Wagon Jumpers - September 20 - 26, 2009 (Closed, 2 waiting list spots available)
Welcome
(I keep the waiting list capped at 4 people as it can be a 16 week wait with that length. If you are interested in spots 3 or 4 please read below and contact 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 finding its optimum level is between 20 and 25 participants.
A medium sized group means that we have an active thread that produces between 30 - 45 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.
Google Group
We have recently added a google group as an option for members, past members, and members on the waiting list. If you would like access to the google group (and are in one of the above categories) send a message to beaglesmuggler (at) roger.com with your username and e-mail address and I will add you to the google group.
Wagon Jumpers Participants
Year 1 - Week 20 Riders - One Year 5 Months!:
Supersized 
(myself)
Year 1 - Week 16 Riders - Congratulations on One Year 4 Months!:
Year 1 - Week 15 Riders:
Defrog3 - Maternity Leave to October 31, 2009
Year 1 - Week 12 Riders - Congratulations on One Year 3 Months!:
Year 1 - Week 10 Riders:
Year 1 - Week 5 Riders:
Week 51 Riders:
Week 44 Riders - Congratulations on 11 Months!:
Week 42 Riders:
Week 38 Riders:
Week 17 Riders:
Week 12 Riders - Congratulations on 3 Months!:
Week 9 Riders:
Week 8 Riders - Congratulations on 2 Months!:
Week 7 Riders:
The_Vitamin_Dominatrix - Getting Married away to Oct 10, 2009
Week 5 Riders:
Week 3 Riders:
Week 1 Riders:
NEW:
Missing In Action:
Missing In Action - 1 Week:
Missing In Action - 2 Weeks:
Current Membership: 24
Current Waiting List: 2
Outstanding Wait List Invites: 0
12 Week CONSISTENCY GOALS
(as set w/o September 20, 2009)
By December 12th, I will be...
Supersized - NEW: Go to the Gym and or Walk/Bike to work at least 3 days a week for 9 of 12 weeks.
Laura42 - NEW:Stay on nutrition plan 3 out of 4 weekends each month. MAINTENANCE:Lift weights three times a week.
Figurethefat - NEW:Eat 5 serves of fruit or vegetables everyday. MAINTENANCE:1500 exercise minutes a month
Merimeriqcontrary - NEW:Hover around 1200 calories(non-workout days) and around 1400-1500 calories on workout days, 6 days/week. (at least 9 out of 12 weeks). MAINTENANCE:Work out at least 4 times/week for at least 10 out of the 12 weeks.
Carryonandon - NEW:Follow this meal plan: Prepare homemade dinners (or eat leftovers) 5 out of 7 days per week. Have at least one fresh fruit or vegetable daily Mon - Fri. MAINTENANCE:workout 3x per week
Msmeg1984 - MAINTENANCE:Excercise at least 3 days a week for 9 of 12 weeks and average calorie intake of 2,000 cals per week.
White_Sakura - NEW:maintain any deficit for 5/7 days of the week. MAINTENANCE:to burn 2500 calories a week.
Raven21 - NEW: Eat 5 servings of fruit and/or vegetables daily. MAINTENANCE:run 4 days a week minimum, increasing speed and distance over the course of the 12 weeks.
BigBitty - NEW: to log my calories from the day I have the baby. MAINTENANCE: to continue drinking 2.5 litres of water per day.
Ncurlee - NEW:To achieve a 500 caloric deficit (or 500 calories below your burn rate) 5 of 7 days a week.
Cawilder - NEW:80% of the time I will seat sitting down and put down my fork/spoon/food in between bites. MAINTENANCE:Do, 5 hours of cardio / week + 2 weight lifting sessions / week
Bleedtoblue - NEW: to log my calories at least five days a week for the next twelve weeks.
Austiemg - NEW:to work out for at least 30 min (cardio) three (or more) times a week.
The_Vitamin_Dominatrix - NEW:I will record all my calories at least six days every week. MAINTENANCE:I will continue to drink at least 2+ liters of water each day.
Opanci - NEW:By December 12th, I will be accurately logging all my intake 6 of 7 days. MAINTENANCE:Get outside 6 of 7 days.
Kyashiis - NEW:log my calories daily by midnight 6 days a week. MAINTENANCE:run a minimum of 3 kilos 12 times over the 12-week period.
Nannygabber - MAINTENANCE:Exercise: Cardio 3x/wk MAINTENANCE:Eating: 150 grams of protein 5 days per week
Wenchie58 - NEW:With my new pedometer to walk 10,000 steps at least 4 days a week for 10 out of the 12 weeks. MAINTENANCE:To continue to eat between 1400-1500 calories a day.
Dovelette - NEW:NROLFW or NROL minimum of 2x/week for 8 out of 12 weeks.
Vcruicky - NEW: To eat completely vegetarian meals 4 days a week.
Previous Threads:
Wagon Jumpers - September 13 - 19, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - September 6 - 12, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - August 30 - September 5, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - August 23 - 29, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - August 15 - 22, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - August 9 - 15, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - August 2 - 8, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - July 26 - Aug 1, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - July 19 - 25, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - July 12 - 18th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - July 5 - 11th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - June 28 - July 4, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - June 21 - 27th, 2009
Wagon Jumper - June 14 - 20th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - June 7 - 13th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers May 31 - June 6th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers May 24 - 30th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 17 - 23rd, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 10 - 16th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - May 3 - 9th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 26 - May 2nd, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 19 - 25th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 12 - 18th, 2009
Wagon Jumpers - April 5 - April 11th, 2009
As always all members are encouraged to tag this thread so that it is easy to find.
This Week's Topic
GOAL SETTING!
That's right this is the week for the goal setting challenge! I highly recommend you post your goal EARLY in the week. All goals that meet the criteria below will be posted on this weeks thread and stay live until December 12, 2009. If your goal does not meet the criteria below, I will ask clarifying questions on the thread and send you a message, the final goal, must be posted no later than September 25, 2009.
The Rules
1. Goal Setting is Optional
Goal setting is a motivational part of this group, if it does not work for you as a motivational tool, please feel free to be a cheerleader for those who do set goals.
2. Goals must be posted on the September 21 - September 25, 2009 thread
No exceptions. Editing the goals into the main thread is a time commitment for me, so I ask that anyone who wants to participate makes sure that the goals are up on the thread between June 28th and July 4th... goals posted earlier or later will not be in the introduction thread, although do feel free to update the group on your progress as we go along.
3. Consistency Based Goals Only
While we all have goals that read: I want to be X lbs or Y size... these are not things that you directly control, they are results of your consistent work to lead a healthier lifestyle. Tell us what you are going to DO to improve your health, are you going to eat better, exercise, drink more water, take walks, run, bike, climb, do yoga, meditate, breath....
4. Measurable Goals
At the end of 12 weeks you will need a quantifiable way to say if you succeeded or not... Saying you are going to "eat better" is a broad objective, and depending on your mood on the 12th week you may be overly optimistic or pessimistic about your success. On the other hand if you say you are going to "eat 1 fruit and 1 vegetable every day" or "eat at an average of 2,000 cal/day" or "limit myself to no more than 1 serving of red meat each week" these goals you can measure success against objectively.
5. One New Goal + One Maintenance Goal (only)
This is always the single most difficult rule for members, old members let new members know how helpful this has been in the long run. Wagon jumpers are notorious for making well formed elaborate plans that we inevitably can't or don't follow through on.
You are 100% free to have tens, hundreds or thousands of goals for yourself, however we will prioritize and limit here.
A maintenance goal must be something that you already have well in hand, that you are not currently struggling to incorporate into your daily life. A maintenance goal functions as a benchmark as you add a new goal to see if adding a new goal throws off your already established habits.
I HIGHLY recommend that new mebmers stick to 1 new goal and avoid the maintenance goal altogehter.
Make sure if you are submitting two goals that you highlight which is the maintenance goal so that I don't come back to you and ask you to pick one new goal only.
6. Keep it simple
A goal should be easily able to articulate in one shot sentence, if I need a calculator to figure out your goal or if it takes a paragraph to explain it's likely too complicated for you to follow for 12 weeks.
7. Have Fun!
And that's and order! Remember goal setting is supposed to be affirming and positive, not oppressive and punishing. Keep your goals simple and achievable, it's remarkably hard to keep even simple promises for 12 weeks, but intensely rewarding if you do.
Terry, Rachel, Vera and Meri please re: post
Sorry to those above who I really dropped the ball on getting the thread up late, to make sure I keep you on the lists this week and that I get your goals into the thread please do try to re-post here as well just to be sure.
Vera As I understand your goal you are including one new goal which is to eat all vegetarian meals for four of seven day for nine of twelve weeks. Correct?
The remainder that you are talking about - logging, walking, clean eating - are goals that you are doing personally put are not putting into this 12-week goal tracking session and will consider for next time.
Also don't worry about not having an exercise goal, I tend to find the surest way to fail is to put too many goals up all at once that will be too much change and pressure on your life too fast.
Meri I'm not sure if your new goal is to log your calories for 6 days a week or to eat in a calorie range of 1200 to 1500 depending on workout. These are two separate goals. Although the calorie range more easily facilitates the logging than vice versa. The question is which one are you focusing on as a personal challenge.
For your maintenance goal I'm not sure if it is a maintenance goal. If you are already working out regularly and you feel that is what you will easily manage if all other things in your life remain equal then you are good. If you are saying this is new (i.e. just found gym, don't regularly work out) then it would be a new goal and I would suggest choosing one of logging, calorie range or exercise.
Terry Can you remind me what your logging goal is... to log food ___ days a week for ___ of 12 weeks?
Goal: Go to the Gym and/or walk or bike to work at least 3 times a week for 9 of 12 weeks
I'm only putting one goal up this session because my last two have not been overwhelmingly successful.
In the background I am also trying to stay on my nutrition plan for breakfast, snacks and lunch as well as a minimum of 3 dinners at home during the week.
Goals:
New: Stay on nutrition plan 3 out of 4 weekends each month. Sometimes that will be running a deficit, and sometimes that will be eating at maintenance. Whichever it is, I need to NOT BLOW IT ON THE WEEKENDS!!! I'm leaving wiggle room for one weekend a month because I really struggle with this issue.
Maintenance: Lift weights three times a week.
Thanks Laura Good goals I have them listed.
New goal: Eat 5 serves of fruit or vegetables everyday.
Maintenance goal: 1500 exercise minutes a month
NEW: Hover around 1200 calories(non-workout days) and around 1400-1500 calories on workout days, 6 days/week. (at least 9 out of 12 weeks)
True. I'd rather focus on keeping my calories in check. Usually it all goes downhill if I don't log dinner.
Maintenance: Work out at least 4 times/week for at least 10 out of the 12 weeks.
And as for my maintenance, yes, I already work out 3 times a week and I wanted to challenge myself to workout four times a week, since I finally found a gym I like (I only go to the gym in the autumn and winter because it's not subject to weather conditions).
Also, I specified last time that I considered a mere half an hour would count as cardio workout (in-line skating), but I noticed I tend to go out for more, usually at least an hour.
But if that's not ok, then I'll leave it at three (as it was right now) and be happy that I work 4 times per week.
Sorry I didn't reply faster.
I think 3 months on wagon jumpers is the only thing I've ever been consistent about as far as my weightloss efforts go. Never in my life have I been actively and consciously tried to share my thoughts on weightloss and emotional eating as well as exercising. Mostly I'd try to lose weight by shocking my body and then rewarding myself for deprivation. Now I reward myself less and have begun to conceive eating healthy and convincing my family to do so too as normal. Sure, I don't always do it, sure it's not particularly easy, but I got the knack of it.
I met people here who are tons more successful than I ever dreamed and people who are incredibly supportive, plus I don't bore my friends with thrash talk about my figure anymore and have started to convince them to come out to play more.
So I guess the best thing about this not very successful weightloss effort is that in these three months I've become more positive. (Which is a huge step forward).
Laura Now I have goals from both our Laura's! Thanks!
Meri Sounds good, the idea of the maintenance goal is that it is something that you would not find particularly challenging to do on it's own as a pass / fail, but that you want to keep an eye on and make sure you don't drop the ball and stop doing it as you add in something that is new. Glad to hear the more positive outlook is happening. Next, the physical transformation!
My goals:
Maintenance - workout 3x per week
New - Follow this meal plan: Prepare homemade dinners (or eat leftovers) 5 out of 7 days per week. Have at least one fresh fruit or vegetable daily Mon - Fri.
I slightly altered the goals b/c I tried them out this past week and realized that the number of nights eating at home was a bit too specific (M-Th and one day F-Sun). We enjoy going out sometimes and you can get better deals during that M-Th time period ;-) Guess I gotta consider what's compatible with my life and finances.
Good luck everyone! This goal setting has been working slowly, but surely for me, and I wish I had a forum to do it in other areas of my life. There is something about accountability that works. Thanks for keeping this up, Sara!
My Goal is pretty similar to last time:
Excercise at least 3 days a week for 9 of 12 weeks and average calorie intake of 2,000 cals per week
The calories may need to be adjusted as I train for the half marathon, but I think I'll be OK on a 2,000avg/week for this 12 week challenge.
Its hard to believe that I've been part of this group for 1 year and 4 months now! My journey over that period of time has really taken me through a lot of experiences. I've learned quite a bit through this group and I am so thankful for all the advice and support I've received. Hopefully you will all be here to cheer me through the next 6+ months as I train for a half marathon!
I look forward to a long future with this great group and hope I can continue to be as supportive to you all as you have been for me.
Hi,
I have been thinking about this alot. As wierd as it sounds I have been drowning my frustration and pain about my knee in FOOD... I am on alot of Alleve to get the pain down and maybe the inflammation...
OK, so I think my two goals are:
1) Do, 5 hours of cardio / week + 2 weight lifting sessions / week
2) 80% of the time stop before eating and ask if I really require this food and be mindful of eating while understanding the ramifications of the food choice.
I will log my food and make this a base level skill but I think I am reaching for a better control over my emotional eating which continues to hamper any progress.
Hope this makes sense.
-Carol
Carry Thanks, and your goal alteration seems like a good idea to manage flexibility.
Meg I put both your goals as maintenance, is that what you were looking for?
Carol I'm guessing your exercise goal is your maintenance goal and your food goal is your new goal, but I'm not sure.
On the food goal, one of my questions would be how are you going to be able to measure that in an objective way? I think it goes to a core issue of emotional eating, and will be very successful if it can be applied and measured. The question is how to make sure you are doing this successfully and recording it. I suppose you could use a day-timer when you eat an simply give yourself check marks for every meal you do it at an then count the check marks at the end. But, this seems a bit labour intensive to me. Any ideas?
Alright, so I guess for goal-making, I'm going to go with what I had last week. My goal is to maintain any deficit for 5/7 days of the week. My maintenance goal is to burn 2500 calories a week. Does that sound reasonable?
Happy Monday Everyone!
Well I'm away for work this week so I don't know if I'll be able to check in as often as I'd like to, schedule is pretty hectic with interviews.
I have been giving a lot of thought to my goals and this is what I have decided on (and Laura aka figurethefat thanks for postings your goals because I'm stealing one ). So here are my goals:
Maintenance - run 4 days a week minimum, increasing speed and distance over the course of the 12 weeks.
New: Eat 5 servings of fruit and/or vegetables daily.
I am not ready to commit the time to counting calories BUT since vegetables are generally not that calorie dense I figure if I consume more I should be eating fewer calories, PLUS they are very good for me and full of fibre which is something I've been trying to up my intake of.
Meg - congrats on starting to train for a 1/2 marathon! I am moving towards that goal as well. The 1/2 marathon here in my local community is in July of next year and I would LOVE to participate. Do you have a set training plan that you're following or are you just kind of making it up as you go? I would love to share experiences and cheer each other on if you're up for it. I generally run about 5k (or 3.1 miles) every time I go out, however I know I need to start increasing my distance and speed over the next 9 months in order to complete the 1/2 marathon and do it in a time I can be proud of.
Congrats everyone on your goals, looks like we're all setting up for a great session!
Have a great week everyone and I'll try to get on here again sometime soon!
Carrie
Sara - yes! Both maintenance goals.
Raven - Im doing the couch to 5k, then this 10K training program and then the last 10 weeks i'm following this program.
If you are running a 5k pretty consistently, when training shouldn't be too difficult for you. Halhigdon.com and JeffGalloway.com also have half marathon programs, but it depends how many days per week you want to dedicate to it.
The reason I chose MarathonRookie.com is because I'm only concerned with finishing, i have no time goal and this program just focuses on building up endurance instead of building speed. I'm going to detail my progress on my blog www.megintraining.blogspot.com so, starting this week, I'll post on my experience with the training program.
OK, as a new member to Wagon Jumpers I will follow your advice and set one new goal:
I will accurately log my caloric intake 5 of 7 days per week being sure to stay 500 calories below my estimated burn rate on those days.
Her we go! Good luck everyone!
I would like to continue drinking 2.5 litres of water per day. And I would like to log my calories from the day I have the baby (any day now)
bb
Hi everyone,
Just a quick word, I'm still sick. I guess I caught my hubby's bronchitis. I've been coughing for about 3 weeks, and getting tired of it. Will be seeing a doctor tonight. Thanks to Sara and carryonandon for the reminders to check in. I hope I will feel well soon. I haven't been able to exercise in about a month between my hubby being sick and myself.
Take care all,
Caroline
Germaica, sorry to hear you're feeling bad! Have you tried taking any extra vitamin C? I like Emergencee powder you can add to water or jiuce and Airborne is also very good. It might boost your immune system and help you get over it faster.
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