Ultimate Accountability Challenge November 2020

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RangerRickL
RangerRickL Posts: 8,469 Member
in Social Groups
Welcome to the November 2020 Ultimate Accountability Challenge!

Some of you have been with this challenge for months and some are brand new. This is one of the hardest challenges to stay with throughout the entire month.

FOCUS, FOCUS, FOCUS!! Log every BLT (Bite, Lick, Taste). Stay strong and true to yourself....YOU WILL SUCCEED!!

Please feel free to share as much information as you feel comfortable sharing about yourself with the rest of the group. I look forward to getting to know all of you a little better.

GOOD LUCK
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Replies

  • alaskamutts278
    alaskamutts278 Posts: 520 Member
    I'm here for my fourth month. Big thank you to Ranger Rick for organizing this.
  • GigiDoma
    GigiDoma Posts: 445 Member
    Hi from Illinois! I joined this group last month for the first time! I am back here again for a second month. I will need it with holidays approaching and food can be tempting or we can get super busy and find excuses not to exercise. This group makes it pretty easy though since you set your own goals and finding at least 20 mins of exercise/activity isnt to hard.

    @Mrs-Hoffer Welcome to the group! You are gonna love it and no confusion here and plenty of encouragement and motivation. Good luck to you!
  • openthegatekate
    openthegatekate Posts: 29 Member
    First month here and excited ! Based in the south west of England. Have got to stop seeing these high numbers on the scales...
  • GigiDoma
    GigiDoma Posts: 445 Member
    @mistykayp and @openthegate... Welcome to the group and good luck!
  • pedwa
    pedwa Posts: 5 Member
    Hey! I put on about 7kg during covid so keen to join!
    Also looking for an accountability buddy if anyone else is :)
  • GigiDoma
    GigiDoma Posts: 445 Member
    @pedwa Welcome to the group! I am always looking for people to help me stay accountable.
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    Second month going for UAC. I don't think I wrote anything in the introduction section in October. From Massachusetts, turned 59 this week. After years of yo-yoing, in May 2017, I had finally got my weight and exercise in order had been stable for a few years. Then bit by bit, life struck again. Covid just topped it all off.

    Mid-Sept I was finally motivated to turn things around and it is working. October, I joined UAC, which has helped me most by reminding me to include daily activity. I even went out after dark a few days ago, just to make sure I did not forfeit another pass. Similarly, today, the day was getting away from me, I had not exercises and it had rained all day. I headed to the basement to the bike. My birthday walk was foiled and I did a step video. Anyhow, behavior like that is a huge change for me. Let's see how this goes for November. (I also am in 3 other overlapping Challenges as well.)

    I still have not gotten any feedback from anyone regarding to use, or not use their exercise calories. I am really torn, and I would love to get others' thoughts, as I define my standards for my November UAC. Any thoughts?
  • loseitwithbee
    loseitwithbee Posts: 28 Member
    Hiya! This will be my first month with UAC. My goal is to track everything I eat - something I usually don't do. I don't have a goal amount to lose for the month - I just want to drop the pounds!
  • ltopinka84
    ltopinka84 Posts: 23 Member
    I really need help with accountability so I’m giving this group a try!
  • GigiDoma
    GigiDoma Posts: 445 Member
    @atarahkay and @Itopinka84 Welcome to the challenge! You are gonna love it!

    @SModa61 I thought I had replied to your thread on extra calories, but I guess I didn't hit send. This is what I did in October. We both joined in the same month. The week before I started challenge I started logging my food and realizing I was running out of calories fast! First I traded my high calorie foods for lower and also replaced them with ones that filled me up longer. I also made sure I walked every day! When I started challenge I was still hungry at first and would use most of my exercise calories. I started doing longer walking times and drinking tons of water while doing it. The next week I found myself less hungry and started to only eat back half of my calories. The next week I made sure that I always had at least 400 calories from exercise that I didn't eat back. I also log my dinner in before I do my exercise. This way if I am really hungry and need more calories I can see how much I am in the negative and how long I need to be on that treadmill. Now I hardly eat back my exercise calories, but I have about 3-4 days a month where I am hungry and I need to eat them. You have to figure what works for you. but this way worked for me. Good luck to you this month!
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    ginadomaszewicz wrote: »
    @atarahkay and @Itopinka84 Welcome to the challenge! You are gonna love it!

    @SModa61 I thought I had replied to your thread on extra calories, but I guess I didn't hit send. This is what I did in October. We both joined in the same month. The week before I started challenge I started logging my food and realizing I was running out of calories fast! First I traded my high calorie foods for lower and also replaced them with ones that filled me up longer. I also made sure I walked every day! When I started challenge I was still hungry at first and would use most of my exercise calories. I started doing longer walking times and drinking tons of water while doing it. The next week I found myself less hungry and started to only eat back half of my calories. The next week I made sure that I always had at least 400 calories from exercise that I didn't eat back. I also log my dinner in before I do my exercise. This way if I am really hungry and need more calories I can see how much I am in the negative and how long I need to be on that treadmill. Now I hardly eat back my exercise calories, but I have about 3-4 days a month where I am hungry and I need to eat them. You have to figure what works for you. but this way worked for me. Good luck to you this month!

    @ginadomaszewicz I love it! I like that you customized it. For the October, I did not find out what was "legal" for the challenge (I have since found it for November). I did all of October staying under my "goal", and not touching the exercise. There were certainly days, being able to cross slightly into the exercise might have been helpful. And also, might have prevented my one candy binge that once I ate the one piece, I had forfeited the day, so I proceeded to eat like 20 (just glad they were not full sized :p) I find your hunger timeline interesting as well. I am finding it easier at the end of the month, than I did at the beginning. Thanks so much for your insights. Here's to month #2 for us both!
  • GigiDoma
    GigiDoma Posts: 445 Member
    @lillymaid86 Welcome to the challenge! I love Zumba! Dancing workouts are so much fun because you don't feel like you are working out!
  • josefinejem
    josefinejem Posts: 256 Member
    I'm back for my third month. I have about 12-15 kgs to lose total; in September I lost 2 in the first 3 weeks and then promptly regained them and more during a ten day visit with my family. 🙄 October was steadier and it feels as if I'm back on track. My biggest issue is stress; we've all had a lot of it this year and I often deal with mine by eating, so this is something I'm actively working on now. I'm also trying to slowly ease myself back into running by using C25k as I've had a lot of injuries over the last year.

    This group is fantastic; I've never stuck with a challenge for this amount of time before. I think it helps that it's process rather than outcome focused.
  • Mrs_Hoffer
    Mrs_Hoffer Posts: 5,194 Member
    ginadomaszewicz wrote: »

    @SModa61 I thought I had replied to your thread on extra calories, but I guess I didn't hit send. This is what I did in October. We both joined in the same month. The week before I started challenge I started logging my food and realizing I was running out of calories fast! First I traded my high calorie foods for lower and also replaced them with ones that filled me up longer. I also made sure I walked every day! When I started challenge I was still hungry at first and would use most of my exercise calories. I started doing longer walking times and drinking tons of water while doing it. The next week I found myself less hungry and started to only eat back half of my calories. The next week I made sure that I always had at least 400 calories from exercise that I didn't eat back. I also log my dinner in before I do my exercise. This way if I am really hungry and need more calories I can see how much I am in the negative and how long I need to be on that treadmill. Now I hardly eat back my exercise calories, but I have about 3-4 days a month where I am hungry and I need to eat them. You have to figure what works for you. but this way worked for me. Good luck to you this month!

    @ginadomaszewicz This is GREAT advice! I have my cal goal set low (1200) so that I HAVE to exercise in order to be able to eat back some of my exercise calories. I'm definately going to move to this approach though - I think it would work well for me. As always, thanks so much for your advice.
  • BMcC9
    BMcC9 Posts: 4,451 Member
    I gave myself a "BMI TRUE-Reality Check, and admitted to the Wii Profile setting that I should be 5 ft 2 (not 5 ft 3 as I was when I first started keeping track)

    So now the border between Normal and Overweight BMI (25) is at 136 pounds instead of 141 ....

    Toto, it looks like we aren't in Maintenance-Land any more ... but I can see it juuuussssttt Over There ..... (currently sitting at ~ 137 / 138)

    I think my stationary bike is gonna get extra-usage for November (or longer) along side the waking exergame. The bike burns much more calories per minute. (has ~ 12 plus preprogrammed options for variety)
  • ualflygirldm
    ualflygirldm Posts: 112 Member
    I'm really excited about this challenge! I'm really good at staying on track as long as I have to be accountable but if I'm not in a challenge I tend to be a little less diligent about my workouts and food logging. It usually accounts for a 4 pound weight difference. Going into the Holidays and more Covid snacking I really need this. Yay!!
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    BMcC9 wrote: »
    SModa61 wrote: »
    I still have not gotten any feedback from anyone regarding to use, or not use their exercise calories. I am really torn, and I would love to get others' thoughts, as I define my standards for my November UAC. Any thoughts?

    @SModa61 MFP bases its goal setting with a built-in deficit, and presumes you will eat back your exercise calories (to fuel your body for its workout). Some feel that the MFP Exercise datatbase can be too generous in its estimates, so IF what you do has an alternate way to track calorie burn, use that.

    With some trial and error, you will discover how much of your exercise-credit calories to eat back to keep you ~ the projected rate of loss you have in your profile.

    The goal isn't to "do more so that you can eat more" The goal is to "eat enough to fuel what you want to do"

    eg. I have a (very basic) fitbit synced with MFP. I don't track my brisk-walking game separately, as the stepping is counted by the fitbit (same if I were into jogging or on a treadmill or stairstepper) The fitbit will give me "exercise credit" when above my "MFP-determined" needed deficit-calorie intake level.

    If I were on my exercise bike, I would take the calories-burned reading from that and include it.

    If you are active, and you are basically eating healthy and enough as rule, your hunger is your body needing fuel (HUNGER ..... not "cravings") So dip into the exercise calories if you need them. You are still "in the rules" if you eat all but one ...

    The more active you are above the "lifestyle setting" you gave yourself, the more the imbalance between the calories-in level you have been given to eat and what you need to fuel yourself.

    Thank you so much BMcC9 Having input is very helpful and builds my confidence on making the right choices. I will finish my UAC challenge the way I began with not using any exercise, since it is only two days. Then for the November round I will update my approach. This last week I have lost comparative rapidly, which is nice, but actually concerns me for sustainability, so I need to start shifting that way. Thanks again.
  • Sharon268
    Sharon268 Posts: 17 Member
    My name Sharon. I’m 35 in the Hudson Valley, NY and looking for some MFP accountability for the month of November. Feel free to add me as a friend and nudge me along the way. I’ll be forever thankful to you. I need to lose 30+lbs by my birthday in February. 😊
  • TeresaSavage
    TeresaSavage Posts: 1,506 Member
    Hi! I'm new to this challenge. I'm from Florida and I'm 58 years old. I'm very excited about getting back on track and meeting new people. I joined MFP about 9 yrs ago and did fantastic with the challenges and lost all my weight, just to gain it all back again. My exercise routines are moderate walks and dumbbell lifts. I found out a 1 1/2 yrs ago I have Blepharospasm which is a condition of your nerves muscles in the eyelids, which makes you have uncontrollable eye spasm. So I no longer drive, I no longer walk outside and even my treadmill I sold because the sound made my eyes worsen. All my favorite sports ( tennis, hiking, racquetball, long walks, bicycling and jogging) are no longer available to me. BUT I CAN'T and wont give up! Please feel free to friend me :) Teresa
  • chulton2020
    chulton2020 Posts: 31 Member
    Hi everyone, I'm located in Ontario and joining this challenge for the first time. I try to stay pretty active but need to be more cognizant of my eating habits. I'm hoping that this challenge will help me to learn to make some better choices and to start tracking every day.

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