Wagon Jumpers: May 14 - 20, 2012
Welcome to the Wagon Jumpers weekly thread! We are a group of CC members who have identified that one of our main challenges with achieving our weight loss, maintenance or general health goals is consistency.
This thread is designed to encourage long term commitment to our goals by publicly declaring them and asking the other members of this thread to hold us accountable. The primary focus of Wagon Jumpers is not how much weight you have lost, or need to lose, but what you need to do on a daily basis to meet your long term goals.
The idea of Wagon Jumpers was to create a close community where participants could get to know each other, creating a virtual support network as they attempt long term weight management.
This is impossible with an 'always open' group as there would be too many people coming and going. For this reason we have capped group membership numbers to 20 participants.
If you would like to be a member of this group please contact our wait list manager: Sarah_ann_artist
There are two rules for Wagon Jumpers:
1. All members must post once per week between Monday and Sunday.
2. All members must check the thread for members who have not posted by Saturday (a short list is posted at the end of the week) or are on the MIA list on Sunday and send them a polite and positive message to stay involved in the group and on track with their goals.
Wagon Jumpers Participants: 20
12 Week CONSISTENCY GOALS - April 2 - June 25:
- beccaanic - Not participating in this round of goals.
- Bleedtoblue (Blue) - Maintenance: Exercise 3/week for 9 of 12 weeks.
- Claire314 (Claire, Co-Moderator) - New: Log food 4/7 days a week. Maintenance: Exercise 1000 mins/month.
- crazigerl (Lorea) - Not participating in this round.
- Defrog3 (Denise) - Maintenance: Get to my trainer 2x/week, and go to the gym 1x/week on my own. Working out 3x/week will also be success.
- ezrod - Not participating in this round.
- Feljones (Debbie) - Maintenance: Log a calorie deficit 4 days/week. New: Eat an all-veggie dinner 3 times/week.
- Figurethefat (Laura) - Not participating in this round of goals.
- hoggy509 (Cindy) - Not participating in this round of goals.
- Islandscribe (Val, Co-Moderator) - Maintenance: Exercising the equivalent of 5 days/week - catch up or double-up days count towards goal. Maintenance: Log meals 4 days/week.
- kenright1008 (Kathy) - Not participating in this round of goals.
- Kyashiis (Kathy) - New: Log a deficit of 2,500 calories a week for 11 of 12 weeks. Maintenance: Do 10 - 30 minutes of yoga four days a week for 12 weeks.
- mhNYC (Mari) - Maintenance: Complete all of my Calorie Camp goals for 12 weeks.
- nekko_cat (Linda) - New: Keep a food log four days/week for 9 of 12 weeks. Maintenance: Exercise 750 minutes/month for 12 weeks.
- Ranchobernardo (John) - Not participating in this round of goals.
- Sarah_ann_artist (Sarah, Co-Moderator) - Maintenance: Workout 1000 minutes/month for the next 12 weeks. New: Log 4 days/week for 12 weeks.
- the_dragon (Hilary, Co-Moderator) - Maintenance: Log food 5 days/week. New: Exercise five minutes three times/week for 12 weeks.
- tiegurl (Tierra) - Not participating in this round of goals.
- travs_girl (Ashley) - New: Jog six miles/week for 12 weeks.
- twindaze (Jenny) - Not participating in this round of goals.
MIA one week:
- beccaanic
- kenright1008 (Kathy)
MIA two weeks:
- None
MIA three weeks & will be removed from the list if there is no contact by the end of this week:
- None
Wagon Jumpers on Hiatus:
- None
Waiting List:
Wagon Jumper threads now have a separate host for each week, as listed below:
- 1st Sunday in month: Sarah_Ann_Artist (Sarah)
- 2nd Monday in month: Sarah_Ann_Artist (Sarah)
- 3rd Monday in month: Claire314
- 4th Monday in month: Islandscribe (Val)
- 5th Monday in month: the_dragon (Hilary)
- Mid-Week Reminders: Claire314
- Waitlist Management: Sarah_Ann_Artist
- Thread Issues: If there are any issues with a thread, first contact should be the thread host for that week.
Previous Threads
Hello Everyone!
I woke up this morning with the worst so far of something that's been brewing in me for a week. My lungs & throat hurt every time I cough, which I need to do to breath. My face, teeth, and muscles hurt. My eyes are watering, and the list goes on. Ugh!
I'd planned to put more thought into the topic this week, but I am feeling terrible right now. SO, Debbie a topic idea last week that I think is appropriate since I am making these excuses, which I find valid, but are still excuses :)
Topic: What is you most outrageous excuse, or excuses for not moving forward in your goal/goals?
Thanks for the link to the new thread, I always appreciate that. I'm sorry you aren't feeling well, Sarah, I hope you are better quickly.
I think my worst excuse is that I just don't want to go, but I use lots of excuses. School, family obligations, time constraints, you name it, I've used it as an excuse. Right now I'm having a hard time getting back into the swing of exercising. I've used not feeling well and traveling as an excuse for the last few weeks. Now it's school obligations and scheduling. I did ride bikes twice last week and I could tell that I've been slacking off. I need to get back to it. I think I need to schedule exercise just the way I schedule everything else I do.
Happy Monday everyone, I hope you have a great week.
Good Morning,
Sarah, sorry your feeling down this morning. I hope you get better soon. How did your showing go?
bleedtoblue I agree, Scheduling might be my answer too. Haven't looked at it as an approach to my exercise goals. But after reading Clair's post. It just might be the thing i need to do.
My greatest excuses are like others. I just don't think i have the time. multiple Jobs and lots of tasks that need done. Today's was I fell 1/2 way down the stairs Sunday so my toes and foot hurt this morning. I'm sure it was a funny sight seeing arms and legs going everywhere. At least I didn't tear up anything on the way down. and the sudden stop at the bottom is concrete. lol. I will try to really get back on the routine of my exercise bike. Along with trying to start scheduling more time for exercise , even a walk would add up. The road in front of my house is pretty busy, (excuse right, lol).
Maybe i wont get run over. fall in the ditch, dog attack, ect lol. I do need to stack firewood. I guess it all adds up. I'm still Cleaning up after the last tornado's went through. Seems like the list of projects get longer and the time gets shorter as i get older. Schedule huh? That's going to be a new one for me.
Hope everyone has a great week. I look forward to reading the posts.
Started typing this on last week's thread when I saw that Sarah had already put up the new link:
Its great to read about everyone's background. I love these "getting to know you" sessions, and learning about everyone's individual journey!
Rancho: Haha on the heartbeats justification! I donated blood last week and my pulse was 62 bpm. I don't think its ever been that low, I was very impressed w/myself! LOL
Clare: thanks for the description on how to email everyone. I've been a bit of a loser on that point, but will try harder!
Topic: outrageous excuses, I need to think a bit more on that. I never really had an OUTRAGEOUS excuse, more of a lame one: I don't have time or mental energy to exercise.
I have known for a long time that such an excuse isn't appropriate or helpful, but I didn't know how to change it. Since changing jobs, the time and economic factors that were holding me back no longer exist, so I have made a change for the better. I'm so happy about it, too! :)
Hmm I think my excuse would be "I have X, Y or Z celebration coming up, there is no point in starting before then!"
I hope you feel better soon Sarah-Ann
Food excuses (usually to justify eating something high calorie/low nutrients):
- I'm depressed.
- I'm under a lot of stress.
- It's a special occasion.
- The donuts/muffins/whatever in the office kitchen are calling me and I can't concentrate on my work.
- I'll start tomorrow.
Exercise excuses
- I'll just check my email/have my coffee/return that phone call before getting on the bike (this can -- and often does-- turn into an entire day of procrastination) leading to...
- It's too late now to do it.
- I'll do better tomorrow.
Sarah, yours is one of the only valid excuses. Sorry you've been so sick. Take care of yourself and feel better soon!
Debbie
erzrod: our posts crossed, too. talking of stacking firewood reminded me of this guy...
I'm glad you didn't hurt yourself, by the way... :)
Denise -
ha ha! That is a great story.
I think mine is waiting to an event to come too. For example, had my dad's 70th bday this weekend, softball for daughter out of town and Mother's Day. Then out of town 3 days this week with hubby for anniversary, and camping Memorial weekend. So my brain immediately thinks...we'll start up again after Memorial Day...that's two weeks away! Silly plan....
I have never seen that one , I like it.
My biggest excuse was I told my husband that the power was out at the gym, could have gone for a walk but I didn't.
For food I am always worried about plateaus so sometimes I over eat on a day to keep my body guessing, doesn't necessarily have to be chocolate though, but I tell myself it does.
I think that my most outrageous excuse is that I'm afraid of being thinner and healthier. I think that I blend into the background better being heavy, but really the opposite is true. So, do I really like the negative attention???
Sarah: Hope you are feeling better. Sometimes you just have to let the illness take its course, it really may not be an excuse.
Blue: I use "I don't wanna.." too!
ezrod: Like what I said to Sarah, I don't think that falling down the stairs is a lame excuse. Once after I had been trying to catch a military flight to Guam for 24 hours, my knee seized up when trying to go down stairs. I was holding onto the railing, but I ended up with quite a few bruises and messed up my knee. Hope you faired better than I did!
Debbie: I've also used all of those excuses at one time or another!
Denise: Great link! Loved it!!
Cindy: Ahhhh! The Event Horizon!! Classic.
Lorea: Hey, natural disasters or power outages always work for me ;)
Off topic: My husband came through his hip replacement surgery well. He may be home sometime this week. The whole experience has given me something to think about.
My most outrageous excuse...I can do it tomorrow! I berate my daughter for being a procrastinator even when I am also. Don't get me wrong...the only thing I would put off til tomorrow is getting healthier. But so far 2012 has seen a new me. I haven't found excuses for it because I changed my life. I workout in the AM (no excuses then) and I grocery shop every Sunday after planning my week. Because I gave up the excuse of "tomorrow" I'm down almost 30 pounds since 1/1/2012 :)
Be well everyone!
Kathy
Linda...I think you are right...when we're heavier we hope to blend into the background...I know I used to look around (where ever I was...shopping, meeting, dinner) and think, "I'm the fattest person here"...and what that would do to my psyche I can't even imagine. I'm grateful for the support I've received in loosing weight and now sometimes I can look around and think "I'm not the fattest person"...but then I usually want to go up to the "fattest" person and beg them to get healthy.
I wish I had some funny excuses. ;) My excuses are pretty lame when I think about them. The most common "excuse to eat" is typically "I should just eat it all now so I won't continue to be tempted by it!" How dumb is that one?! To truly remove it from temptation I should have never bought it or simply throw it away.
My most recent excuse to not exercise: No parking at the gym. It was true - no spaces left in the parking lot - but I shouldn't have given up so easy. The first time I pulled into the lot at about 9:25, drove around looking for a space, realized 3 other cars were doing the same thing, waited until 9:32 and then left because I had planned on going to a spin class at 9:30. It's becoming the norm at my gym (maybe because I'm going a bit earlier than I did before?) so I've been getting there earlier now to find a space. I've also found that there's more parking behind the gym (about 8-10 spaces that I didn't know about) and once I parked "illegally" in a fire zone but I wasn't the only one. Not to mention, if I really had spent a few minutes thinking about it that first time, I could have parked on the street outside the parking lot and walked a bit farther. The epitome of laziness! LOL! Didn't want to have to walk too far before I start my workout! Hee hee. :)
Oh, another one just popped into me head for swimming: Haven't shaved my legs recently! Of course I now go to the Y, which membership during the day tends to lean toward older grandparent types and other mothers like myself. So the last thing I should be concerned about is someone being horrified by my unshaven legs as they (mostly the older crowd) is wandering around the locker room naked letting it all hang out. ;)
The most common one is simply "I don't feel like it" *with a foot stamping 2 year old pouting voice in my head* But I've learned that that excuse is more related to the exercise I'm doing. If it's going to the gym to get on the elliptical, which I don't enjoy, then the "I don't feel like it" whiny voice still gets me. But if it's for a long walk by the river, well, I usually feel like doing that as long as the weather is nice.
Original Post by claire314:
The most common "excuse to eat" is typically "I should just eat it all now so I won't continue to be tempted by it!" How dumb is that one?! To truly remove it from temptation I should have never bought it or simply throw it away. Ha, ha!! This is one i use, and you are right! It is something that should've never landed in my shopping cart.Oh, another one just popped into me head for swimming: Haven't shaved my legs recently!
Ha, ha! This one, I actually don't care about :) I'll go to the gym with my just below the knee workout pants with legs that haven't been shaved in, sometimes, a few weeks (usually in the winter). Shoot, I'll even go to the store in that very outfit, hairy legs and all. I heard someone pointing them out to their shopping mate once, and I said, "your just jealous that you don't have the balls to not give a S*** about what other people think" while laughing and walking away.
Great topic. Especially since I haven't been doing my goals. My biggest excuse lately is I am too tired. I am not really too tired. I know I can get my lazy butt up and do what I am suppose to do. When I get stressed out that excuse amps up. Ugh. Not good. Excuses are worthless however, it is easier to make them then to not make them.
Original Post by defrog3: Rancho: Haha on the heartbeats justification! I donated blood last week and my pulse was 62 bpm. I don't think its ever been that low, I was very impressed w/myself! LOL
My resting heartrate is usually 45-60. I've had nurses take it and say, "I'd better do that again" only to be told by another nurse, "No, it's OK, he's a runner."
Topic: I think I've used just about every excuse mentioned, with the exception of Claire's "Haven't shaved my legs recently" excuse not to go swimming. Thank you for that one!
My favorite excuse, "I can do it tomorrow." (insert Bronx cheer here)
Goals: I was in San Francisco for a conference. Insert Bronx cheer here.
So yesterday I had a mammogram, ultrasound and biopsy (sorry men) and was a little sore and feeling sorry for myself. I wasn't going to go to the gym as that was my excuse until I got on to log my food and thought about this weeks topic. I went out to the garden and started getting rid of my pets that I have named (my weeds).
I got my vegetables in and my bedding plants. So thanks for the topic it was timely and made me stop and think about how valid my excuse was not. Hope you aren't creating any new excuses. Have a good weekend.
