Week 6 Results

*skulks back into the room*

Hi guys.

I know. I. Know. Ive been totally MIA. Im sorry. It wasn't fair to all of you and you didn't deserve it. Thank you all who stuck around and kept weighing in and kept encouraging each other!!

I couldn't find any encouragement to give myself, let alone anyone else. I haven't been able to get my head, or my heart into this or anything else really. Im not sure why this winter has been particularly rough for me; the seasons don't normally affect me like this but Ive been feeling out of control and just generally lacking. But something changed for me yesterday. I don't know if it was the good cry, the schedule Chris helped me prioritize, or the more regular salads but I feel like I can do things again. Im ready to conquer my ever growing to-do list. Im ready to lose weight. Im ready to do!

On to the results....

You guys are all doing so great! Im stinking up the place with my overall gain for the challenge but thats about to change so watch out :)

Week 2 Update

Hi gang! How's 2015 going for you? It looks like a lot of user having a rough start, kind of going backwards. I know I am.

Personally, I've felt like I don't want my vacation to end. I start school again this week and I think this will be the kick in the ass I need. Although being back in school presents different problems - when Im commuting back and forth to Worcester during breakfast and lunch, drive-thru is a huuuuuuuge temptation that I have given in to much to frequently in the past. My plan is to plan ahead, bring breakfast with me - a yogurt with granola and coffee, and then bring a snack with me for the drive home - a piece of fruit, and plan on eating lunch when I get home. Im pretty good at planning ahead for dinner, I just need to do it.

For me, not giving in to the easy possibility, i.e. being lazy, is when I make bad food choices. I need to be strong. I will be strong this week!

On to results:

Chris won the week!! Good job babe! Chris is competing in a weight loss challenge at work too; their prize is $2000. Great motivation to win and his motivation is definitely inspiring, and to be honest, a little shaming. Either way, it works for me.

Angie lost her motivation this week. I know its hard, Ange, when you're stressed and feel overwhelmed. My first instinct is always to eat because, hey, I deserve it. But I also deserve to be healthy and I need to love myself enough to make good choices. And you deserve to be healthy too.

Good luck this week all!!

Week 1 Update

Im sorry this is so late. Totally forgot about it after last week. Oops! Im so sorry!

Week 13 Results

Only one more week left you guys!! Are you where you hoped you would be when we started in September? It's so important to set our goals and hold ourselves accountable. Personally, I am not where I hoped to be. I've let myself down and I've let all of you down. I was hoping to lose twice what I've lost. I know I have not been strict with myself and I need to change this.

Chris and I would like to do a Round 2 starting Monday, January 5. Who wants to be in? Does anyone want out? Does anyone have friends that they think would want to join and benefit from being part of our group? Please spread the word and invite them!!! Do we want to do a cash prize next time around or should we do a different prize? Or should we not have a prize? Lets talk about it.

As far as money goes, most people for the month of September so almost everyone should pay in $30 for the months of October, November, and December. We talked about what everyone wanted to do as a prize and everyone was on board for $10 a month. Please contact me to find out how much you need to put in. Thanks!!

Lets make this week count guys! Make good choices :)

Week 12 Results

Hi all! So, Thanksgiving is over and it was not easy. Most of us are up. Personally, I was surprised I was not up more. It just means that I was having a good week before Thursday at which point I began consuming my weight in wine, gravy, pie, and cheesecake.

I know most of us have some weight related health problems, or at least health problems that are made worse by being overweight. A very long time ago, when we originally started the blog, I was on  metformin and two different blood pressure meds. The metformin and 1 of the bp meds are gone but I still have to watch my blood pressure, especially when stressed. Somehow, Chris and I have several theories, but I threw my lower back out - get your mind out of the gutter! I think what happened was, I spent 5 days doing close computer work with bad posture in a stiff chair and my stress level is doing me no favors. I woke up this morning and it was hard to roll over and as the day went on, just kept getting worse and worse, to the point that i can't stand up straight without wanting to cry. I know that my weight does me no favors here. I know my belly puts stress on my lower back so why can't I find it in myself to fix it? Its so hard to do the things we know are best for us. We need to love and accept ourselves enough to make choices that make us better.

Here's to having a week where we can love ourselves! Two more weeks left - lets make them count!

Week 11 Results

Hi team!

I see lots of red on this chart. I know this time of year is difficult but it shouldn't be an excuse for us. There are so many opportunities to make good, healthy choices that we should seize them when we can. I definitely believe you have to "cheat" or splurge a little too. Otherwise, you won't be able to keep your momentum going. But if we are "cheating" or splurging everyday, its not really a splurge is it? Its just our everyday behavior.

I know that I will not be able to hit my original goal of a 60 pound loss by christmas but I know that if I put my mind to it, I believe that I can hit 40 pounds overall. I just need to stay focused on my goal. 16 more pounds to go and 3 weeks to do it in.

Will you hit the goal that you set for yourself when you started this challenge? What do you think you will be able to do with the next 3 weeks? Set a goal for yourself. Write it it down and work on it. Every. Single. Day.

Make good, healthy choices with Thanksgiving this week! I'd like to see more people down next week. Lets do this together!

Week 10 results

Hey everybody! Thank you all for sticking in here with us. Chris and I (I think I can speak for Chris too, here) need a bit of a reboot this week. Last week was a rough food week with me making not diet meals. Lasagna, mac and cheese and a ham, LOTS of stuffed mushrooms, and lasagna and ham and mac and cheese leftovers all week. I know I can choose better meals for us and that is something I will do differently this week. Although, confession - I had the mac and cheese and ham for dinner again tonight. Chris is traveling for a few days this week and I hate cooking for myself while he's gone so I just end up eating whatever is in the fridge. I need to value MY health, not just OUR health.

Greg - you are an inspiration to me on this. Im so proud of you for all the work you've done this year. A big shout out to Jeanne this week too - hooray for a new clothing size! It feels so good :)

Way to go Angie - you won the week! You've been on a roll the last few weeks - keep it up!! I hope everyone has a great week this week. Only 4 weeks left in the challenge. Lets make the last 4 as good as the first 4!! Lets all find our passion again this week. I know we all have it in us.

Week 9 Results

It looks like most of us really struggled this week. So shout out to Angie, Becky, Greg and Michael for being the only ones who lost weight this week! Congrats and keep up the great work :D

In the middle of the week, I was up 12 pounds from the week before and just totally freaked out. So, I recovered a bit of ground from up 12 to only up only 8.7 so thats, something.... I can't even say that with a straight face. This will be a better week for all of us, I just know it. Lets all have a better week! Lets set our goals and focus on them. Lets snack on fruits and veggies. Lets drink water instead of soda or milk or juice. Lets get healthy y'all!

Week 8 Results

I've been thinking a lot about goal setting recently. I write down a goal to lose 5 pounds every week in my planner so that I see it every day. I gave myself the goal to lose 60 pounds before the end of this round in December. I know that I have more than 60 pounds to lose in all but it's so important to break things up into achievable goals, otherwise the whole task is daunting and you don't even want to try so you're setting yourself up to fail. I don't always hit my 5 pound goal in the week but if I see it and focus on it, the goal remains top of mind and I'm less likely to slip up. Angie and Paula both gave themselves a goal for week - great job, ladies! Does anyone else set weekly goals? What were your goals for the challenge? Please share - I'd love to talk about this with all of you!

On to results. Great job last week to everyone! All but 2 people lost weight and thats amazing. Even if you lost a little, it all counts.

Biggest loser of the week is Chris - way to go babe! 7.9 pounds is awesome and your passion this week was inspiring. Keep it up!

Biggest opportunity for a comeback next week - Bob and Katie. We both gained weight last week and that's unacceptable. I know for me that my appetite came back last week after being sick so I definitely ate more than I should have on many occasions.

Here's to a great week this week! I hope everyone is feeling better soon. Lets get kick some ass and take some names!

Updated Week 7 Results

Here are the final results for Week 7 with Becky's updated weight. Thanks all!