Kicking *kitten* In Our Twenties - December Challenge!!

Welcome to everyone and welcome back to those who are returning from the Nov challenge! :flowerforyou:

A moment of seriousness -
***Remember: Make sure your goals are ATTAINABLE. Just a word of warning from someone who has been at this a while. Discouraging yourself by setting unreasonable goals (and not meeting them) is a great way to end this journey quickly and to develop unhealthy eating and exercise habits that are not sustainable. If what you are doing right now to lose weight is NOT something you can see yourself doing for the next 5 years to life, then you need to adjust your goals because being healthy is a LIFESTYLE choice.

OK enough of that.

Melissa - Be safe! Seriously - Drivers are the worst! I have been nearly hit SO many effing times by inconsiderate drivers on their phones, playing with their radios or just simply not paying attention. It's like you're invisible out there sometimes. And I a) always run during the day and b) always wear BRIGHT red to make sure I'm visible. I've also been hit from behind by a cyclist on a shared trail (in Sept - and have track marks scarred in my left calf to prove it). There is no way to prevent it so just take as many steps as possible to stay safe and make sure you are alert at all times. Trust no one! I know it sounds paranoid, but honestly it's your best bet. If you can, run in the 'burbs or on a shared path - at least a cyclist isn't likely to kill you :ohwell: Not much consolation, unfortunately.

Skip - YAY! Post your goals, young lady I want to see the other runners' goals! I have no idea what to set as my running goal for the month other than to keep up with my running 3x per week... Doing another 7 miles this Sun. Dare I set a distance goal with the heavy winter months upon us?

Spellbinder - Good to see you back and not bad at all on your vacation! You'll get back on track in no time What are you doing at the gym?

Aly - Dizzy and anxious from oatmeal? I'm not sold on that... Then again, I have oatmeal every morning. I know everyone's different but I find it hard to believe that oats would have that effect. Good healthy carbs in the AM are a great way to kick start your metabolism and help to keep you feeling full and nourished throughout the morning. Add some protein powder, eggs, cottage cheese, or greek yogurt and fruit/veggies and you've got an all-star breakfast!

Rai - Awesome first day girl! Now just keep that up for 30 more Seriously though, use the momentum to your advantage and keep reminding yourself that if YOU don't do it for you, no one will. The push-ups will get better, I promise!

OK I am changing my goals. I decided on them too quickly in order to get the list going and they did not reflect what I really want to accomplish this month. So here's the update.

km323 - Reach 185lbs, run 4x per week, get to sleep before 2am each night, avoid french fries and log every day
kvr414- Lose another 10 lbs. drink 10 cups of water a day, do a 3x to 5x a day routine of situps, pushups, lunges til fatigue.
roobean33 - Reach 128lbs, drink more H20 daily, try new healthy recipes, avoid most of the holiday treats
inskydiamonds - Continue my biweekly meal challenges, because they force me to reach outside the box for things to eat for dinner. (December 1-5: Suggestions from MFP friends / December 6-19: Low-Cal Desserts / December 20-31: Meals Under $10). Lose 4 pounds, bringing me to 183.
Keysr-Cook for myself and become more active outside with fun winter sports
krishatherley - drop another 3-4 lbs
wardiemelissa-maintain current weight of 125 lbs.; continue exercise regimine of running 2-3 times a week (with one long run between 7-8 miles), strength training (30 day Shred), and stretching (yoga); plan healthy dinners for the week; and begin to tone those trouble zones (No More Trouble Zones)
SkierElle: Reach 175 lbs, still limit sweets but allow myself a few if they fit w/in calories, when I'm home for Xmas try to involve family in fun exercise!

meagalayne - Reach 130lb by 12/11/10 and maintain to 01/01/11, complete 20 consecutive push-ups, complete 5 full weeks of Cutting Body Fat (3x/week) weight lifting and extend longest run distance to 9 miles - NO EXCUSES!

rai8759 - Go from 167.4 to 162 by 1/3/11 (1.08 lbs/week); Carry a water bottle around with me and drink 8-10 cups of water per day; Be true to my food diary even if i miss a day get right back into it the next day!!
Tai_88 – continue my no candy streak (limit of one piece of candy per week); stop drinking soda for the month; at least 3 workouts per week; get my 2 mile time under 18:30; logging everyday – especially when I don’t want to.
Hazeldiva1913---drink at least 12 cups of water a day, loose 10 lbs by christmas. Im at 299 need to be at 289 on xmas day...start incorporating more strength training...no eating out more than once a week!!!
chawntamarie - Reach 140lbs by Christmas (4 lb. loss), Workout 5 times/week and cook my own meals 2-3 times per week.
finncmh- lose 5lbs bringing me to 193 by New Years eve, strength training 2x's a week, develop a solid running/walking routine, try one new healthy meal a week!
Mevan17- lose 3 lbs to get to 141 lb, run 4 days/week, no cookies
Stuartme123 - DecSW = 161. 30 min of cardio 3x a week, Keep unhealthy snacking to under 200 calories/day, Add veggies that wouldn't normally be there to at least one meal a day, Try one new healthy recipe a week, Lose 1lb a week for a total of 4lbs.
CaptainJim157 - Dec SW = 172.2 lbs, lose 10 lbs by the end of December (2 lbs a week), control my anxiety a bit better (Can that be one of my goals?)
Tickyfoxster710- Dec SW=294lbs, goal lose 9lbs by the end of December, finish my 10k running plan, try to get up to 8 miles before the end of the year, start my second round of 6 week triple challenge (finish the first week of January) ( goal 100 push ups, 200 situps, 200 squats consecutive)
Jourdan_Rystrom - DecSW=136. I want to reach 133 by the end of December and have even more muscle tone! Log on to MFP EVERY DAY and always stay under my calories! I want to drop my BF% to 22%! I also want to include more greens in my diet!
meggonkgonk: Reach 150 lbs, complete 1 unabridged week of training, Week 4 of pushup challenge and 1 unassisted pullup
GuamGrly (Bethany) - lose 5 pounds before 2011. Work out twice a week. Continue with my C25K training.
Losstalykat:* Do one nice relaxing thing for myself once a week. (massage, bath with wine and book, new workout class....)* Focus on Triathlon Training, workout as close to the training schedule as possible. * Only eat 2 sweets a week(it is the holidays after all)*Measure at the beginning and end of the month.
spellbinder25: (1) Start with week 3 of C25K. From week 4 onwards, do each week twice. (2) Cook twice a week, (3) Have a serving of fruit everyday, (4) Do squats and crunches thrice a week, (5) Lose 5.5 lbs to reach 145lbs.
seripha - Dec SW = 156.5, goal to lose another 5 lbs by the end of December, continue to exercise 4 - 5 times a week, and avoid binging on the weekend!
miss_amy: current weight loss: 26.4lbs- goal: at least 32lb total loss (5.6lbs)- ultimate goal: 35lb total loss (8.6). NSG: eat less carbs!
TaraMaria - Ab workout 3x's weekly, 4500 calories burned weekly, 97.5 miles walked/ran by Christmas, build up to running/walking 5 miles and finally no refined sugars for the month of December
SKINNYACK- Get under 160- ideally 157 by Dec 31st. I'm currently stuck at 161. Be able to hold side arm planks for 90 seconds each arm without shaking. Run my first official 5K. Finish Month 1 of P90X
Fiore89 -- Go to the gym daily, eat less carbs and more protein, log in MFP daily, pack a healthy lunch to work and stay under my calorie intake!!! :-)
Allislefttogain: Maintain in 118-123 range; minimum base running of 8-10 miles a week; long run of 13.1; weigh-ins on 10th/ 20th/30th of December; try a new workout (or 2 or 3); 64 oz of water daily (no counting tea water!) and experiment in the kitchen http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/TaraMaria
Tjradd73-to lose 8lbs and 2", continue on with the push-up challenge, and do 3 days a week of abs!
cruan- Stay on the Herbalife plan, get my protein intake that I need, lose at least 5 lbs, and exercise, exercise, exercise!
emmarie1630- lose 4lbs, eat out less, stay active over the holidays, drink more water
30poundsto30- lose 10 pounds, exercise 3x a week, walk my dog everyday and drink at least 64 ounces of water daily

Have a great THURSDAY everyone!

Gonk - Looks like a good plan! I'm going to try and work it out ... Ideally I'd like to have my rest day on Saturday, since that is usually my day "dedicated" to spending with Ty and my long run on Sunday, since I find it infinitely easier to do my long run on the weekend during the day, while it's still light out and I at least have some sun (read: warmth). I will consider my options tonight and post my re-vamped workout schedule once I figure it out! I am going to try to follow HH as much as possible.

I am thinking I need to get to the doctors in the coming weeks to see about getting tested for Raynaud's disease or something similar. There is definitely an abnormality with my ability to cope with the cold weather. It was only -1C today and I was fully bundled up on my way to the gym (in base layers and full winter coat, gloves, scarf, etc) and still my hands and feet went completely numb and started burning. I'm usually not much of a complainer but it's exceptionally uncomfortable and this happens nearly every time I go outside, so this winter is going to be a rough one without any relief from the cold. Ty is getting pretty concerned about how much pain I am in when we go out, so he's been prodding me for a few weeks now...

Tara- I started at 190lbs and have lost 58.4lbs total so far. I am very close to my goal weight and would love to lose another 1.6lbs to hit 130. Not sure why you can't lose the weight you want if you are eating healthy, drinking lots of water and working out every day. That's basically what I do and I have been quite successful over a long period of time. Just stick with it and try to find what works for you. Distance running has been a saving grace for me - it really is a wonderful way to lose weight. Combined with strength training, it's very effective at burning fat and calories and helping to lose even those last 5lbs.

QOTD - My favourite gadget... Hmmm Really no idea! Right now probably my blender, but there's about 14 different gadgets in my kitchen that I wouldn't want to live without :laugh: Next on the list is a food scale! Love to cook and could easily live without the rest... Except for MFP of course!