Prize Winner:

Click Here to See Who Won

Challenging challenge

I don't like this challenge! For some reason it feels like a lot more work to count cups of fruits/veggies even when I am already logging food.  I was at my friend's house the other day.  She is vegan and so I also get samples of whatever strange food she has.  This time it was simply steamed edamame! I had never had it and I loved it! Super easy and just in time for this weeks challenge.

New Workout

I forgot to blog too Erica!  I don't do well when I'm on vacation.  I wanted to post the links to the 2 new workouts I tried last week.  I thought they were great to finish out your workout after a little cardio...easy enough to do while watching a show too...but I still felt it the next day!


Pilates Legs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wS5NZXdYAg8

KILLIN MYSELF!

I FORGOT TO BLOG LAST WEEK!

James did the same thing last challenge and he griped and moaned about it FOREVER and now I get it! Ha ha! I kept thinking about it and then the week just got away from me. So I'm getting it done early.

I am renewing my commitment this week to stick with it! I did better at exercising last week....and I want to keep doing better with that. Writing down what you are eating is SERIOUSLY so effective. But I gotta step that up again. I had 100% intention to do a new work out last week...but then I just didn't get to it. I thought my dance class would have us do a few leg or arm routines but that didn't happen...so I will have to do it this week just for fun.

But if you want to follow a fun dance class just search SHINE Dance Fitness on YouTube. They have some really fun routines, they are easy and really good aerobically and have some good squats and stuff in them. I also love Dance Fitness Marshall...he's hilarious and some of his dance moves are over the top...but if your giggling while working out it goes faster.

Pound those fruits and veggies peeps...lets finish this challenge out strong!

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Silk Touch MD

Erica K. Peterson

So yoga...who knew that it was such a tough thing?

I did Yoga all week to get a nice break from the gym and also to get some more flexibility...well I think i'm more flexible, but only because I didn't really have a choice. Yoga plays such relaxing music and then it hurts so bad. I think I know what nightmares and children's tears are made up of...its cause they thought of doing Yoga. I actually enjoyed doing Yoga for the whole week, but during it was a whole other story. I do feel more stretched and think it helped out, but there was some pain involved for sure. Looking forward to this eating challenge cause lets be honest...eating is the greatest thing in the world! fruits and veggies for the win!

New route

There is a bike trail right next to my church building.  Every week for the past 1.5 yrs I have looked at it and thought I should explore it.  Well, thanks to this weeks challenge I made it a priority and took my dog on a walk this morning! I'll definitely be down that trail again :)

So I haven't been doing very well during this challenge but I need to get back on track even if I'm not going to win at the end. This week I've done pretty good though ... We got a tramp for our kids. We were on it for two hours yesterday. I'm counting that as my new workout for this week.  I haven't jumped on a tramp in so long and it was much more of a workout than I anticipated. Hahaha.  A lot of fun though.

Exercise

I tried running one day this week for exercise and also went camping and hiked a bit during the weekend, which hasn't happened for a few years.  It was fun to try a few new or forgotten things for exercise.

Hiking

My family and I were camping this week for the 4th and so I did a little hiking. I consider that trying a new workout for the week since I usually don't get that many chances to hike. But for some reason I just have forgotten that I am trying to be good and lose weight. I ate candy and cookies and all kinds of awful things this week!!! Camping gives me the munchies terribly! I'm really not sure why. So I'm back on the wagon this week trying again!!!!

Week 4 Results and Prize Winner

Hope everyone had a great holiday week!  I hope the reason I didn't get your points from you yet is because you were having so much fun.  Just let me know your points for week 4 when you can and I will add them to the totals.

Week 4 Results

1.  Amber F.                  359
2.  Sarah C.                   348
3.  Cameron                  345
4.  Linsey                      334
5.  Danica                     325
6.  Stephanie                300
7.  Melanie                   294
8.  Erica                       285

Prize Drawing and winner of the $10 Target gift card:

6 challenges stepped up to what I consider to be the hardest challenge of the compeition.  Congrats to Sarah C., Amber, Danica, Linsey, Cameron and Melanie!

Since I am traveling this week, I thought I would just use the computer to pick our prize winner.

http://random-ize.com/pick-from-list/

 Drum roll please!!!

So this week for the new workout I found a video on YouTube.  I'm kind of boring and like to do the same old thing everyday.  It was a good change for me to switch it up. I'm still struggling getting all my exercise points but I'm definitely doing better then I was before I started:)
Hopefully everyone is having fun and a fun summer too, I know even though I'm not exercising I'm constantly going all day long.

ice cream tastes so good when you get a cold

I don't really eat much junk food except for when I get sick. This last week I got hit by a summer cold and decided, as did my 2 year old, that I needed to eat lots of ice cream after every dinner. It didn't really help me feel any better, but i don't regret what i did. It was delicious and although it may have thrown me off a few pounds i'm working now to get back to it. This week i'm doing a rest week that's filled with Yoga which will be a nice change then next week i'm going to do what i've always dreaded...running on the treadmill! I hate hate hate hate treadmills and have finally gotten up to walking on them 10 minutes each morning for my warm up, but next week i've decided to kill myself and run the full 10 minutes for that extra push in the mourning (not a typo...i'll be mourning). This has been a good summer challenge to keep me working out during school/work/being a parent. There have been a few times that i've hit 10k steps in a day whereas before I only hit 5,000 - 7,000 steps. Good luck everyone!

Pre-holiday week not so good...

I was really trying to be good before my family came into town to celebrate the 4th, but I kept getting too busy to make great choices! Bummer!! I stayed strong in my exercise, water intake, and logging...but my quick food choices were not the best. That's where I fault...I want to be better this week about making things in advance so I don't cave on crappy food choices.

Pushing through

This is the point in the last challenge that I started to get bored and my motivation slipped.  I am feeling the same way especially because the scale has not moved much this week.   PS- Thank you Steph for not doing a food challenge next week for the 4th!  Happy Independence Day everyone!

Challenges

I am not a soda or a juice drinker however, whenever this challenge pops up the only thing I want to drink is soda and juice!  I guess I don't like being told "no".  This weeks challenge is difficult for me because I don't notice I am eating.  Like last night, I was cleaning up the kitchen and some crackers were on the counter.  I ate a cracker as I was putting it away.  I never eat much but I usually have a few bites here and there and never notice!

****Edit to add that I just realize I never actually pushed the post button on this post from 6/21.  It has been sitting in the draft folder :). Oops!

Consistency

There is something to be said about consistency and routine.  Being out of my normal routine with my kids being home this summer I find I'm not nearly as consistent with my eating.  Here's hoping this challenge will keep me consistent enough to at least lose a few pounds the new month!

I've been out of town for two weeks and haven't done the challenge as well as I could have done.  I just received Steph's email where she stated that we are almost halfway finished with the challenge.  I was about to give up after not doing very well the past couple of weeks and was about to just throw in the towel, but decided that I am going to re-commit and finish out the challenge.  Thanks again for setting this up, Steph!!!!

One thing I notice about myself is, if I tell myself I can't have something, I then crave it and think about it all the time. So this week I made some protein balls and they have been so good to snack on.
Last week I didn't do so well with the group challenge, this week been better but I'm going camping this weekend. Here's to trying everyday to make good healthy decisions.

Week 3 Results and Prize Winner

I didn't hear from everyone this week...hopefully you forgot to report your points because you are on a fun trip or something.  Just let me know when you can so I can add it to the running totals.

Also I forgot in the last email to mention that the prize up for grabs this week is a $10 Target gift card for anyone that completes the healthy snacks challenge.

Here are the standings after 3 Weeks:

1.  Amber F.                  270
2.  Sarah C.                   264
3.  Sarah V.                   261
4.  Cameron                  258
5.  Susie                        256
6.  Stephanie               250
7.  Linsey                      249
8.  Danica                     246
9.  Brian                        238
10.  Erica                      235
11.  Melanie                 229


Week 3 Prize Winner!  Who won the movie pass?:
Watch
HERE to see who won

One day at a time...

So I'm motivated in this challenge to lose my baby weight and after going to my 6 week postpartum visit yesterday, I'm even MORE motivated! Stepping on the scale is still so unsatisfying...but I know that one day at a time, I can make a difference in my goal. So here's to full commitment!!

NOOOO HEALTHY SNACKS!!! My nemesis!

Welp...this week I already blew one cheat day! Oh crap! I am terrible at healthy snacking. But it helps me to not snack at all because I don't have a healthy option. But lets get real...I'm doomed this week. I have a family reunion and am traveling. But even though I'm not going to be able to do the group challenge...I'll do as good as I can until this weekend!

If your feeling discouraged and you feel like you're just going to give up...take the opportunity to rededicate yourself. Even if it's just on the little things. You got this!

Red Robin....YUM!!!

  Last week we did the no eating after dinner challenge and I was able to complete the challenge....and then completely binge on steak fries at Red Robin. It was pretty freaking awesome and I don't care if i disqualify myself from this week if I was supposed to go the whole week cause you cannot not eat 3-6 basket of their steak fries. Basically communism if you don't :) 

  One of my personal goals is to stick to a carb and protein limit and it has been helping a ton. I do feel that I have more energy and that i'm not weighed down by all of the extra stuff that I was eating. I still have energy and even though on paper i've been eating less calories than I normally do I still feel that I can get done most everything that I plan on between work, family and school. the healthy snack challenge will be good so I can plan my extra calories out and have something good rather than...Hi-chews. Which are gods gift to man and the universe. Good luck everyone!

Exercise

The hardest part of the challenge for me is trying to fit in 30 minutes a day for exercising. I make sure I drink water, eat healthier, sleep, etc but I just can't get motivated to exercise ! We have been outside a lot working on our chicken coop and been very busy running around this summer but I need to be better about going for walks or doing something this summer!!!

Loved the weekly winner drawing video.   Why did Carsen get to be Batman?😒😒  I wanna be Batman!!!!!
Anyway,  found the Group challenge to be my undoing this week.  Didn't get the points but as I am finding out, there is still a benefit to failing....I better understand my weaknesses.  ( Is that a word?  Is the plural of weakness; weaknesses, weaknesss, weaknezzes or weaknessessess?) Anyway I got more then one.
I was pleased that I accomplished my personal goal... taking my daily vitamins and supplements, medical professionals are never very compliant so this was a good one for me.
Still finding it a challenge to pee 8 cups of water in a day.  Anyone got any tips?

 This week we were on vacation. Not eating after dinner was hard. I kept on forgetting. My points this week are going to be low. Going to try not to let that get to me and finish this challenge strong.

The most challenging thing for me this week was sleep.  I only got 4/7 nights.  I'm going to try to wind down earlier this next week.  I did great on exercise this week.  I biked to work, jumped rope, went for extra walks, went kayaking for 3 hours, etc.
I am going to try to complete my personal goal every day this week.  I feel like I weigh more every week!  Too much water!  ha! ha!    Hopefully it is muscle!
This will be a difficult week because I am traveling to Southern California for a wedding1  Too much tempting food probably.  Wish me luck!
😼

Goals

I'm finding summer time a hard time to stay motivated, it's just so busy.  I'm hoping the healthy snack challenge will force me to plan ahead better and make better food choices this upcoming week.  I think it's important to keep goals that don't involve the scale...goals about better health, or fitness goals.  One of my goals this summer is to build some muscles so I can slalom water ski by the end of this summer.  What goals are keeping you motivated?

Yay!!

So I went to my yearly drs appt yesterday. My blood pressure was 110/70. Last year it was 138/90. And I had lost 20 pounds since last year. Sometimes I get frustrated because as far as weight loss goes I still have a long way to go but it really made me feel good!!!! Yay!!!!!

Week 2 Results and Prize Winner

Hope that your week is going well.  Now that I've collected everyone's money I want to give everyone a run down on the prizes.  17 people paid the entrance fee, so I'm working with $340.

$75 will go toward 7 weekly prize drawings.

Final Prizes will be rewarded based on final points:

1st Place - $100

2nd Place - $75

3rd Place - $50

4th Place - $25

5th Place - $15

Here are the standings after 2 Weeks:

1.  Sarah C.                   186
2.  Sarah V.                   182
3.  Amber F.                  180
4.  Linsey                      177
5.  Cameron                  174
6.  Brenda                     173
7.  Susie                        171
8.  Danica                     169
9.  Brian                        167
10.  Stephanie               163
11.  Briana                    160
12.  Carsen                   155
13.  Erica                      152
14.  Melanie                  140
15.  Trishia                    96

See who won the Week 2 Prize!
CLICK HERE

This week is the hardest!

Last time I did this challenge I was in Mexico and we didn't have as much access to food after dinner so it wasn't so bad. But this time...I'm home. My husband is snacking after dinner. And I WANT TO EAT EVERYTHING! But even though I feel like I haven't eaten in DAYS it's only been like an hour by the time I want to start snacking on everything. But good news. I didn't waste away last night...I made it through the night and felt fine. OBVIOUSLY a bad habit that I have to work on! Ha ha!

Keep at it everybody!

Wish this was me!

Feeling frustrated

My weight loss is always such a Yo Yo. I lose four pouns, I gain two, I lose one....up and down until my net weight loss is about zero!!! I did good with the no sugary drinks. That is about the only thing I do good on. I've never been a soda drinker. On the flip side my snacking habits are horrible!! Here's to a more positive week!!!

This week is a little harder for me,  oh how I love to piece and snack after dinner.  My kids always want a dessert after dinner so this week is a challenge for me.  Has anyone ever tried water walking? I did last night and if was so much fun, Ana it helped with wanting to eat a snack because I was exercising and then when I got home I was to tired and went to bed.   I hope everyone keeps up the good work.  I know I didn't do very good Sunday with my eating , time to be motivated again.  

Week 2

I made the challenge of not drinking any sugary drinks besides milk or water. It wasn't too bad since this is what I mostly drink anyway. We did however buy some capri-sun and had them nice and cold so...the 6th day I definitely drank a few to make sure I remembered what it tasted like. I do feel good as I've been maintaining my weight and even keeping down to around 207. This helped with my cravings since drinking a cup of powerade at lunch would just make me want even more sugar throughout the day. this has been extremely helpful in keeping my carb intake down since that has been my overall goal of this challenge. I even celebrated by getting a fruit punch at Jersey Mike's today. if you haven't been there they make some amazing philly cheese steak sandwiches.

My biggest accomplishment for the week was figuring out how to post to the blog.   Yep, I missed those 10 easy points the first week.  Been pretty happy with my calorie intact and  exercise the past two weeks.  I think my biggest challenge is the 8 cups of water.  It isn't the in-tacking of the water its the elimination of the water that is my challenge.  Seems I got to go all the time.   Very inconvenient when your in sterile gloves doing surgery.  Also hate getting up 2-3 times during the night... Any suggestions

This week I really made it a point to exercise each day.  A couple of days I was really proud of myself....since I exercised twice in a day!  Every day I tried to take my 10,000 steps, but a couple of days I went the extra mile by biking to work and running.  This week I hope to continue this practice but start to see some weight shift.  Too many parties, celebrations and company.  I need to focus more on portion sizes and not turning to snacks.  

Just Keep Moving

Summer is a tough time to do a challenge!  So many trips, celebrations and just being out of the normal routine.  Summer is also a great time to be on the challenge because it's seems so much easier to be really active.  On Friday I went hiking (TWICE)!  Since recovering from 2 major surgeries the past 8 months I've been really hesitant to push my body very far in my workouts, but it felt great to push a little this week.  I love being out in nature and doing fun active things with my family.  It gave me a little extra motivation to keep trying.  

Hope you all will keep trying too!

50/50

This week I felt like I did awesome in my exercise but not great about my food choices. I logged my food but was always disappointed with the choices I made, either lack of time to make something healthy or simply craved something unhealthy and indulged...I plan to do a lot better this week! I was happy with my 5 days of exercise, water intake, and participating in the challenge, which felt pretty easy to accomplish for me. This next week I'm definitely going to find my motivation to make healthier choices! I know I won't regret it.

This week... was not good. I still logged all my food and water and joined in the challenge but a lot of my motivation had faded. I have alway been bad at working out... essentially I am completely sedentary, which is something I would love to change about myself. I worked out one day this week...  and the rest of the week I sat in front of the TV too tiered from the day to move or just having no motivation. But next week is a new week... and I am really going to try to get 25 points for working out. Even if that means doing sit ups while I watch Jane the Virgin.

Bree

It is amazing that when you are so busy it is so easy to forget to log food... it does take energy to remember. I found that when I skip one day it is very easy to skip the next day too. This next week my goal is to make a to-do list so I have to check off things, not just with this challenge but with my busy day as well. I am hoping to refocus this week.

Carsen

This week was a little better. I had a family reunion this weekend I brought healthy snacks, my family didn't I blame them for tempting me. This next challenge will be good for me eating after dinner is a horrible habit for me. I'm also hoping for ideas this week for healthy low calorie snacks any recommendations ??

I went to girls camp this week and had no teats!!! That's huge for me. I love sugar. I don't drink soda already but I could wolf down chocolate so I'm thrilled I was able to stay away from the sweets. Hope everyone is staying motivated. It's hard to change habits...at least it is for me.

Hello all, this week has been so crazy busy for me but so much fun also.  I started cutting out soda a few months ago so this weeks challenge has been super challenging for me:) yay! I do like to do infused water with fresh fruits though. Yummy.

my favorite challenge

YESSS! It's the one week when I hardly have to think about the challenge. I don't like carbonation, don't really care for most juices, and drinking only water, it's not really different for me. HOWEVER...I am doing this challenge again partially because my whole family is doing it...but the other reason is because I noticed how little water I was drinking when i started the last challenge. I get kidney stones...and I should be drinking tons of water...but when i started making myself drink 8 cups a day I realized...I definitely wasn't getting my water. And I need this habit to stick. Kidney stones ARE THE WORST. So I'm enjoying my week of not worrying about which drink I need...but reminding myself of how important it is to drink enough!

Week 1 Results and Prize Winner

Good job everyone on a great first week!  I didn't get points from everyone, so if you don't see your name on this list, please let me know your points total from Week 1 as soon as possible.

Week 1 Results:

1.  Sarah C.                   94
2.  Stephanie                 92
3.  Sarah V.                   91
4.  Amber F.                  90
5.  Linsey                      89
6.  Briana                      88
7.  Brenda                     86
8.  Cameron                  85
9.  Carsen                     82
10.  Danica                   81
11.  Erica                      76
12.  Susie                      74
13.  Trishia                   52

Week 1 Prize Winner!
Click  HERE see who won!

Week 1

Well, this week I lost 4 pounds...seriously !!! Haha I'm not surprised tho. Since school got out the kids and I have run constantly going somewhere to swimming, soccer camp, splash park, city park rides....yikes! So consiquently I've only eaten like one meal a day....that's not really healthy tho....I am grateful for this challenge to help me stay focused over the summer weeks of temptations.

Week 1 done!

I don't know if you all know but teachers eat a lot.  Our team room is constantly filled with food that someone brought in or gifts (aka chocolate and candy) from students.  I did the spring challenge a few months back during the school year and it was much harder to stick to those calorie goals.  Now that I am on summer it is much easier to say "no" because it isn't in my line of sight constantly and I don't have friends around to social eat with!

Week 1

Week 1 went much better than I originally thought. I did the Spring into shape challenge a few months ago and fizzled out by the end. I was still doing what i could to earn the points, but for the most part i wasn't really tracking and just going in the motions. This challenge my first week was to hit my RMR calories and I have felt a lot better. I haven't really been doing much differently besides trying to stick as close as I can to my carb, protein, and fat goal. I don't feel as sluggish as i used to and have been more motivated to plan out my meals (driving my wife nuts of course :) )I hope that everyone else's week went just as well and if not that this week is better! Good luck all! No sugary drinks...

last week not so good

Ok....last week not so good.  Too many parties and not enough time to do everything.  Also I think I was trying to get the hang of things.....I think I didn't record enough points for exercise either.  So maybe I'll have to adjust that next time.



I'm determined to do better this week!

 Hi everyone! My name is Sarah. I've done a few of these challenges. Thanks Steph for putting these on. You're the best! I didn't have a great first week. Lots of candy and ice cream. It's good to see all the calories though. 😳 Big eye opener. I'm excited for next weeks challenge. I need to quit the sweets.

Hello my name is Brenda. I grew up with Stephanie I succeeded with her last challange motivated every day. This last week I have been less motivated than planned I keep finding myself say tomorrow I will do better. Well tomorrow is a new week. I WILL KEEP MOTIVATED.  No soda will be the hardest for me but I know I can do it.  My goal is to loss 5 lbs during this challange. Wish me luck.

Hello from Vernal

My name is Trishia Lawson.  I live in Vernal, Utah.  I know Stephanie through the Petersen side of her family.  I married one of her cousins.  I have seen her posting about doing these challenges and never wanted to quite commit, but I decided to do the challenge this time around because I have gradually lost ALL CONTROL of the amount of junk food I allow myself to consume.  I'm hopeful that joining this challenge will help me be more conscious of my daily caloric intake.  

And here we go...

Hello everyone! This is Briana and Carsen Dumas. We are blogging together because I, Carsen after many attempts kept getting an error page as I would try to join the blog page. We are both from Boise, Idaho and very excited to do this challenge together. I chose to take part in this challenge not only to be a support and get support for and from my wife, but as a way to kickstart my way back into the level of activity and nutritional discipline that I have accustomed myself to in years past. 

Carsen

I have been hearing about these challenges for awhile. My sister, Erica, participated in the last challenge and KILLED it. Carsen and I have been feeling like we needed something to get us out of our bad eating funk. I felt pretty inspired by my sister and it was really a no brainer. We excited to start and super happy that we have a lot of friends and family that are participating with us. 

First week is going good, we are already feeling better... less bloated, we feel lighter, and just happy that we are taking care of our bodies. 

Bree

Hello all,
After all my motivation and give a darn left me I gain a few extra pounds, so I've decided to join this challenge in hopes to loose them again. :) I hope we can all have a little fun and learn some good healthy habits too.

Sarah Carothers

Hello I am so happy to be doing the summer challenge! My kids go to school with Stephanie's kids and I'm so happy that I met her!!! My goal is to lose ten pounds during this challenge and then hopefully many more after that!!!! Good luck to everyone!!!!

Why Not??

Hey Everyone!

I'm Danica and I was willingly convinced to join in on this challenge because I had a baby 3 weeks ago!! While I'm still adjusting to a new baby and getting my life on track again, I was open to doing this challenge because I'm the type that totally needs structure in my diet and exercise in order to see results. I look forward to committing to this challenge and getting where I want to be --- back to my pre-baby body and mindset!

Thanks!

Danica

COMMIT! You can do it!

 Last time was the first time I ever did this healthy habits challenge. It was very difficult for me mentally. I found myself doubting that I could do it. If you're like me you might have a few internal conversations asking yourself why you did this. But  focusing on some healthy habits and paying attention to what you take into your body is so important. I'm glad I did it last time.

 Just commit now that you're going to stick to it. If you have a bad day or a bad week don't give up just get back to it and start again. It's not about the competition it's about you. 👍🏻

--

--
Silk Touch MD

Erica K. Peterson

Hi Everyone!

Hello!
     I'm Amber. I did the spring challenge with a little success in the weight loss arena but I did learn a lot about myself.  I hope that now we are on summer break (I'm a teacher) I can devote more time to the challenge.  I also hope that a lower stress level will help increase my results.  Have fun everyone :)

Summer Challenge

Hey guys! Excited to be back. this week my calorie challenge is 1950 or less. I've been trying to hit my RMR or lower and what do you know Stephanie sent this email out to keep me motivated. I did the spring into shape challenge with my wife, Kiersten, and it helped me create some good habits like logging my food, counting calories, tracking my workouts, attempting to sleep (maybe more then 5 hours??) and prioritize my time with school and family.

Here is an RMR Calculator that I found online

https://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/calrmr.htm

seems to be pretty consistent with the other health calculators. bodybuillding.com has a lot of other things for information as well.

Good luck!

I'm excited to get started on this challenge.  I was down to 137 pounds last month....but with all the crazy parties and such...>I'm back up to a whopping 143 today.  This will be good to get me disciplined.  More importantly, than losing weight, I want to get back in shape and put on some muscle.  Let's get the party started!

Stephanie Signing In

 Hey Everyone!  Thanks for participating in the summer challenge.  This here is a picture of me with my 4 fun kids on Mother's Day.  The little cherub there in pink joined our family almost 8 months ago.  She is a delight, an exhausting little delight.  I feel the past months I've been in survival mode to keep the family up and running, so the first thing to go is always taking care of myself.

I know if I want to live up to this portrait my 9 year old son made of me, I need to lose some weight and get in shape!  I have quite a bit to lose, but I know even losing 15 would help in the way I feel right now.  So I'm going to work hard these next two months...hoping to be a better me and better able to keep up with these kids.

Week 8 Prize Winners and Final Results!!!

I know, I know!  You've been waiting all day to see these results!

It's been a fun ride!  Thanks again to everyone for participating.  I didn't add up the total pounds lost this time, but I know it's over 100!  And even more for the inches!  Congratulations!  I will be sending out all the weekly prizes from the drawings and the overall money prizes this coming week.

Watch this video to see who won the Week 8 Prize Drawings for the movie passes:
Click Here

Watch this video to see the final results:
Click Here

We made it!!

Sometimes you have to crawl over the finish line to call it complete, I might be limping, speed-walking, but definitely not in my dead sprint like I'd hoped. I have upped my water intake A TON!!! so win for that, my sugars are way down and I've been way more successful at planning/prepping my food for work so I'll count lots of wins for this competition, even if the scale doesn't reflect it.

Thanks for the weekly reminders and motivation from everyone, its been a great ride!

Final Day!!!

This challange has been amazing for me I can't take Stephanie enough for putting this all together. My hope for everyone is that we can all learn from this and continue to make healthier choices going forward. I know for myself I am so proud I stuck to this challange all they way through.

My goal was to finish and I did! I realized two things. I'm all of nothing which means I would have fantastic weeks followed by terrible weeks. I also learned that the weeks I lost weight I had very little inches cdifference and the weeks that my weight stayed I lost more in measurements. I also decided that if I ever track weight I also have to track some inches is that I can feel like I am being successful.

Started from the bottom, now we' here baby!!!!!

We made it! 8 weeks has never gone so slowly! If you want to cherish the adorable nature of your precious little children at home and say things like "i hope you stay small forever"...just start a diet challenge! It will seem like a never ending fountain of youth. For me however it just seemed like a never-ending fountain of torment. And like a fat kid in dodgeball..."I'm out!!!!!!!"

A HUUUUUGE thank you to Steph!

Well...I can't believe I made it. It was very difficult for me mentally. Committing to this was very difficult for me...but I am proud to say that I hit my goal. I have never lost weight (except being pregnant and losing every meal for a couple fun months) in such a healthy weight. And I have never been able to lose this amount of weight before. My coworkers are noticing that I look different. And I feel better. I am so grateful for the mindfulness that this challenge has brought into my life. I truly am a person who feels that everything in moderation is okay...but when you never hold back...that is not moderation :). Say no to yourself sometimes. Pay attention. And tracking what you eat is one of the most AFFECTIVE tools ever. Because sometimes you'd rather not pop something in your mouth than put it into your phone! Great job everybody. I'm so grateful for the challenge to try to live healthier and be better to myself.

Not trying to be negative I just thought this was funny

This is doable LONG TERM!

I just got home from my Spring Break vacation and I was able to get full points while I was away!  I think that being on vacation is the ultimate test for stuff like this.  I was away from my normal routine and I was still able to exercise and watch what I ate and drank and still get the required amount of sleep (that ended up being the hardest part).  So this test was very encourage for me!  

Wow in some ways can't believe this is it. It has definitely been hard at times, but I'm so glad I pushed through. I think I'm pretty close to hitting my goal. We will see in the morning. So impressed with everyone's hard work. It helped push me to keep going.

Keep POUNDING away!!!

Hope everyone is feeling better about being in the Challenge !!


I think I'm down about 18 lbs or so - I think I will continue for another month to keep the pounds at bay!


Clothes are an easier fit -


I think moving forward my rule will be no seconds at dinner - and very few treats!


Thanks everyone!  Thanks Steph!


F Jeff

I am really glad I joined this challenge......I  have not meet my goal either...but I figure every pound lost is a success for me. I hope I can remember to practice some of the things I have learned . Thanks Steph ....love ya'

This is the third challenge that I have done with Stephanie. The first one went well, the second one not so much, and this one has been a little bit of both. Ups and downs. I feel healthier though and have seen some results, though not as much as I wanted, but still happy.  This week I am making plans for after the challenge so that I keep a healthier lifestyle.

Can't believe this is the last week

This has been a fun challenge and it has gone by way fast. I would love to say I did the group challenge, but my two year old kept shoving popsicles (court-ticles if she says it) into my mouth and it was hard not to say no to a daddy daughter popsicle moment. I did learn that tracking my food makes me more thoughtful of what I eat instead of just "this is close enough to my calories" or "I worked out today". I did notice that when I would watch what I ate an even stopped eating so much because I was "hungry" I would actually feel better and not so sluggish. It was great to see everyone's progress and even better to do this with my wife. She is awesome and I do not apologize for all the times that I embarrass her :). She also is about 12 weeks pregnant and her hip hop group took 1st place in their dance competition this past weekend. She is doing the work of two and still winning.

What I've Learned

Thanks everyone for participating with me in this challenge!  Having surgery last week kind of threw a wrench in my plans to have a big finish.  In fact, I didn't really earn any points at all, so I'm bowing out of the final competition.  Feeling down and out after surgery has made me appreciate my health that I take for granted.  It has motivated me to continue to lose weight and make better habits.  I was able to lose about 10 lbs this go around which was half of my initial goal, so I guess I just need to keep going.  I'm hoping to find some people that will be willing to join me for another challenge for the summer.  Let me know if you are interested!  Good luck to everyone finishing these last few days strong!

Almost there!!!

Well I've lost about 8 pounds during this challenge. I am so glad that I decided to do it!! My goal was twenty pounds so hopefully I can keep going on my own after this is over . Great job everybody! You all inspired me to keep going...You are all amazing !!!!

10 min left to check in this week 😬 Cutting it close. This week we  had spring break. A lot harder to stay healthy. Only got 4 day of workouts and ate too much junk. One more week. Wow almost done. Good luck to everyone.

Finally noticing!!

 This week I'm excited to say I am proud of myself, I am actually noticing a difference without the measuring tape. I am feeling more confident in myself, and actually fitting into some of my skinny clothes. I hope after this challange I can continue to make better choices in what I eat and hope I continue to go to the gym knowing it's not to just earn a few points. Thank you Stephanie. I❤U!!

I can't believe believe this is almost over. My number might not be as low as I want, but I'm feeling great. I feel in control of my life and that is a great feeling. I'm in a workout routine, which forces me to sleep enough, and I've aware of what I'm eating. Hooray for making positive changes!

Don't Chase Unicorns!

There are only a few days left in the challenge! I am feeling great and hit a new low number on the scale last night. Don't be tricked into buying the new Starbucks drink that is made with 100% organic blended unicorn bits! You wouldn't think so, but it is teaming with toxins. Don't do it. 

So excited that we are in the home stretch. It has been great to see some changes. I have been impressed with all of you. Just five more days!

Sweets

i was doing really well with moderation of sweets and sugars until Easter.  I learned that once I get a chance to binge eat all that deliciousness it's hard to get back on track the following days.

Yes!!! Almost done....I really did not think I would stay with this.  I'm so glad I did.It has been eye opening to see all the things that go in the mouth without realizing it. Thanks to all for sharing their ups and downs and helping me to know I was not the only one going up and down...I have not done reallllly good.....but I have not done to bad either.  We'll see what the final results say!!
Good luck to all!!!!

Not eating after dinner...and drinking water

So I'm getting on right now because I'm having an argument in my head about how I want to get up and go get myself some more food. I finished dinner...and I'm supposed to be done for the day. And I want to leave my cheat days for the weekend. Soooo if I get on and post about my healthy habits, maybe I can peer pressure myself into staying put!

Obviously I picked a good one for myself.

Keep going everybody. Don't give into just giving up...because every amount of effort you can give, is for your benefit! You CAN do it!

WOW is this really the last week?

Nice job everyone!

Nice Job Stephanie!!!

I know that I got a good kick start by participating with all of you!!

I think I am going to continue for 4 more weeks so that I don't give any of the lbs back.

Does anyone remember what Ice Cream tastes like????

Keep Moving!!

F Jeff

Week 7 Results and Prize Drawing

Week 7 is in the books!  Good job everyone!  The end is in sight!

If your name isn't on here, send me your points when you can.

Week 7 Results:

Tied for 1st place with 658 points:

1.  Nicole

1.  McKenzi

2.  Jeff              657

3.  Katie W.      655

4.  Sarah V.       651

4.  Brenda         651

5.  James           648

6.  Weston         646

7.  Erica            641

8.  Stephanie     628

9.  Sarah C.       618

10.  Leigh          615

11.  Nada            583

12.  Cam             574

13.  Heather        554

14.  Elise            550

15.  Amber         541

26.  Kiersten       477

Tonight there is no prize video.  I ran out of time, so I used an online generator to pick our 2 winners of the $10 Amazon gift cards:

First I put the 13 qualifiers names in the random list maker to assign you all a number.

 Then I had the computer generate 2 numbers from 1 to 13 and came up with these numbers as the winners!

Congrats to Number 6 (Erica) and Number 13 (Kiersten)!!!  

No Sweets, treats, or sugary drinks

I figured I would choose the one that would be the hardest because I love me some powerade at lunch. I am choosing no treats, sweet, or sugary drinks and think that my lack of powerade at lunch will kill me..since I get it for free...and its in my way for my breaks to go up the stairs so I can some more steps. I'm convinced that they put crack in blue powerade because it is the best tasting of all of them. I wish everyone luck and think i'm going to go settle my nerves with some powerade...I have one day so I can still make the 5/7 days, but my will power is getting weaker by the minute

I am a sheep

This weeks challenge is a good one.  I am happy to be revisiting the "no eating after dinner" challenge because I felt better in the morning during that week.  And, I evidently NEED someone to TELL me what to do.  I've noticed that when I don't need to do something...I don't do it.  That is why, when it comes to my health, I am a sheep.

Water ways..

 I started this post from my phone last night because it had on my workout pics then the phone rang and I forgot to hit post, so here is a summary of my weeks work out via pics:  Monday was a lifting/Tabata class at the rec, Tuesday racquetball, Wednesday basketball, Thursday kickboxing, Friday at home lifting, Saturday a run with a friend and her son!  On top of that I set a personal goal to drink at least 100 ounces of water every day (I drink a diet dew and then not much water) i'm surprised how much easier the rest of my food choices fell into place when I was focused on simply drinking more water… OK a LOT more water,  fortunately there's a bathroom near my desk at work that was really the only inconvenience of my experiment. It was a great week!

Finish strong

Well I started out this challenge very optimistic and lost six pounds fairly quickly. Now for the last two weeks I have not completed the group challenge and I have not lost any more weight. So this week I am taking on the no sugary drinks challenge and I am going to finish up strong ! My personal goal this week is to lose two pounds. I can do it. And great job for those of you who avoided the sweets last week. You are all much stronger people than me !!!!

Happy Easter

We are all brothers and sisters. Happy Easter.

Happy Easter!!!

Oh my I almost forgot to blog. Hope everyone had a good Easter. No sugar is extremely hard for me somedays that's all I want. I felt pretty proud of myself during the week then comes the weekend not to mention Easter. I am grateful for these dreaded challange even though I hate every minute.  Thanks Stephanie.

This weeks challenge was so hard. Stuffing candy into plastic eggs 😬 and I never ate one candy. Never thought I could do that. Seriously though! ... I'm running a comfortable 3 plus miles now. So happy about that.  I think I finally broke down that runners wall and I'm enjoying running again. Have a couple races planned too.  Good luck to everyone these last two weeks.

This week I have told myself no A LOT. I didn't realize how many times I was reaching for a quick sugary something. I wish we would of done this challenge sooner so I would have had that realization sooner. Writing down what I eat just wasn't enough to make me release this. Though this time in th scale I did let out a YES! at the number on the scale. Still plenty to lose but have to start somewhere.

Has anyone found one of my extra chins?

I noticed the last couple on weeks that I can leave the top button buttoned for more than 3 hours - this was not possible a few weeks ago!!!!  If anyone finds one of my extra chins they can keep it!!!

Also my snowmobile thinks I am lighter now than at the beginning of the season.  (view the attached photo)  The snowmobile jumped way to far because the rider was lighter???

F Jeff

My name is James, and i am an addict...

Well apparently i am addicted to sugar. This week make that painfully obvious. It was good to walk away from it for a week. See you Monday, Sugar!

HARDEST CHALLENGE for sure!

I live for sweets apparently.  I told James that we should save our cheat days for the weekend and what happens...treats! Social treats! Free treats! Cheap treats! I gave in on Wednesday thinking that it would be no big deal to save my second cheat day till Sunday. 30 minutes later I get a text for $3 fillups at our local FroYo place. And then a text from a good friend wanting to go to said FroYo to hang out! I wanted so badly to hang out with my friend. But I had to say no...because I wasted my cheat day on a TOTALLY WORTH IT DELICIOUS MINI BUNDT CAKE! And then the next day my friend that I had been making plans with for 3 weeks decided that we'd be making chocolate eggs while we hung out! I mean...seriously! The melted chocolatey goodness was just sitting right there calling to me! But fortunately I was able to blame my not trying any of the chocolates on that they needed to set up and I didn't want the chocolate all melty. HA! PLEASE! But let me tell you those chocolates are sitting on my shelf and I'm gonna have to be careful not to blow my good standings on Easter dinner and those eggs!

Anybody else been pinning desserts and delicious looking foods like crazy to pretend like you are going to taste those one day. Yeah...sorry...this is not a helpful post.

BUUUUT..this week I finally saw some results I was hoping for..and I am really grateful for this challenge. I clearly need to watch my sweets/treats/and desserts intake in the future.

Sugar, Sugar!

I discovered this week that it's not that hard to have a day without sugar.  The time I craved a treat the most was in the afternoons, some frozen cherries kind of hit the spot.  What is hard is stuffing 212 plastic Easter eggs with candy and not accidentally sampling a piece or two.  So the moral of the story is out of sight, out of mind.  I need to clean out my pantry and a few of my drawers!  

Surprisingly, week 7 was easier than I thought it would be. Being married to a guy who loves cookies (eats them on the go all day long) and  he also loves sugar coated fruit slices. I don't  have a problem with the fruit slices....but the cookies.......so this week he gets the nasty, dry  packaged cookies from the store. No temptation there!! I have made it.. 5 days without sweets, treats or desserts....yah!! I did not think I would last this long...but I saw a few more # drop, I feel better, both physically and mentally. I will make it through to the end.
Thanks to you all.

This one's not about me!

I have been reading a lot of posts this week.  All of MY posts have been about me and my goals and my frustrations, but I just want to say to everyone who is posting...thank you!  I have really enjoyed hearing about your lives and goals and habits.  It has helped me to stay sane and focused.  Everyone participating in this challenge and who is posting on this blog is great!  You're all real and entertaining writers.  Thank you and thank you for posting!  Have a great Easter!

Chocolate and Laundry

I have realized that one of my laundry coping mechanisms is choclate. So this week laundry has been harder than usual to work on. Usually I measure out a serving of something chocolate (usually it's chocolate chips and almonds) and put it in a little cup to keep on the table while I'm folding. When the task starts to feel mundane I eat a bit. It's a system that works! And though I am determinedly trying to complete the challenge this week, I plan to go back to this method as soon as this week is over!

Week 6 Results and Prize Winner

Week 6 was another good one!  I'm so proud of so many of you that are hanging in there until the end!  This really has been a competitive and good group.

If your name isn't on here, send me your points when you can.

Week 6 Results:

Tied for 1st place with 564 points:

1.  Nicole

1.  McKenzi

2.  Katie W.      563

2.  Jeff              563

3.  Weston        562

4.  Sarah V.       559

5.  Brenda         558

6.  James           554

7.  Erica            552

8.  Stephanie     545

9.  Kate R.        545

10.  Sarah C.     539

11.  Leigh          531

12.  Leisel          528

13.  Mary           519

14.  Nada            496

15.  Elise            496

16.  Heather        495

17.  Cam             484

18.  Victoria        472

19.  Amber          463

20.  Kiersten       410

And the winner of the $10 Target gift card goes to:  

Click Here to See

Water

I have been wondering about water recently.  Two things...

1.  My hands swell to the point that my ring is almost uncomfortable and then within an hour or two my ring is nearly sliding off.  Is this normal to have so much swelling on and off through the day?  Anyone else experience this too?

2. When you pee like every hour because you are drinking so much water is it really helping you?  Are your cells really using the water or is it just passing through :)  ?

EASY points....

Blogging each week is the EASIEST 10 points out there! GRRR and I didn't get them last week because I plain ol' FORGOT!! Well....NOT this week!!!

I find that the more power I have over food (and not the other way around) I am experiencing the happier and more confident I feel!!! So - remember who has the thumbs!!! WE DO!!!

FOOD (INSERT SWEETS AND TREATS) DO NOT HAVE POWER OVER ME!!! I HAVE POWER OVER THE FOOD!!!

Some time when you are feeling strong and in control......Make a list of all the things you can do when you feel weak. Walk around your kitchen 10 times, grab the closest person to you and hug them, make a phone call to a friend, write in your journal, start singing a song - ANYTHING to maintain the control YOU HAVE over food!

WE CAN DO THIS!!

(ps. it's only 5 days out of 7 right?!?!?)   :)

freaking out!

The last couple weeks have sucked!  I have tried to stay positive but my son is leaving for boot camp.  (Navy)  in a couple days!! I planned on being with him Thursday at airport when he leaves but just found out we aren't allowed?!  So I guess the last time I will get to see him will be Wed when he swears in.  I just want to cry!! and eat my way through it and am considering quiting altogether.  Sorry to be such a downer but I AM FREAKING OUT!! Im not ready to be an empty nester.

No Sweets

At first I didn't think that this was going to be too bad of a challenge for me, but as I was talking to Kiersten and saying how easy it will be for me...I immediately went and ate about 5 hi-chews and realized that i'm just as bad as everyone else. Hi-Chews are the ways that I can destress from a long day of work and school without feeling guilty that i'm eating a snickers, milky way, M&M's and all of those sugary candies...then I eat about 15 Hi-Chews. I'm already craving one as i'm writing this...good luck to us all!

No sweets

Well, this will be my hardest challenge yet. I definitely have a weakness for sweets. I will try my best. I can do five days right? I need to try harder this week. I want to finish strong! I didn't meet my challenge last week of fruits and veggies sadly. I had fruit in the house but no veggies and couldn't make it to the store until payday 😰😰😰 I'll be glad for my veggie garden this summer tho!! Good luck to everyone and Happy Easter!!

Wish me luck

Well we are headed off for our spring break trip this morning. When I first read no sweets for the week I was a little bummed. But the more I thought about it I realized maybe it will help me stay on track. Fingers crossed I can do as well as a lot of you have while traveling.

No sweets? :-(

Okay Stephanie! I am going to do it! I love Cadbury mini eggs so much, and I need some incentive to steer clear.

I have had ups and downs over these past six weeks. But I definitely think I have made improvements and done way better than I would have, had I not felt the accountability of this group.

So thanks all!  Have a great Easter week.

After weighing in each week, trying my hardest (minus one week) to get all my points... I sure haven't lost very much. By that I mean a whopping 3 pounds. What is interesting to me is that my clothes have been fitting better and my work outs have been easier. At first my goal of this challenge was to lose weight, but the reality is the scale doesn't show what really matters. Even if I weighed 100 pounds I know that those numbers play a mental game with you. I am terrified of this next challenge but I can have my Diet Coke so I am happy. It's just avoiding sweets and sugary treats right? Diet Coke does not fall into a "treat" category. It's 100% a need in my world!

Sad I forgot to blog last week...

I'm  thankful for Sunday's for so many reasons. I will regroup and work hard this week. I have my ups and downs. My granddaughters start arriving on May 10th. I want to be a strong fit and fun grandma so I'm training for the babies!

Homemade Pizza

1. Flatout Foldit Artisan Flat bread tear in half you have two pizza doughs for 45 cal each.
2.  Mezzetta napa valley homemade tomato and sweet basil.  25 cal per pizza
4. Cheese please 90ish cal per.
5. Canadian bacon-cause if your eating real bacon you aren't looking at these blogs anymore.  30 cal per pizza.

Nice cheesy pizza for 190 cal.

"A tradition unlike any other"

For those less familiar and dare i say cultured, this weekend was the annual Masters golf tournament. The greatest stage for the worlds best golfers. Also the greatest way waste 40 hours watching a sport you care very little about but somehow cant seem to walk away from. I find that nothing seems to better promote lethargy and sluggishness like the game of golf. So heres to a good week and a push to the finish line!

New week!

I will say this was probably my hardest week yet, Soring Break was good for my longer runs but hard for the ever car-snacking. It was great to read and relax and re-group!!  A friend reminded me of goalsetting and making sure we know what we want to achieve, that's where I'm headed, writing it down, posting it proud and reporting back! So my personal goals this week:

1. 100 oz of a water a day (I'm terrible with water)
2. PLAN my meals, write them down, track!!
3. Group challenge- No Sugar!!
4. No scale til next Monday morning - I check too much

Here's to reporting back next week!

Get Your Head in the Game

Every time I've attempted to lose weight I've been surprised by how much of a mental game it really is.  It takes a lot of time and energy to make it happen.  At this point in my life with a new baby and a family to keep up with, I've had a hard time finding any extra mental energy at all.  I'm happy that this challenge has made me accountable so I push to get my workouts in and keep a food log...because I know I wouldn't be doing either right now without it.

I'm happy for the no sweets challenge coming up this week that will keep me in check with the abundance of Easter candy.  And just think of all the chocolate bunnies we'll save!  Keep up the good work everyone!