Stew's Crew -- 15-20 by Halloween? CLOSED TO NEW MEMBERS

http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=p SPnLlFRvr2d78CiporCyWA&hl=en

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=pSPnLl FRvr2d78CiporCyWA&hl=en

(This first link is the spreadsheet and the second is the check-in form)

Anyone trying to Lose 15-20 pounds by Halloween?

I have been messing around with this last leg of my weight loss journey for far too long. I'm really going to get serious about this last push and wondered if anyone else is in a similar situation and would like to help motivate each other?

Here are my stats, too:

5'6" female

157

28.9% BF (would like to be 25%)

Goal is 140

Moderate Activity Daily (I'm a SAHM with 3 little ones who keep me hopping!)

40 min. cardio 3-4 times a week, 90 min cycling once a week, 30 min. strength 3-4 times a week

(edit: added links to weigh-in form)

stewmama ~ Congrats on the one pound loss!!!  WOO HOO!!!!!

Just checking in - we have a nice size group, and really some good motivators I think

:-) Everyone have a lovely Tuesday, and those of you down south stay safe out of the storm!

I lost about 30 pounds with CC help in 2006, then had 2 knees replaced and sort of got cocky - thought I could do it w/o logging etc. I do jazzercise 3-4 times per week, and am grateful for that, but the eating out got toooo often and toooo much (do pretty well at home and work). I am 56, weigh 188, but only 5' tall. My first goal is 150 by next spring, so our Halloween date will be a perfect first milestone! Kathi

Original Post by veryvegan:

You guys are all so motivating! Here are my stats:

Female

SW (also CW) = 129

Height = 5'4"

GW = 115

Moderate activity level (run for 45 min 4X per week, also strength training for 25 min 4X per week)

I'm having a really hard time with my self-image right now. This time last year I weighed about 120 lbs and I've managed to put 9 pounds since then, mostly this summer. I chalk it up to vacation and eating out too much. I'm really unhappy at my current size but I keep losing motivation and feeling depressed. I definitely need to be held accountable!!

Hi guys! --- Very Vegan girl let me tell you I feel your pain... I had the exact same stats as you ... BUT I let myself go farther than 9 pounds more like 30 ! so I'm getting myself back on track and disciplining my eating... so you are nipping it in the bud at the perfect time...9 pounds is manageable enough with discipline and excercise and lots o' water you could drop that easy... stay focused and you will make it... DON'T GET DEPRESSED it's a bad cycle ... I was heavily depressed when I gained the 30 pounds I've lost about 13 of it so I've got about 24 or so to go... just stay focused and stay on track with us until October I bet you'll be back to your self ... I'm focusing on mantra's and positive affirmations while I'm getting back to my normal weight too... :)

momof2- welcome! I had an injury a few years back that caused me to stay bedriddin' for 6 weeks --- that's when the gain started slowly... while I was laid up I went for mash potatoes and mac and cheese for comfort because I was so sad it was awful... now I am so grateful for my legs and will never take them for granted... welcome and what are you doing for excersice during your injury? are you just watching calories?

stewmama- I like the extra minutes challenge... I definitely check in later and let you know what I did.... congrats on the weight losss!!! I too am looking forward to going to grocery store and stocking up on carrots and fruits... I think friday's is a great weigh in day... I weighed in today at 144.2! so I'm down 4 pounds from last week which I know was mainly water but still I hadn't seen 148 on the scale since last year and it scared me! I will never get back up to 150's again in my life! so unhealthy and I looked like a whale... let me know if you get the biggest loser challenge power sculpt dvd

kimbrali- welcome lady! both of us are trying to get to 120's so I'm in the same boat as you :) I hope to be down fifteen pounds by halloween lucky if it's 20 ;) I think 1200 in cals is way too low and you'll be hungry and if you like to eat it might cause some bingeing you don't want that.... 1500 - 1600 is low but sufficient enough that you can get some good sustenance with ... I would try to avoid the 1200 cal thing it never works girl.

Slaffer- welcome to the group... 10-15 pounds is sticking to me to and now I'm finally starting to realize what I'm doing to get it finally off of me... quick q? for you is 120pounds normal for a guy at your height? with all the muscle mass guys have I would probably focus on strength training and gaining muscle to burn fat --- guys are lucky in that arena... you seem to be doing alot of cardio?

ok ya'll I'm down to 144.2 so on friday's weigh in after this week I hope that I can get an official 142 and keep it moving :) today I vow to drink 80 oz of water plus get my jump rope and strength training in... I'm noticing toner arms and my stomach is pulling in naturally my butt is lifting which is nice because it's been in the doldrums for too long haha! here's my goals

8/22- 142    8/29 - 140  9/5- 138!!! for now I'm focused on these 3 weeks to get out of this plateau... my goal would be by the 31st I should be at 122 that would be the best birthday present I can give to myself !!!

"I am so happy and grateful now that I weigh 122 and am back to my normal happy weight" - my positive affirmation :)

xo

Hi everybody!  Weight was up a bit this morning, but nothing major.  We were running late (2nd week of school and still haven't recovered from the first week - school starts at 7:40 here).  Not sure, but I think I may have still had pj's on when I weighed.  I was still asleep - that much I know.  LOL!

I have a desk job where I normally sit at the computer all day and spend hours on the phone (mostly on hold).  But, today, I decided to empty out the file cabinets and re-organize things, relabel things, toss things (getting some good squats in today.  LOL!).  We are in between projects right now, so the phones aren't as busy.  Figured I'd spend the next 2 weeks organizing things that have just been tossed aside since March.  Have made good headway.  I'm not counting that in the challenge, though.

I'm also responsible for getting the mail in the mornings.  I usually just stop on my way in, but it is only 2 blocks away.  May start walking up there (and I do mean up - it is uphill to get there) when it cools off a little more.   That will be a little extra work out.  Also, it looks like I'm going to have to start dragging the hose around and watering bushes at home.   

So, where is everybody from?  Nashville-area here.  Work in the city, live about 25 minutes NW of town.  I keep hoping we'll get some rain off of Fay, but I don't think we'll be that lucky.  We've had no rain in August at all.  Hot and dry, but at least we haven't hit 100 yet this year.  Last year we went over 100 every day in August. 

I would like to join in too.   

My stats:

Female 5'6

CW-150.5

GW-135

I really would like to exercise more but have a hard time staying motivated. I did crossfit for about a month and loved it! However the classes were a little too much for the budget.  I'm going to try at home DVD's and walking the dog.

Good luck everyone!

Erin  

I would love to lose 15lb by Halloween! Have had a rough couple of months on the weight loss process and need to really get refocused!

Heaviest: 227

SW last Sept: 207

SW for CC: 195

CW: 184

GW for Halloween: Depends on weigh in Friday...but about 172 would be nice!

GW: Around 160

My lowest weight on CC was 177 a month or so ago…and the weight has been a stubborn one to get rid of! I was down to 176.6 last Monday (usually weigh in on Monday…but Friday’s work just fine) and after a weekend out of town my weight skyrocketed up to 182.4…a whoping 5.8lb in one week!!! I thought maybe some of it was water weight, but my weight as of this morning was even higher at 184! I’ve never had this happen in my life! Not going to panic too much as I’ll let my body adjust to eating better after my weekend of waaaay too much wine and good food, and have worked out the last two days as well. Will start from weight on Friday morning :)

Normal weekly workouts: 4x 35-45 mins cardio (vary between running, stairs and bicycle) and 2x 30min weight sessions (one of which is abs/arms, the other back/legs). These next couple of weeks I’m going to focus on maintaining that workout schedule and getting back into my healthy eating schedule. Also, will not be imbibing ANY alcohol for about the next two weeks (until I leave for a camping trip on August 29)…this was decided BEFORE joining this group, I need to clense my system a little bit!

Some of my food/drink weaknesses: Alcohol, movie theater popcorn, pasta

So very happy to be here, I know this group will be a big support for me, and I hope it will be for everyone else too!

sorayazada - My back is permanently injured, so to speak. I had surgery in '99 when I had a herniated disc in my lower back and couldn't walk at all. From the surgery, it resulted in alot of scar tissue around the nerve (S-1) and causes severe pain in my left leg. Also my back hurts everyday from degenerative discs (the one they operated on and the one above it) and they are literally crumbling away. I have fragments in there and everything. All I can do is try to manage the pain with meds and watch my activity level. Too much and I end up like I am now.

ohtobethinagain - I'm from the Pittsburgh, Pa area (about 30 minutes south). I live in a small town where everyone knows everyone else! lol  Sounds like you were busy at work! I'd def count it in for exercise!

johgar - You can lose that weight again! I bet alot of it is water weight from too much sodium. To actually gain 5 lbs of fat, you'd have to eat 17,500 calories over maintenance! Did you eat that much???  I've limited drinking while losing weight. I've gone out, but only drank a few drinks and made sure I alotted the calories for it for the day. You can have what you want, just gotta plan it in your day.

Tomorrow I go to the dr for my check up since they increased my meds. And now I have to tell her about my leg and back hurting more. Not good. They'll be wanting to do some sort of procedure again. I'm not letting them do amything more to my back. No more needles for me!

momof2funykds - I hope your doctor's appointment goes well tomorrow :)

And a big "Hello!" to all the other people I haven't greeted yet 

As far as where everyone is from goes, I'm from Kansas (good ol' Kansas City in particular) but have spent the past five years in Manhattan, KS.  I like the size of the Little Apple a lot better than gigantic Kansas City -- my lack of navigational skill made it a nightmare to travel through town.  And it certainly is nice to be able to walk almost everywhere I need to go!

I've been slacking off today in every respect... not so good   Maybe I'll go for another walk once it cools down so the humidity is bearable.  It was so nice and cool at 5 AM though -- I really should have taken advantage of it and done more.

I was just thinking of that exact same goal!!!  I see some buds from my other board ( Hi Momof2 and Ohtobethin...!) 

I am 39,

5"3/12in.

CW 190

GW 170   by Halloween!!!!!

Are we weighing in on a certain day??

I will have to sneak weigh in cuz my hubby hid my scale cuz I was obsessing :(

Good luck to all you LOSERS!!! LOL

Welcome new folks!  Glad to have you join us!

Momof2 -- I so applaud your efforts to maintain an activity level despite your pain.  My mom has had several back surgeries as a result of two different car accidents.  I have witnessed how frustrating the recovery process and post-surgery can be.  Your efforts are inspirational for sure.

As for locations, I'm from near Hershey, PA originally and we moved to East coast FL about 4 years ago.  Despite the occasional tropical storm or hurricane, we really love it, and I attribute the sunny weather to an increased effort to getting healthy and fit. 

Ohtobethin -- count those extra work minutes!  it all adds up in the end

Hi, ladyelizabeth!  We'll be doing our official WI and reports on Fridays.  When I found myself obsessing every morning (noon and night!) over weighing myself, I started WI at the grocery store so I wouldn't do it all the time! LOL

Glad to have you join us!

Hi all -just checking in and so glad to see so many have joined. 

I have not weighed myself yet this week but I hope to have lost something.  I am in back to school cleaning mode and it has to be helping with burning off calories.  Today was the basement and tomorow is the garage.

Friday is good for the weigh in. 

To answer where I am -I live in a small town north west of Pittsburgh. About 30 miles from the Ohio border.  I love living out here but the city is working its way out to us and things are starting to get very busy around us.  I guess that's progress LOL.

Jen

sorayazada - I am not sure about others, but for me yes, 120 was/is normal for my fame size as I did competitive distance running, cross country and crew. Currently I am just trying to stay in shape by continuing activities at the recreational level for fun and fitness but seem to be eating more or worse hence the 18lb gain. I don't usually lift as my body type is not conducive to gaining very much muscle easily. Uploaded some more photo's...

I also wanted to share a form / spreadsheet 

In progress but it might make things a little easer, let me know what you think. All responses go right into the master public sheet at the moment, so beware of that when filling out the form.

slaffer - thanks so much for doing the spread sheet.  I'm a bit computer challenged so it took me a while to figure out how to enter -DUH  :)

After all that exercise yesterday I'm up a 1 lb.  I know it really is fluid but it's such a bummer to know you are doing everything right but you still see the scale go up.

I have to stop weighing myself so often.

Jen

that spreadsheet looks great! how do we log it in though?

hey guys :)

slaffer- that spreadsheet is awesome! thank you so much for doing that... gosh it makes it a bit more official and serious. Yea I'm not keen on weight for men so I was just checking...:) what is your regimen?

jkppt- don't be a slave to the scale... sometimes that 1 pound could literally be 1 pound of food that is sitting in your stomach that hasn't digested yet so don't fret and step away from the scale it can go up up to 5 pounds w/in a 24 hour period and vary so it's not accurate all day long... :)

windrinre- don't worry about slacking off ... we all slack off... when I slack off sometimes if it's a day or 2 it's so easy to turn it into 3 days  4 days next thing I know it's been a week and I hadn't worked out ... not good...  taking a walk is always the first step for me to get out of the slumps :) 

momof2- I had a herniated disc as well and had nerve damage I know your pain... my sciatica flares now if it gets too cold or rainy so it's hard... yoga helped me and swimming.... you should look into water therapy it helped me and it's completely safe for your joints... even getting into a hot whirlpool helped alleviate some of the pain for me... see if swimming is an option for you I believe that excercise was the key reason my pain went away and my spine healed so well... by strengthening it... let me know if your doc. say's swimming is cool for you...

johgar- alcohol is the main reason my weight loss takes longer now I just allot it in my cals -- which is smart of you to do... I never used to and my weight was creeping up it was the worst ... now I keep an eye on it... I need to cleanse my system a bit too ;)

ohtobe-I think that is a fantastic way get moving -- squats have been helping shape my bottom half the past year -- I never used to focus on that now that I am it is making a difference

stewmama- I tried to think about all the little things I did to count it in as the challenge but it's so small that I can't remember it all! so sorry I don't think I can remember to join that challenge... I live in warm weather too and feel like it is healthy too!

I live in LA I used to live in NYC and moved about 3 years ago hence the 30 pound weight gain --- depressed, had to get away from a bad relationship and being a single parent all unloaded on me... I missed my NY so much I hated being in LA ... but now I've adjusted made some fantastic friends - had some great times here and my daughter is happy so weight coming off slowly but surely -- only when I am focused and disciplined and I have chosen to get my head out of my ass and do something about it...! no excuses back to my mantra "I am so happy and healthy and love my body in every way" soraya

Just checking back in. Great to see so many people up for this!! :-)

slaffer- i agree with everyone. Loving the spreadsheet. Nice way to keep everything organised and let us see where everyone else is at!! Thanks!!

I'm from the UK, a town kinda near London.

Today was a good day. I ate out but managed to pick a healthy option, which made me feel good. Eating out was always my downfall so i am always extra proud when i manage to do it and not binge. Honestly when i get going i can out eat my boyf easily.

So 158 is my goal by halloween. Gonna be tough but i'm gonna try my hardest.

Hope everyone had good days!!

*hugs*

Glad to see it is of use, let me know if any changes, additions or suggestions!

le400-

Right now, the form is directly linked to the spreadsheet. This means that all you have to do is simply fill out the form, and all the responses will auto magically appear in the spreadsheet in the proper places.

Slaffer -- that is too awesome!  Thank you!!  

Well, I tried do a lot of extra cleaning and laundry and rough housing with the kids today because TS Fay has us really stuck inside -- no gym today!  We did go out for a rain walk, but it was slow going as the kids wanted to jump and play in every puddle -- and there are A LOT! LOL  Did get in some crunches, push-ups and leg work, though.  The rain is making me feel LAZY today, though!  Tomorrow I'm hoping we dry out enough to get back to the gym.

Continued luck and success to all!  This Friday will be our first official WI!!

Great tool!  I didn't know that existed.  I can see a lot of use for that at work for my members to report their work.  Right now, it's just e-mail it in, call it in, or, well, like most........say "oops, I forgot."  LOL! 

Walked 3 miles last night.  I think I may only do half of that tonight.  Tiiiiiiiiiiired today.  But, not sore.  So, that's good. 

Stewmama - send that storm to TN.  I took my daughter to Atlantic Beach, FL over Memorial Day.  It was her first trip ever to the beach, and the first time I've been to the Atlantic.  Grew up in Alabama, so we always went to the Gulf Coast.  My grandparents actually used to own a hotel right on the beach down there - waaay back before the boom.  Really enjoyed Atlantic Beach.  Not touristy like the ALabama coast has gotten.  No highrises, but apparently that is because of the naval base (although we never saw any planes while there - some biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig ships, though).   

Anybody else primarily walking for exercise, and if so, are you doing the Walk Across America thing?  http://exercise.lbl.gov/