10% by Christmas Challenge (CLOSED)

HELLO!!

This Challenge is only for COMMITTED CC users that are determined to achieve their weight loss goals!

Weigh ins will be on Mondays, we will start Monday October 13th with our starting weight and go 10 weeks through Monday December 22nd to work towards losing 10% of our current body weight. There will also be 2 bonus weigh ins one after Christmas (Dec. 29th) and one after the New Year (Jan. 5th)! To help keep our Holiday dieting in check!

Weekly weigh ins should be posted in this format:

This Week:

Last Week:

Loss:

Challenge rules:

1. If you miss the FIRST weigh in you will be taken out of the challenge and your spot will be offered to someone else! If you miss 2 consecutive weigh ins with out reporting anything you will be taken out of the challenge!

2. Add all other challenge members to your friends list! This way you can see all journal posts and I also encourage to comment on journal posts for extra motivation and to keep YOU on track!

3. You must report your weight no matter what... If you have a bad week I would still like you to post your weight! If you have a bad week It is fine but in order for you to keep on track you should be accountable for your stumbles here and there!

4.I encourage everyone to check this thread everyday and to post anything and everything that you want! Weight loss, fun facts, interesting stories, anything to help us get to know each other better!

Each participant that reaches their 10% goals will receive a badge to put up in their gallery for the achievement!

Results will be tracked here:

http://www.editgrid.com/user/djchicky11/10_Pe rcent_by_Christmas

Good morning.  Since yesterday was weigh in day and I felt so good, last night around 9:30 or 10, I had a huge bowl of air popped popcorn with a spray or two of ICBINB spay on every handful.  I've been craving that all week!  I also had a diet soda (I'm trying not to drink it but hey it was a treat)  I stayed with in my calories for the most part but I am still up a pound this morning.  Never fail popcorn does that to me and (I do not use salt)  It was so worth it!

I weigh in on Fridays as well as Mondays so it was the best day for me to indulge. 

I'm off to the grocery store (my favorite place)  Actually I have to go to 2 because my stores don't carry the same stuff, go figure.

I just ordered PB2 and chocolate PB2 after reading another thread.  Has anyone here tried it?  I've been limiting myself on the peanut butter and this sounds wonderful.

Sorry for the late weigh-in.  Government holiday and all.  Anyway:

This week: 228.6 lbs.

Mini Challenge: I had started doing the New Rules of Lifting workouts, which really kick your butt.  I completed the break-in phase of that and now I'm kind of doing a modified version of it.  My plan is to lift weights 3 times per week, doing a full-body workout each time.  I already feel and look a lot stronger.

So I guess I am the only male in here huh?  Ah well.

Leanne - I so want to order PB2!  Please let me know as I am a peanut butter addict (recovering).

For the mini challenge I am going to commit to 3 days of running per week.  My girlfriend just completed her 2nd marathon and she has been such an inspiration.  I have done a couple 5k's, a half, and a 25k, but it's been a couple of years since I have really commited to a running program.  We kind of have this cyber running/email group with a bunch of us from around the country and now they want to plan a 2010 marathon for all of us!  I'm not sure if I can do this (bum knees) but I really want to try!

Mini Challenge: I have not been doing much in the way of exercising recently. I am going to commit to 3 days a week, at least half an hour. I will either do Wii Fit, or go for a long fast paced walk, or go to the room of 1000 tortures (exercise room) in my Apt complex. Hopefully once I get back into the groove I will go more often, but I can do 3 days a week.

I woke up with a cold tyesterday morning. But today I feel like utter crap. Which sucks because I havn't missed a work out in like 3 months. I hope at least this afternoon I will feel good enough to go for a walk. I will feel be upset if I don't get to at least do something. But I guess the upside of it is I easily stayed within my calories eating soup and cold remedies yesterday. Just havn't been very hungry. Well, tomorrow will be a new day and hopefully a better one.

What is PB2? Anything peanut butter sounds really good right now!  I got myself out of the house at 6 this morning to go to the gym, I'm trying to get in the habit of going really early.  It seems to make me stay more focused the rest of the day.  Good Luck guys!!

PB2 is a powder (I think) that you mix with water it is roasted ground peanut dust.  so it retains all the good stuf with out all the fat. I think it's 56cals for 2 tablespoons. 

Original Post by oakmommy24:

leanne~ I am also considering a tummy tuck it sounds crazy at 23. I don't have any hanging skin or anything but from my pregnancy I got stretch marks and they are gross and I want them gone but don't know if a tummy tuck will solve that problem.

Did any of you other MOMMYS get stretch marks? If so, has anything helped for them?

Hey, I'm not a mommy, but I do have stretch marks from growing and I have tried a lot of things to get rid of them, including something called "Carboxy Therapy" which are injections of CO2 directly into the sm's.  (It didn't go that well, and it hurt a lot!).  I hear that lasers are not very effective and they are quite expensive, so...My newest venture to get rid of the marks are by using TCA peels.  You apply it to the mark and it acts like a chemical peel, but deeper.  I didn't start doing it yet, but I ordered the TCA peel recently.  As soon as I get it, I'll let you all know how it goes. 

nkkny1...Let me tell you about some stretch marks.  I've only had one child and I swear I look like I've had triplets!  I'm very fair skinned, and I know it's mostly genetic, but I thought if I rubbed coco butter on my tummy every day I'd be good to go.  Not so much.  Anyway I'm 27 and when I meet my goal I'm getting a breast lift and tummy tuck, for sure.  I have a lot of empty breast tissue and loose skin (i don't mean to be too graphic!) on my tummy that no amount of exercise is ever going to help.  That is what keeps me focused on my goal! 

oakmommy24- yeah I've temporarily moved to Australia .  I'm studying abroad here for the semester.  I got to Queensland on July 20th, leave on Nov. 29 (ahhh so soon! ), and then travel around New Zealand for almost 2 weeks!  I love it here.  I'm originally from Massachusetts though, so to me the weather is supposed to be getting colder, not hotter!  I do miss the fall though..all the pretty leaves.  I'm going to miss Oz when I have to leave, but I'm excited to get home too.  And yes, those damn birds are ridiculous!  I swear, everything here can kill you and is out to get you.  When we all first got here we had an "Australian Safety" speech, and this woman told us about all the different animals that would kill us and all the ways that we would die...not could...would.  Not very comforting.  Here's to hoping I actually live through this challege...literally.

Well I have met my Wii Fit goal for the week! I have already done it three times this week, not that I plan to stop for the week now, just glad that anything I do now is above the goal I had set! I need to get three more rides in and I will meet my horse goal too. Good way to start I think.

I am in the midst of TTOM so I an bloated and am gaining -- but I know it's not real. This is my first time with no BC for a long time...I was on the patch and it was not working very well anymore -- cramps and other issues, the things I was on it to avoid. So far so good...off it totally and no cramps at all.

Good luck to all in you exercise challenge.

I am glad a 5K was not required for this challenge or I would not have signed up! I have no interest in doing a marathon, don't have time to train for one, wouldn't know where to start anyhow. So I am very happy that wasn't a requirement. I did work my butt off on Wii Fit this morning...dripping sweat and feeling the burn!

Well, yesterday was the first day in like 3 months that I couldn't get on the treadmill. In fact, I don't think I walked anywhere but from the couch to the bathroom. I still feel really bad today so I think I may miss two, if not, three days of my exercise this week. Too bad. Having trouble getting all my calories, too because I just don't feel like eating anything. I did have some eggs this morning though. Hopefully I'll be much better by Friday. Everyone have a good day and stay on track.

Everybody sounds like they are doing great! (except poor Carlyn)

Carlyn I hope you feel better soon.  It's no fun at all being sick.  Rest and get better.

I'm still repeating my phase 1, two days down! 

nkkny1~ thanks for all the info, I swear it seems like a lot of the stuff is all just gimmicks kind of like fad diets... nothing works but they make lots of money on people that are willing to give it a try! I heard an ad on the radio the other day about some cream for stretch marks offering a "free" 30 day trial! So I call and I have to pay a 9.95 shipping fee which I agreed to and then when it arrived the post office wanted me to pay shipping! they didnt even pay they took my 9.95 and then there was postage due honestly WTF! Then I look at my online banking account and they had charged me for 2 other random things plus I have had nonstop soliciting phone calls since I called them! lol honestly worst mistake ever! Sorry for the book just had to rant for a minute! Anyway let me know if that works for you I am curious where you go to find out these stretch mark remedies!

mlj83081~ ya I think like 99% of it is genetics but they really suck! Mine are etremely bad as well! and ya the tummy tuck I am thinking is probably the best way to go except for when I decide to have another baby... damn!

ocean_girl88~ that is so awesome! Australia is one place I have always wanted to go since I have been little I don't know why it is just so attractive to me! Too bad you have to leave so soon... I had no idea about the killer animals there lol not the cute kangaroos I hope haha!

nbkelly~ congrats on acheiving your goal so early in the week! that is great!! I on the other hand missed yesterday so I guess that means I have to hit the gym on the weekend... I hate that! Oh and 5k is only 3 miles its not a marathon :) I thought it would be a good thing to work up to and then hopefully acheive by the end of the challenge, but you are in luck! I really want to get the wii fit but they are always sold out where I live!

carlynj21~ I hope you get feeling better, I hate being sick!

Well, my weight loss has plateaued the last few days, which is actually quite a relief as I have been in bed resting (I was in hospital).

Exercise is one of my weaker points anyway, I normally walk about 30-60 mins a day but never actually "work out" so to speak. Trying to think of something I like that's affordable! Ie, not a gym at this point in time.

I have a question... anyone been to Malaysia? I am moving there with my boyfriend in December/Jan. I've been to a lot of countries in Asia (China, India, Nepal, Tibet, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Singapore, Thailand) but never Malaysia before and would like some tips on what to expect. Sorry that's slightly off topic, maybe message me!

Seeing as I just got home from hospital, my boyfriend made me some home-made smoked chicken pasta (he makes the pasta himself) and a rosewater creme brulee. It's sitting in the fridge right now! Ah, temptation...! Now that I could also do with some advice on: what everybody does to avoid temptation (other than leaving the house, as I'm a bit confined at the moment)...

hey nbkelly, whats wiifit like? do you actually feel like you're exercising? I've been thinking of buying it for the "fitness" factor, but i read some reviews saying that its more for fun, as opposed to for burning real calories :P I saw a wiifit pack that you can buy now, with weights and a towel and mat (not sure if you need the towels/mats), so maybe its more 'hardcore' like that.. also saw the DDR for wii. i suck, but i was thinking of buying that for myself as my "fun home fitness" activity haha..

this pb2 thing; sounds gross!! no offense to you guys who take it. Why dont you just eat a handful of dry roasted non-salted peanuts/almonds instead? I always feel that things in powder form are somewhat... sketchy. including those protein shakes that my boyfriend chugs at the gym. *shudder* maybe it looks/smells worse than it tastes....

regarding the tummy tuck - it sounds so invasive :\ i mean, even after you get the surgery i think theres a very long period of recovery until you can actually walk around without looking like you were just cut open right? you probably won't be able to exercise during that time either. My bf has a similar problem.. he used to be pretty big, then he slimmed down a little too fast one year; now he has a lot of loose skin & stretch marks that just doesn't seem to go away no matter how hard he works. I hear some expensive serum work though, for the stretch marks.. bio-oil or something?

so I have a confession :( for some subconscious unknown reasons i just binged on a bunch of food... sigh. this is what i'm talking about - my weakness is the night time binge. its so bad for me. i'm all alone in the house, and my bf's mom just brought home a lot of snacks (you know those asian bakery pastries), so i had some of those (2), and then 1 super buttery shortbread cookie (also brought over by my bf's mom!!!), and like 15 salted crackers with CHEESE.. FULL FAT CHEESE as i watched a prerecorded grey's anatomy................ whats wrong with me!!!!! I even went to yoga this morning, had oatmeal for breakfast, a super healthy lunch, and a healthy snack, AND a large dinner (went for sushi right before the binge). WTF??!?!?!?!? :( this cannot continue! ideas on how to stop?

PS: alexanderrob, dont feel left out for being the only guy in the group. men or women, we're still all trying to acheive the same goals, and we're all going to work just as hard. :) <--- why can't i tell myself this BEFORE i pick up the cake/cookie/late night snack.. arg!

katya - i just realised that we have the same starting weight :) lets do this! toned, fit & healthy... healthy eating.... ughhh i need help here to stay more consistent for sure.... hope you did good at your new sports!

Meryl I hope everything is okay with you.  Hospitals are the worst.  They want you to rest then they come in and poke at you every few hours.

sillyflowa the PB2 is like eating peanut butter with out all the fat.  Dry roasted peanuts are full of fat and almonds do not spread very well.  I also drink a lot of protein shakes.  (I add spirulina and ground flax seed to them that should really make you shudder)

tummy tucks are invasive and painful to recover from but no amount of serum no matter the price is going to tighten the thin, wrinkly skin that covers my stomach and breast.  It needs to go!  I am going to wait at least a year to let nature try to heal me as much as she can.

The only way I can truly stop myself from eating everything "bad" in the house is to throw it out or make my hubby take it with him.  I also keep lots of easy to grab healthy stuff around.  Carrots to hummus, low and not fat cheese, laughing cow and wasa crackers. 

Remember when you fall off the wagon you just need to climb right back on!

I love this weather it makes want to cook.  I've been trying out all kinds of new recipes from a no crust pumpkin oat pie, to dutch chocolate brownies (Low fat).  Both were okay but I won't make them again.  I also made some killer chili which I'll eat from for the next few days and some whole wheat, oat soda bread that I really like.  It is low fat but fairly high in calories but it's very filling and good for you.  My husband says its full of "texture" heavy and moist on the inside and hard and crunchy on the outside.  ( It goes great with chili)

My mom called the other day and said how do you do it?  You cook so much and yet your so thin.  This was a first from her, I've never been thin, I've been "Not" fat but never thin.  I told her that's why I cook!  I must be almost done.  I can't wait till Christmas!

leanne- I know all about the spirulina. I couldn't imagine putting it in my protein shakes though. Or flax seed oil for that matter. I would rather take a shot of the oil. I also take spirulina capsules so I don't have to mix the powder with anything. I do mix the powder with applesauce for my toddler. He loves it.

Well, I got back on the treadmill wagon this morning. Feel a lot better. Burned almost 500 calories. As far as not eating stuff in the house I just tell myself that once I am on maintenance then I can do it. An extra 500-1000 calories a day and I know I could have a peice of cake or something that I want. I can't get it all out of the house. Toddler has too many snacks. They're healthy snakcs but snacks all the same. Animal crackers, graham crackers, fishys...it is kind of hard not to take a handful or two when I give them to him but I manage somehow. When I did my cleanse I think the hardest part was cooking for other people and not eating any of it. And no, I didn't really do the cleanse to lose weight, I did it to really clear up my skin and clean out my body to start this diet from a clean slate. But it did get me down from my plateau which was an added bonus.

Hope everyone stays focused and has a great day.

Original Post by oakmommy24:

leanne~ I am also considering a tummy tuck it sounds crazy at 23. I don't have any hanging skin or anything but from my pregnancy I got stretch marks and they are gross and I want them gone but don't know if a tummy tuck will solve that problem.

Did any of you other MOMMYS get stretch marks? If so, has anything helped for them?

I am hoping that once I lose the weight things will go back to normal but...I know what you mean. I just turned 24 and had my second baby this year. My first son was a doozey, 9 lbs and 21 inches...which is huge for a 5'1 120 lb (normally) girl like myself. I also have stretch marks but...they fade. Honestly, though you can always feel them. I'm not sure a tummy tuck fixes them though?

Everything I've read says they're genetic, you get what you get. (And it's your mom's fault! haha...) but I like to think of them as trophies. =]

Anyway...sorry bout the long post. I didn't get to run yesterday and I feel like crap. Sometimes I think I must be really addicted to exercise or something because I really beat myself up when I don't do it. And I have to force myself to eat the next day, too. The only reason I didn't go is because I had to go grocery shopping (really excited about the new healthy food!) and didn't get back until 10. My husband is putting in a lot of late hours this month...

You all sound like you're doing well and I wish you luck! I had my measurements today and seem to be down half an inch =]