Wagon Jumpers - February 22 - 28th, 2009 (Closed, Waiting List Available)
Welcome
(We are currently transitioning to 20 members (from 30). If you are interested in being on the waiting list, knowing that it will be a longer than usual list, please read below and e-mail me.)
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 loose, but what you need to do on a daily basis to meet your long term goals.
There are two rules for Wagon Jumpers:
1. All members must post once per week between Sunday and Friday.
2. All members must check the thread for members who have not posted by Saturday (a short list is posted on Thursday) 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.
If you would like to be a member of this thread please see the guidelines below and send me a PM if you are still interested (there may be a waiting list).
Medium Size Group = Some Time Commitment
The original idea of Wagon Jumpers was to create a close community where participants could get to know each other and hopefully form virtual-life and perhaps even physical-life bonds to create a support network as they attempted long term weight loss.
We quickly discovered that this was impossible with an 'always open' group as there were too many people coming and going. For this reason the group is capped at 30 participants.
A medium sized group means that we have an active thread that produces between 40 - 60 posts per week. Members do not need to read / respond to every post every week. I do notice that those who respond regularly do tend to keep their goals top of mind, and have a better chance to achieve them. I estimate the average time spent by an active member on Wagon Jumpers to be between 1-2 hours per week.
If you are looking for an always open group on CC there are several that operate by different weight criteria, similar motivational patterns etc... There are also many small groups that cap their numbers between 4-10 people to keep the group more intimate, and easier for members to keep up with.
Interested in Joining?
General Guidelines for Joining
1. Are you a wagon jumper?
Do you know how to loose weight, you often have success but then you find yourself loosing interest in your plan, or sabotaging your plan. It's not the "how" to loose weight that is the problem, it's the "how" to stay motivated.
2. Do you have a long way to go?
This group is designed so that members can get to know each other and support each other. Ideally you are planning to be a CC member and part of this forum for at least 6 months or more to achieve your goals and hopefully stay in motivation for a further 6 months or more.
Yes. This is, a long term plan.
3. Do you have the time?
This is a medium sized group, the thread does move fairly quickly each week. If you do not have regular internet access this is likely not the group for you.
Still interested?
Send Supersized a PM. (Please do not reply on the thread)
An overview will be sent to you, you will have a chance to ask questions and an invitation will be sent to you once a spot is open.
Wagon Jumpers Participants
Week 42 Riders:
Supersized (myself)
Week 38 Riders:
Defrog3 - Away to March 7
Week 33 Riders:
Week 32 Riders - Congratulations on 8 Months!:
Week 28 Riders - Congratulations on 7 Months!:
Week 27 Riders:
Week 25 Riders:
Week 22 Riders:
Week 18 Riders:
Week 16 Riders - Congratulations on 4 Months!:
Maureenz - Holiday to March 23rd, 2009
Week 14 Riders:
Week 13 Riders:
Week 12 Riders - Congratulations on 3 Months!:
Week 10 Riders:
Missing In Action:
Missing In Action - 1 Week:
Missing In Action - 2 Weeks:
Current Membership: 24
Current Waiting List: 5
Outstanding Wait List Invites: 0
12 Week CONSISTENCY GOALS
(as set w/o January 11th, 2009)
By April 4th, I will be...
Letsgetitstarted - consuming an average of 1,500 cal/day and 3 times a week for a minimum 30 minutes.
Rpete144057 - logging my food daily and exercising 5 days a week for at least 30 minutes.
Jessicaanne2001 - exercising 5 days a week for at least 30 minutes, and logging my food daily.
Supersized - logging all of my daily calories and eating in a calorie range of no more than 2,000 cal/day and no less than 1,500 cal/day (calculated by weekly averages).
Figurethefat - exercising a minimum of 1,500 minutes each month, and I will restrict using the scale to two weigh-ins per week on Monday and Friday.
Unlimitedana - eating between 1,500 - 1,600 cal/day and exercising three time a week.
Cawilder - maintaining a 500 - 1,000 calorie deficit on a daily basis measured by my food log and, working out 5 to 6X per week combo of cardio and lifting.
Carryonandon - maintaining 300 - 500 calorie deficit daily and, exercising 3x per week.
Raven21 - drinking a minimum of 4 bottles (2L) of water daily and, exercising a minimum of 3X per week.
Nannygabber - doing the NROLFW program 3 times per week, and I will establish a 40/30/30 (Carb/Fat/Protein) macronutrient pattern on a weekly average for a minimum of 5 weeks of the next 12.
Germaica - exercising 3 times a week and logging my food for at least 4 days per week.
Pelkeyjm - logging my food daily and exercising at least 3x per week for at least 30 minutes.
The_Vitamin_Dominatrix - logging my caloric intake on calorie count at least six days every week and, exercising in the gym at least 3 days each week.
Tiegurl - eating 1,500 - 2,000 calories and exercising 5x a week.
Kyashiis - running 20 kilometers a week and making progress on the number of repetitions in my calisthenic exercises (starting at: 20 push ups, 30 sit ups, 0 chin ups, 2x 30 sec plank, 20-30 jump rope)
Lam7 - Logging all daily calories at least 6 times a week and, exercising minimum 40 minutes 3x per week.
Sjenn23231 - consuming and average of 1,500 cal/day and, doing SEAL team type workout 3 times a week.
Msmeg1984 - Following the 40-30-30 diet guidelines in NROLFW and working out 3 a week NROLFW plan.
Constanza - using the CC food log every day and, exercising an average of 4 times per week across the 12 weeks.
Defrog3 - eating with improved nutritional quality of food, specifically ensuring that I am getting enough daily protein and carbs and, walking six miles a week weather permitting.
Amber1l - working out 6 days a week for one and a half hours.
Wenchie58 - keeping my calorie intake between 1,400 - 1,500 a day and, drinking at least 2 liters of water daily.
Bigbitty - logging my calories daily and continue to drink at least 2 liters of water per day.
Previous Threads:
Wagon Jumpers - February 15 - 21st, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 8 - 14th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - February 1 - 7th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - January 25 - 31st, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - January 18 - 24th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - January 11 - 17th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - January 4 - 10th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - December 28 - January 3rd, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - December 21 - 27th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - December 14 - 20th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - December 7 - 13th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - November 30 - December 6th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - November 23 - 29th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - November 15 - 22nd, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - November 9 - 15th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - November 2 - 8th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - October 26 - November 1st, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - October 19 - 25th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - October 12 - 18th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - October 5 - 11th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - September 28 - October 4th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers - September 21 - 27th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers September 14-20th, 2008
Wagon Jumpers September 7-13th, 2008
As always all members are encouraged to tag this thread so that it is easy to find.
Hi all,
I had a bad day last Sunday...craved carbs (emotional eating) but stuck to eating only Graham crackers! (only thing in the house) but at the time that was my "fix" to whatever was pulling me down.
Anyhow, so far this week I'm back on track and keeping to my exercise regime in spite of the snowfall today!!.
I am off to hawaii next week and if Idon't post anything before I leave I will say ALOHA...good luck to all and I shall be in touch when I return at the end of March.
For those who have had a few slumps....pick yourself up and put one foot in front of the other and tell yourself"It's going to OK!...Spring is around the corner and getting more Vitamin D will boost all our moods.
Bye for now....I plan on being active in Hawaii as I have packed my tennis racquet, good walking shoes and the snorkel gear however, a Mai Tai and a few Lava Flow drinks might make the needle on the scale go up........BUT....I'll deal with that when I return. I plan on having a good rest and lots of fun!
Take care everyone...talk to you on my return.
Cheers,
Maureen
How am I doing at the midway point...
My goals (gotta keep them in front of me!)
Kyashiis - running 20 kilometers a week and making progress on the number of repetitions in my calisthenic exercises (starting at: 20 push ups, 30 sit ups, 0 chin ups, 2x 30 sec plank, 20-30 jump rope)
I haven't done well, and I can hardly believe I am halfway through this goal's time frame. I have rated a 20 to 40 percent on the running overall, but I am doing better on the exercises at 50 to 60 percent success.
I have to say it has been a grueling time for me with life interfering regularly. It makes me more painfully aware of how my goals collide with the reality of day to day life. Grrhh.
Sooooo, I am thinking smaller. Can I get 10 kilometers in a week? Even if it is walking??? What is causing this lack of "goaling in" as the Japanese say???...
- weather - it is winter here after all, and we are having a fairly rainy winter which I have never thought about exercising in on a daily basis before
- health - not mine... family responsibilities, etc. THAT'S the life part
- mental swings up and down - maybe partly winter blues, too much work, various other interferences
- over committing - my goals are set pretty high for someone who has my responsibilities and work schedule
- ever-changing schedule - a fact of my life, but also a part of my life I enjoy, because after all, I do have some flexibility
I intend to shoot for 10 kilos a week running time and the usual calisthenics to "achieve my goal" in the final week of this time frame.
Laura One thing that I have to keep reminding myself as a wagon jumper is that maintenance is success as well. Many of us loose and then gain back all plus some, so even when we are 'off the wagon' if we are off the wagon and maintaining that is better than off the wagon and gaining.
Carol It wasn't until I was exercising regularly that I understood the destressing part of exercise, for me it's swimming, but we really don't have good swimming facilities around here.
Maureen Have a great trip, let us know when you expect to be back so that I don't send you a whole bunch of 'where are you?' e-mails.
Kyashiis I think the most challenging thing about goal setting is finding that balance between challenging yourself enough and making them attainable considering the other obligations in our lives. It's taken me three tries and this is the first time I've made it to the half way mark thinking I'll actually achieve this one this time.
Sara.
TWO DAY REMINDERS
Back on my game this week, here are the two day reminders. Please watch for these members to post today or tomorrow. If they have not posted by Saturday or are on the MIA list on Sunday please send them a polite a positive message reminding them to stay on track with their goals and involved in the group.
Missing In Action:
Missing In Action - 1 Week:
I'm here....honest I am!!
Halfway point already? Holy cow...I might make it 12 weeks on goal! Cool! I have been doing well with goals and even added exercise. I discovered Wii! I didn't get Wii Fit, but the tennis and boxing moves can bring an old gal to a sweat in no time. I was playing tennis against the computer and before I knew it I was sweating and panting and 2 hours had passed! Lame wasn't enough of a description a few days later....I could barely get out of bed. I figure at this point anything that gets me moving and sweating is a good thing, once this weather breaks it will be easier to get outside and do different things.
Have a great week all!
Hi All,
I'm sick this week... been coughing up a storm. I think i have bronchitis... finally got a doctors appt. today...
Not doing well with my goals... I'm still off track, went through a moody period earlier this week where i was feeling really down. I'm trying to pull through this and get started again, but its very challenging this time for some reason.
Hi, all,
Here's a recent article from nytimes that I thought everyone would enjoy:
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/no-w inner-in-major-diet-study/
The results are probably not that surprising to many of us wagon-jumpers, though!!
Happy Health Gain!
D
Sara & Julie, thanks so much for the needed pep talk, you girls are kindred spirits. I knew I could find the help I needed in WJ. I have read and re-read your kind words and reflected on them. I have come to a realization. My priorities in my life (if I look at my actions) have been pleasure and comfort seeking through food and leisure (like TV watching). This will not lead me to my ideal life: healthy body, mind, lifestyle. Of course this is not going to give me the results that I want. My actions are leading me away from it! This is true in other areas of my life. A change of mindset and actions is required. In the concrete I have started putting up post-it notes with positive reminders of my goals. This will help keep my goals at the front of my mind. Like you said Julie, spring is right around the corner, so I put up pictures of spring flowers and landscapes around me. Consistency creates stability. Stability is what we need. So true, I never thought of it that way. So I will strive to make small changes, to lead me to big changes. Sara it's so true, I make bad choices, put off exercise and keep compounding the bad choices, saying I'll do it later. Later I will be better, I just need to rest and get a new plan. OMG I totally see myself in that. Specially the Chinese food, lol.
I'm feeling better now. Thanks so much, have a great week everyone!
Hey!! Sorry this is coming in so late! Thanks for the note, Sara.
This has been the busiest week of the semester for me so far. Exams, papers, presentations, cases and student consulting client meetings. whew! We did get a client signed today, though. :-)
Basically, I haven't been eating as well as I should be and I keep rationalizing it. :-( What happened to the willpower I had a few months ago??? Oh well, all I can do is keep logging what I eat and add in more exercise. It helps that the weather is getting better. It doesn't help that I was cough-a-saurus rex last week and am still getting over the cold...
Needless to say, I've got some catching up to do! Wish me luck b/c there's a dress I need to fit into in a few weeks, and I'm not sure I do right now. No better motivation, right?
Well, off for a girl's night to see "He's just not that into you." Should be funny.
There is a book called the Beck Diet Solution - or something like that - anyways it is a great book because it is not a diet but rather cognitive therapy for dieters. I did about 1/2 of it and caught onto what they were getting at it. I found it very helpful in uncovering what my blocks were against dieting, restriction, delayed gratification.
It might be helpful. She does have a website as well.
I'm here! I'm here!
my goal update...well, my eating has been much better these past two weeks. My strengths are eating healthy for breakfast and lunch. However, dinner tends to be a little more tough. I keep reminding myself that its ok if dinner isnt quite too healthy as long as the rest of the day is good. Where I know I need help is with exercising. I have had tons of energy at work this week but it seems that as soon as I get home the energy is gone. I carpool with my boyfriend so going to the gym right after work is not an option right now. My goal was to log everything and I have not been and I have not been working out, but I am proud of myself for getting back on the wagon and putting in the effort to eat right.
Wenchie Great! I'm glad you are seeing the finish line as a positive. And hey, whatever gets you sweating, the computer kicks my butt at chess, it would probably be better for me if I was challenging it to tennis.
MsMeg Ick! I'm glad I got the head fever cold I hate bronchitis, so hard to get rid of. I think we have all been in those moods, of course exercising and eating right will help, but it's the last thing you want to do when you're down and sick, hot chocolate and a video seem like a much better idea. I go with the slow crawl back to the wagon. Find one or two very small things I can change and control and use those to build success. Like right now my two small goals of logging and slowly reducing my calories. I just couldn't bounce back from 3,000 cal/day of take away, so it's a slow weaning off.
Denise There's been a number of articles on this recently, that basically it's the practice of making food choices, if you hold yourself accountable, and count something, doesn't matter what, you tend to make better choices overall and see results.
Germaica I have found a lot of 'side benefits' of my healthy kick. I'm definitely a curl up on the couch with my comfort food and a good show/movie kinda girl. However these small changes have changed me. I don't watch nearly the same amount of TV I used to.... in fact I've turned into not only on of those people who doesn't have cable (we haven't had cable for years but because we live downtown we got 5 of the big stations)... but it's actually been well over a year since I watched an actual TV broadcast. This wasn't a goal when I set out, it's still not a goal. But as I set goals in other areas of my life in addition to health and fitness I just became more productive, more social and found better things to do with my time. I figure 3 years ago I watched, on average 3 hours of television a night... 2 30-minute sit comes 1 1-hour drama and 1 1-hour reality show.... now, I watch 2-6 hours of DVD's per week. (Depending on if my partner and I watch 1 or 2 videos together on the weekend and I have 1 video night per week with my mum).
Anyways, this long ramble is all to say that building the consistency and stability really does lead to life changes not just weight and health changes.
Carrie It's in the nature of wagon jumping that we tend to go through big ups and big downs in motivation. For some they happen over weeks others they happen over months. Part of building the consistency you need to meet and maintain your goals is finding your pattern and then working out a strategy that fits it. It's fine to have a plan that works when your are supermotivated, the plan that is right for you is the one you can and want to maintain when you really don't feel like it.
Carol My favourite blogger Health Habits was talking about that a few weeks back when the new Oprah diet came out. He thinks the exercises aren't bad, the nutrition section is simply standard from any other book but he does agree that it has one of the best approaches to health and fitness psychology challenging readers to identify and develop strategies to work around their personal psychological and emotional roadblocks.
Jessica Good job on getting the eating back on track. If you can keep breakfast and lunch in order then you can work slowly on dinner. Do you have time to go to the gym before work? I really can never get myself truly motivated to go to the gym, but I find despite me being a terribly grumpy person in the morning, there are less excuses I can find in the morning (besides being tired and not wanting to go) and once I've done it I'm done and I feel like I've accomplished something for the rest of the day. I also find it gives me more energy throughout my day.
Sara.
*Whew!* I'm back!
Sorry I went MIA, my wireless drivers went bad and I ended up having to reinstall my entire OS to get the internet back.
Half-way check-in:
I've actually been trying to maintain this month, and I've done it. I weigh the same today as I did on the first of February. I haven't been as diligent at recording my calories as I'd like; I have a few days where I recorded my calories up until about 4:00 and then slacked off. I haven't made it to the gym once this week, but I have been exercising at home to make up for it.
Next month I plan to begin losing weight again. It should be easier to get out to the gym or to a walking park since I finally got my car back this week (and it doesn't hurt that the weather is warming up either)! I'll really have to get it in gear, my wedding is less than seven months away!
So, school has had the best of me lately and I'm swamped with papers, projects, portfolio stuff, and studio time. So sorry I've been MIA for a bit, but I'm recommitted and ready to dive back into fitness. The weather here is starting to warm up a tad..so i'm getting excited to get outside.
As for my half way check in: I haven't been logging. Not a single thing. I've been conscious of what I eat but have cheated a bit. I haven't lost weight but haven't gained either. I've been going to the gym when I can and find that I can spend longer amounts of time on the elliptical than before. I've also been hearing that people think i've lost weight so maybe I'm losing inches. I was recently fitted for a dress for my brother's wedding and my measurements were 38", 30", 42". I think I 'm going to use that as a springboard to guage my weightloss instead of weight lost. So, I'm ready to get going....
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