Welcome to the challenge's second week of April! I hope it's going well so far - Mondays are typically quite busy for me, and today is no different.

Here's what's going on with me:

I received the first dose of the Covid vaccine yesterday. My arm is sore, my head aches, my sinuses are congested, and I've got some dizziness and light sensitivity, which just about covers the flu-like symptoms to be expected from the vaccine. As for any MS symptoms, there's been some strange nerve spasms traveling up my leg, but it's not as debilitating as the numbness I felt on the entire left side of my body when I had my Covid case, so I'll take it. It's been a challenge to remain focused on meetings, but there's nothing that way too many cups of coffee can't solve, right?

I did double spin classes on both Saturday and Sunday, which explains the soreness in my core right now. Probably a good thing I timed my vaccine with a much-needed rest day. I haven't scheduled my spin class for tomorrow morning yet, but I still have my alarm set, so I can sign up as soon as I wake up if I'm feeling up to the challenge. I'm trying to do my best to both push myself AND listen to my body - easier said than done.




This week, our seven steppers walked a total of 476,141 steps, which is an average of 68,020 steps per person over the course of the week, just shy of the oft-quoted 10k/day.

Our Top Stepper this Week:

It was a close one this week! Debbie walked a total of 108,511 steps this week, averaging 15,502 steps per day (whoa). One of our other powerful walkers was not too far behind her...

Ann came in quite close to Debbie's steps this week, reaching a total of 102,500 steps over the course of the week, which is 14,643 steps per day on average. Considering how much of a competitor Debbie has been with our step challenge, coming anywhere near her, let alone being less than 1000 steps short per day, is an incredible accomplishment.

Ann is also our most consistent stepper this week, deviating from her average daily steps by less than 2000 each day. I am endlessly impressed by the consistency here. Normally, if I go for a long walk one day, I feel like there's no reason to do so the next.

Our Walking Team:

All of our super steppers have been racking up a considerable amount of steps, an almost daunting number of steps. All of you are consistently keeping track of your steps and contributing to your overall wellbeing, and that's something to look up to. Thanks for being a good influence for the rest of us!

minstrelofsarcasm wrote: »

~~ April Week Two ~~

Welcome to the challenge's second week of April! I hope it's going well so far - Mondays are typically quite busy for me, and today is no different.

Here's what's going on with me:

I received the first dose of the Covid vaccine yesterday. My arm is sore, my head aches, my sinuses are congested, and I've got some dizziness and light sensitivity, which just about covers the flu-like symptoms to be expected from the vaccine. As for any MS symptoms, there's been some strange nerve spasms traveling up my leg, but it's not as debilitating as the numbness I felt on the entire left side of my body when I had my Covid case, so I'll take it. It's been a challenge to remain focused on meetings, but there's nothing that way too many cups of coffee can't solve, right?

I did double spin classes on both Saturday and Sunday, which explains the soreness in my core right now. Probably a good thing I timed my vaccine with a much-needed rest day. I haven't scheduled my spin class for tomorrow morning yet, but I still have my alarm set, so I can sign up as soon as I wake up if I'm feeling up to the challenge. I'm trying to do my best to both push myself AND listen to my body - easier said than done.

~ Walking Warriors ~

This week, our seven steppers walked a total of 476,141 steps, which is an average of 68,020 steps per person over the course of the week, just shy of the oft-quoted 10k/day.

Our Top Stepper this Week:

@debbiewsharpe !!!

It was a close one this week! Debbie walked a total of 108,511 steps this week, averaging 15,502 steps per day (whoa). One of our other powerful walkers was not too far behind her...

@annliz23 !!

Ann came in quite close to Debbie's steps this week, reaching a total of 102,500 steps over the course of the week, which is 14,643 steps per day on average. Considering how much of a competitor Debbie has been with our step challenge, coming anywhere near her, let alone being less than 1000 steps short per day, is an incredible accomplishment.

Ann is also our most consistent stepper this week, deviating from her average daily steps by less than 2000 each day. I am endlessly impressed by the consistency here. Normally, if I go for a long walk one day, I feel like there's no reason to do so the next.

Our Walking Team:

@brown6267
@lennoncpa
@BlueSkyNomad
@dbrinkmeyer
@ljdanny

All of our super steppers have been racking up a considerable amount of steps, an almost daunting number of steps. All of you are consistently keeping track of your steps and contributing to your overall wellbeing, and that's something to look up to. Thanks for being a good influence for the rest of us!

Thanks for the support!

I have been somewhat absent lately. And I have been slipping. I never do well around holidays. But I’m back. I feel like I’ve gained a few pounds even though the scales fluctuate quite a bit day to day for me, I have consistently been higher. So I did well yesterday and I’m back with more determination. No more slips they just lead to more slips. Or binging a bag of Reese’s eggs. I went to the gym yesterday to strength train and I ran on the treadmill after work. And I stayed at 1230 calories, no extra evening snacks! I’m going to stay focused and I’d like to get to goal. I am still slowly weaning myself from the patch and when I step down or change brands I eat more. 🤷‍♀️ I consciously know that but it’s better than smoking. I’m also growing tired of the same foods but as much as I would like to experiment sometimes I feel like, I have an hour to Cook eat and clean up the mess so this will do. I will try to show up more and be supportive.
Welcome to all the new members!! It’s exciting to see new usernames here. This is a great place to be accountable. And it’s also a great place for advice and guidance. To all of you who don’t know me: I started in this group in September of 20. I lost 45 lbs before starting here and 45 lbs while here. I plateaud and have gained 2-5 of that back. I quit smoking shortly after my plateau. I’m close to my original goal. I’ll see how I feel when I get there. For me it’s not a magical number but how I feel. And lately I feel pretty good. 😁

@minstrelofsarcasm and @melaniedscott I am going to leave team WNM for now. Thank you for all you do

Username vvlucky
Weigh In Day: Wednesday
Week 2
PW (Previous Weight):195
CW (Current Weight):193

My weight has been all over the place this week, am I able to weigh in on Saturday just for this week?

I'm 97% positive that this is bloat/water retention from doing three workouts and eating a giant slice of carrot cake with very rich cream cheese frosting on the same day. My eating hasn't been the best, but I highly doubt this gain is legitimate, especially since I saw my scale hit the 160's again earlier this week. So, I'll check in again tomorrow if the bloat has dropped just to show how much my weight has been fluctuating. (And I'll be absolutely silent if it hasn't disappeared yet - and maybe reconsider my entire life, but that's only a maybe)

Food:

As I mentioned, I had a huge piece of carrot cake earlier this week. This was leftover from a birthday dinner I attended on Saturday night, which consisted of a beef wellington, a pesto pasta dish I contributed, a cured meats/cheese/dried fruits plate I brought, and the carrot cake of which I ended up bringing a piece home after devouring my first piece there. So, I overate, but I also attended two spin classes each on both Saturday and Sunday to compensate. The loss of appetite I experienced with the Covid vaccine aftershock may have also helped, because a dinner of a handful of crackers and some cucumber won't be causing any weight gain.

Some days were good, some days not so much. And that's okay. That's life. If I were to eat the same way every single day, I feel like I'd get bored and end up bingeing to an extent currently out of my comprehension.

Exercise:

Since my last weigh in, I've completed seven spin classes, four resistance training classes, and had one cryotherapy session for recovery. Between now and my next weigh in, my current schedule consists of:

• five resistance training classes
• five spin classes

Clearly, this is subject to change. Peer pressure could lead to doubling up in unplanned ways. As long as my body is up for a challenge, I suppose there isn't much to stop me from pushing myself a little bit.

Mindset:

Having my first Covid vaccine injection relieved a lot of bottled anxiety. I could feel how much weight had been lifted off my mind, and my mood has been generally better for the past few days, even when dealing with the side effects from the shot itself.

I'm not the happiest with my weight, but I keep noticing areas where I've developed more muscle, so I suppose I'm still technically in a state of recomposition rather than deficit. It's hard to wrap my mind around the idea that I'm in an okay place, so I have to remind myself regularly of the logistics of weight loss and pay closer attention to the numbers that actually matter rather than the one I see on the scale by itself. There's a big picture here, and there's no point in ignoring the forest for the trees.

@1theresamcvean I am sorry for your loss

@1theresamcvean - Sending lots of love and support to you and your family during this hard time. Let us know if there is anything we can do for you