madifehling Member

Great! So glad you have joined us PinkNinjaLaura - for the Holiday Challenge AND for the race! Excited to get started on Monday :smiley:

You can do it missjoany!! We are here to help and support you along the way! :smile:

YES!!! Tipany let's rock this challenge!!! Congratulations on your weight loss-- we are here to support you through the (very) difficult Holiday season to keep you on track. Please let us know if we can help with the food aspect in any way, hopefully the daily tips and newsletters are helpful for new ways to plan ahead and…

Perfect suggestion! Sometimes depriving ourselves of something we love makes us want it even more and think about it even more. Using this idea of just one small piece on a certain day, planning ahead of time and not just eating it spontaneously can help with that!

Haha! Oh no rbarber7! That is too funny. Since then have you been able to try and new strategies to go to sleep a little earlier?

You can do it! Did you try any new strategies? We would love to hear your progress and how it's going!

That's great!! What have you been doing to help yourself get a little more sleep? Everyone is different, and 7 hours might be the perfect amount for you. :smile:

Great discussion starter, Bonnie, thank you for sharing! It's always helpful to hear how others manage their sleep and for tips and tricks to try. We are all wired a little differently but typically the 7.5 hours seems to be the ticket. What do you think?

WOW!!!!! That is incredible, look at you go!! Meal planning is huge as it is so helpful throughout the week and saves time, money.... and calories. And it's great to hear you have your family and kids supporting you, you are very fortunate! Love the sugar purge- especially this time of year it seems we keep accumulating…

YES! We love the Nike Training Club app, it is so helpful and easy to use. Thank you for sharing this great resource!

I feel the same way-- and that is a hard habit to break! I found chewing a piece of sugar free gum after a meal helps with this craving. You can do it!

What a fabulous idea, Gloria! Thank you for sharing, I think I will have to use that idea myself. And this year will be a different year than the rest- we are here supporting your weight maintenance and we know you can do it! :) Keep up the great work!

Diana-- I am RIGHT there with you, don't even get me started on chocolate! It's so hard to resist. So let myself have one piece of a super dark chocolate after dinner and that usually satisfies the craving for me. If I find I am going back for more, it usually means I am not full enough and I need to have a more…

YES you can Jcarleson15! YOU got this and we are here supporting you along the way-- throughout the year! :smiley:

Way to go Epach01! What a fantastic idea, thank you for sharing. There will be no sad sacks in this group for this year since we are all here together--and ready to take on whatever the holidays... and the holiday parties.. will bring! :smiley:

LOVE this! Yes-- we are all right there with you and know all to well that the struggle is REAL and it is approaching quickly as Thanksgiving comes around the corner. We got this!

WOOOOO!! Way to go Terri! We are just as excited as you-- and look at this team of supportive people who have already chimed in. Keep up the great work and thanks for starting this thread!

That is wonderful, Pammie8819! What a great idea to have a walk (especially a mile!) over the lunch break. And that you have someone to support you and hold you accountable is a huge plus! Let us know how it goes and other strategies you incorporate as well. We love the idea of veggies for a snack- carrots and hummus is an…

Way to go! That's a great way to be flexible and plan ahead. Even trying different types of exercises- like yoga-- very impressive! Keep us updated with how this week goes for you and any tips for others! :smiley:

Thank you for this post, Xena! Staying active with a desk job can be difficult. I really like Michelle's reply with two key points; tracking everything and fitting in extra steps/taking breaks. Tracking all of our food and physical activity is an evidence based strategy and is so vital to weight loss or weight maintenance.…

YES evinston! Sleep is so important, and often something that is pushed aside. That is an excellent point, and sleep has a direct effect on our weight. You might find this webinar we recorded on Sleep very insightful-- you can find it here (toward the bottom of the page): https://esmmweighless.com/newsletter-webinars/

Way to go Xena871! Maintaining our weight is the goal of the Holiday Challenge and you are on the right track! It can be hard and discouraging to lose weight during this season of the year, so that is why we recommend just focusing on maintaining your weight until the New Year. That deserves to be celebrated! Celebrate and…

That is so true, Luckey88, that Christmas Day is almost here and gift giving is speeding up. It's hard to avoid the unhealthy gifts, especially when we don't want to hurt the giftgiver's feelings. We recommend letting your friends, family, and coworkers know now that you are trying to be mindful of what you are eating and…

Way to go Luckey88! Those are great strategies to increase your steps, and a great goal to reach 10,000 each day! It's amazing how all those steps add up-- and the benefits they bring! : )

Love those extra steps Evinston!! Doing a few laps around the house, around the office, in the stores, around the parking lot- they all add up! We too like to do a lap before we start our shopping, especially when the weather is bad the mall is the perfect "gym" ;-)

And that is the goal!!! Way to go ylyde!! Very impressive that you were able to stick to your physical activity routine and do a 5k- how fun! Keep up the great work and keep us updated with your progress! :smile:

Way to go Michelledunn! That's the key, to not deprive ourselves of the things we love but to enjoy each bite by taking smaller portions. Great job filing up your plate with veggies and lean protein- very impressive when I'm sure there were other tempting items. Keep up the GREAT work!

WOW!! Congratulations Huntersmom that is incredible!! You and you husband have a great motivation to keep each other on track and accountable, and it is wonderful you are doing it together! What strategies have you found helpful so far? Keep up the great work! :)

Thank you for sharing ukwildcat and for being honest! I think sometimes these groups make it hard to share struggles and easy to share successes. Does NOT mean people aren't in the same boat as you-- we ALL go through ups and downs and face different obstacles. It's hard to travel and continue your healthy patterns, and…

YES!! You did make it, way to go Lucky88! Great strategies to set yourself up for success- using smaller plates, drinking lots of water, and not being tempted by desserts. Very smart!