Very excited to see what we can accomplish as a community! Heading out for a walk with the dog to complete some cardio for today. Let's do this, SYSK peeps! BTW, any Denver folks, hit me up and maybe we can do some group hikes or other fun stuff!

Jane in Denver

Great timing, Chuckers! I just started using this app a week ago in my first effort to lose weight since I had my kiddos (youngest is 4, so baby weight doesn't really hold as an excuse).

It will be so awesome to have the SYSK Army holding me accountable for this. Thanks! Looking forward to getting to know everyone.

Very excited to be a part of this group and learning and sharing as I lose.

"Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy." ~ Norman Vincent Peale ~

Even if you stumble do not lose faith that you can accomplish your goals. Refocus, recommit, remember! Refocus on your goals, maybe they need a little adjusting but goals are what move us forward by giving us purpose. Recommit to your plan and actions. Remember why you are doing what you are doing, what end purpose are you trying to achieve and how will it benefit you.

#youcandothis #refocusrecommitremember #goalsgiveuspurpose

Have an awesome Thursday!!

Hi. MyFitnessPal has an awesome food database -- huge! However, I haven't been using it lately, and my weight is beginning to rise again.

My heaviest was 255 pounds in November 2012. I had a rocky downward trend all the way to 223 pounds in August 2013. Then back up to 245 pounds rather fast by December 2013. That's when I discovered fitbit and MyFitnesPal. The weight just fell off. I reached 168 pounds by June 2014 (77 pounds in 6 months). It's easier than ever before tracking the calories going in and out. It took me about a week to find the foods and become adjusted to the amounts that I could eat, until I reached my goal weight. It became easier as time went on. Awareness helped me.

I lost the same weight I'm looking to lose now back when I was around 18-19. There are no shortcuts, which for some might sound scary or disappointing, but it's not. Be happy. It's very, very simple. Keep sugar to a minimum, decrease portion control, eat slower, and do some exercise.

Tips for food? Stick to food with low calories but lots of protein and fiber. They'll help you stay fuller for longer. One of my favorite things lately is Siggi's skyr. It's like a Greek yogurt, but somehow even better. It's only 120 calories, but with all of the fat and protein, it feels like it's a lot more. Start your day with eggs. I like mine over medium with some Arnold's Health Nut bread. The fiber and the protein in the bread with all the protein from the eggs keeps me full for hours.

Grocery shopping? Don't get bad food. It doesn't matter if it's for sale, it doesn't matter if you'll have one of the snack cakes "every once in awhile". Don't. You won't be able to handle the temptation. What I've learned to do is to tell myself that I'll get it next time I'm in. I never do, of course, but it keeps me from feeling trapped. If I sat there with a pack of oatmeal pies in my hand, telling myself I'll never have one again, I'm going to break. I just say, "Yeah, maybe another time."

Exercise? Make it a habit. Do it the same time everyday, and don't force it. Just say, "I'm gonna go for a quick walk". Then once you've started, keep pushing. Keep setting goals for yourself, and if you feel up to it, keep going. "I'll go for another half a mile", or, "maybe another 10 minutes". DO NOT over do it. You will be sweaty, miserable, and very hungry. Since you burned all those calories, you may feel like you deserve a treat. DON'T DO IT. Have a banana and some peanut butter, maybe some yogurt, or maybe you just think you're hungry and you actually need something to drink.

Drink LOTS of water. If you like soda and juice, try seltzer. My personal favorite is a brand called Spindrift, which I found at Target. Instead of plain seltzer with flavoring, it's seltzer with real crushed fruit. It's only about 5-15 calories a can, and only a few grams of sugar. It's tasty, refreshing, and it's made with real ingredients.

I hope some of this helps.

I lost 20 pounds at a nice slow pace last year and then got a little careless about tracking food and exercise. I'm joining this group for a couple of reasons. One reason is that I think it will help me remember to use the app more frequently.

Hi Everyone! Chuck, this is great! MyFitnessPal is an awesome tool to keep you on track. I'm a personal trainer and I use this often - yes, even trainers need to stay on track! I'm happy to help with exercises and proper form. I'm NOT a nutritionist, but I'll say that I don't believe in any fad diet. I'm a believer of simple math: calories in vs calories out and this app is the best for keeping track. Keep in mind that there are other aspects to losing weight though like individual metabolism, so X calories per day for one person my work but not for another.

A few years ago, I went through a tough period after my brother passed away and gained 17 lbs (the Germans have a word for this: Kummerspeck = grief bacon ) This is when I first started using MFP. I found that I did best weighing myself everyday. MFP has a graph for your weight entries and being able to see the daily up and down changes I think is important. If you weigh in once a week, you might be seeing one of the natural up days and that can be discouraging. But overall, find what works for you and try to stick with it!

Good Luck!