I have been lifting for a few years. Believe me i had to work up to that weight

Hey Rockstar. Hope you have a great workout in the morning..

Ugh, I feel so guilty, cause I didn't workout this morning. Went to bed early last night, but still needed meds and my chest and head were not on the same page this morning. I do see a light though…feeling even just a little better than this time yesterday.

Good morning teammates!!

We've had some great ideas about weekly challenges. As a intense fitness group what do you all think about doing some extra weekly challenges, as previously suggested, to help us reach our goals? This would be in addition to the weekly challenges set forth by the Lose to Win group.

Thought of a few more:

No dessert challenge – (ok I am going to be skimpy on this one – only 5 days without dessert)

Smoothie challenge – have at least one HEALTHY smoothie (sweet or savory)/day for a week.

One day eating (technically drinking) only HEALTHY smoothies (sweet and savory – aka made with fruits and/or vegetables, nuts, seeds, protein powder [if needed], and healthy oils). This is not to starve yourself. It can easily be done without being hungry. When I do this, I generally have about 6 smoothies in a day.

2 days in a 7-day period when you do a “two-a-day”. So, you do 8 full-fledged workouts in 7 days. I am saying 8 because there should be one day off in there, somewhere.

For 6 days (I like my splurge day on day 7) in a row, consume only "healthy plates" - (at least) 1/2 of the plate is fruit and/or veg, 1/4 of the plate is lean protein, and 1/4 is whole grain.

Also, if/when we do these challenges, can we start a new discussion for each one? I also love challenges that use spreadsheets but don't trust myself to make one properly for a challenge.

Jfmp, I love your ideas and am all for them. Thanks for sharing. I have chosen a weekly challenge for us from your list starting tomorrow. Here we go...

Try a new exercise this week. It must be something you have not done in at least 6 months. New DVD, new hike, swim, bike, etc AND Have at least one HEALTHY smoothie (sweet or savory)/day for a week.

Feel free to share what exercise you're doing for the week and the recipe for your smoothie(s) if you like. I'm looking into making new threads for our weekly challenges.

. . . And I found a few more we could transform into weekly challenges . . .

Eat three fewer bites of your meal, one less treat a day, or one less glass of orange juice.
Wait until your stomach rumbles before you reach for food. It’s stunning how often we eat out of boredom, nervousness, habit, or frustration—so often, in fact, that many of us have actually forgotten what physical hunger feels like. If you’re hankering for a specific food, it’s probably a craving, not hunger. If you’d eat anything you could get your hands on, chances are you’re truly hungry. Find ways other than eating to express love, tame stress, and relieve boredom.

Put your fork or spoon down between every bite. At the table, sip water frequently. Intersperse your eating with stories for your dining partner of the amusing things that happened during your day. Your brain lags your stomach by about 20 minutes when it comes to satiety (fullness) signals. If you eat slowly enough, your brain will catch up to tell you that you are no longer in need of food.

Smaller plates - A healthy dinner should fit on a 9-inch plate. You may find that kid-sized plates are more appropriately sized to feed an adult!

Brush your teeth after every meal, especially dinner. That clean, minty freshness will serve as a cue to your body and brain that mealtime is over.

Take a brisk walk before lunch or dinner. Not only will you get in some exercise, you're less likely to choose something unhealthy after a little movement.

Choose a non-food oriented reward for when you have met your goal – New running shoes, new sweater, fitness device, etc

If you find yourself at a weight loss plateau, up the duration of your exercise routine by five minutes.

Take a 30-second break in the middle of your meal. Evaluate just how hungry you still are before getting back to your food.

Hi all, I am finally back to the land of the living. Thought I was better middle of last week, but I wasn't. I haven't had an appetite all week and finally ate 3 meals yesterday. Today I weighed in and am 3 lbs down. The hard part will be to at least maintain that as I eat proper meals again. Yesterday morning the scale showed 5 lbs lost. Its crazy what your body does when your sick, hey? I look forward to the next weigh in, as that will be a little more accurate for me! Don't feel like I should really even count this one. Good luck on your weigh ins!

rockstar53 wrote: »

Hi all, I am finally back to the land of the living. Thought I was better middle of last week, but I wasn't. I haven't had an appetite all week and finally ate 3 meals yesterday. Today I weighed in and am 3 lbs down. The hard part will be to at least maintain that as I eat proper meals again. Yesterday morning the scale showed 5 lbs lost. Its crazy what your body does when your sick, hey? I look forward to the next weigh in, as that will be a little more accurate for me! Don't feel like I should really even count this one. Good luck on your weigh ins!

So glad you're better hun.

Hey everyone, I'm sorry that I haven't been much of a teammate these last couple of weeks. I finally, finally feel like myself again and am ready to get back into this!!
Hope you all are staying on track and getting in those workouts! The last workout I did was yoga 2 weeks ago. Yikes!

Sorry guys. Bad choices = no weight loss. Up 2.2 pounds. I can do better. Good luck to all of you.