Marching Our Way to a Healthy Lifestyle ~ March 2016 WISH Challenge

[SarahDisney]

And @SarahDisney I really liked The OC as well, at least the first three seasons.

Yeah, season 4 of The O.C. should not have existed.

Sorry I have been MIA for a few days. I am super frustrated right now I just spent like and hour and half reading through all the posts, catching up, and saving quotes to chat with you all - then right near the last post on this page I went to scroll up and accidentally closed the web page and lost it all!

Technology really is the worst sometimes

I also didn't have much to woohoo about on Wednesday - I left work thinking wow the steering feels weird in my car, pulled into the service station (Aussie for Gas Station) to check the air in my tyres and found the front driver's side wheel was flat totally flat. Found a screw in it. Called Dad to come to the rescue and change it to the spare. So today it cost me a very unexpected $200 for a new tyre.

That's not fun. I'm glad your Dad was able to change it for you, but that's definitely not something you want to happen.

As for the Gilmore Girls fans - Add me to the list. Love it. They started playing it on TV here at 5pm Mon-Fri last year - I got to share it with my daughter she loved it too (I love being a mum to a girl and get to do this stuff together). I was not a big fan of Jess but I do think he looked like he had got it together at the end there. Logan wasn't a huge fan but do also think his proposal was real and that he really ended loving Rory. Can't wait for the reunion show and I so want Lorelei to be with Luke! My daughter used to sing the theme song in the shower.

Yay! Another Gilmore Girls fan!

I am an OC fan also - I dragged my kids to OC locations when we were on our holiday lol

That is awesome!! I love the picture!

Another guilty pleasure my daughter and I share at the moment is watching Hart of Dixie on DVD together. We did the Warner Bros VIP tour on the holiday and so saw lots of the places used for filming both Hart of Dixie and Gilmore Girls. They were actually shooting for Hart of Dixie when we were there - we couldn't see anyone though - there was a big vehicle in the way.

I keep wanting to watch Hart of Dixie, but I never get around to it. I think it's on Netflix ... but so are a lot of other things that I haven't gotten around to watching.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

That's a tough one for me. While I wear my fitbit pretty regularly, I don't pay as much attention to it as I did when I first got it.
I like my Garmin watch a lot ... but I don't love it as much as I did when I first got it.
Basically, I get bored easily. I have ADD. Oh look, something shiny!
(By the way, this is not meant to be mean to people with ADD ... I actually have ADD, and I have been known to get distracted by shiny things sometimes, which is not good when I need to be concentrating on something)

I haven't re-posted it but I posted a pic last month of the river where I go paddling - love it.

I'll have to go back and find that picture - I'm sure it's beautiful!

Also have loved seeing the pics of everyone's favourite spots - some beautiful places.

Yes! I really love seeing all the amazing spots people love!

I have scales, my iPhone tracks my steps, MFP, a kettle bell (a little under used), zumba DVD set that I bought a few years ago and have probably used 4 times , my surf-ski/kayak for paddling that is my favourite at the moment, Winsor Pilates DVD's also hardly used bought even longer ago than the Zumba DVD's!

I would like to buy a stand-up paddle board but they are not cheap and I can't afford one in the foreseeable future

Wow, that's a lot of fun toys!
And I didn't realize that stand up paddle boards were so expensive ... I just looked it up and holy cow that's a lot!

Toy is my garmin. I love that thing even though I refuse to wear it and I just carry it.

I'm a little entertained that you carry it instead of wearing it ... but if that's what works for you, that's awesome!

Speaking of said garmin and the challenge this week. I completely messed up my garmin and stopped my run short trying to get a shot. I'm so boring. This is a dark street at night. This is where and when I run the most. No amazing views for me. And the picture won't behave so I'm going to just leave it out haha. Though I do get some amazing views of the stars.

Yeah, the DIS has issues with pictures sometimes. If I take a picture with my phone, I have to make it significantly smaller to upload it. It's crazy.
We'll all just have to use our imaginations

It was a rough night for me. I didn't sleep for some reason. I got up, stretched, got back in bed, foam rolled, got back in bed again, paced around my apartment, got back in bed and repeated. Upside to this is none of the nightmares I've been having pretty consistently lately.

I'm sorry to hear this ... sleepless nights are always rough
I hope you can get some better sleep tonight!

I have a Fitbit to help with my steps as long as it is charged. I forgot to charge one day this week. When it is not charged I use my phone. I also so My fitness pal to track calories. We have a scale at home to measure food portions and a scare so we can weight ourselves. My husband just bought something that shows how much fat you have. I m not sure why he got but it was cool to use. We are looking at getting a treadmill to help get our steps in on days that it is rainy or in the winter. I would have no problem walking on one while I watch my tv shows at night.

Lots of great stuff! And yeah, remembering to charge the fitbit is hard sometimes ... I tend to forget about it and then get annoyed if it dies.
Personally, I like to watch movies on the treadmill. But I know a lot of people love walking on the treadmill whule watching TV.

I love my Garmin Forerunner 220. The best thing that I have purchased. I love being able to track my runs, set pacing, etc. I also just bought a food scale and I have to admit, it's also an awesome purchase! I realized that I was way overestimating oz on some of the food I was eating. I would track 5 oz and really only eat 2-3 oz. No wonder why I was starving all the time!

We have a lot of Garmin fans here! And it's interesting to hear that changing the scale has helped you realize that you were overestimating portions.

I'm contemplating buying a treadmill. They're so expensive but it would be so convenient for me to ditch the gym and work out from home where I could control what was on the tv, not have to rush to the gym to try and find an open treadmill, etc. I haven't made the purchase just because they are so expensive!

We bought our treadmill a few years ago, and I think it's really worth it. When I first started running (like 5 years ago), I stopped when it got cold out because I didn't want to run in the cold and I didn't want to join a gym. I tried running again a few years later, starting outside, but by then we had the treadmill, so when it got cold out, I just ran on the treadmill. It made a huge difference in my attitude and my willingness to run knowing that I had that option easily available. So if you're willing to pay the price, I highly recommend the treadmill.
Of course, now I just run outside in the cold. But I do still like having the treadmill available for extreme weather conditions.

I will say that the one toy I bought that I haven't used much was the foot pod to go with my Garmin. I thought it would be more accurate than the accelerometer but the problem is that in order to make it accurate I have to take it outside for runs to help it calibrate. Well it's finally getting warmer out so now I'm hoping to run out more on the weekends so that it can be more accurate!

This is interesting to hear! I know some people really like the foot pod for the Garmin, but it's interesting to hear that so far it hasn't really worked out for you.

I forgot, we also have a Wii and an Xbox with multiple workout games. The Nike workout for the Xbox is a great workout.

This is why I hate when people totally write off video games. There are some video games that are awesome for working out, and I'm always happy to hear about people using those!!
You totally just made my day by saying this!

My iPad is my favorite toy. It's how I read these boards, and how I work out. I at
have an ap called sworkit that I use to exercise.

That's a good one - I never really thought about using the iPad for working out, but there are a lot of awesome exercise apps out there!

Primary toy: my FitBit. I'm on my second one, a Charge HR and I'm really happy with it... my first was a Flex and the whole time I had it I kept wishing I could see my step count on it, which the Charge has. Plus I quit wearing my watch when I got it, so getting time on my Charge is a big plus as well. I always have some sort of challenge going with friends, sometimes two, which really helps when the urge to just sit is strong. My highest step day so far is 30,000 steps which included a 6+ mile hike and walking around in circles in the campground till I hit it. And as I've mentioned before, when I'm at WDW in May I'm planning on doing a 35,000 day... normal is around 20,000 so to add to that I'm planning on a morning walk around Hourglass Lake (1.9 miles/around 5,000 steps) and walking from DHS to EPCOT (which comes up as .8 miles/1900 steps, but it seems like it would be longer than that), and several loops around each park, as this will also be my 4 parks/1 day day.

Yay for Fitbits!!
And I ran around Hourglass Lake last year when I stayed at Art of Animation ... it's so beautiful, especially in the mornings.

I recently got a little food scale and really like it. I wasn't too far off in my estimations, but it is good to know for sure. And I also count the WW bar-code scanner as a toy.. first time I used it at the grocery store I was a little self conscious, but now I walk around scanning stuff I'm not even interested in buying.

Barcode scanners are definitely a lot of fun

I don't really have a health related Woohoo for this week, but non health related I made ADR's for my trip I'm very excited.

It may not be health-related, but it's still an awesome WooHoo!! Yay for ADRs! Anything in particular that you're really looking forward to?

That would definitely be my iPod. I use it to track my miles when I run and it also distracts me from the pain with music or podcast. I love it.

iPods are definitely awesome ... although I still have the really old one that doesn't have a touch screen or anything. But when I first started running (pre-smartphone), I couldn't have gotten through it without my iPod (now I use my phone for music). Definitely a good toy to have!

I am considering getting a Garmin sports watch while I'm in the States this summer. It can track miles on a bike and while swimming in addition to runs. I want to do a triathlon someday so I think this could be useful. I'd still need my iPod though.

I've never used a Garmin for biking or swimming, but from what I've heard, they definitely have some really great triathalon watches. I think if you get one, you'll love it!

Hey friends.... Posting from my cruddy phone right now. Sitting in the car in a "No Parking" zone in Boston so I don't have to pay to park for an hour. DD is in an interview and I am just waiting for her. I'm trying to read here but WOWZA ...you guys have been chatty! And I hate to read and not do replies! But I'll have some computer access later today as well as a bit of free time, so I'll be back then!!.........P

I love how chatty we are this month ... but it's definitely hard to keep up with the reading and replies!
Good luck to your DD on her interview!

---

Okay, I'm officially behind schedule, but ... it's been a good morning. Weather is still beautiful here, and it was so nice to be out running without 45,000 layers. Then I got home, made some instant iced coffee (ie Starbucks Via made with room temperature, thrown in the fridge for 20 minutes, and then put over ice and mixed with milk), and had a decent breakfast.
I also started my first batch of cold brew of the season. For those of you unfamiliar with cold brew ... it's coffee made with cold water, which is supposed to have a much smoother taste than traditional coffee. There are a few ways to make it, but what I do is mix coffee grounds and water in a 4:1 ratio (for this batch I used 3 cups of water and 3/4 cup of grounds), leave it in the fridge for 12 hours, then strain out the coffee grounds and throw it back in the fridge. When I'm ready for my coffee, I mix the concentrate with ice (and milk ... I like a lot of milk in my iced coffee) and occasionally some flavoring (but not too often because that's a lot of sugar), and it's perfect. I'm a big iced coffee drinker, so this is how I get through the spring and summer without just handing my bank account over to Starbucks.
Okay, time for me to get some work done. Have a great day, everyone!

 

[chasingthtdream08]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Characters from Toy Story make their way through Disney California Adventure as part of the Pixar Play Parade. The main characters of Toy Story are Andy’s toys – and Andy has a great variety of toys, ranging from a classic slinky dog to cowboy Woody to the greatest space ranger, Buzz Lightyear.

Toys aren’t just for kids – adults can have toys too! Many of us use “toys” to help in our healthy journeys – ranging from activity trackers that keep us moving to scales that help us measure our food to treadmills that help us get in those steps and runs, and many things in between.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

Don’t forget, today is the last day for our week 1 challenge! If you haven’t already done so, share your favorite exercise spot and what exercise you’ve done there this week.​

Hi again!! It's been a while. I was getting VERY frustrated with the process as I had been doing everything right and hadn't lost a single pound not even half a pound in one month of working my butt off both with diet and a fair amount of exercise. I don't think this is my first time complaining about it on this thread, sorry for the pity party! Sure, I had maybe 3-4 cheat meals throughout the month, but I didn't think that little would derail my journey completely, but my scale told me it did. You would think the fact that 95% of my eating was on point and only 5% was off track wouldn't completely ruin it, but it did. Anyways, pity party over. Even with all of the disappointment on the scale and my clothes not feeling any looser, I continued on. And this morning, I got on the scale and had lost 0.6 lbs. That is the first "loss" I have seen in a month. I was very happy and it gave me motivation to continue further. I do want to thank everyone here for being so positive! Whenever I need motivation, I just come here and read, and it instantly gives me a smile on my face.

Onto QOTD.
-I have a few toys to help me with my healthy journey. First I have a Fitbit Flex, that's probably two years old now. I haven't been wearing it so much in the past week. But I do enjoy wearing it as it challenges me to walk just that little bit further everyday. I love beating my "record" and I also love getting my weekly Fitbit report via email.
-I also have a stationary bike with different resistance settings that I currently have set up in my living room. I'll usually throw on a show from my DVR and hop on the bike for however long the show is I'm watching with switching the resistance up and down. The bike also came with two pound hand weights (which are a little light for me) and I will use those intermittently as well while on the bike for some arm work.
-And of course, my scale. That god forsaken scale, that I should probably get rid of as it causes me nothing but grief! Our scale has actually been "acting" up lately. As in sometimes it just doesn't want to to turn on, even though we've changed the batteries. I think it's on it's last life. So time to look for a new one? Maybe not?
-Last but not least, MFP. MyFitnessPal has been an awesome tool for weight loss. I love tracking my food and seeing all the nutrition throughout the day and how it's adding up. I also love being able to track my exercise and weight. The message boards on there are also a good read when I'm feeling unmotivated. Add me! Username: chasingthatdream08

 

[mamattorney]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Characters from Toy Story make their way through Disney California Adventure as part of the Pixar Play Parade. The main characters of Toy Story are Andy’s toys – and Andy has a great variety of toys, ranging from a classic slinky dog to cowboy Woody to the greatest space ranger, Buzz Lightyear.

Toys aren’t just for kids – adults can have toys too! Many of us use “toys” to help in our healthy journeys – ranging from activity trackers that keep us moving to scales that help us measure our food to treadmills that help us get in those steps and runs, and many things in between.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

Don’t forget, today is the last day for our week 1 challenge! If you haven’t already done so, share your favorite exercise spot and what exercise you’ve done there this week.​

The toy that helps me most by far is my fitbit. It is SO unbelievably motivating for me. I read articles about how the majority of people who buy fitness trackers only use them for a few months and then they find their way, uncharged, into a drawer. Not me!

I would have to say that the ultimate trifecta of health toys is the combination of: (1) fitbit, (2) fitbit Aria scale, and (3) myfitnesspal app
These three together have helped me more than WeightWatchers did, even with accountability to others.

Fitbit is self explanatory.

The scale I love for two reasons - first, I can't fudge. It wirelessly sends my weight to myfitnesspal and the fitbit dashboard. Because of this, and the second reason I love the scale, is I now just weigh myself once and call it a day. Before - I'd be on, off, on, off and then take the lowest number. Now that it will record that potentially higher number, I have more discipline to just accept the first reading and get on with my day.

myfitnesspal I like because I like the interface. The only other app I have experience with is WW (from about 5 years ago) and I like how it tracks actual nutrition and not just points. I like the way it remembers the foods I have logged before and the foods I often eat together. I love how logging often just takes a couple of clicks. I like the way the community can enter data that anyone can use. Yes you have to verify it's correct, but it's nice to know that, chances are, someone else has already tracked whatever I am eating and I don't have to hunt around the internet for the info.

All in all, three great tools FOR ME. Maybe not for everyone, but for me.

 

[courtneybeth]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:
What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?
​

Sharing love for the Fitbit and the Garmin Forerunner 220. Two best tools in my arsenal for fitness!

 

[Kiren]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Hmm... I've just started using My Fitness Pal and it's actually done wonders for me and I've only been using it for three days! It keeps me watching what I eat. Actually it told me last night that I hadn't eaten enough through the day!

I am looking at getting a Fitbit Charge. I use to have a misfit shine but it died pretty quickly and I wasn't happy with the response of the company.

 

[courtneybeth]

The talk on here about Gilmore Girls, The OC, and Dawson's Creek made me all excited. I love these guilty pleasure shows.

Did anyone else watch Gossip Girl - or is that too embarrassing to admit to watching?


I'm from Orange County, so we all scowled at the OC since our lives are (unfortunately) not like that in real life. It'd be nice though!

 

[tortilla24]

Hi everyone I'm Tortilla

I'm late to the game! But am trying to lose weight and hopefully keep it off permanently. I gained the Freshman 15 in college after studying abroad in Australia my freshman year. It was amazing but the drinking age there is 18 and I had my fair share of Smirnoff Ices. I also didn't eat a vegetable that entire month abroad . Once I graduated I moved overseas for 3 year with limited food choices - I ate pretty well and basically just maintained my Freshman 15. Now that I'm back living here in America for the past 2 years, I started eating all the foods. I literally hadn't had some of these foods in years and I ordered everything and anything at restaurants (it was a crazy mentality of omg fries or onion rings? I NEED both). But now I'm back in this for real. I'm cooking at home so much more, meal prepping and hoping to force myself to work out (I just don't like it and I don't get the euphoria thing others do )

So my goal is to lose 5 lbs in March - I've never set a weight loss related goal before in my life (it's always been to lose weight without a specific # in mind, setting myself up for failure) so I don't know how successful I'll be. And I'll be sure to come and post updates weekly here!

 

[tortilla24]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Characters from Toy Story make their way through Disney California Adventure as part of the Pixar Play Parade. The main characters of Toy Story are Andy’s toys – and Andy has a great variety of toys, ranging from a classic slinky dog to cowboy Woody to the greatest space ranger, Buzz Lightyear.

Toys aren’t just for kids – adults can have toys too! Many of us use “toys” to help in our healthy journeys – ranging from activity trackers that keep us moving to scales that help us measure our food to treadmills that help us get in those steps and runs, and many things in between.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

Don’t forget, today is the last day for our week 1 challenge! If you haven’t already done so, share your favorite exercise spot and what exercise you’ve done there this week.​

I love my polar heart rate monitor. I used to use MFP but tracking really took a toll on me and it got dull so I'm trying something new... I've created an Instagram account where I post everything I eat and drink (besides water) and share my workouts. It's literally an account to keep myself accountable and I like to visually see what I've eaten for the week. If anyone cares to follow, I'm justrynabehealthy on there

 

[Lady Marie]

I cannot believe I missed the Gilmore Girls discussions yesterday!!! I'm such a fan (even made DH watch it when it came on Netflix and even he liked it-- which made him a keeper for sure! hahahaha!)!

@courtneybeth I'll admit it-- Yes, I watched Gossip Girl religiously in college, but fell off the bandwagon around season 4. I even read some of the books before they were a series! Blair is my wardrobe spirit animal. How I wish I had the time and money to dress like that!!!

QOTD: I'm the oddball who uses a Jawbone Up instead of a FitBit. DH has a FitBit so I played around with it before I decided to go to Up solely based on the software. I love it because I feel like it coaches towards whole body and mind wellness as well as steps and exercise. But that means I have no friends to compete with haha! Oh well! I also use MFP and love it for all the reasons mentioned before. I am so much more accountable when I track!

Welcome @tortilla24 !

 

[courtneybeth]

I'm in a state of panic and excitement over the changes to the Avengers Super Heroes RunDisney Weekend and how that'll logistically work out with Rock N Roll Vegas the same weekend.

Shifting Captain America to the 5K now means that I am running the Friday race AND Saturday 10K, but then driving to Vegas for a 5K that night and a half marathon the next night.

Logistics and financials just got more complicated. Way to go Disney.

 

[DVCFan1994]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Characters from Toy Story make their way through Disney California Adventure as part of the Pixar Play Parade. The main characters of Toy Story are Andy’s toys – and Andy has a great variety of toys, ranging from a classic slinky dog to cowboy Woody to the greatest space ranger, Buzz Lightyear.

Toys aren’t just for kids – adults can have toys too! Many of us use “toys” to help in our healthy journeys – ranging from activity trackers that keep us moving to scales that help us measure our food to treadmills that help us get in those steps and runs, and many things in between.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

Don’t forget, today is the last day for our week 1 challenge! If you haven’t already done so, share your favorite exercise spot and what exercise you’ve done there this week.​

My favorite toy is my Garmin 225. It is a GPS watch with heart rate on the wrist, instead of a pesky chest strap. My PT believes strongly in heart rate training, so I always use heart rate for my runs. It also acts as a pedometer, so it replaced my fitbit. Love it!

I'm in a state of panic and excitement over the changes to the Avengers Super Heroes RunDisney Weekend and how that'll logistically work out with Rock N Roll Vegas the same weekend.

Shifting Captain America to the 5K now means that I am running the Friday race AND Saturday 10K, but then driving to Vegas for a 5K that night and a half marathon the next night.

Logistics and financials just got more complicated. Way to go Disney.

These people need to get their darn act together. There are way too many changes after people may have already started making travel plans. For instance if one wanted to use their own or rent DVC points, the 11 month window is well past. While some wait to be sure they get registered, others who have specific hotels/resort etc likely have started reserving those things and now might need to make changes, particularly for Wine and Dine which has added a day. Whomever is in charge of their planning and communication is a mess lately!

 

[Dr Gunnie]

Question of the Day – Thursday, March 10th:

Characters from Toy Story make their way through Disney California Adventure as part of the Pixar Play Parade. The main characters of Toy Story are Andy’s toys – and Andy has a great variety of toys, ranging from a classic slinky dog to cowboy Woody to the greatest space ranger, Buzz Lightyear.

Toys aren’t just for kids – adults can have toys too! Many of us use “toys” to help in our healthy journeys – ranging from activity trackers that keep us moving to scales that help us measure our food to treadmills that help us get in those steps and runs, and many things in between.

What toy helps you most on your healthy journey? Are there any toys that you’re considering purchasing but just haven’t made the final decision yet? Are there any toys that you purchased but don’t use much?

Don’t forget, today is the last day for our week 1 challenge! If you haven’t already done so, share your favorite exercise spot and what exercise you’ve done there this week.​

I'm team Fitbit - got the Charge HR. I really like it.
I also log my meals on MFP like most others.
Have a treadmill at home I use almost daily and a medicine ball that I use to work on my abs (or lack thereof).
Digital scale to measure all my food.
Doctor's Scale to measure me after I eat all my food. I'm so glad we upgraded to a legit doctor's scale - probably my favorite of all the toys.

 

[donac]

QOTD I have stationery bike, my yoga mat, a foam roller and a pedometer. I am not into too many gadgets. I do have a treadmill but I need someone to fix it since it slips.

Unofficial opening night. Seniors can come in for half price. Since this is an old fashioned musical we may have a good showing. It is also a great night, warm and no rain.



Here is one snapshot from the show the other night. It is not as clear as I usually take since I took it from my phone. It also does have the lighting effect that they used last night. Last night there was a beautiful moon behind them but the footbridge was in the wrong spot and you couldn't see their faces. They might get it right tonight. Next week I will show some other pictures.

Off to make my list of what has to be done before the kids get dressed tonight.

Have a happy and healthy day.

 

[Kiren]

I restarted my instagram account too! It's Keireina_Kireno

 

[4Mickeys]

Hi everyone I'm Tortilla

I'm late to the game! But am trying to lose weight and hopefully keep it off permanently. I gained the Freshman 15 in college after studying abroad in Australia my freshman year. It was amazing but the drinking age there is 18 and I had my fair share of Smirnoff Ices. I also didn't eat a vegetable that entire month abroad . Once I graduated I moved overseas for 3 year with limited food choices - I ate pretty well and basically just maintained my Freshman 15. Now that I'm back living here in America for the past 2 years, I started eating all the foods. I literally hadn't had some of these foods in years and I ordered everything and anything at restaurants (it was a crazy mentality of omg fries or onion rings? I NEED both). But now I'm back in this for real. I'm cooking at home so much more, meal prepping and hoping to force myself to work out (I just don't like it and I don't get the euphoria thing others do )

So my goal is to lose 5 lbs in March - I've never set a weight loss related goal before in my life (it's always been to lose weight without a specific # in mind, setting myself up for failure) so I don't know how successful I'll be. And I'll be sure to come and post updates weekly here!

Hi and - living away from home can be hard to stay on track with eating- In case you missed it I'm the resident Aussie on this thread - glad to hear you enjoyed our lower drinking age lol. Where did you stay when you were here?

 

[JacknSally]

QOTD: I have a Fitbit Charge HR but it's not getting a ton of use. It died and when I recharged it the time and date were off - it thinks 9pm is 7am, so the steps for "that day" don't track accurately. I don't know how to fix it!

We've had record rainfall here the last two days (12 inches in two days - our monthly average for March is 5 inches for the whole month) and there are a ton of roads flooding and the was a mudslide down at the Mississippi River... It's been fun! Haha. They aren't expecting it to stop raining until Sunday, either.

 

[courtneybeth]

Heading off to Washington DC tonight on a red eye flight - arrive at 7am EST and I'm excited to see the Capitol for the first time. Half Marathon is Saturday - ready to set another PR for sure!

 

[SarahDisney]

Hi again!! It's been a while. I was getting VERY frustrated with the process as I had been doing everything right and hadn't lost a single pound not even half a pound in one month of working my butt off both with diet and a fair amount of exercise. I don't think this is my first time complaining about it on this thread, sorry for the pity party! Sure, I had maybe 3-4 cheat meals throughout the month, but I didn't think that little would derail my journey completely, but my scale told me it did. You would think the fact that 95% of my eating was on point and only 5% was off track wouldn't completely ruin it, but it did. Anyways, pity party over. Even with all of the disappointment on the scale and my clothes not feeling any looser, I continued on. And this morning, I got on the scale and had lost 0.6 lbs. That is the first "loss" I have seen in a month. I was very happy and it gave me motivation to continue further. I do want to thank everyone here for being so positive! Whenever I need motivation, I just come here and read, and it instantly gives me a smile on my face.

I hate those times when it seems like you're doing everything right, but the little "off moments" seem to matter more than all the good things you're doing. I'm glad you're finally starting to see results!

Onto QOTD.
-I have a few toys to help me with my healthy journey. First I have a Fitbit Flex, that's probably two years old now. I haven't been wearing it so much in the past week. But I do enjoy wearing it as it challenges me to walk just that little bit further everyday. I love beating my "record" and I also love getting my weekly Fitbit report via email.
-I also have a stationary bike with different resistance settings that I currently have set up in my living room. I'll usually throw on a show from my DVR and hop on the bike for however long the show is I'm watching with switching the resistance up and down. The bike also came with two pound hand weights (which are a little light for me) and I will use those intermittently as well while on the bike for some arm work.
-And of course, my scale. That god forsaken scale, that I should probably get rid of as it causes me nothing but grief! Our scale has actually been "acting" up lately. As in sometimes it just doesn't want to to turn on, even though we've changed the batteries. I think it's on it's last life. So time to look for a new one? Maybe not?
-Last but not least, MFP. MyFitnessPal has been an awesome tool for weight loss. I love tracking my food and seeing all the nutrition throughout the day and how it's adding up. I also love being able to track my exercise and weight. The message boards on there are also a good read when I'm feeling unmotivated. Add me!

Lots of great toys!!

The toy that helps me most by far is my fitbit. It is SO unbelievably motivating for me. I read articles about how the majority of people who buy fitness trackers only use them for a few months and then they find their way, uncharged, into a drawer. Not me!

I would have to say that the ultimate trifecta of health toys is the combination of: (1) fitbit, (2) fitbit Aria scale, and (3) myfitnesspal app
These three together have helped me more than WeightWatchers did, even with accountability to others.

Fitbit is self explanatory.

The scale I love for two reasons - first, I can't fudge. It wirelessly sends my weight to myfitnesspal and the fitbit dashboard. Because of this, and the second reason I love the scale, is I now just weigh myself once and call it a day. Before - I'd be on, off, on, off and then take the lowest number. Now that it will record that potentially higher number, I have more discipline to just accept the first reading and get on with my day.

myfitnesspal I like because I like the interface. The only other app I have experience with is WW (from about 5 years ago) and I like how it tracks actual nutrition and not just points. I like the way it remembers the foods I have logged before and the foods I often eat together. I love how logging often just takes a couple of clicks. I like the way the community can enter data that anyone can use. Yes you have to verify it's correct, but it's nice to know that, chances are, someone else has already tracked whatever I am eating and I don't have to hunt around the internet for the info.

All in all, three great tools FOR ME. Maybe not for everyone, but for me.

I've been thinking about getting the Aria scale, so I was really interested to see that you find it to be so helpful! I'm definitely guilty multiple weigh-ins hoping for a lower number, so I think its great that this scale helps you to accept the first number.

Sharing love for the Fitbit and the Garmin Forerunner 220. Two best tools in my arsenal for fitness!

Both awesome toys

Hmm... I've just started using My Fitness Pal and it's actually done wonders for me and I've only been using it for three days! It keeps me watching what I eat. Actually it told me last night that I hadn't eaten enough through the day!

It's awesome that you're already starting to see benefits from MFP even after only a few days!

I am looking at getting a Fitbit Charge. I use to have a misfit shine but it died pretty quickly and I wasn't happy with the response of the company.

Fitbits are fun . I've had some issues with mine and customer service has been okay ... not great, but not bad. I do know that a lot of people love their customer service, though.

Did anyone else watch Gossip Girl - or is that too embarrassing to admit to watching?

That's one I didn't watch, but they used my old workplace as either a location or a holding area, I can't remember which (it was before my time).

I'm from Orange County, so we all scowled at the OC since our lives are (unfortunately) not like that in real life. It'd be nice though!

I may have been guilty of thinking that all of California was like that before I went there (okay, that's not entirely true ... but I wanted all of California to be like that).

Hi everyone I'm Tortilla

Hi Tortilla! I'm so glad you decided to join us!

I'm late to the game! But am trying to lose weight and hopefully keep it off permanently. I gained the Freshman 15 in college after studying abroad in Australia my freshman year. It was amazing but the drinking age there is 18 and I had my fair share of Smirnoff Ices. I also didn't eat a vegetable that entire month abroad . Once I graduated I moved overseas for 3 year with limited food choices - I ate pretty well and basically just maintained my Freshman 15. Now that I'm back living here in America for the past 2 years, I started eating all the foods. I literally hadn't had some of these foods in years and I ordered everything and anything at restaurants (it was a crazy mentality of omg fries or onion rings? I NEED both). But now I'm back in this for real. I'm cooking at home so much more, meal prepping and hoping to force myself to work out (I just don't like it and I don't get the euphoria thing others do )

I definitely get the mentality of wanting to have things that you couldn't have when you were living overseas (and really, who doesn't want fries and onion rings sometimes), but I think it's great that you realize that it might not be the best idea for you. Cooking at home is always a nice start, and exercise is great, but try to find something that you can enjoy, whether its walking, yoga, strength training, or something else ... there are so many options out there, and I'm sure you'll find something that works for you.

So my goal is to lose 5 lbs in March - I've never set a weight loss related goal before in my life (it's always been to lose weight without a specific # in mind, setting myself up for failure) so I don't know how successful I'll be. And I'll be sure to come and post updates weekly here!

Having a number goal is always a good idea, and I'm looking forward to hearing about how you do this month!

I love my polar heart rate monitor. I used to use MFP but tracking really took a toll on me and it got dull so I'm trying something new... I've created an Instagram account where I post everything I eat and drink (besides water) and share my workouts. It's literally an account to keep myself accountable and I like to visually see what I've eaten for the week. If anyone cares to follow, I'm justrynabehealthy on there

I really like the idea of using instagram to visually track what you're eating and stay accountable!! Thanks for sharing this!

I cannot believe I missed the Gilmore Girls discussions yesterday!!! I'm such a fan (even made DH watch it when it came on Netflix and even he liked it-- which made him a keeper for sure! hahahaha!)!

He definitely sounds like a keeper!

QOTD: I'm the oddball who uses a Jawbone Up instead of a FitBit. DH has a FitBit so I played around with it before I decided to go to Up solely based on the software. I love it because I feel like it coaches towards whole body and mind wellness as well as steps and exercise. But that means I have no friends to compete with haha! Oh well! I also use MFP and love it for all the reasons mentioned before. I am so much more accountable when I track!

I actually looked at the Jawbone Up, but decided on the Fitbit in the end. Ultimately, it doesn't matter what everyone else uses, all that matters is what works for you.

I'm in a state of panic and excitement over the changes to the Avengers Super Heroes RunDisney Weekend and how that'll logistically work out with Rock N Roll Vegas the same weekend.

Shifting Captain America to the 5K now means that I am running the Friday race AND Saturday 10K, but then driving to Vegas for a 5K that night and a half marathon the next night.

Logistics and financials just got more complicated. Way to go Disney.

I did the 15K in January ... it's not too bad, as long as you practice the back-to-back at least once or twice.
Once you add in the RnR Vegas races (plus the drive) ... you're going to have a busy weekend. Hopefully it will be a lot of fun, though!!

My favorite toy is my Garmin 225. It is a GPS watch with heart rate on the wrist, instead of a pesky chest strap. My PT believes strongly in heart rate training, so I always use heart rate for my runs. It also acts as a pedometer, so it replaced my fitbit. Love it!

Yay Garmin

These people need to get their darn act together. There are way too many changes after people may have already started making travel plans. For instance if one wanted to use their own or rent DVC points, the 11 month window is well past. While some wait to be sure they get registered, others who have specific hotels/resort etc likely have started reserving those things and now might need to make changes, particularly for Wine and Dine which has added a day. Whomever is in charge of their planning and communication is a mess lately!

Agreed.
I have some definite opinions on the changes to W&D that I'm not going to go into, but I think the worst part is the last minute nature and lack of communication. This happened with Avengers last year - they added the 10K right before registration. People make plans in advance, especially DVC members who want to try to make a reservation at their home property, and you can't go changing the dates on people last minute. I'm sorry, if they were going to make these changes, they should have made them a few months ago.

I'm team Fitbit - got the Charge HR. I really like it.
I also log my meals on MFP like most others.
Have a treadmill at home I use almost daily and a medicine ball that I use to work on my abs (or lack thereof).
Digital scale to measure all my food.
Doctor's Scale to measure me after I eat all my food. I'm so glad we upgraded to a legit doctor's scale - probably my favorite of all the toys.

Yay team Fitbit!
You've got lots of great toys - and the doctor's scale is interesting. I don't know if I've ever heard of anyone having one of those before (other than a doctor's office), but it's definitely a good toy to have!

QOTD I have stationery bike, my yoga mat, a foam roller and a pedometer. I am not into too many gadgets. I do have a treadmill but I need someone to fix it since it slips.

Those are all great toys!

Here is one snapshot from the show the other night. It is not as clear as I usually take since I took it from my phone. It also does have the lighting effect that they used last night. Last night there was a beautiful moon behind them but the footbridge was in the wrong spot and you couldn't see their faces. They might get it right tonight. Next week I will show some other pictures.

This picture looks great, and I'm looking forward to seeing more pictures from the show!

QOTD: I have a Fitbit Charge HR but it's not getting a ton of use. It died and when I recharged it the time and date were off - it thinks 9pm is 7am, so the steps for "that day" don't track accurately. I don't know how to fix it!

It probably needs a hard reset.
I don't remember how to do that, but see if you can google it - there might be instructions online somewhere.

We've had record rainfall here the last two days (12 inches in two days - our monthly average for March is 5 inches for the whole month) and there are a ton of roads flooding and the was a mudslide down at the Mississippi River... It's been fun! Haha. They aren't expecting it to stop raining until Sunday, either.

That certainly sounds like fun. Because who doesn't love flooded roads and mudslides?

Heading off to Washington DC tonight on a red eye flight - arrive at 7am EST and I'm excited to see the Capitol for the first time. Half Marathon is Saturday - ready to set another PR for sure!

Yay!! Good luck! I can't wait to hear all about it when you get back!
By the way - are you doing Philly in September? I'm thinking about it because it's pretty easy for me to get to (I can use public transportation to get there pretty cheap) and the timing's decent. But I haven't made a decision yet.

---

Okay, I have to go finish making my cold brew now, but ... don't ever let me say I'm having a good morning. The rest of the day was terrible, and I'm entirely convinced that I jinxed myself.
Oh well, at least it's almost the weekend.

 

[DVCFan1994]

Heading off to Washington DC tonight on a red eye flight - arrive at 7am EST and I'm excited to see the Capitol for the first time. Half Marathon is Saturday - ready to set another PR for sure!

Have fun! I lived in DC for 10 years, I love the city and miss it. I'm sure you will rock your race!

 

[tortilla24]

I restarted my instagram account too! It's Keireina_Kireno

Awesome, I'll follow you! I requested

Hi and - living away from home can be hard to stay on track with eating- In case you missed it I'm the resident Aussie on this thread - glad to hear you enjoyed our lower drinking age lol. Where did you stay when you were here?

We were in Cairnes for a week, Sydney for 3 weeks and Melbourne for 1.5 weeks. My BFF now lives in Melbourne (after a 3 year stint in Shanghai) and we all plan on visiting early next year! Fingers crossed

Heading off to Washington DC tonight on a red eye flight - arrive at 7am EST and I'm excited to see the Capitol for the first time. Half Marathon is Saturday - ready to set another PR for sure!

Enjoy DC (where I currently live - and was raised in the Suburbs)!! I could give you countless restaurant options but it maaaaay put you off track