Go Red Team!
My name is Marcella (But I also answer to Julia)
FYI- I decided to use the member name of JuliaMLN for MFP even though I usually use my middle name (Marcella). Because Julia is my first name, it was easier to use for business in the past (before motherhood). I thought that maybe as a mental thing, seeing the name I used in business when I could still leap small buildings in a single bound and accomplish just about anything, might be helpful to keep me on track losing weight now. All that to say, I happily answer to either name.

Short Term Goals:
- I really want to see the 160s. So my short term goal is to reach 169.9
- To do some type of cardio activity at least twice a week
Long Term Goals:
- My final goal weight is 129 - 132.
- To lead an all around more active lifestyle. More gardening, hiking, camping
- To write a book
What I struggle with:
- Making time for Exercise
What I'm doing well:
- I eat very little processed food. It's truly a lifestyle now.
- Dealing with stress and life better.
Other things you should know:
- I'm a bit ADD. So focus is an issue. I seriously have to keep the fridge and the pantry
organized in order to focus on what I have available to eat/cook.

I'm looking forward to the next 3 months of this challenge and the successes that lay ahead for all of us. GO TEAM!

Thank you, Amy!
Marcella, I like the idea about your name. It's funny how we can motivate ourselves.
Welcome, curvygrl!!

Name: Kris

Short and long term goals::

Goals for this challenge:
Sweat away 33 pounds and increase my monthly mileage. Also fine-tune my clean eating. I won't be tracking my calories or macros, just being mindful of what I'm eating and making healthy choices.

Long-term goals:
Medication-free and final goal weight of around 134. Keep being active.

What do you struggle with?
My biggest struggle right now is allergens. Sounds silly, and I've never had these sensitivities before. Where we live, however, has pollen that can (and probably does) make grown men cry. I can't take most of the medicines that combat the symptoms, so pretty much every day is debilitating. It can make it hard to exercise and cook healthy dinners. (I love doing both.) In the past, this had led to a lot of restaurant food. I don't have to tell you what that means!

Keep in mind Ladies, weigh in is on Sundays each week.

Marcella, thanks for sharing. By adding cardio 2x/week, you will definitely reach the 160's for sure. If you don't mind me asking, why is it hard for you to find time to exercise? What kind of book would you like to write? I think it's great that you don't eat much processed food. So many struggle with that....including me

Kris, I just had a food safety seminar at my job today where they talked a lot about allergens. Are you allergic to specific foods? Do you find it difficult when eating out? Or do you prepare most of your meals yourself? How has that affected your weight loss?

Will get back tomorrow with my starting weight and info.

Alright Ladies,

We will be doing weekly challenges to help us stay on track to reach our goals. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to msg me or post them here. Also, if we are not yet friends and you would like to be, don't hesitate to send me a request.

I will post our challenges every Sunday to start on Monday. Until then, let's stay active.

Hi Lori, When I first started trying to lose weight again, I had no energy to do anything. I decided to take a week to just focus on eating healthier foods with less processed foods/snacks. I didn't count calories during that week; I just focused on feeding my body with good nutrition and also on getting better sleep. That really helped me to kickstart the process. Of course, while doing that, I started losing some water weight. I ended up feeling better and losing a few pounds at the same time. It sounds like you have done a great job of laying out the areas that you want to address. It's "one step at the time" and this is your time to take those steps. So glad you are joining us on this journey.

Hi, Team!
Hope you all are well!
Doing okay here. We are getting ready to move next week, and for some reason I am all emotional. (Not like me, and I don't like it!) It's in the same town and we will have more living space, so hopefully it will be a good thing. It's a blessing because we have needed more room for a long time!

I doubt I will have a weight loss to record this week, I sheepishly admit.
I'd like to contribute it to the allergies/pain and my emotions, but I don't think that's it. I seem to be struggling daily with what I am eating, and it's getting me quite discouraged. I'm in that place right now where I feel like I will never get to my goal weight or even close. (I am sorry to post this, especially in the first week of the new challenge. I don't want to bring anyone down.) Usually I stay hopeful and motivated, but this week has been .

I'm doing a 30-day study called Taste for Truth, so I will hang in there and keep doing that. And each day I will try again. But I hope I get encouraged and motivated soon. It seems like anything that may have worked for me in the past works no longer and I feel like I have tried everything. My belief is that almost any plan or program will succeed, if one does the work. That's where I am having issues. I guess what I need to see is some real progress.
Prayers and advice appreciated.

In the new house I will thankfully (!) have a room solely dedicated to my exercise equipment. Yay! I am really looking forward to having the space to go work out, and I hope I see some progress. I don't want to wait until all of that is ready, though, so I'm going to keep trying!

Have a good weekend!! Getting ready for week two!

Week 2 Weekly Challenges...


***Keep in mind that these challenges are voluntary and not mandatory. Feel free to join us for some of them or all of them if you like.


Mon 9th:
Fitness: 50 Squats, 40 Jumping Jacks, 30 Kickbacks, 20 Calf Raises
Nutrition: Drink at least 64 oz of WATER

Tues 10th:
Fitness: 20 Bicep Curls, 20 Tricep Ext, 20 Shoulder Presses
Nutrition: Eat 3 servings of fruit and 2 servings of veges.

Wed 11th:
Fitness: 20 Pushups (reg or modified), 30 secs of Planks (3 sets of ea)
Nutrition: Try a protein shake today!!

Thur 12th:
Fitness: Go for a nice walk or run and post results
Nutrition: Try a vegetable and/or fruit you normally wouldn't eat

Fri 14th:
Fitness: Use a treadmill or exercise machine of your choice
Nutrition: Post a recipe of a healthy soup

Sat 15th:
Fitness: Work out to any exercise DVD you have access to (May use Youtube)
Nutrition: Make your favorite salad today!!...and post recipe if you like.

Sun 15th:
Fitness: Rest!! Rest!! Rest!!
Nutrition: NO CAFFEINE!!!


Don't forget to post daily your accomplishments.

I'm sorry to report a .4 gain...but thankful it wasn't more. Here's hoping for a much better number next week. I will work hard with you in mind, Team!

I love the weekly challenge!!
Great setup. I really like that each day is something different, and that Sunday is for rest. My favorite part is that you incorporated both fitness and nutrition. The things I most wanted to groan about are Wednesday's push-ups and planks (just because, even though I love exercise, I'm a baby about getting down on the floor )...but then I thought, "just try it anyway!" That's why it's called a challenge, right? Imagine how good we will feel if we try the things we don't want to or think we can't do, and then realize we did them!
Excited to get started!

Thank you, Bridget and Amy for all of your work!

I started at 209 was down to 207.6 yesterday and down to 206 today. I know it's probably water weight but I'll take it. I'm hoping to maintain that loss and add to it for the next weigh-in.

Kris, you are so very welcome hun.

Lori, that's great. Keep up the good work.

Julia, that's a great idea your son had. It definitely helps. I'm sure you will get that .6 of for next week's weigh in. Half the battle is knowing what you did wrong and knowing how to correct it.

Sorry, I am late with this, I posted on the wrong team .

Name: Macha, please call me Shay.

Short term goals: To lose 15lbs by the end of this challenge and to see a one as the first number of weight again.

Long term goals: To be down 30lbs and toned by Sept 27th my birthday. I will be 50 sigh and I am struggling with that number. So I want to 50, fit, and fabulous. I pray I can make it happen .

My biggest Struggles: I struggle with sugar. I love sugar. It is better than it has been in the past, but I want to work to make even better. My eating during the week is pretty good, but I do go a little overboard on the weekends.

And staying motivated and focused, I sometimes just get tired of the weight loss rat race. But I know I can't quit.

I just joined a gym for 3mos and plan to make the most of it an try different things. So, far I tried a spin class (Mon) and Zumba (Fri). I plan to try to get in a yoga class an aerobics next week.

I totally missed the 1st week challenge, but I will do week 2 challenge starting today.

Monday Challenge
Only did 20 squats (ouch & not all at the same time!)
But I did do 40 Jumping Jacks, 30 kickbacks, 20 calf raises and 64 ounces of water.
Also did gardening for an hour.
...and I totally feel how out of shape I am. Those were great exercises. I will be doing more of them.

Welcome, Shay!! My birthday is in September, too. Let's work together to be satisfied and proud of our progress by then!

Thank you, Marcella. I will try that.

Great work, Lori!

Bridget, I'm with you. Didn't get all of my water in.

Mon 9th:
Fitness: 50 Squats, 40 Jumping Jacks, 30 Kickbacks, 20 Calf Raises - DONE
Nutrition: Drink at least 64 oz of WATER - Close, but no cigar!

Loved the exercises for yesterday. On to today's! Have a great day, Team.