Team Donald – Biggest Loser “No Excuses” 2012 Challenge

[donac]

Good Wednesday Morning everyone.

I only have a few minutes since I just read 2 pages that were posted since I looked last night. Welcome to all the new people. Welcome to the new Team Donald people who used to be on the BL challenges. It is good to see you again.

I am feeling better from the bout of stomache virus. I have a feeling that the headache may be back but I have some tylenol in my desk so I think I am ready for the day. I just had 2 pieces of toast . I think I will pack some fruit and crackers for lunch and take it from there.

Ds2 made it to Gambia safely. I got an email from him yesterday. He will be spending some time in the capital before he goes to the villages they will be working on. He will be working on the road between these 8 villages and also looking at solar water pumps to make it easier for the villages to get water.

Off to work. I didn't want to work out this morning because I didn't want to exhaust myself before I left.

Have a happy and healthy day.

 

[my3princes]

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

There seem to be so many hurdles this time. Of course I am probably the biggest hurdle. I can come up with believable excuses. My work schedule is a hurdle and the fact that I hate my job. The anxiety associated with everything that has gone on in our life over the last several months means lots of meds for me. I need to figure out the balance that I seem to be missing, find a new enjoyable permanent job, figure out what I can an can't eat and figure out which exercise is going to work best for me.

I'm off to work. Have a great day.

 

[VirataMama4]

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

I have a few road blocks, but the biggest one is myself! I always am putting Dh and kids ahead of myself and making excuses as to why I don't eat better or exercise regularly. I need to learn how to make time for myself and stick to it.
The other big road block for this challenge is going to be our up coming move. We're moving from MD to NoLa in March, we're driving so making good food choices and getting in exercise is going to be next to impossible. My plan right now is that I'm going to pack healthier food for myself and I'm going to bring the Wii with me and do some Wii Fit while in the hotels... Hopefully I will be able to keep up with that. We will have our dog with us so I'll have to take her for little walks at every stop. But she is a Shih Tzu/Maltese so she doesn't go for long walks before she gets tired.

 

[jillbur]

Jill - I really feel for you. I used to work in a really rough area but at least it was elementary school. DH still teaches in a really challenging school. We both have dealt with murders within the families of kids we teach, kids who are homeless, kids who have parents who are in jail and the list goes on. Whenever we watch the news and it seems like the bad thing is in the neighborhood of our school, we pray it does not involve any of our students. Three years ago I left the inner city. I still teach in what we call an "inner ring" school and we deal with a lot of gang problems. It does get hard at times.

Thanks for your story. I guess I'll keep trying and maybe we will relocate. If we do, I would love to switch from middle and high school to lower elementary. Hopefully, I don't read about or hear on the news about any former students the rest of this school year. It's so sad that they have no dreams except to be like their friends and family members who are involved in gangs, drugs, and violence.

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

I'm pretty sure my road block is me also. DH is so supportive, but of course I can make up the best excuses. But, this year is "No Excuses" so I better get my butt in gear!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I weighed myself this morning after tracking all my food and working out every day this week~up 0.4 pounds! Grrrrrrr...I have to get in an awesome workout at the gym tonight! Unfortunately, I feel a cold starting, so I need to kick that as well as my own butt lol. Have a great day everyone.

Jill

 

[melmar136]

I have a few road blocks, but the biggest one is myself! I always am putting Dh and kids ahead of myself and making excuses as to why I don't eat better or exercise regularly. I need to learn how to make time for myself and stick to it.
The other big road block for this challenge is going to be our up coming move. We're moving from MD to NoLa in March, we're driving so making good food choices and getting in exercise is going to be next to impossible. My plan right now is that I'm going to pack healthier food for myself and I'm going to bring the Wii with me and do some Wii Fit while in the hotels... Hopefully I will be able to keep up with that. We will have our dog with us so I'll have to take her for little walks at every stop. But she is a Shih Tzu/Maltese so she doesn't go for long walks before she gets tired.

I am right there with you on the biggest roadblock being myself, and putting others before me.
I do really well, and then something happens, and I get stressed and start mindlessly eating. And then I don't stop.
I can make so many excuses for not exercising....and as a single mom, I feel bad taking time for myself.
This time, I think what I might do for exercise is something that will include DD....like the Wii Fit. I am also going to buy Zumba for the Wii.
I just need to remember that I DO deserve to do this for myself!

 

[klmrph]

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

Like others, it's me for the most part, but it will be others that are eating around me who may encourage me to take part in their bad eating.

 

[GoofyPredsFan]

Okay I've had this vision since seeing pictures of me from the last Disneyland Half Marathon (9/2011). They were definitely sooooo not pretty. So my vision is me, running the Wine and Dine half this year, in a custom shirt. On the front, it would say "I'm an AFTER" and on the back, there would be a picture from the DL half and something like "My before – 115lbs heavier, 09/2011"

Of course, I probably won't make it down 115 pounds by November. But next November is a huge probability...

Love this! Go for it!!

 

[JacksLilWench]

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

My biggest roadblock is me! I have a knack for coming up with excuses...like it's waaaay too cold right now to go for a run/walk. Like, 28 degrees too cold. But now is the time to say "Someone in Alaska is running outside right now, I guarantee it. So get off your lazy excuse-finding booty and move it, sister!" So that's exactly what I'm saying right now!

uh oh I have to make a confession

1)I have yet to take the "before Photos". Too scarey to even contemplate getting someone to take them and havent figured out hoe to do it myself without the flash going off in the mirror

2) I went to bed at 8.30pm last night because the big bag of peanuts in the kitchen was calling to me and this was the best way I could think of avoiding them

On a positive note though- I didnt cave and they (the peanuts) are hitting the bin as we speak

Good luck to everyone on another sucessful day

I haven't taken my before photos either....I can't find my camera! As soon as I do I will be taking them though. Don't be afraid to take them! Be excited that this is the last time you will ever have that silhouette because it'll be smaller next time you go to take the pictures

And whoo-hoo no peanuts!!

 

[JacksLilWench]

PS, if anyone needs a little extra motivation today (or at any point, really!) go to YouTube and search for a video called Jessica's Daily Affirmation. It's totally safe for work (no curse words, violence, etc) and always gives me a little boost when I watch it. Plus it's cute and funny!

 

[GoofyPredsFan]

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

I think my biggest roadblock right now is affording the healthy foods. We're on a tight one-income budget right now and I can't afford to buy seperate foods. Everyone will have to be on board to eat the healthy foods I make! Plus, healthy foods are expensive! But NO EXCUSES right? I will make it work, it'll just take more time at the grocery store finding the right things! On another note, I just wanted to share a line that stuck with me last night from Dolvet (sp??) the trainer on Biggest Loser...He said "If you ain't moving, you ain't losing!!" I thought that was great

 

[mommyof2Pirates]

Today is day 4 for me, and it seems to be getting easier. Today I don't have the wild cravings like I did the first 3 days.
I can't wait to weigh in on Friday. I hope I will lose at least 1 pound.

I agree it is getting easier too. Today I only thought about stopping for MCD's hashbrown's briefly in the shower but then drove past mcdonalds without a thought in my mind eating my yummy mini bagel and banana.

I was on great eating behavior today. We went to Tijuana Flats for diner. I checked out their menu/ nutritional facts out before we went. They have a great option on the menu called power lite, which gives you choices of soft taco, quesadillas, or burritos on a whole wheat tortilla with chicken and/ or beans along with fat free sour cream and a tiny bit of cheese. SO good!

Great job planning out your meal while eating out. I love the fact that your going to wear your leather pants again.

Evening friends! I am officially a "Team Donald" member! Glad to see some familiar faces and looking forward to meeting the newbies!

It will probably take me some time to catch up with all 18 pages I've missed, but I'll try!

Nothing much to report from cold NH right now. DD, DS, and I are all suffering from bad colds/coughs/sore throats, but hopefully they won't last long. Anxious to get back into my exercise routine. Between holidays, traveling, and illness, it has been far too many days since I've had a good workout! But the eating is right back on track, now that we are post-holiday.

Off to watch the new BL!............................P

Hi Pam! Glad you are on our team. I hope everyone is feeling better soon.

Hi Team Donald! I just joined, so wanted to introduce myself. My name is Melissa, and I am turning 40 this year. I saw a few others are as well, while I was looking through previous pages of posts!
This is my first BL challenge on the boards. I did one at work last year and lost 25 pounds. However, I fell off the wagon, and over the course of 7 months, gained it all back! So, I know I CAN do it, it's just a matter of getting motivated again, and eating right, and getting in the exercise!
I really need someone to "report in to" for accountability, so I thought this might work!

Hi Melissa. You CAN do it!!!! We will help to keep you accountable.

I see myself in Negril, Jamaica for my 40th birthday (Oct 2012) under 200 lbs which means I have 63 lbs to lose by then. It's been at least 5 years since I have been at my WW goal weight of 179. My weight ticker has a picture of the 7 mile beach in Negril as extra motivation. We honeymooned in Negril and I have been there several other times too.

That ticker pic looks DREAMY.

I thought it would be easier the second time getting back into the routine of good food/ exercise but I am finding I still want to reach the cookes/candy that is around. I'm not, but I still feel the urge too. And mostly I feel hungrier which is how I felt last time for the first week.

The first week is usually the hardest. Hang in there. We are also hoping for the 40 degree weather back so it is warmer.

Today was a great day! I had a good breakfast, went to Hip Hop Hustle (love that class - burned 762 calories in 60 min!), and then when I went to lunch with my husband and the kids (to a Chinese buffet - EEEK!) I ate sensibly and stayed within a great calorie range. I didn't emotionally eat, even after I spent NINETY minutes on the phone with AT&T (ugh! NEVER GET UVERSE!!!) - I ate a apple and that was it. Then I had a great dinner. I ended up the day under my calorie range, and drank all my water. Go me!!

Great job staying in your calorie range even with all of the days challenges.

When I was training for my half-marathon there were MANY days that the ONLY that got me out the door (and continuing) was 2 things.....

1) my boys..... they deserve a Mommy that is healthy
2) going to Disney World to run my first half-marathon. I would literally picture myself crossing the finish line when I wanted to quit and just walk home.

I use to do the same thing. I knew the course in my mind so I would say ok mile 5 Im approaching MK, Mile 10 I can almost see the "ball", etc. It would totally get me through the run. I would also think about all the fun things and plans we had for that wkend at disney. I think once I did the race the running didnt seem exciting to me anymore. My next half I am training for is local so I will need to be creative and come up with something to think about while I am running.

I am excited to have just joined the team! I am 24 years old and been married for about a year and a half to my wonderful English husband (long story there with our immigration journey). We live in Ohio with our dog Molly. I, like many others here, teach 5th/6th grade full time as well as I am attending graduate school.

Welcome to our team!!!!! I am so amazed by how many teachers we have on here.

Here are some positive things about the day...
1. I knew exercising would be a challenge today so I spent 10 minutes of one of my morning breaks walking the halls at school. I also did the stairs for a total of 9 flights of stairs. I then spent 20 minutes of my lunch walking. I know that I should have done more at home tonight but I didn't and I am going to have to feel comfortable with the fact that I got 30 minutes in today.

2. I packed a very healthy lunch. I had a couple of pieces of salami on an Arnold's Sandwich thin for my sandwich. I also had a sugar free chocolate pudding, 14 almonds and a clementine.

3. Despite the fact that I felt like I was going to barely make it through each class...I drank all my water. It is really hard having to go to the bathroom when there is a class full of MS kids waiting for you!

4. I had a healthy supper of baked chicken with baked fries (a counted out serving).

Focus on those great positives of your day and know they every day there will always be a list of what we could do better. We are over acheivers You did some great things yesterday on a day that was stressful and tiring. Hopefully you can have some time over the weekend to make some plans and get yourself a little better organized. Once you do that you will feel much more in control.

Hey everyone!! Received my team assignment today and so here I am.

I got a long way to go but at this point I will settle for fitting into the pants that fit before Christmas

BTW my name is Kimberly and I will be 53 in a week. I lost almost 90 lbs the last time I participated on the WISH board and I'm hoping to stay that motivated this time.

Staying motivated is the hardest challenge but being here is the best place to be for help with that. Welcome aboard

I just logged in my first day of exercise for the week. DD5 and I turned on a music channel and danced and jogged around the house for 25 minutes. She was my instructor and had a good time motivating mom. We then played frisbee in the house as a cool down.

Now that is a wonderfully creative way to get exercise and be home with your family too. Great job.

I felt ok until the last 15 minutes when this super skinny girl came in and started running on the treadmill. I know I shouldn't let that get to me but I can't help it. I think i'm looking good and then I see someone who looks ten times better than me and it makes me feel bad.

oh I hate when that happens. I usually try to use it as inspiration. 1. yep I am bigger than you but look what I am doing while carrying all the extra weight. You (meaning skinny girl) have it easy. 2. I will look even better than that girl someday.

Yay team! (I also don't usually use this many exclamation points, I promise. I'm usually pretty sarcastic and not really excited about anything. But whatever.)

This board brings out the best in people. I often want to use a smiley face in my work emails now too. Its exciting to feel healthy and to see great results. Be proud and excited and use as many !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! as you can.

Hi everybody! I signed up yesterday, and got on today to read the thread. My name is Shannon, I'll be 40 this year, married with 2 daughters (10 & 6). I work full time, have started taking accounting courses again to aim for getting my CGA designation.
I've been off the Dis for almost a year, but used to be very involved in the BL challenges, and had some successs. This is a fresh year, and I will get back into ONE-derland.

Hi Shannon. Welcome Back.

QOTD - Wednesday January 4, 2012 - Are there any road blocks in your journey to better health?? These road blocks could be people, events, etc. How are you going to deal with these road blocks??

Janis

I was going to say my busy life is a road block but then I realized that was just an excuse and so I agree with others the real road block is myself. No matter how busy I am there is always a way to eat healthy and get moving.

2) I went to bed at 8.30pm last night because the big bag of peanuts in the kitchen was calling to me and this was the best way I could think of avoiding them

I have done that before too. Dont feel bad.

Ds2 made it to Gambia safely. I got an email from him yesterday. He will be spending some time in the capital before he goes to the villages they will be working on. He will be working on the road between these 8 villages and also looking at solar water pumps to make it easier for the villages to get water.

Glad to hear that dona. I bet he will do some amazing things for the people of Gambia while he is there. What a wonderful experience.

We're moving from MD to NoLa in March, we're driving so making good food choices and getting in exercise is going to be next to impossible. My plan right now is that I'm going to pack healthier food for myself and I'm going to bring the Wii with me and do some Wii Fit while in the hotels... Hopefully I will be able to keep up with that. We will have our dog with us so I'll have to take her for little walks at every stop. But she is a Shih Tzu/Maltese so she doesn't go for long walks before she gets tired.

That sounds exciting and stressful all at once. Will the hotels have fitness rooms you can use. That could be another form of exercise.

**********************************************************

the day is starting off successfully again. I am on a roll and I hope nothing gets in my way because I am feeling good. Drove right past mcd's today and thought about how good my healthy breakfast truly was. I am now 4 days off of diet soda and fast food.

Today I have another lunch meeting so I believe I am going to subway again. Tonight is turkey kiebalsa and a salad for dinner and 30 minutes of running at the gym. I am suppose to go to the PTA meeting tonight at Ryans school but I have decided to go to the gym instead. I will make it a priority to get there next month.

Ok now I need to get back to work.

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

Isnt it funny how so many of us recognise that we are our own worst enemies when it comes to looking after ourselves!
Let 2012 be the year that we change that once and for all and be our own best friends instead

Thanks for all the supportive comments re photos and peanuts
You never know I might even pluck up the courage to take photos on friday before I weigh myself (no promises though I dont feel just as daunted as before now)

 

[escape]

Just a quick drive-by to cheer everyone on for the next week. Remember to write down everything you eat. It really does help to see where we can improve our diets. If you drink it - ink it; if you bite it - write it!

I'm leaving to go on my Disney trip tomorrow and won't be back until next week. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to login every now and then and see how everyone is doing. I don't have time now to respond to everyone now but hope to do my share when I get back. Just remember - we're in this together. It's so much easier and more fun than to go it alone.

I think the biggest road block for me is stress. I eat when I'm stressed out, bummed out, mad, discouraged, etc. Comfort foods are my biggest hangups. Carrots and celery don't cut for me at times but neither does being over-weight. However, with this medically supervised diet I'm going on (with a 16-week mandatory classes), hopefully, I can change all this. Any tips I learn, I'll pass on.

Hope you all have a great week ahead! Sending pixie dust to all!

 

[mom2maggie]

Woot woot! Zumba & Strength classes today - 120 minutes, 1364 calories burned. Combined with my sensible lunch and breakfast, and I'm still -627 calories for the day...I guess I can totally eat dinner, huh?

 

[luvpoohandcompany]

If you drink it - ink it; if you bite it - write it!

:

LOVE THIS.
Heres one my friend used to say "lose the c on chips and whaddya get? HIPS

Woot woot! Zumba & Strength classes today - 120 minutes, 1364 calories burned. Combined with my sensible lunch and breakfast, and I'm still -627 calories for the day...I guess I can totally eat dinner, huh?

You can totally eat dinnerWell done you

 

[pjlla]

Morning Team Donald!

My name is Christina, but everyone calls me CC, like see-see. I will be co-hosting for Team Mickey and coaching Healthy Habits (HH).

I posted some hints on the main thread, and wanted to include them here:

Healthy Habits Spring 2012 Hint #1: Buy/Find, etc. yourself a notebook in a size that you find functional and ideally, that fits wherever you will have it at all times.


Got it!

I bought myself a notebook today that fits in my VB mini hipster. My purse is always at my side so that was a perfect choice for me.

WISH BL Spring 2012 Healthy Habits Hint #2: Find/Buy/Borrow, etc. measuring cups and spoons.

If you have a scale, a large bowl that has its measurements on it, or anything else that you know its measurements, dig those out too.

Here is some "food for thought."
- We have a Corelle set from the '70s. It came with coffee cups. I did an experiment and it holds exactly 1 cup at the rim. It is perfect for my morning cup of milk.
- We have large plastic "glasses" that hold just over 16 fl. oz. They are perfect for meals. I use them as an easy way to drink 16 oz during breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
- Look around your kitchen. Things have measurements on them more than I ever realized. Do you have any Ziploc type storage containers? All of mine have their respective measurements on the bottom of the container.

Good luck! Happy searching!

ETA: I stated that the Corelle set is from the '70s because designs change. I am not trying to imply anything.

Great ideas! I LOVE my digital food scale. So glad I broke down and asked for it a few years ago! I measure nearly everything on it now (except salad dressings and drinks). And I have a drawer full of tablespoon measures for salad dressing and the like (although I should dump some of the smaller measuring spoons.... how many 1/4 tsp. measures does one person need??).

Hey there fellow Donald teammates!! Guess I'll be the first to introduce myself.

My name's Ashley, but you can call me Ash too. I'm in my early 20's and I love to write fanfiction, do voice acting and sing covers of Disney songs as my hobbies. I'm also a DIE-HARD Doctor Who fan! (if you couldn't tell by my icon.)

I have to admit I couldn't tell by your icon. I thought maybe that was your boyfriend in the icon. Thanks for clarifying!

I think that one of my biggest problems when I try to lose weight is that I don't set a motivation for myself to keep with it. So I actually have two special goals in mind for myself in doing this challenge; one that I hope to accomplish by the end of this challenge and a more long term goal.

(1) My grandmother was killed in a car accident about 4 months ago and I was given one of her rings to keep for myself. Unfortunately, it doesn't quite fit on my ring finger due to my weight gain and it can't be re-sized. So I hope to lose enough to wear it on my ring finger by the end of this challenge in memory of her.

(2) I like to cosplay and dress up as different characters for a convention in my hometown. I have a Cinderella dress that my mother made for me 2 years ago that no longer fits. So I'm hoping that by time the convention comes this September that I'll be able to fit into my dress again and go as Cinderella. Glass slippers and all.

(I'll totally post pictures if I can reach my goal!)

I'm usually online every day so I look forward to getting to know all of you!

GO Team Donald!!

Nice to meet you Ash! And BTW, it isn't "IF" you can reach goal.... it is "WHEN"!!

Great goals!

Hi Team Donald!! I am so excited to be part of this challenge! Very much looking forward to encouraging and being encouraged in the coming months.

And many thanks to CC for running the thread! I have my little notebook & my measuring cups ready to go!!

Glad to have you along! Nice to meet you!

Hello Team Donald.

I'm Deb and I can't remember what number challenge this is for me. In any event I'd like to lose 20 lbs. I had it gone a few years ago, but it has snuck up on me again and since we have a Huge vacation planned for this summer I am more determined than ever to lose it again.

I'm 42, married to my high school sweetheart (20 years in July) and mother to 3 amazing boys. Nick is 16, Hunter is 14 and Colby is 9.


If coaches are needed I'd be happy to take a week, let me know what's open.

Hello friend! Hope you are staying warm this week!

Hi Team Donald -

I am Laura, 42 from New York.

This will be my third challenge. I lost 21 pounds during January, February and March of 2011 and then hit a wall. I've been gaining and losing the same 5 pounds for the last nine months.

My goal for this challenge is to finally get under 200 pounds - I'm 10 - 15 pounds away from that goal.

I purchased an elipitical machine last month and hope to incorporate that into my fitness routine - right now I am walking 3 - 3 1/2 miles a day (6 days a week). Every now and then I do my BL Boot Camp DVD, but haven't been consistent with that.

As always, looking forward to the support/ideas that I get from these challenges.

- Laura

Hi Laura! How are you enjoying the new elliptical???

Hello to all my Team Donald Teammates!

My name is Jen. I did my first WISH challenge exactly 2 years ago. I started at 198 pounds, totally out of shape, needing insulin and just living a generally unhappy and unhealthy sort of existence. I got started with the challenge because of a dear friend who asked me to run the Princess 1/2 marathon with her. I started the challenge, started WW and started working out. The C25K program was what got me going and I learned to have a love/hate relationship with running. After 1 year and tons of hard work, I had lost 48 pounds and felt I was finally living a healthy life. When I hit that point, I kind of lost focus and got lazy. Since I was still running an insane amount of miles each week, the bad eating did not catch up to me right away. It took 6 months of random exercising and bad eating but suddenly I had gained back 20 pounds. I tried to pretend it did not bother me and I tried to pretend that if I just kept on that way (eating what I wanted) it was okay with me...that I was done working hard.

Here is the reality....I am not done. I am not quitting. I know that I can lose those 20 pounds again and that I might even lose a few more. I know that I want to feel strong and healthy again - I liked that feeling and I really do not like feeling like I have lost control. I am ready to figure out how to make my crazy busy life mesh with my strong and healthy life.

The basic details: I am married to DH (my running partner) and we have 2 kids (DD-15, DS-11). I teach a class called iPad U at a middle school (every student at my school has an iPad issued to them for 24/7 use). Both kids are crazy with a million activities. As you will be able to tell from this post and all my others....I tend to "chat" on and on. I would love to one day write a book and put my ramblings to good use!

I am really looking forward to getting to know everyone on the team and watch us all have a successful challenge!
~Jen

Hi Jen! Glad you found your way back to us! Any chance you could offer and online version of Ipad U??? I got one for Christmas and while I LOVE it, it is turning out to be a really expensive way to play solitaire and Boggle!

Kitty Mommies for the win!!!

Sorry to hear about your grandmother - getting her special ring to fit is a great goal and I'll be here rooting you on.

- Laura

Count me in as another Kitty Mommy!!

Good Friday morning. I didn't know the thread was up or I would have been here last night.

My name is Dona. I can't remember how many challenges I have been involved in. Some have been successful but even if I didn't lose any it helped me not to gain.

I am a 56 year old women (will turn 57 right after the challenge.) I am math teacher ( I teach Advance Placement Calculus) for 34 years. I have been married to my college sweetheart for 33 years. We have two sons.

I really am motivated this challenge. May 11 Ds2 graduates from college June 1 my nephew gets married and Aug 19th we all check in with my sister's family into BLT for maybe 5 days. I want to look good for this vacation.

I am usually on first thing in the morning before I leave for school at 6:10.

Have a happy and healthy day.

Happy New Year Dona! You have so much coming up this year! I know you have mentioned it all before. Are you getting excited about BLT??

Good morning everyone!! I'm Kathy and excited to be a part of Team Donald. Thank you Janis for being our hostess and the hostess of the challenge, and thank you CC for hosting Healthy Habits and Team Mickey.

I have done multiple bl challenges since after my ds's 1st disney trip 5 years ago. I've lost on some, maintained on many, and gained on some. My all time high was 229, and right now I'm at 213, but have gone up and down with the ups and downs of life. I credit these challenges with preventing me from regaining everything and more, which I had done in the past. The support here is incredible, not just for weight loss and healthy living, but for anything that might be going on in your life that can affect your healthy living. I feel so blessed to have found this wonderful group, and am looking forward to catching up with some old friends and getting to know some new ones.

Good luck everyone!!

Hello my friend! So glad that we are teammates! How's Poko doing?

Hey everybody! Just popping in this morning to say hi!

Been doing really good on my diet for this week and was pleased to see this morning that I've lost 2 pounds! I used to not be excited for a 2 lbs loss, but I've been trying to stay positive and keep in mind that every pound lost is one step closer to my goal.

The weather's really nice today, so I'm planning to go walking in the strip mall for a while later. Nothing like combining exercise with shopping! And maybe a Subway sandwich.

Nice job on the 2 pounds! What is your sandwich of choice at Subway?

Hello Team Donald

My name is Shawn and this is my 5th BL challenge in a row. I've lost on each challenge, although the past 2 challenges it was not much. I am looking forward to getting re-committed and being more consistent on this new challenge. And, looking forward to going through this with all of you.

A little about me, I am 50 years old, married for over 17 years with one son who is almost 15. I work part-time, well 30 hours a week so almost full-time for the Home Office of an Insurance Company. I am not following any set eating or exercise plan and hence I have lost weight very slowly. I started on this journey February 2010 and have lost 32 pounds so far. If I can lose 11 more pounds, I will fall into the "overweight" category rather than "obese". I would love to reach that goal during this challenge.

Looking forward to "meeting" all of you and getting down to work

Shawn

Hey there Shawn! So glad you are back here with us! Is it really your 5th challenge? WOW! I need to look back and see what number it is for me too!

Hello Team Donald!!

I am Jill and this is my second BL challenge. The first was the fall challenge and it really helped me stay focused. I am hoping to do well during this challenge and lose about 10 pounds. I found that finding the fall BL thread was the motivation I needed. I felt so much support and strength through everyone involved. I am looking forward to a new challenge, talking to former and new BL participants, and dropping some pounds!

I am 35 years old, married, and have 2 boys (8 and 5). I am a History and special ed teacher at an alternative school (5th-12th grade). DH works full time weekend midnights in the ER at our local hospital and goes to school FT during the week. Our schedule gets crazy sometimes. I enjoy running a lot and need to get back to it more often (and hopefully the weather will cooperate).

I am looking forward to chatting with all of you!

Go Team Donald!!

Jill

I'm always so impressed by you Jill. Such a busy life, stressful job, and DH who is so busy! I'm sure that the running makes for some good "me" time!

Hi everyone!! My name is Kaiti, and this is my third BL Challenge. I did great on the first one, then not so well on the second one...so I'm hoping third time is the charm

My resolution/goal for the year is to participate in the Tower Of Terror 10-mi. race in September. If I start now, I believe I will have plenty of time to train. I started today by telling everyone at work what I'm doing...so there's no backing down now! I'm going to go soon to get fitted for a pair of good shoes for running. Training starts Monday!!!

Hey! Glad you are back here with us!!

Hi Team Donald! Everyone can call me Fran.

This is my first Big Loser here on the DIS Boards.

I need to lose 20 pounds. (30 would be wonderful ... but I would like to set my goals realistic) I am 45, married and have 3 boys. Between work (I am a teacher ... like a lot of Team Donald members) and my boys, I get very busy. However, I am making myself a priority by exercising and dieting for this new year.

Excited to be a part of the team! Go team Donald!

Nice to meet you Fran! How old are your boys? Lots of moms to boys here and we get chatting about our boys, both big and little and in-between! Glad you are making YOURSELF a priority this year!

Hi Team Donald!

My name is Kristina and I live in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. We moved here 8 years ago from California. I’m 43, have been married for 18 years and we have a beautiful daughter who is 13.

This will be my second BL challenge. I didn’t do so well on the first one and I am really motivated to be successful on this round. We are going to Disney in July and I want to be able to walk the parks without feeling breathless and exhausted. It would also be nice to be able to walk around the pool in a bathing suit without feeling awful about myself.

I used to think that if I couldn’t be perfect – why bother. Now I just want to be healthy and feel good. Besides, there is no such thing as perfect – right? Ever since I turned 40 the weight sticks to me like glue…superglue. I end up getting discouraged very easily. I am hoping this challenge will help to keep me motivated.

Janis, thank you for hosting our team! CC, thanks for hosting Healthy Habits again! They really help keep me in check.

Kristina

Glad you are back with us Kristina! When we are sick and tired of the cold and snow come mid-February, can you post some pictures of your island to warm us up??

Not sure how much you want to lose, but you could easily lose 30-40 by July and be feeling like a new person! I totally understand about the weight sticking like glue..... and it is like BOOMERANG pounds lately.... I lose them and they just keep popping back on!

Hi Team Donald.

Last spring i was on Team Mickey so I am feeling a bit like a trader.

I am very excited to start this new challenge and the new year. This is challenge number 7 or something around there. I have made some amazing friends through these challenges and I think overall it has kept me from being more overweight than I am right now.

My name is Lindsay, I am 3wks shy of 33, Married for 8yrs, 2 sons ages 7 and 4. I work full time as a practice manager for a pediatricians office that I have worked out since I was 17. I love my family, I love my job, now I just need to love my body enough to take care of it better.

When I started out I had such a great motivation because I had signed up to run my first half marathon. I lost 35lbs and ran the disney princess half marathon in 2011. I felt great and was looking forward to returning after the race and loosing the last 25lbs that i had gained since having kids. Well instead I left life once again get in the way and fell into old bad eating habits. I gained all the weight back except a few lbs.

So ultimate goal is to loose 55lbs. I have a local half marathon I want to do at the end of april so along with weight loss I need to get back into running again. I am so happy to be on your team and to offer and receive great support to help myself and us all in our journey to a better us.

Glad to see you again! The half marathon in April should be a great motivator!

Hey everyone! I'm Nicole and I'm excited to be part of Team Donald for my first ever BL Challenge.

I'm 23 years old and need to lose about 100 pounds. I've been heavy all my life; I lost 50 pounds in sixth grade with Weight Watchers, but got really heavy again once I started college. Now I'm ready to get back in shape.

I started WW a few weeks ago and have done some personal training sessions at the gym. So far, I'm down seven pounds.

I've done 4 Disney half marathons so far (the Disneyland half in 2009, 2010, and 2011 and the Disney World half in 2011) but have never been able to keep up with my training. As a result, I've always finished just outside the official 3:30 time limit! This year I'm doing the first leg of the Chip & Dale Marathon Relay and the Tinkerbell Half, and plan on doing the Wine and Dine half, so my goal is to finally finish one in the time limit!

I'm also going on my first cruise in July (Disney of course) and will hopefully be moving to Orlando to do the WDW College Program in the fall, so I'm pretty motivated to lose this weight!

Yay Team Donald!

Hi Nicole! Welcome to the BL challenge! You are here with a great group of ladies. And I'm sure with all of the Disney marathon experiences you have, you will have plenty in common with several of them. One of "our" girls is starting the college program this month (Gretchen) so I'm sure she will have plenty of advise to give. She has a blog about her experiences through the interview process, etc. that you should check out!

Hi Everyone-so glad to join the team

Have decided I'd better get off this computer and go for a swim to shake the "I'm going to be healthy from tomorrow so I'd better eat all the junk/treats today mentality".

Anyone else suffer from this!

Glad to meet you! It is hard to shake that mentality. I lived for YEARS with the thoughts of what I would eat when I was "done" with my diet. It wasn't until I started really considering this a LIFELONG journey, rather than a "diet" with a stopping and starting date that it really clicked for me.

Good Saturday morning everyone

Jen I guess luvpoohandcompany will beat us inthe morning since she is 5 or 6 hours ahead of us.

Quiet day planned today. I do need to get out to Staples to buy a new calendar and a new SD card for my camera. I may pick up one for my ds2's new camera. I may go grocery shopping but really don't feel like it. I also have to finish a pair of socks that I have been knitting. I want to give them to a friend on Tuesday for her birthday.

When we got him his new camera for Christmas he started wondering how long it will keep the charge. we went on line Monday and ordered him 2 new batteries so he doesn't have to worry about charging when he is in Gambia (they will be tent camping). They finally got shipped on Wed from Anaheim. We started to worry that he would not get them and most of the replacement batteries here are much more expensive. We were in shock when they got here on Thursday. He still has to pack and Monday I drive him to school where he will leave.

Tomorrow I have church in the morning and then I am doing an online mystery quilt. I have cut the fabric and the first set of directions go up tomorrow morning at 10 or 11.

I am getting excited about this challenge. I am starting to write down my food plan and my exercise plan. I am hoping to make this the best challenge yet.

Off to get somethings done.

Have a happy and healthy day.

How did the mystery quilt turn out?? And YUP.... best challenge yet!!

Hi, everybody! I'm Pat, and I'm excited to get started on the challenge again!

I lost 24 lbs in 2011 in part from the accountability of the Friday weigh-ins. I have about 20 more I want to lose, so here I am!

I don't post much, but I'll be cheering for everyone along the way!

Hi Pat! Woohoo on the 24 pounds gone!

BL Spring 2012 Healthy Habits Hint #3: Find/buy, borrow, etc. enough water bottles, glasses, etc. to toal 64 oz. Fill them with water.

I use my 1 ltr. Sodastream bottles. I average 2-3 per day.

Hello Team Donald!

Add another to the group!

My name is Michelle, and I am 39 years old. I have been married for almost 6 years, and we have two boys.... almost 5 and 2 and a half. This is my 13th year of teaching.... I teach 3rd grade.

I never had trouble with my weight until I went on massive amounts of fertility drugs during my first marriage in my mid-late twenties. They didn't work, and then the depression coupled with that and my subsequent divorce caused me to pack on some unwanted pounds.

I have lost up to 20 pounds before, but then I get lazy. The only thing that has worked for me is counting calories and JOURNALING! This time last year I made the commitment to run the 2011 Disney Wine and Dine half-marathon. I finished it doing a combination of walk/run. I usually don't weigh myself, but I went down almost 2 pants sizes. That was without dieting at all. I will be honest and say that the last time I ran was crossing the finish line in Epcot the first week of October. I didn't find a LOVE for running that so many people do.

One thing that I HAVE learned about myself is that I am VERY goal oriented. I have to some kind of goal to work towards to motivate myself. I think that this challenge will help me with that. I am also turning 40 in August, and I have sneaky suspision that my dad and dh are planning a really big "surprise" party for me. I want to look great for that!..... Vain, I know, but whatever works, right??????

P90X arrived in my mailbox yesterday, so I will starting that either tomorrow or Monday.

I am chatty (can you tell???) so I look forward to sharing lots with you and getting to each of you better!

Have a FABULOUS New Year's Eve. We are going out with friends for a nice steak dinner with some yummy wine. The diet starts tomorrow!

Journaling my food has been a HUGE part of my success in the past few years. Glad you are embracing the practice!

Not vain.... just SMART to want the weight GONE before you hit 40!!

Whoo!! I love how motivated everyone is on here! It's so refreshing to see all the awesome support for everyone.

One little thing I do for a little boost of motivation is the write a quote with a dry erase marker on my vanity mirror. My latest one is a comment from a friend on my status one day on Facebook. I posted that I was thinking of some good resolutions and I thought I had a pretty good one, and my friend Lou posted,

"Don't think, just do it."

It hit me- if all I do is sit around thinking about it, I'll never do it! So I'm just gonna do it!!

I can't wait to get started tomorrow- so I'm starting today!!! I'm so excited to be getting started with all you ladies!!! (And guys, if there are any!)

PS, if you want to add me on Facebook, my name is Kaiti Courts. My picture is me with Tigger

Yup.... just DO IT! (Sounds like a Nike ad!)

Alright - 3.3 miles done for today! It was not all pretty but I did it and I felt good in the end.

I tried out my new running clothes that I want to wear to my race tomorrow. I love the new BRIGHT yellow hoodie I bought yesterday. I painted my fingernails to match. I would love to find a few bright accessories in my winter wear to add to the outfit but we will see. The only thing is that we are under a winter weather warning tonight and the weather tomorrow could be a real pain. We are expecting rain, 2-5 inches of snow and then winds of 50 mph! We will still go and run but I might not be too concerned about how I look.

I am now going to go pick up my race gear and packet for tomorrow's run. This afternoon we will clean up a bit, prepare for a nice dinner and I will work on grades for a bit. Tonight will be a nice grilled chicken dinner and then games with the kids!

Enjoy the day everyone!

I'm sure that I will see a report from you as I move along on this thread, but I hope that the race went well.

Ok, to introduce myself. I am a little chatty, so for those who have heard this all before, please feel free to skip.

I am Rose, 44, mom to a 20yo college student, married for a lonnnnng time.

I have been overweight since maybe my late 20s, BUT I have thought that I was fat my entire life--can you say Mommy issues? Anyhow, this time I think I have really figured this all out. And the voices in my head telling me I am still too fat and not good enough are quiet most of the time.

I joined the BL challenges in Jan of 2010 and have lost ~50 pounds. I went to maintain in September of 2010 when I lost 40 and have slowly taken off a bit more. I am back to being a Loser again this challenge with a goal of 10 pounds--which would put me at a 135--this is what I weighed in college when I thought I was fat....Anyhow, if I don't lose, I am ok with that, because I am at a good place and feel pretty healthy.

My exercise of choice is running, though I have been fighting injuries for much of 2011. I also was diagnosed with gluten intolerance in February of 2011--not officially celiac disease, but I will not go back on gluten again to have more tests done, so I like to say I "unofficially" have c-d. I feel like I wasted a decade of my life feeling sick from this nasty food issue, and am so happy that I finally figured out what was going on.

Here is a before and after pic that I posted on the holiday thread. I don't even recognize myself anymore. I feel like the real me is missing from that picture. The first pic is from ~2005. The second one from this month.

Hello my friend Rose! I saw the pictures over on the holiday thread, but I don't think that I commented. I LOVE that newer picture of you with DS. And I love that you shared that "long locks" picture of DS. My DS finally got a haircut between Christmas and New Year's, since we were having a family photo done on 12/30. He mostly did it to please my parents. I'm okay with his long-ish hair (as long as I can see his eyes, which I haven't been able to lately), but DH hates it. To his credit, he doesn't say much about it.

The "real" you is here now.... living life gluten-free and meat-free and staying active, even if you can't run sometimes.

We cleaned out some closets today and organized for the winter. I got rid of all the junk we accumulated over the holiday too. Tomorrow morning I will go grocery shopping to stock up on good items. I got all my HH hint items ready to go too. So excited for 2012!!!!!!

Tonight we are going to the peep drop and fireworks. Our city is the home of just born candy aka the Peep maker. They have a huge lighted peep that comes down just like the NYC ball. They do a 515 drop for the families with young ones and then they do it all again at midnight. It should be fun.

We are going to my inlaws tonight and hanging out there to bring in the new year.

Everyone have a safe and wonderful New Year's Eve. Talk to you next year.

Peep drop sounds absolutely adorable! Are they Christmas peeps or leftover Easter peeps??

Welcome to The WIN! Challenge (Whittle Inches Now!)
________________________________________
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I STRONGLY encourage all of you newbies to take your measurements! It is a GREAT way to measure progress even if the scale isn't moving in the right direction. I never did it and I sure wish that I had!!

THanks for hosting our WIN challenge!

Welcome to Healthy Habits!

My name is CC (like see-see), which is short for Christina. This is my 4th time coaching Healthy Habits (HH) and I absolutely love it! I would like to give a shout out to donac and jenanderson who showed me the ropes coaching previous challenges.

For the WISH Biggest Loser Spring 2012 Challenge, I am revamping (again) Healthy Habits. Each week will have a theme, and each theme will have to do with an attraction at Walt Disney World. (I have never been to DL.) I will be using various components of the attraction to determine each week’s daily habits and the 2 mini-challenges.

Every week you will have 4 “Habits” to do each day. There will also be 2 Mini-Challenges. These will be something like “Exercise for 45 minutes simultaneously once during the week.” The “Habits” will be things that are essential for good “Health.” One might be “Drink 6 8 oz. glasses of water per day.” I will be very clear about which 4 are for all 7 days and which 2 are the Mini-Challenges.

The Healthy Habits “week” is the same as for weigh-ins. A new “week” begins on Friday and ends on Thursday. At the end of each week, total your points and PM (private message) me them. Please list your team name and your total points in the subject of your PM. In the body of your PM, please separate each “Habit” and mini-challenge. Here is an example.

Subject: Team Mickey 28/30

Body:

Habit #1: 7/7 days
Habit #2: 6/7 days
Habit #3: 7/7 days
Habit #4: 7/7 days
Mini-Challenge #1: Completed
Mini-Challenge #2: Not Completed

This will allow me to recognize participants who earned 7/7 for 1 or more “Habits.” It also gives me feedback for future weeks.

Please PM me your points by Tuesday at 5 PM Eastern Time. I will post the results as soon as possible after that.

The results will be different for this challenge because we have 2 teams. There will be a team and an individual component. Here’s how it will work:
- The team with the most participants “wins” for the week.
- The individual(s) with the most points on each team will be recognized in the results.
- Everyone who earns 7/7 for 1 or more of the “Habits” will be recognized in the results.

On random weeks, I will be drawing a name to receive a prize. Everyone who participates on the team with the most participants will be entered into the “hat” for a chance at the prize. You will have to PM me your address. If you would prefer not to be entered into the “hat,” please let me know. You will still be considered a participant for the team! I have bought many of the prizes already and I think they are great!

It is optional to participate, but I know I do so much better when I participate.



Healthy Habits Week 1: Fantasyland

As I’m sure most of you know, Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom at WDW has many different attractions, including the Carousel, Dumbo, “it’s a small world,” Mad Tea Party, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Mickey’s PhilharMagic, Peter Pan’s Flight, and Snow White’s Scary Adventures. The beautiful artistic work in Peter Pan’s Flight amazes me, especially as it is an older attraction. Mickey’s PhilharMagic brings me back to my childhood days of watching the Disney channel while my father was awake and getting ready for work while my mom was still sleeping. The incorporation of the senses in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh makes for a relaxing attraction.

This week, the attractions of Fantasyland come to life as we incorporate them into our healthier lifestyle.

This week’s 4 Habits are:

1. Have you ever noticed how much walking is involved in moving around Fantasyland? To help you move quickly, you need to be hydrated. This week, your “habit” is to drink a total of 64 oz. of water during the day. You can count up to 8 oz. of tea or coffee toward your total for the day.

2. When I go on a carousel more than once, I have to use a different horse the second time. I tend to be very detail-oriented and obsessed with record-keeping, so my journal would come out and I’d write down which horses I ridden on so far. This same time of record-keeping is very helpful for weight loss. This week, write down everything you eat as well as the portion size. (Example: ½ cup of plain uncooked oatmeal, cooked in ½ cup of nonfat milk, with 1 tablespoon of walnuts and 1 teaspoon of brown sugar)

3. The 7 Dwarfs are very active working in the mine. This week, your “habit” is to exercise for a total of 20 minutes each day. Think of exercise as an “Adventure.”

4. In the spirit of the relaxing day featured in The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, spend time relaxing each day. You get to decide how much time you want to take.

Mini-Challenges

1. “it’s a small world:” Think of your heritage. Do you have a favorite ethnic recipe? Your challenge is to make 1 (or more) change to it to make it healthier. The food could be from your heritage or not.
(Hint: An easy one depending on how you already make them is tacos.)

2. Peter Pan’s Flight: You are on a journey to healthier you whether you are losing or maintaining weight. It doesn’t happen overnight like your trip to Neverland, but it may happen more quickly if you have a specific goal. I’ve also heard that it is best to have a few goals at a time. Write down up to 3 goals you have for the “No Excuses” Challenge.

Note: This week is from Sunday, 1/1 to Thursday, 1/5 so there are only 5 days this week. The total possible points one can earn is 22.

Please feel free to PM me with any questions or ask on the thread!

This is SUPER!! Did you see the article in this week's All Ears newsletter? It was all about PROGRESS and the changes being made in Fantasyland. It ties in nicely with the PROGRESS we are all hoping to make in regards to weight loss and healthy lifestyles and of course, your HH for this week!!

I know I don't send in my points to you (although I really should), I read and try to participate at least to some degree every week with your HH ideas, hints, etc. Thanks for doing this for us!


******Read through page 3.... lots left to read!............P

 

[pjlla]

Welcome to Team Donald!!! We are going to rock this challenge!!!

I am Janis and I will be your coach this first week.

Our challenge officially starts on January 1.

1. PM your beginning weight to dvccruiser76.

2. PM your beginning WIN! numbers to me - buzz5985 (if you are doing WIN!)

3. I encourage everyone to take part in HH. It's fun earning those points, and the challenge keeps you on track.

4. Take some pictures of yourself - a front view and a side view. You will be surprised even what a small change makes in your spirit, your shape, complexion, the list goes on and on.

I am a night owl - when I was a cub scout leader the boys referred to me as being nocturnal, so I will post the QOTD for each day the night before.

I notice many of you have already been doing so -

QOTD - Saturday December 31, 2011

Please introduce yourself.

I'm afraid I slacked on so many items on that list. But I do have a good "before" picture handy!!

Better late than never introduction.... I'll try to be brief!

My name is Pamela. I am 47 years old (that is a TOUGH number to say!). I started this HEALTHY LIFESTYLE journey on 1/2/2008 and haven't looked back yet! At my best (this past spring) I had lost exactly 90 pounds. Currently I am a few pounds up from that number, but I'm going to change that asap!

I've never officially considered myself to be in maintenance mode because I've had an elusive number as my goal. But after struggling to hit that number and then hitting it for just a single day, I've decided that my goal is too low and I will be changing it back up a few pounds, which is where I had pretty much maintained for over a year.

I am married for nearly 20 years, have a 16 1/2 year old DD and a nearly 14 year old DS. I work semi-part-time as a substitute teacher, but I mostly consider myself a lucky SAHM.

I exercise because I know it is important to my weight loss/maintenance and my health, not because I love it. I tried running several times over the past few years and eventually got to the point in the summer of 2010 where I was running 5-6 miles a day 3-4 x per week. But I HATED it. I loved the empowering feeling it gave me and the bragging rights. But I didn't enjoy it, so I gave myself permission to stop. Now I only run when I WANT to run.... not because it is on a "schedule". I do walk/run/hill/sprint intervals on the TM most days and do free weights and some circuit training other days.... sometimes at the Y, sometimes at home. Consistent exercise tends to be the one thing that I struggle with.

I lost my weight doing WW at home. I had paid them enough money over the years and I had learned enough that I was able to do it without giving them another dime. While I don't agree with everything they teach, I do think that the program is a good one and would love to work for WW someday. My support system came from folks here on the WISH board and the many friends I have made on these BL challenges.

I'll post before and after pictures later if I have time.

HELLO fellow team mates. My name is Janis and I live with my DH of almost 27 years, and my DS 15. This is my fourth BL challenge, my second as a hostess. I lost 25 pounds last year, a drop in the bucket for me - but down is down.

I look forward to chatting with you all.

Janis... thanks for all you do as our hostess!

Hello!

My name is Emily and I recently got married this past April. Since then I've been steadly putting on the pounds and now I am 23 lbs heavier since the wedding!

I tried earlier this year with a diet, but failed after a month. I cannot wait to get to know everyone as we all embark on this weight loss journey together.

Congrats to our resident newlywed! Nice to meet you Emily!

Hello Team Donald

I am on Team Donald this time around, and I will be the weight keeper for both teams

Please PM me your starting weight tomorrow, or whenever you are ready to join us. The first set of results will begin next weekend.

Weekly weigh-ins will be due each Friday and can be sent to me anytime from Friday until Monday night 7 PM EST.

I will try my best to post results on Monday nights again. I have tax season right around the corner, which may be a little hectic but I will still try my best.

If you have a goal that you would like me to track, please PM that to me as well, and if you ever need to adjust it you can just let me know.

Also, please put Team Donald or Team Mickey somewhere in your PM each week, so I can find you easily.


Best luck to everyone and let's see which team (Mickey or Donald) is going to dominate week 1

Happy New Year's

Sue,

Sue... thanks for being our Weightkeeper! Such an important job and one that would definitely challenge a math-idiot such as myself!

Hello Team Donald!

My name is Sue, I'm 35 years old and I'll be part of your team for this challenge. Let's see, this is my 5th challenge I believe and also my 2nd time around as Weight Keeper.

I live in Danvers with my DH of 7 years and my DS (Dylan) who will be 2 1/2 on Tuesday. My how time flies.

I'm joining as a loser once again, but would like to get to the maintain level. I made it there by the end of the spring challenge last year, but then slacked a bit so here I am again.

DH and I joined a gym at the end of October, so I'm hopeful that it'll help me throughout this challenge and tax season. I also have vacation at the end of May, so it's a good goal to keep in sight.

Hope everyone has a safe, happy, and healthy New Year's Eve

Why didn't I realize you were in Danvers? You could have met up with Kathy and me for coffee a few weeks ago! Next time I'm going to be around that area, I'll let you know!

Happy New Year to all you Donalds!

Hey Lisa! I'm guessing you're a "Mickey" since I haven't seen you on here yet! Miss you!

Happy New Year Donalds!

I'm Reenie. I've been married to my DH 17 years and have 3 kids, DS 15, DD 13, and DS 7. We live in the Chicago suburbs. I'm going to try to post more during this challenge. Hopefully this time I can lose more than a couple of pounds.

I'd like to get back to running. I've tried C25K twice and had to stop due to injuries. This past summer I got to week 7 before I had a calf strain and then a "bone injury" (they originally thought it was a stress fracture).

Reenie....sorry about the injuries! Hopefully they will be healed and you will be ready to run soon! Have you tried any other lower impact exercises??

Hello All, my name is Kristy. I have been married to my DH for 6.5 years and we have 2 girls together age 5 and 1. I also have a dd from my first marriage who is in her second year in college. I am a retail pharmacist for Meijer and work full time.

I turn the big 40 this year and really want to get healthy all around. I have to do it for my little girls. I want to be around to see them grow up. We are going to WDW in February and staying at POR with free dining. I am going to surprise dd5 right before we go. My mom is going with us instead of DH, he isn't into Disney much.

My biggest challenge is exercise. I have never done well with it. I do have the Zumba DVDs and will give it a try and I want to get a tread mill or elliptical for the house. I am going to look into possibly joining a gym to help me decide which piece of equipment to invest in for the house. My DH is ready to get healthy also.

I just took my measurements and I am going to take some fat pictures too This is my first BL challenge on the boards, but I am not new to weight loss. I have been overweight for most of my life.

Kristy....another 40th birthday girl for this year! I say we have a BIG birthday party at Disney!! Welcome aboard!

Hi Donald teammates!! I have read all 4 pages and love the enthusiasm!!

I'm Stephanie, 41, married for 13 yrs, mom of 3 - DD17, DD11, & DS9. I have wanted to lose a few pounds for years and the amount of pounds I want to lose keeps creeping up! I have decided that I have to make it a priority or it'll never happen. 30 pounds would put me at my ideal weight but I'm aiming for 20 to be realistic about what I think I can keep off. We'll see! DD graduates at the end of May and my bday is just around the end of the challenge so great timing to meet some goals!

We joined the Y in August and I am the only family member who has not really used it at all & I want to change that. DS is there every Thursday for class so I really have no excuse not to work out while he's there anyway. DD takes dance on Tuesdays that is just past the Y, no excuse that night either! I used to do WW and will probably follow the old points system along the way.

I teach 3rd grade and really need to eat/work out for more energy in addition to wanting to look better. DH lost about 35 lbs a few years ago by working out during lunch at his office gym. He looks great & I would like to look/feel great too.

I have a set of WW cups/spoons that my mom gave me a few years back & DH gave me a 24 oz Tervis tumbler for Christmas so I have my supplies ready to go!

I like to individually reply to everyone and I apologize for not doing that tonight!

To the PP w/the ring - my wedding band doesn't fit and I refuse to get it resized. One of my goals is to get it to fit again too.

Looking forward to getting to know everyone!

Stephanie.... any time you want to chat about WW, let me know!

BTW.... I stubbornly refused to get my ring resized too.... but I finally broke down and did it.... and then lost all of the weight and promptly had it sized down again two years later! Maybe that was lucky for me??

So I actually introduced myself earlier in the thread, but since the QOTD - Saturday December 31, 2011 is 'Please introduce yourself' I'll do it again!

Hi everyone! I'm Ashley (or Ash if you prefer) and I'm super excited to be starting my first challenge! I'd like to at least get under 200 lbs for this challenge although since I'm only 8 pounds away I'm hoping to do more than that

As I mentioned in my first intro, I like to dress up as different characters for a yearly convention in my home town; also that I'm a Doctor Who fan. So this past August, I went as Amy Pond from 'The Impossible Astronaut' episode and one of my friends who does photography offered to do a photo shoot for me.

So this is me in my full costume!


Oh the shame... I hate full body shots... This is another thing that I'm using to keep me on my diet so that I'll one day like getting my picture taken and not hating how I look in it...

Honestly, I preferred the close ups, like these:

I'm going to try and get my friend to take updated pics of me once I've lost the weight, especially to keep me focused on once I get the weight off to keep it off.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Pretty good day today. I did have some Mexican for dinner this evening with a good bit of cheese (that was quite delicious I might add) but I did really good with my other two meals today. Ate a good bit of fruit, which is pretty unusual for me and plenty of water. I think I've had more water this week than I've had in the past month.

Will probably stay up and watch the ball drop, wonder why I stayed up and sleep in tomorrow. Having fish tacos for the first time tomorrow! And it's baked, not fried so it's much healthier for me. My aunt's also offered to give me her old treadmill that still works so I'm hoping to get a good bit of walking in this week. Just need to make a walking playlist for my iPod now.

You are absolutely stunning! If you hadn't said so, I wouldn't have known that was a costume.... just looks like a nice casual outfit!

I've been craving fish tacos for a few days now! Jamie Oliver made them on his new show the other night and they looked absolutely delish!

Hi Everyone! Happy New Year.

My name is Karen. I am 48 years old. My DH and I have 3 children. I would like to lose 30 pounds. This is my first BL Challenge. I am really excited to get started.

Hey Karen! Nice to meet you!!

QOTD - January 1, 2012 - What action plan do you have in place to help you to achieve your goals for this challenge??

I'm going to be tweaking my South Beach/Weight Watchers eating plan once again. I am concerned about the amount of animal protein that comes into play when I'm eating low(er) carb, so things need to change. Plus I'm not a big meat fan and found I was eating waaay too many eggs and too much cheese and nuts.

I'll be adding some more carbs back in, but still trying to stick with the healthier carbs and still keeping out the white sugar/white flour junk. I'd like to eat animal protein just once a day, but with a DH following a very low carb diet (think Atkins phase 2) and two omnivore kids, it will be tough. There is only so much hummus that a person can tolerate!

I still need to do some more research and find some more recipes, so this will be a gradual change.

Things to do

January 1, 2012

1. Send my weight to Dvccruiser76.

2. Send my WIN number to buzz5985.

3. Post often. We are way behind Team Mickey in post counts!

Sorry I wasn't around to help with the post count!

Hello Team Donald!! I have read the Dis Boards forever it seems, but I just registered tonight. (So please be patient as I learn my way around this thing!!) My name is Lynda, I'm 40 and I am absolutely determined to get healthy now. When I came across this challenge, I knew I had to take part, it's like it was meant to be! I am really looking forward to getting healthy with all of you!

Hey Linda! Nice to meet you!

I'm guessing I'm going to be the first to have weighed in given that I'm 5/6 hours ahead of u all
I will say it was more than a wee bit scary standing on those scales this morning and for a brief moment I thought about pluckinking my eyebrows, trimming my nails and even an early haircut to lessen the pain
I took a deep breath and did it though so its all good from here right?

I weighed 167lbs and ideally Iwould like to be 133lbs but as long as I'm losing I'm not going to panic about how long that takes (if that makes sense).
I'd like to lose 20 lbs by end of May.

Good luck to you all on your weigh in

The worst is over.... you've done the first weigh-in and it will only get better from there! Twenty pounds by the end of May is TOTALLY do-able!

Happy New Year Everyone

I spent the evening knitting and watching either Big Bang Theory or NCIS. I was asleep before the ball dropped. I have been up for a while and worked out for my 20 minutes. I have to go to church and may go grocery shopping. I have a mystery quilt to do starting at 10am so I don't know if I will get the grocery shopping done.

I plan on making pulled pork out of a pork lion today and I think I have enough healthy choices so that I really don't have to shop today except for the rolls for dinner.

I could go grocery shopping tomorrow. Tomorrow I have to take ds2 to meet his friends. One of the father's is taking them to the airport for the start of their trip to Gambia. Their first flight tomorrow is a flight from Phila to Newark (yes you heard me right), then to Belgium and then on to Gambia. They have to be at the friend's house by 9:30am so I will be home by noon and then I think I will go grocery shopping.

Off to shower and start the day.

Have a happy and healthy day.

How was that pork LION!?? Sorry... couldn't resist!

I believe I read that DS arrived safely in Gambia. So glad to hear that.

Hi! I'm a new member. I'm Sandy and I started working out 4x a week in Sept, but that dropped off three weeks ago. Back to the grind now! i am also working with a holistic nutritionist to start eating better foor all around. In the past two months I have become hooked on quinoa. Looking forward to getting to know you. I have 100 pounds to lose, but my goal for the end of May is 30 pounds.

I will get on the scale later and send in my official number.

Hi Sandy! Nice to meet you! I'd LOVE to hear more about what you are learning from the holistic nutritionist!! Thirty pounds by the end of May is totally within reach! When I re-started this journey on 1/2/2008 I had a goal of losing 20 by mid-April (WDW vacation)...... I actually ended up losing over 30!

We will do this, Lindsay. Just so you know you are not alone, I had lucky charms for breakfast yesterday, wendy's for lunch, and leftover chinese food for dinner, popcorn and peeps during our movie last night. The healthy food is in the house, now it is time to start eating it.

I totally forgot to eat the peanut butter M&Ms that came in my stocking! I meant to eat them when DS and I were watching HP! Guess I'll save them for our next movie night!

. My goal for this challenge is also to hit ONEderland. I'm starting at 211.6, so pretty much 12 pounds. I was close last year, but didn't make it. We can do it!! We must never give up. 2012 will be a great year!

Love your plan, Janis.

1. I plan to track every bite I eat.
2. Get my water in. I've been slacking on that this month.
3. Exercise-walk the dog, and start running again. I bought a longer leash so I can try jogging with the dog. She's usually really good on the leash, especially in the mornign, so I think she will be ok to run with. Plus I'm very slow, so for her it won't be much of a change in pace.
4. Following HH, and actually reporting to CC each week, no matter what.

Thanks for the reminder.

I have before and during, and hope to get back to one of my better during pictures this challenge. One day we will have afters.

Not a bad thing to go to bed early. I would have if I didn't have ds. DS woke me up at 1130 for the ball drop. He is obsessed with americas funniest videos and I was asleep in the recliner, so he videoed me while he banged two pans together to wake me up. Too funny. Good luck to your ds on his trip.

Happy New Year everyone!!

I know I introduced myself a little before, but I'm Kathy, 47 yo single mom to 10 yo son Michael, and newly adopted almost 1 year old puppy, Poko. I work as a nurse in Endoscopy, so mon-friday with some on call which rarely involves going in. Of course, I'm on call today, so I probably just jinxed myself, but so be it. It will help pay off the christmas bills if I go in.

I'm ready to get on the ball again, and really work hard to eat well and get the exercise in, and lose this weight again, once and for all. I looked up my starting weight the past few years in january, 2011-210.2, 2010- 212.2, and 2009- 199.0, so pretty much have been playing with the same 10-15 pounds for a few years, and it's time to kick them to the curb. My motto is to NEVER GIVE UP!! Real life stresses might get in the way of our goals, we may stray off our healthy paths completely but you can always come back. This is a lifetime commitment, and we may not always feel the scale is recognizing our hard work, but every day we eat healthier, every day we get some exercise, we are doing our bodies good, and we must NEVER GIVE UP!!

Happy New Year Team Donald!!This is our year to shine!!!

First of all.... to Michael!! Were you scared or just startled??

Second of all.... here is an OFFER for you! You get FIRMLY into ONE-derland during this challenge, and I will drive to Danvers and take you out for a (SUPER HEALTHY, LOW CALORIE) lunch!! I'm dead serious!! We can go somewhere for a HUGE salad and some nice light soup, sip fancy lemon water, and just chat!!

I KNOW you can do it this time!!!

Whoa! The thread took off and I had to do some catch up reading! I already introduced myself, but again, I'm Jill. I'm 35, a teacher, married, and have 2 boys (8 & 5). Today is not a good day for me to get organized with my weight. I am heading to my cousin's in Pittsburgh for the day for dinner and to watch the Steelers kick some butt! I am going to be gone ALL day, so I am trying to catch up real fast and do one load of laundry before we leave. I am going to track my food on My Fitness Pal, but I won't have time for exercise today . I guess I'll try for a morning and afternoon workout tomorrow.

I weighed myself this morning and am up 1.5 pounds since the end of the fall challenge. I'm ok with that, since I really didn't try to hard to eat healthy over my 11 day vacation. And, if you haven't heard...I love Christmas cookies! Luckily, I have none out right now. They are all frozen and every once in awhile we will pull some out for a treat.

I am so ready to get back on track. Sorry I haven't responded to everyone yet, but I promise I will be more organized tomorrow!

Happy and healthy 2012!!

1. Track all my food on My Fitness Pal
2. Weigh in every Friday
3. Workout at least 5 days a week
4. Participate in HH
5. Try VERY hard not to eat out~and if I end up at a drive through, pick a healthy option (salad, baked potato, grilled chicken)
6. HAVE FUN!!


Jill

Ummm... just 1.5 gain during the holidays?? I am SUPER envious!!

Happy New Year Team Donald

Last night we had a quiet night at home with just the family. We watched movies and switched over to the Ball Drop right at midnight. The guys have been intrigued by the Pizza Hut "Big Box Dinner" so we ordered that last night.
WAY too much food for 3 people!!! We ate one of the pizzas, some of the cheesy bread and some of the wings. For some reason you could not get thin crust so I did not esp enjoy the pizza. We watched Limitless, Tangled, and Killers. First 2 were good, killers was just OK.

Good luck everyone - we can do this. Just like kathy says, "Never give up!!!"

I refuse to touch any pizza from PH that isn't thin-crust. We don't buy from there much, as it is pretty far away, but we must have had a coupon or something and bought a few early last year and may I say...EWWWW! The crust was like a grease sponge! You could honestly squeeze it and see the grease ooze out. Tasted nasty too. I will NOT bring that crap home anymore. If we are out and about and somehow end up there (usually for the $5 lunch buffet), I stick with salad and thin crust. Hopefully yours was not that bad!

And YES... we will NEVER give up!

I fell down about half a flight of steps last night so I'm a little sore this am. I was not drinking or anything exciting, just stupid slipping. I will figure out some form of exercise though to get on track. I weighed & will pm that next. I plan to WIN and will take measurements at some point today & get DD to take before pics.

Action plan -

1) Write down everything I eat
2) Drink at least 60 oz of water every day
3) Turn in my number every week, no matter what
4) Go to the Y at least 3 times a week (hopefully more)
5) Try one new low fat recipe a week
6) Post often to stay motivated!
7) Participate in at least half of the challenges (hopefully more)
8) Figure out some kind of reward for when I successfully finish challenge in May

Hope everyone is having a great start to 2012!

Stephanie

Sorry you got hurt!

Happy New Year Team Donald!!!!!

In case you didnt read my first intro heres another one:

I am Lindsay. I will be turning 33 on 1/18. I have been married for 8 years and I have two boys ages 7 and 4. I work fulltime as a practice Manager of a pediatricians office that I have worked at since I was 17.

I never had a weight issue until I graduated high school. Throught middle/high school I was very active and played sports. In high school I was a 3 sport varsity letter winner. I never had to worry about what I ate because I was constantly burning calories. After graduating I gained some weight in college but lost it all again shortly before I turned 21. Then the partying came and I packed on some extra lbs, Met my dh and lost all of it before our wedding. Then I got pregnant and after DS1 lost just about all of the weight except 10lbs. After DS2 I have just gained and twice lost about half of what I needed to but only to gain it back again.

I have done many of the challenges now and met some really great ladies. I have run 2 half marathons and many 5K's and I am starting to train again from scratch to run a half on 4/29th. I am very goal oriented so when I complete my goals I tend to get lazy. I think I have just realized I always need some kind of goal that will challenge me.

I sent my weight to Sue this morning and I was actually up 3lbs from yesterday so I know I had way to much salt over the past day or so. I am really hoping for a good loss this week to get me started. I have my water next to me and so far I have been right on plan.

Shortly I will head to my nana's for New Year's Dinner. She has pork tenderloin, saurekraut, mash potatoes, and veggies. I can definitely pick and choose a good meal to fit into my calories I have available.

My exercise for the day will be dance central 2 on kinect for 20 minutes.

Have a great day today and HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!! WE CAN DO THIS:

Did you enjoy your pork and sauerkraut? My DSIL is from PA and we ALWAYS have to have that for dinner on 1/1! We aren't big sauerkraut eaters (cabbage is the one food that DH won't touch), so once a year is enough for us (although I really like it and would eat it more often if I could). DSIL always brings along her mom's homemade kraut. Do you make your own?

You can use qunioa in anything you would use white rice for, it is a grain just like rice. I buy it in th bulk section, it is a lot cheaper. It is so yummy.

My action plan is to

1) Workout plan - Monday/Wednesday cardio/weights Thurday - group personal training, Saturday yoga
2) Eat whole grains, no processed foods, limit sugar as much as possible
3) No more soda. I'm down to one a day, but starting now, no more.
4) Post here and be accountable. Complete the challenges.

I do like quinoa too, but find that the flavor of the red is much stronger and harder to get used to. Do you have any good recipes? I sent my DSIL a "365 quinoa recipes" book last year.... maybe I need to get her to share a few back with me!

Hello everyone! I'm here to introduce myself! My name is Trina and I'm 25 years old. I'm a dog trainer at Petsmart, which I'm starting part time in January because I'm going back to school full time! I just graduated with a two year degree (took 7 years) in liberal arts and now I will be going back to school majoring in history and secondary education, minoring in spanish. I have about three years left of school. I've been with my boyfriend for almost 4 years, and he is also trying to finish up school. Sometimes we feel a little behind, because we've been in this relationship for four years but don't have the money to move in together because were both in school. I'm pretty sure he's the one however, and we're happy waiting until we are financially secure to move to the next level. My "kids" are 4 dogs, 2 cats and some fish.

My weight loss journey started last may when I hit a major low in my life. I was over 165lbs, and no feeling comfortable in my own skin. I was very depressed and just not not in a good place. I found the biggest loser thread and joined and found a great group of people. I learned so much about healthy eating and good habits that I'm happy to say have really stuck with me and i've felt so much better about myself. I've lost 21lbs since may and am now down to 143. I also started running which I LOVE but am unable to do right now. I have not run since thanksgiving and have not been tracking calories since then either. I have hip bursitas and problems with my IT Band and am under strict orders not to run. I stopped going to the gym when school got to be too overwhelming but im ready to get back into it, and back into running when my ortho and PT clear me for it.

I also suffer from chornic insomniac, fibro, anxiety and depression, and Chrons disease. Very often I just don't feel good, I try not to let it get me down but sometimes it does. Since eating healthier I've felt much better.

For this challenege, I really feel like i'm hitting the home stretch. I have 18lbs to go before I hit my goal of 125. I would also like to really tone up because we have a cruise in may, and also my 25th trip to disney world, and my best friend is getting married in september and im in the wedding party with a bunch of skinny minnies. Yes, I want to look awesome, I'm vain and i'm not afraid of that. Right now, although I feel better about myself, I still wouldn't feel comfortable in a bikini. My stomach is the bane of my exsistance, I literally walk around with it sucked in all the time and just in general hate it. I'd like to find some ab workouts that don't bore me that will help tone up my stomach. I'd also like to get more into strength training, but I find it very confusing.

I need to focus on my water intake, planning excersice (what little i can do), stop making excuses, time management, and most importantly, counting calories again. I use myfitnesspal which i love but ive really stopped and I want to start again.

I hope to be more involved this challenege and get to know everyone and be very active, I like to chat when i remember so I'm going to make more of an effort with everything. I'm more than happy to be friends with people on facebook and twitter as well, you can find me as trinaweena on twitter and here http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=505037454 on face book

I'd like to share some pictures as well. One of my biggest problems during this weight loss journey is that i dont look over weight. People actually get angry at me when i tell them i want to loose 18 more pounds. But I know my body, I know where the weight is and I know what I'm going to be comfortable in.

this is me last year before i started trying to lose weight

I'm also obsessed with TV and the internet, I write for a few websites, mostly doing freelance tv reviews and such, so I watch a lot of shows and I'm very much a nerd.

You are so pretty in every picture!! Did you enjoy Boston??

I had an ingenous idea and put a hook over each door leading into the kitchen eating area. There are 2 doors side by side that open up into that area. DH & DS never make it all the way to the coat closet and they just throw their jackets down over the chairs, drives me crazy! I went over the new hooks carefully, showed them which one was theirs and asked that all coats and scarves, etc be hung up there instead of thrown over the chairs.
They seemed very onboard and thought it was a good idea
Already feeling more organized this year

Well, enough of a break, back to packing ornaments.....

Good luck with the hooks! We had a garage and mudroom installed many years ago and I definitely thought that would take care of the coats and bags in the kitchen.....but not so much! I have to remind all three members of my family EVERY DAY to take their coats and bags off the table/counter/chair/buffet and put them where they belong in the mudroom!!! Heck, the stupid hooks and shelves are even LABELED and they STILL don't get it right! Hope you have better luck than I do!

Happy New Year Team Donald!

Hi I'm Kris married for over 17 years and mother of 4 DD's 7, 10, 14 and 16 and will be turning the big 40 this year. I start nursing school on the 10th of January and will be attaining my Bachelor's degree over the next 20 months.

I already submitted my weigh in and realized I have toppled over 200 pounds for the first time in my life at 208.8. I've had a good cry and now am ready to get to work. My goal weight is 135 and while weight is important I am thinking that in this challenge my goals will center on developing good lifelong habits and making healthier decisions. Taking several nutrition courses has taught me what to do and not to do, though application of this knowledge is where I seem to stumble. I have a bad habit of skipping meals and then overindulging at dinner - so eating consistently is one of my goals.

My Action Plan:

1. Drink 72oz of water daily
2. Eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day (no seconds)
3. 30 minutes of exercise daily
4. PM my weight each Friday.
5. Participate in HH each week.
6. Participate in WIN.

Life is a journey and the only way to make it through is to put one foot in front of the other. Today is the first step to a healthier Team Donald.

Hey Kris! Nice to meet you! Glad you are here with us. Sorry you had to shed some tears over the scale, but you took the first step and that is probably the hardest part.

Well, I am finally caught up! Lots of people joining in and posting which is great! I thought I would share a bit about my race this morning for all the runners out there.

Background Information: I started running 2 years ago. I have run many 1/2 marathons, 5Ks, 7Ks and 10Ks. I have also run a mud run 2 years in a row (imagine hills covered in mud with a military style obstacle course mixed in). I am not fast and believe that slow and stead wins the race! DH and I ran our first full marathon in October. I finished in 5 hours and was totally beat up when I was done. My knees and shin splints were in a bad place at that point so I just quit for a while. I know better - I should have dealt with the injuries and got back at it. DH and I decided we were not done running and so we have filled the 2012 calendar with races again and I am ready to start over.

Conditions Today: 22°F with wind blowing over 20 mph (gusting in the range of 40 mph). The wind chill temperature was 10°. We had a couple of inches of snow yesterday but most of the course was clear.

My Outfit: Well, I wanted to be cute in my new yellow running hoodie but my goal of staying comfortable won over. I still wore my hoodie but had many things on that were not all matching. I did get way too hot while running and stripped off most of the extra things by the end so I did get to enjoy my matching bright yellow fingernails!

The Run: DH and I have run this course before (we did the 10K last year). This year we only registered for the 5K. There were tons of people and the start was really difficult to work our way through all the slower runners. I really wish there was a way to tell people who plan on walking to line up further back for a 5K. Even though I am not super fast, I hate how hard it is to get going at times. The first mile of the course is all up and down fairly steep hills. With the crowds and the hills, DH and I hit the first mile at 11:22. The crowd was starting to spread out at that point and so we picked up our pace. The rest of the course is also pretty hilly but we were able to run all the hills which made me happy. We felt pretty good today so we really picked up the pace once we finished the steepest hills. Towards the end I felt like I was struggling because our pace was faster then we had been running. Our final time was 31 minutes which means our overall time was 10:00 min/miles. I was really happy with this time and felt good about how we did.

Jen

Glad the run went well.... sorry that the weather spoiled your fashion plans!

Okay, so I just have to say, I'm pretty proud of my weight this week. It's a scary number, but with a story attached. I started Weight Watchers again a few months ago. Like beginning of October. Even though I joined, I didn't change anything else I did, and I just kept gaining weight. 5 weeks ago I realized that was dumb and started really paying attention. Since then, I've only lost or maintained, no gaining. And this week, after three months of going to WW, I'm FINALLY under the weight I originally started at

WOOHOO on being UNDER your WW starting weight!

Hi! I just got assigned to Team Donald, and I caught up on reading all the threads.

My name is Elizabeth. I'm 42. I've been married for 22 years. We have an 18 year old son.

I'm overweight and want to lose 50 pounds. I started my weight loss on 12/31. I had planned to start on 1/1, but woke up on 12/31 knowing I had to start that day.

I wear a 1x in clothes. I am embarrassed of my size. My pics from our last Disney trip shows me being wider than Daisy Duck (no lie). My double chin really, really showed. All my fault though for making poor food choices.

I have 3 bulging discs in my lower back. I have MS. My husband has Parkinson's disease. We are both still very active. I guess I just felt like things were too much and turned to food. I put on weight very quickly.

Here is what I've eaten today..

B: 1/2 cup of quick cooking oats cooked with 1 c. of water and then 1 packet of Splenda on it
S: Chobani raspberry yogurt
L: Cream of chicken soup
S: Cheddar cheese with mustard on the side to dip it in
D: Green leaf lettuce, spinach, chicken, chick peas, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese and french dressing

I know that this is probably bad, but it's better than what I was eating before. I don't really like meat. I'm definitely a sugar and carb addict.

I'll pm my weight. I'll weigh in a little bit, then weigh in each Friday.

Anyway, glad to be here.

Hi Elizabeth! Glad to have you here with us! NOthing wrong with NOT liking meat. I don't like it much either. But it is perfectly acceptable to eat just the cheese or the chick peas for dinner WITHOUT the meat.

Hi there! My name is Donna and I'm also a teacher (kindergarten) and ready to loose this weight! I will turn 42 next week, I have been married to DH for almost 18 yrs and I have 2 teenagers, DS almost 17 and DD almost 15 (they both have b-days in Feb)

I joined the Biggest Loser challenge last year but ended up quitting because it all got too confusing and overwhelming for me! But I'm gonna try again with NO EXCUSES! I really need accountability and someone to push and motivate me and call me out!!

I would like to loose 30 lbs during this challenge. If I meet that goal my mom will pay for me to go to Disneyland with her, my DD and my 4 yr old niece! (they're taking a G-ma/G-DD trip)

I'm excited to get to know you all and help each other on this journey to a new healthier life!

Maybe we ought to be calling this TEAM TEACHER! Nice to have you here!

Hi! I'm Kristi, and this is my first BL challenge here. I've been at this a while, though...it feels like forever! I have been overweight since elementary school. Shortly after my dad died (he was 44, I was 20) I decided I was done and began eating right and exercising - and lost 110lbs in a year. Woo! And then I met my husband and got married and pregnant and yadda, yadda, yadda - gained it all back. Plus some. I struggled with secondary infertility, and after finally having my 2nd daughter decided I needed to fix me! I was 302lbs (eeeek!) and so sick of being overweight. So in May 2010, I started eating right, exercising, and in a year I lost 120lbs! I was thrilled - and then my depression kicked in, and I had a bit of a bad spell...and since July 2011, I've gained back 40lbs. I'm SO upset with myself, but am determined now to get it back in control. I've done it before, I'll do it again!
I love working out (when I'm not hiding myself away in my house because of my depression), and my normal schedule was 5-6 times a week, 60-120 minutes a day. I'm trying to ease my way back into my workout routine which is Turbokick, Zumba, Hip Hop Hustle - lots of group exercise classes and strength classes too. I need to add in my strength training. I track my foods on livestrong.com and it has worked for me in the past, so I started back with it again today. I drink a lot of water, but lately I'd been drinking a lot of soda - I'm cutting that out!

QOTD - January 1, 2012 - What action plan do you have in place to help you to achieve your goals for this challenge??

1. Track food daily
2. Get back into my exercise routine
3. drink water, not soda!
4. Give myself a freaking break! No one is perfect, no one will have a perfect day, and its totally okay if I don't!
5. be more active in the house, getting stuff organized. I don't snack as much when I'm busy.

That's me in a nutshell. Thanks for letting me join in! I'm hoping to get back down under 200lbs by May - which is 23lbs.

Hi Kristi! Nice to meet you!

I wanted to post something I did. I knew I had to lose weight. I had a 2011 unused hardcover desk calendar. I decided to turn it into a weight loss journal. I used a combination of white out and white file folder labels to cover all the dates. I then wrote in all the new dates for 2012. I worked about an hour while watching tv each night, and I finished it in about a week. I added my own scrapbooking stickers.

Edited because I resized my photos in photobucket but they are still HUGE. Fixed it.. I hope.

This is my recycled journal cover.

This is my starting page. I have room for some writing. It was worth all that work to make it into a 2012 book.

There is a lot of room for journaling and some little pockets in case I want to keep anything.

Pretty journal!!

Yay Team Donald! Not sure my exact weight right now because we not have a scale. But, I think it's about 50#s over where I want to be. I will get to a scale (or buy one) tomorrow. I am married for almost 10 years, I am a teacher also( ), and I have an 8 year old DD.

I have struggled with 30-50 extra #s since DD was born. I have been to lifetime and back 2 times with WW. Both times I stopped attending as soon as I reach my goal weight. The second time I swore I would keep going Now here I am again +50#s. This time I want to get to my REAL goal weight. I will turn 40 in Sept. I want to be in the 140s by 40!.

I am a runner and I stopped running right after I completed the Princess Half last Feb. That is when the weight really jumped on me. Before that I was maybe only 20#s overweight. I have not been running and I've been stress eating all of 2011. Yeah, that explains why a lady asked me last week if I was expecting

Anyway, I am excited to have an easy and accountable way to be a loser. I am looking forward to getting to know everyone.

Nice to meet you!!

Hello everyone!
My name is Joslyn and my goal is to lose 22 pounds during this year. I am 33 and work in event planning. No kids, but I do have an adorable puppy! I work long hours and feel guilty leaving my puppy home alone, which has contributed to my non-gym going ove the past year. I rush home after work to spend time with her...

I am not happy with my fitness level, I get winded way too easily.

I am gluten free, and don't eat romaine lettuce (or any lettuce other than iceberg, which makes salad a challenge). My eating habits tend to be carb heavy and filled with sugar. It is not great.

My goals are:
1. Eat more vegetables
2. Eat more whole foods
3. Exercise. I signed up for a kickboxing class that starts Tuesday

Looking forward to the challenge!

Joslyn....nice to meet you! I'd love to hear how the kickboxing class goes!

I managed to complete all the HH for the day! Well except relaxing that is still on the agenda for tonight. I stayed on plan and am 30 hours free of soda and fast food.

My stomach is not feeling well at all. A stomach bug is going around my family and my son just got over it. Not sure if it is that or if I am just in withdrawl from the junk food. I usually feel sick for a day or two after stopping the horrible eating habits. It also could be from all the crap I ate yesterday to get it in before the new year too. Whatever it is, its horrible and I hope by the morning I feel better. I have alot of stuff to do tomorrow on my last day off.

Talk to you in the morning!!!!

Sorry about the stomach bug!

I got a really bad stomach ache tonight, this is a problem that been happening worse and worse over the past month and especially the past week. I'm going to my stomach doctor on wed but right now im cutting out all dairy. im also going to talk to him about going gluten free. Something is wrong with me, now i need to figure out what it is! I'm sick of being so acquainted with my bathroom

Sorry that you are suffering. HOpefully your doctor can diagnose it quickly. Have you talked with CC about any of this? I know she has been struggling with stomach issues for a long time, as has Rose.

Hi everyone! I'm Nicole. I just turned 32 right before Christmas. I've been married to my high school sweetheart for 11 years now, and we have two kids, 8 & 6 (7 in 2 weeks).

I'm a student. I'm a bio/pre-med major and was planning on grad school in neuroscience. However organic chemistry is the bane of my existence, so I'm toying with the idea of switching back to math. I'm not sure what I'd do with that degree though, def. don't want to teach.

I used to be super skinny and couldn't gain weight and easily lost weight. Then I got a little older and got into a normal weight range. Then I had kids, and it was all down hill.

I did manage to lose 8 lbs last year, but that was almost all done over the summer when I didn't have to get the kids to school & I was only taking 1 class at a time. When fall classes started and DS finally started OT, it all fell apart. I could barely keep up without making time for the gym.

I REALLY want to run the Tower of Terror 10 mile in Sept. I had just about finished up the C25K last summer, so I'm restarting that. DD is also going to be my running buddy for a while. She does track in the summers, and as soon as she's old enough, she wants to join the competitive team. She was effortlessly running about 1.5 miles last summer, so I think she & I will find a 5K to do together in March or April.



Well first, my goals for this challenge are:
1. Love 27 lbs, putting my back in the overweight category
2. No more Mtn Dew. I'm weaning off right now (I get horrific caffeine withdrawl headaches), and I'm planning on being off caffeine completely by mid Jan or sooner.
3. Drink 64 oz of water or more day

- carry my water bottle with me all the time, my university has Brita refill stations
- stairs whenever possible (last semester, it was around 200 a day I climbed )
- workout at least 3 days per week, will up this as I go along, but I find I do better starting with a low goal I can kick butt at
- C25K, need to find a 5K to register for for a little extra motivation
- work on keeping my self confidence up, when it's in the crapper, I quit trying

Hey Nicole! You sound like one of those super-smart math and science people. My kids got that brain from their dad, not me! Hopefully we can still be friends!

Well, I bit the bullet today - put on a tank top & shorts and took pictures of myself (back, front and side) to track my progress.

The pictures are in a password protected folder on my computer and are for my eyes only for the time being. Not sure how often I'll take new ones - every two weeks or every month maybe?

I didn't get a chance to walk or go on the eliptical today, but must have made at least 50 trips up and down the flight of stairs to the basement putting my Christmas decorations back in storage.

- Laura

Brave girl with the photos! You will be glad in the long run.

QOTD - January 2, 2012 - Thinking back on your Action Plan for the Challenge - which will be your most difficult to accomplish??

Consistent, regular exercise. THis has always been my downfall.

My hardest will be fitting exercise into my life. If I were to be honest - I have plenty of time - I just need to put myself first. Put myself ahead of everyone else - I think that will be hard. I think by posting my steps converted to miles every week - I am holding myself accountable and will get me going.

Another aspect I didnt' even consider when writing my plan - that a lot of you had on your Action Plan - was forgiving myself when I make a blunder. So I will write down my BLT's (bites, licks and tastes!!!) and move ON!!!!

DH was a little put out tonight with me and the BL. He mentioned that it is turning into a full time job for me. I was trying to explain the challenge and the QOTD and he asked me what my plan was. It really opened up conversation about my goals etc., and he told me whatever I need - he and DS would pick up the slack. I will not hold them to it, but it's nice they offered.

Janis

Please tell DH and DS how much these challenges mean to me (and I'm sure to plenty of other folks) and how much we appreciate your time here! Nice that they are trying to be helpful!

A little poem for your reading pleasure. The first time I heard this poem I was in a Diet Workshop meeting back in 1980ish. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did and still do.

A Diet Poem

Thanks for the chuckle!

**********

Well friends.... bit of a problem here. I'm only caught up to page 8, but I've been on here for nearly 3 hours! I hope no one feels too bad if I stop reading and replying and just start fresh on page 22 or 23. Sorry if I miss any important news and the QOTD and any introductions. I just cannot commit another 6 hours to catching up!

Love you all, but gotta run.......................P

 

[pjlla]

Here is my SUPER SCARY before photo.... probably around 220 lbs. I only ever recorded a legit "219" on a scale, but know that I was probably heavier than that at some point in time..... like the day this photo was taken. May 2002

And here I am this past May... nearly 9 years to the day, since I am realizing that both of these photos were taken on Mother's Day weekend. This is 90 pounds down from the before photo (possibly even more).

Oh.... that prettier and younger version of me in both pictures??.... that is my beautiful daughter! ......................P

 

[jillbur]

Funny story about my day at work:

Hmmm...I had a student today tell me that I reminded her of a crispy potato wedge from KFC. I have been called a lot of things by my students, but never a crispy potato wedge I told her I didn't know if I should be happy or offended and she said it was a compliment~that I looked good and potato wedges are good. I guess I'll take whatever compliments I can get, even if it compares me to a chunk of potato fried in oil

Hope that makes everyone smile or laugh like I did!!

Jill

 

[pjlla]

Funny story about my day at work:

Hmmm...I had a student today tell me that I reminded her of a crispy potato wedge from KFC. I have been called a lot of things by my students, but never a crispy potato wedge I told her I didn't know if I should be happy or offended and she said it was a compliment~that I looked good and potato wedges are good. I guess I'll take whatever compliments I can get, even if it compares me to a chunk of potato fried in oil

Hope that makes everyone smile or laugh like I did!!

Jill

As long as it isn't because you are SHAPED like a potato wedge or SMELL like a potato wedge, I guess all is good! .................P