I am officially wearing FitBit! Got it last night, and got to track my sleeping. So far this morning it's tracked my walking, that I went up 1 flight of stairs, how many miles I've walked, and how many calories I've burned.

For those of you who have one, there is a discussion thread for it that also has a FAQ. It just started so people are still getting comfortable with theirs, but check it out for the FAQ.

And it's so petite! About the size of a USB jump drive.

hi all!
i'm doing good for now, it's first challenge so i gotta be good
my weight is still the same -.- for a month now... going loco!

hi all!
i'm doing good for now, it's first challenge so i gotta be good
my weight is still the same -.- for a month now... going loco!

Same here! weight is the same for a month! Ahhhhhh!

Ooh Couch to five k is great, challenging for non-runners (like me!!) but great. Stick with it!

Hello Everyone

Weezieishness - So sorry to hear about your grandfather

I just wanted to say this starvation mode thing has been confusing me. I not a hundred percent sure that is a problem for me but I read a blog last night that opened my eyes a bit. To preface my scale has refused to move all week this week when I am used to seeing a pound every 3-4 days. I thought it was odd and blamed it on the end of the water weight, a decrease in fiber, a gain in muscle, and any number of other theories. I've been doing cardio all week rather than my usual 2-3 days and according to the MFP tracker I was leaving a 1000+ calorie deficit on a daily basis. I was under the impression I was really getting it done and the scale not moving has been really frustrating me. I've heard some of you say we should eat back the calories we burn but I have never really done it. Last night I had an epiphany after reading this blog http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/447397-my-plateau-nutrition-story-learn-from-my-mistakes?error_user_id=15117906&error_username=jazzgnat I hope you can follow the link there if not its entitled "My Plateau, Nutrition Story, Learn from my Mistakes." Basically it explains how to calculate your needed calorie intake based on your activity level similar to what MFP does and what starvation mode is and how it effects so many people. The thing is when I signed up here I was a total couch potato but now I am working out 5 days a week so my activity level has dramatically changed thus changing what my body needs. If the math for calculating this is hurting your head you can use this site: http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm and just punch in your numbers. I guess the moral of the story is you do need to increase your food with your activity level. I'm going to see where it leads me and report back to you guys.

Weezieishness- so sorry to hear about your grandfather.

WhatsEatingYou- challenges are: food: at least three servings of fruit and veg every day, exercise: strength training, ten mins per day...

And now for house business...

Well done to this week's prefects.... Cherubcrnp aaand, Missklara! Well done you two, please can you send me an exercise challenge for next week Cherubcrnp, and a food challenge from Missklara please. If I get them by Saturday I can post them for everyone else to start next week.

Weezieishness - Ouch, sorry for your tough week and certainly sorry for your loss. Also, I hope you find out what caused the lightheadedness soon. I know there are a dozen things it could have been, but I've had a couple girls on my team very recently describe the same thing and it turned out they had a stomach virus of some sort that was made worse by dehydration. If nothing else, drink lots of water.

Jazzgnat - Thanks for the links and the info. Definitely keep us posted on how well it works for you and if it helps you break your plateau. Also, I'm sure you already know, but it may just be that your weight is starting to come off at a more regular rate now. 2+ pounds per week or more is typically a good starting rate, but once you lose a lot of the initial weight and/or get closer to your goal, it doesn't always come off so quickly. Even if it's not coming off as fast lately, like you mentioned, you're probably still heading the right direction by building more muscle and getting your body into healthier shape.
--

Congrats to the house prefects, cherubcrnp and missklara! Awesome job with the challenges both of you! I'm impressed.

And to go along with that, congrats again to cherubcrnp for being our Quidditch All-Star this week with a weight loss percentage of 1.72%! Oh, and a little birdie told me she hit a particularly special milestone, too, but I'll her share that with the group. Either way, CONGRATS!

Hello, Everyone

The scale went up this morning by 3 lbs over night. I decided to take some measurements so I can track them from now on. I've also decided after this weeks weigh in I'm locking the scale in the closet for the week. The stupid thing is stressing me out. I've worked out everyday this week with a 45min cardio video and 2 days of couch to 5k week1. I'll do the last couch to 5k day today. I am frustrated.

I *LOVE* my FitBit!

It is soooo cool. Tracks my sleep, steps, flights of stairs, cardio. Both MFP & FP talk to each other, so I don't have to do anything. I have not yet done any actual exercise, so I haven't tried that exercise log feature yet, but it's cool to see how active (or not) I am throughout the day and what my baseline "calories burned" is for the week.

I also love the badges.

Food-wise, I was bad yesterday, but managed to still keep within my limit by keeping control for dinner. Food trucks, in case you don't know, are a BAD IDEA. 800 calories for a freaking sandwich! Tater tots were good though; they were sweet potato.

I am still doing well with the water. Over 9 glasses of water everyday.

Wish I had more time to post, but I'm rushing off to work in a minute.

Jazzgnat, Sue's advice is great. I hope it helps because it really is very true. In fact, every single time I start working out again on a regular basis or up the intensity of what I'm doing, I end up seeing gains initially, but they ultimately even out. And like she said, giving yourself a day of rest in between is always good, too. Good for the body in a couple ways, but it also gives you a better idea of where you might really be if you rest one day, drink your water, and then weigh in the next. Hope it works out for you!

Ashley, sorry to hear you're still having trouble as well. I'm not sure what your food habits are or anything like that, so I don't have any particular advice (not that I'm an expert really), but don't give up! Keep looking at what you're doing to get healthy and maybe take some measurements instead so that you can see physical progress.

is really trying to NOT emotionally eat tonight . . . not completely successsfule but not a total disaster either

Happy Saturday, Ravenclaws!

I had a horrible week in terms of actual exercise, and I have to admit that I ate either birthday cake or a cupcake on four separate days this week, so I kept expecting the scale to go the other direction. Now I did also stay in calories aside from the weekend, but still.

To my very joyous surprise, I ended up with a loss this week! I almost feel bad about it because aside from staying in calories and just randomly jogging about my day at home (literally, I've started jogging in place while doing just about everything, lol), I didn't really do as much to earn it. It's been down to the same weight for two days, though, so I'm going to count it as a birthday present. It was awesome to move two gem stones to my 'pounds lost' jar this morning.

Hope you all did as well! I know it's a lot, lot harder when you're doing all the right things and not seeing the results, but I'm sure they're there! If it's not a scale number, it'll be a measurement, or maybe your body is just getting stronger/healthier, but I'm sure it's there.

Hmm, have to go back through my week and find my veggie-servings. What day are the challenges posted? I need to get on top of them earlier in the week!

Terrible week with in laws here through Monday, have not gotten down UNDER daily calories yet but am getting closer. Showed a loss by some miracle?? NEED to work excercise in. Decided on a career change and have been putting time into that instead of The Body. Always some give and take in the schedule somewhere..I need that 26 hour days they have on Deep Space Nine.

azuzi....totally have had days like that...yesterday I wanted to do something but not...took a sheet to the park, laid down and read....it was perfect

Hi guys, sorry to post these late in the weekend, am on holiday and couldn't find the internet anywhere... But, the challenges for this week are:
Exercise... Last week it was strength, this week it's cardio... Build some interval training into your cardio. Short bursts of high intensity are far more effective than a long slog...

Food: am keeping it traditional... Sugar!! Keep it down!! If you go over your sugar goal, ensure it's from fruit only, not added sugars to other things.

Happy weekend x