25 pound challenge: Jul-Nov '09

This is a continuation group for the members of "25 pound challenge" which started in Feb and is to end June 30th.  I know many of us need to continue in our goals, and to kick it off I decided to start a new group -- hopefully this will give us extra motivation too!

The woman who started it all "pook" had the following original post, and I wanted to post it here so that we have the same ideas/goals/points.

I hope to see all the members of the old group, and any additional people who would like to join us!

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Original Post (modified with current dates):

I’m looking to start a support and accountability group whose main goal is to lose 25 pounds by the end of November. That’s about 1.5 lbs a week, which I think is very doable. I’m looking for folks who are losing with healthy diet and exercise, any plan is fine, but no “cabbage soup” fad diet nonsense, no pills, etc.  Just healthy lifestyle changes.

Goal: To lose 25 pounds by November 30th.

Motto: Who dares, wins!

Members: Anyone with 25 or more pounds to lose.

Post: Daily if possible. Post goals, daily food and exercise stats, problems, anything related to your weight loss journey. Post tips, articles, stories, anything helpful or motivating. Post recipes and exercise routines too, if you want.

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If you’re in, do an introductory post including: stats, weight loss plan, exercise plan, weight history, etc. and anything else you'd like us to know!!

Here's my introductory post:

SW: 278 (2005)
       220 (2006)

CW: 211

GW: 180-175

Lowest Weight: 197 (Nov. 08)

I'm ekai, 25, 5'11.  I like to exercise and lift weights, but nothing specific because I switch it up a lot.  Anything that makes me move is good!  I need to eat 1200 calories a day in order to lose weight but I need some encouragement because I've not been sticking to it lately...  that's where you guys come in!

Original Post by littlejaybird:

wow the support so far is great!! keep it up

I had a good week last week but this week i'm not doing so well... I've been more tired which makes me want to eat more.. and i'm not making good choices.... what do you guys do when you're getting off track?

The thing that works for me is a reward system. I'm a facebook addict, so my reward has been facebook time. When I fall off track, one trip to the gym earns me so much extra facebook time. Then I'll make it a little tougher with, say, three trips to the gym getting me said facebook time.  If I keep going to the gym, I get my reward.  As soon as I fall off track, I (in theory) lose my reward.

This takes a lot of will power, and it's easy to cheat.  That's why I've also set up big rewards along the way.  Like, when I lose an extra 10 lbs, I'll be able to get a better mp3 player than my paltry, .5 GB travesty.  

roger, don't worry about the one pound gain.  you've done so great.  sometimes you're up a little and then it drops.  i went up a pound and then dropped one and a half the next day.  probably water weight.  keep up the amazing work!

pizzacottontail, i like your simple facebook reward.  i've got long term rewards but something simple like that is a great idea.  and don't think you will lose motivation at the end of august because then you will.  positive outlook!  i am going to be a senior in high school, so summer is also my time to really concentrate on getting to the weight i want because it is rough during the school year, probably more so for you.  and i am a vegetarian as well although not planning on going vegan (can't give up my yogurt and cheese) so if you need meal ideas to bring to school with you or something, i can give you some.  but definitely plan on continuing your weight loss routine into the school year, maybe at a more casual level, but still plan on it.

as for me, this morning i was 109.1 pounds.  and i am just going to remind you i am a little under 5'. so that is 3.6 pounds lost so far!  i am so excited.

keep up the good work everyone!

Hi, all! Hope you had a good day?

PizzaCottontail, by the time school rolls around again, I am sure whatever you have been doing will have become a habit rather than a chore, so keep your chin up and focus on the now...i.e. turning the workouts and eating habits themselves into prizes. I too work well on the reward system btw. It s like a light at the end of a tunnel.

LoFudge13, good luck finding your running program, I had to try out a few and crash and burn before I figured out what fit me well. Its worths it though, I love running now. Also, congrats on loosing! I am a shorty, too (at 5' 4") and I've struggled with starvation mode before now. It came from when I used to eat 1,000-1,200 calories a day from the ages of 12-16.

That's how I gained all of my weight in the first place; I started eating normally somewhere around 16 and I ballooned up! I'm trying not to let that happen again. I get kind of all or nothing sometimes and either I eat a lot or not enough...ah, well. I think I'm doing well enough now.

Today's weight: 152.2

Goal: 120

Todays Stats:

Output: -2,150

Intake: +1,289

 Deficit= -861

pretty good, yay, me!

Hi everyone!  It's 4th of July weekend and I notice all my neighbors have tables and ecorations out for tomorow.  All the cookouts!!!  I'm behaving and not treating tomorrow any differently than anyother day.  That's how I have to do ALL holidays.  I can't waiver.

Rewards.....I use to do them more than I do now.  Although I have these one pair of black pants I've wanted to get into.  I hung them on my closet door to see them every day and remind me of what I want.  My goal pants!  I think they're a 10.  I wear a 12 now.  And a 10 has been my goal all along.

I had one big reward.....a shopping spree with my daughter.  I bought so many clothes!  That was when I lost my motivation.  Maybe I shouldn't have done that.  I had to get clothes, all mine were falling off of me.  Maybe not so many though.

Have a safe and happy 4th of July!!!  ;)

i feel so stupid and awful.   i ate too much today and yesterday and i'm afraid i will gain more than a pound and not be under 110 by monday when i leave for ny which was my goal.  so frustrating!

Original Post by jkpenrod:

SW 332.8 (5/25/09)

CW 317.2

GW (short term) below 300 by Labor Day

GW (long term) 175-185 (I have a long way to go, that is why short term goals are so important to me).

It is Sunday which is my normal "weigh-in" day so I figured I would post up. This week has been an interesting one for me. I actually did a pretty good job staying within my calorie budget each day and had some days with a lot of extra out put. I saw my weight drop significantly throughout the beginning of the week only to climb back up toward the end of the week. In the end I have actually gained a pound since my initial post in here and I am at the same weight I was last Sunday (I did not post in here). The good news is that while my overall weight has remained the same my % bodyfat dropped, so assuming that my scale is consistent in it's accuracy from week to week I actually lost about 4 lbs of fatty tissue and gained 4 pounds of lean tissue. The way I feel I believe that may be fairly accurate because I played softball Monday and Thursday, hit the weight room and did some cardio on Tuesday. went bowling on Thursday, not to mention the 3 hours I spent moving boxes from one storage unit to another on Thursday and the time I spent walking around DC on Friday. Overall I will accept not losing weight (or gaining a pound) this week if it means I am burning the fat and building muscle.

SW: 332.8

CW: 318.4

GW (short term): below 300 by Labor Day

GW (long term): 175-185

Weekly weight change: +1.2 (from post on Monday)

Challenge weight change: +1.2

Original Post by lofudge13:

i feel so stupid and awful.   i ate too much today and yesterday and i'm afraid i will gain more than a pound and not be under 110 by monday when i leave for ny which was my goal.  so frustrating!

Yesterday was tough.  It's hard to stay perfect on a day when folks are BBQ-ing (even for us vegetarians) and the gym is likely closed.  Back on track today!

I was on CC pretty regular last fall and lost about 25 lbs in a few months, so hopefully I can do it again. Unfortanetly I gained a bunch a weight back over the winter and spring, but I am still down 37 since Jan 08.

Start weight July 1 : 192.2 lbs

CW July 5: 191.8 lbs

GW Nov 30: 167 lbs

I weigh in  on Mondays so I weighed in today. I'm still at 211 but I think I'll be down tomorrow because I have done some serious work this weekend :D Aquafit for an hour on Friday, a 2 hr/20 km bike ride on Saturday, an hour of Zumba on Sunday and an hour of Body Combat today :D

So much sweat!

Holiday weekend was pretty bad, but not as bad as past holidays. Also, I enjoyed myself. We had an awesome party with good, healthy food and good unhealthy beer! Charades and fireworks (inbetween the raining) were the entertainment. A good time was had by all. The next day we were all hung over and lazy and I only biked to work as exercise so it was not a great day for weightloss either...Yesterday was better. I ran and my Output/Intake was something like -1950/+1600, so that's not bad. Today i took a long walk and had a light breakfast of coffee and a luna bar so the day has a promising start. I plan on a big lunch tho cause a relative I am recently reconnecting with is taking me out in about an hour. also, I'm pms-ing, so very bloated and weight is up...trying to keep my spirits up too.

Speaking of which, good work on your holiday resolve, tryin2lose25! To others who participated in the decadence, like myself, we'll get there too, ours will just take a little longer! LOL!

Good work on your loss, jkpenrod! Keep it up!

And lofudge13, weight fluctuates so often and even randomly, that you shouldn't give those numbers the power to make or break your mood. Allow your feelings to be effected by your own actions and not the numbers on the scale cause up or down doesn't always mean that its fat you are gaining or loosing! counting calories gives you some real numbers to pay attention to and also, gauge how well you are doing by how you look and feel and if you ate past full or ate healthy things or bad things or stopped eating when you had enough? Its better to let those things decide wether you win or loose. I weigh myself every day and it goes up and down up and down. I've learned to pay attention to trends and ranges rather than one number on a certain day. I hope that helps.

Keb1984, It's nice to see good numbers after a holiday! Keep it up!

And akasharaine, a lot of the time, when we work out alot, we might loose fat, but gain muscle so working out will make us healthier, but our scales can't tell us that. Keep up the good work!

Today: 155.6

Goal: 120

My holiday was something of a train wreck.  But no worries.  It was the Fourth. It was my patriotic duty to drink beer and avoid the gym.

Congrats to everyone for surviving the holiday.  It's one of the toughest to be good through.

Starting 7/5, I've been averaging 1800 calories a day intake, and I've been burning 3K-3200.  Keep forgetting to weigh myself so I'm not sure where I am on that.  

so i am in ny and things aren't easy.  fortunately i'm walking a ton, or i have the last three days, but i haven't been eating super well, especially yesterday.  and now they are getting me a bagel and a donut from dunkin donuts.  it is so irritating!  i don't want to eat all this food but it is being forced upon me, well kind of.  maybe i can just have half the bagel for breakfast and save the other half...

i REALLY don't want to have gained weight when i stand on the scale wednesday morning though when i get home.  if i do half the bagel plain and berries for breakfast, i should be ok, and then small lunch, donut (?), small dinner, piece of chocolate (?), i should be ok i think.  maybe i won't even eat the whole donut.  i should have just said no thank you, but i am such a conformist.  i've just got to keep the calories low.  and then sunday we are going to a BBQ, so much food!

Original Post by lofudge13:

 then sunday we are going to a BBQ, so much food!

 Everything we ever do seems to revolve around food! Why, why, why?

I haven't been doing the greatest either...have been so busy and oversleeping, etc. and that's when I get sloppy with my food selections. :(

I have a ton of food to fix for guests on Sunday...hope not too much of it finds it's way to my mouth. I know I have to taste some for flavor, etc., but all in moderation, hopefully. :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Hi Everyone, Weighed in this am. at 221, same as last week, A bit discouraging as have been the same for about four weeks now, I am eating less than 1650 per day on the average so I don't feel bad about that. At least I am not 250 any more. We will see what next week looks like, Have a good week, Roger from Western NY.

I weighed in this morning......up 4 lbs!  I swear all I have to do is look at fattening foods and I gain weight.  What a wonderful quality to have.  :(  So it's 187 this week.  I'll try harder this week.  Promise.

Have a nice weekend.  :)

tryin2lose25, don't get too down.  i think a more positive outlook might help you.

and roger, keep trying. you might just have hit a plateau.

me, i'm doing good so far.

I weighed in today at 186.  Hope it sticks.Yeah, I weigh everyday.  It keeps me going.  I know all about fluctuations, so don't worry.  I look everyday to remind me to stay on track.

I didn't walk yesterday. I needed the rest.  My leg was hurting pretty bad so I had to give it a day off.  I think I'm gonna walk around the block a couple times.  Staying close to home in case it starts to rain.  They say Severe Thunderstorms today and it sprinked a bit already, but then stopped and the sun came out!  Crazy!  LOL 

Roger ~ I know all about plateaus!  OMGosh! Do I know! LOL  I weighed 170 for 8 months!  And I was really trying to drop those pounds too.  Just keep on track and keep doing what you're doing.  Don't give up.  ;)

Well, off for my walk!  Enjoy the weekend everyone!  :)

SW 183

13 July 182 :-)

GW 159

I've been doing well with exercise recently, but I've had a hard time keeping myself to 1800 cal.  When I get muscle-y, I get hungry.  Luckily, I'm maxing out at 2200.  I'm still burning more than I'm taking in.  

Weighed in today.  I gained a pound this week, but I'm pretty sure it's a muscle thing.  Had to downsize from XL to L.  

Still at 214! Worked out like crazy last week and ate like crazy this weekend (Birthday Festivities) Getting back on track this week!