ABOUT THE CHALLENGES & REQUIRED WEIGHT POSTINGS

We are also going to be running (Optional) Mini-challenges again this month: Question of the Week (assuming we can remember to do that) and Daily Posts

First and foremost is that participation in these challenges is optional. It's up to you as to whether you want to try this. If you don't want to participate in these challenges, you don't have to, the choice is yours, but we would like to encourage you to participate as it seems to help keep us on track and thinking about our goals on a daily basis and it's encouraging to see other's successes and struggles so that we realize that we are not alone!!

The Daily Posts Challenge is based on another challenge on MFP called UAC (Ultimate Accountability Challenge). The way UAC works is that the aim is to follow 5 basic rules.

#1. Track EVERYTHING you eat that has calories.
#2. Stay inside your allocated daily budget.
#3. Try to do at least 20 minutes of activity a day (anything: walk, run, cycle, swim, gardening, housework, yoga, gym, etc.. As long as it gets you active and off the couch)
#4. 1 pass day permitted per week (went over calories, could not track, not enough exercise, intentional pass)
#5. Check in daily (tracking yes/no, calories yes/no, exercise yes/no).

****End of the week. those who have managed to keep to plan for 6 out of 7 days are recognized in the thread as being part of the weekly "Winners Circle".

A side note as there has been a bit of confusion for new members in the past, this is not the same as the official results, which are weight based, this is just another tool to help you reach your weight loss goals.

**REMEMBER**
You set your own daily budget.
You choose you own exercise and intensity (no step limit, no exercises you cannot or should not do, 20 mins of gardening counts as much as a 10 mile run, activity is activity, anything that gets you up and moving!).
Is not weight based (as weight fluctuates day by day).
Can continue beyond weight loss.

Daily check in keeps you in touch with those doing similar. Longer term weight management is hard to do on your own.

It also has frequent resets (as in a circle each week).

It works on an honor system. Being honest with yourself and others is a key to making things work. Remember, this is a judgement free zone, everyone has good days and bad days, but the way to get to the finish line is by being honest and when we have a bad day, picking ourselves up and carrying on the next day!

Consistency and new habits have been shown the only long term successful way to change weight. We all want the progress made here to last a lifetime.

Your posts should look like this:
Daily Post (Sunday/Date)

Track: Yes/no
Calories: Yes/no (were you under)
Exercise: Yes/no (what type and how long)
Goals/Day/Comments: (Tell us a brief description about your how your day went or your goals for the day)

The Question of the Week Challenge is a fun participation booster and we will be using it sometimes just as fun and sometimes it can help to foster new ideas for others as we all are different and have different experiences so sharing ideas can help someone else with motivation of freshening up their routine even!! Keep on the lookout for these questions.

Please post your weight on your scheduled weigh in day, as if you miss weigh-ins, you may be eliminated from the challenge and we don't want to see that happen!!

Your posts should look like this:
Username:
Week: July Week 1
PW =(previous weight)
CW=(current weight)


Please, please setup your posts in that format as it really makes it much easier for us to track your progress for the challenges and the weight loss!!

We'd like to help you be as successful as possible and if we can help in any way, please let us know. Also, if you have any suggestions for the team or fun ideas to spice things up a bit, please feel free to share them, we look for new ways to help engagement and keep people motivated!!

We are committed to this group and to help where we can, and please let us know if we can help in any way!!

Once again Welcome to July Challenge!🤼‍♀️🏋️‍♀️

Your Captain Ashley (@AB0215) &
Co-captain Gloria (@Gjaholy33)

Hello! My name is Corinne. I'm a college student, currently on break for the summer, and I would like to go back to school 30 lbs lighter than when I left. I'm already 10 lbs down from the end of May, and I'm hoping to lose 10 more in July. To do this, I plan on restricting my calories while exercising to create a large deficit. I also do intermittent fasting on an 18/6 schedule, which I have been greatly enjoying lately. Having a small eating window helps me prevent snacking and keep my calories within range.

I have also been overweight for most of my life (I was born in the 99th percentile for weight, and never seemed to grow out of it!) and I want to enjoy the rest of my life at a healthy weight.

I have a cruise at the beginning of August with my family, and I want to feel a little bit more comfortable in my skin so that I can enjoy myself instead of living with crippling insecurity.

I'm fiercely competitive, and I look forward to working with y'all this month!

Intrinsicat wrote: »

Right now I’ve got six weeks before a cruise celebrating my fiancées’ mother’s 80th bday. I’m hoping to drop the the ten pounds that’ll get me into my cruise clothing. Beyond that I’d love to drop another ten for Halloween

Wow! I also have my next cruise coming up! We are sailing a Halloween cruise this time...so looking forward to it!

Hi everyone! I'm Gina and I'm 41 years old. I too have been overweight (to varying degrees) most of my life. I was probably in the best shape of my adult life about 7 years ago before I got pregnant with my first child. I gained a lot during that pregnancy, lost some of it (I probably kept 25-35 lbs), got pregnant again, gained more weight and then have just stubbornly held on to it! I would say I probably have about 50 lbs to lose. I feel like I've done almost every diet that exists, and, honestly, I'm just sick of it! I'm looking for a long-term solution this time. So the weight is coming off more slowly, but hopefully I can keep it off. I focus mostly on eating whole foods, but do have my splurges here and there. I aim to work out 3-4 times a week on average. I work full time and have 2 little kids - so flexibility is key for me. I want to be able to enjoy their birthdays without guilt, have a bite of their pizza when they offer (and not have to say, "sorry, momma is on a diet"), not feel bad about missing a work out because I had to run and pick them up (it happened 2 days ago!) and just generally be a good example to them and hopefully raise them without the weight-issues I've always had.

July will be my 3rd month with The Slimsons. It's really helped me - checking in daily, getting encouragement when I need it and (hopefully) being able to encourage others. For whatever reason, in the last half of June things finally started to "click" for me - I'm finding it easier to stay in my daily calorie allotment, I'm drinking my water and the scale is moving in the right direction! My goals for July include to continue to average 3-4 workouts per week, drink 100+ oz of water 6 of 7 days per week, be more consistent about tracking on the weekends and lose AT LEAST 6 lbs. That will put me back in Onederland! I can't wait to see what July holds for us!

Hi, I'm Cindy and I started MFP on October 8th last year. I joined this group last November. I'm 56 years old and I'm 5'2". When I started I weighed 273 lbs and I was miserable. I could barely walk from place to place without getting out of breath. I huffed and puffed just getting out of my car and walking to my office. I could barely fit in the booths at restaurants. My plan has involved cutting my calories down to 1350 calories a day (I'm trying to lower that to 1300 calories a day now) and walking. I started out thinking that it was absolutely crazy to think that I could walk 10,000 steps in one single day. Now, I average 10,000 steps a day and my record is 15,000 steps in a day. I wish I was a workout warrior like some of the awesome people around here...but I'm lazy so I just walk. I try to keep my carbs under 100 grams a day and protein over 100 per day. I also try to limit my sugar to 25 grams a day plus keep the fiber over 25 grams. Those are the only macros that I really watch. Just doing that has taken me from a size 26 to size 16 pants (size XXXL shirt to XL shirt).

Right now my weight is hovering between 195 and 197 so I still have over 60 lbs to lose, but I feel soooooo much better now. My main goals for July include losing 5 lbs and increasing my water intake. June has been a slow weight loss month so I plan for July to be much better.

galeroke wrote: »

Hi I'm Lesley and this is my first week on MFP. I have ~ 90lbs to lose. After the birth of my second son I lost 52lbs doing WW but I have regained that plus ~40lbs (he'll be 5 in September). I work full-time as a physiotherapist and its now time to practice what I preach and be a role model not just at work but for my family! But most of all, I need to do this for ME

Calorie deficit is going to be my approach and my weight loss goal for July is to get into the next stone bracket (10lbs off from where I am now) and my activity goal is to get the gym 3 times weekly.

Good luck fellow team Slimsons - we've got this!

welcome

Hello all- My name is Heather. I am a mother of 4.
I got close to goal weight when I got pregnant with #2 and the other 2 just followed lol. I need to be a better role model for my girls.
Sw 221.2
Cw 210.4
Gw 145

This months goal would like to get below 200.
And bump up exercise.

So ready for this!
I am also going to take my blood pressure. When I go to the doctor, my blood pressure is high. I am not on any medications and I would like to keep it like that. I bought a blood pressure machine and today my blood pressure is 124/69

July goals
1) Track ( I am not good at this. I begin the day okay but then forget. I need to track as soon as I eat.)
2) Steps ( I am a walker. I would like to get at least 100,000 steps a week. This will allow me some fluctuations on a day by day. I know that I need to get this in to be able to lose the weight.)
3)Strength (I have let this fall to the wayside. I will do one strength exercise a day it might be one repetition but I will be establishing a habit.
4) Diet I will have one salad a day and one fruit a day.

Thanks so much for this challenge. On to a healthier person!

Hello! I’m Annie and have just joined ! I need to be more careful tracking my food and cut out the late night munchies!
Username : MagnificentPanda
Weigh in week : July Week 1
Weigh in day : Monday
Previous week’s weight : 159 lbs
Today’s weight : 157.5