A good start

Well, it's Thursday evening and we already have 11 participants. I'm hoping we get to 20 by Sunday night, that would make for quite a sweet pot o'money. Keep spreading the word!

2010 Biggest Loser?

Are we doing this again? I'd love to give out some friendly motivation!! I don't have as much to lose, but I think I can compete pretty well.

Trying to keep it off

Jason, I came to the realization a long time ago that if I want to eat I will never weigh much less than 137 or 138 lbs. I work out pretty much every day so I'm not willing to give up letting myself eat on top of that. We maintain a really healthy diet I think but I also don't deny myself an occasional treat and I never will. At the end of the competition I weighed 128 lbs., a totally unsustainable weight for me unless I literally diet pretty much every day and keep a food journal and all that and I'm just not interested. It sounds like your body wants to be at 177 and that seems totally reasonable for your height. You weight loss was incredible but I wouldn't stress it too much if a few lbs. come back on.

Jason's update

I finally hit my target weight 2 weeks ago. Keep in mind, Julie was in Spokane all that week with Jonny giving me extra time to work out. That also meant I was cooking my own meals (not anything remotely healthy, but also not very much of it...like Top Ramen for dinner, and drinking my breakfast) To finally drop all the way down to my target weight, I practically starved myself for 2 days with heavy workouts. Then on the final day, I ran 3 miles to the gym, played basketball for an hour, lifted weights for about an hour, and then ran home (in 85 degree weather). I dropped about 6 lbs in that workout.

I started at 214 lbs and ended at 169 lbs (45lbs total weight lost).

Since Julie was in Spokane and I was by myself, to celebrate, I bought an entire bag of chips and oreos and downed them ALL by myself in one day (nearly in 1 sitting). Then I topped it off with Mountain Dew and a half gallon of milk to rehydrate myself in addition to my regular meals and generally went and gained 9 lbs back the same day. 2 more pounds the next day too.

So, now I am concentrating on getting back to like 175lbs-ish and maintaining it. I can't seem to get below 177 anymore though and I'm practically through caring about it. I've since eaten another entire bag of chips (this time with chilli-cheese dip), and I went out and bought another carton of Oreo's today for no good reason and a Venti Java Chip Frapuccino to top it off...and it was all totally worth it.

Amazing job people!

I know nobody has added anything on this for a long time but I have to send out my congrats to a few people. Obviously I haven't seen everybody who competed but I've seen a few since the big weight losses and they look AWESOME!!! I've seen both Angela and Justin and they look completely skinny and amazing. And although I haven't seen Jason or Julie in person I saw a picture of Julie from their family camp-out and she looks incredible. When I was commenting to Sara on how fabulous she looked she told me she wished she had a picture of Jason because he went on to lose another 11-12 lbs. AFTER the competition! I know Angela continued on as well and dropped about another 5 lbs. so they were dedicated, dedicated, dedicated.

Who else have I seen. Oh yes my two son-in-laws, Greg and Matt look so, So, SO SO GOOD and are in great shape. Being as my daughters, Sara and Lianna, were skinny minnies already, they never had any weight to drop as far as I'm concerned so they still look wonderful and I know Matt and Lianna are dedicated in their work-out routine and do it almost every day so they look amazing.

Me? I've gained 9 lbs. back. Gotta love those chocolate-covered peanuts.

Go for it Jason!

Jason, like I told Angela who also wants to drop another 10 lbs., you should definitely go for it now.  The worst part about dieting is getting motivated and the motivation and drive is there right now.  It'll be easier to drop it now than any other time.

I can't believe how much thinner your face is, that's actually where I notice it most of myself too.  It's a good feeling isn't it, that and the sagging clothes that were too tight at one point.

Honestly I wasn't so sure that Angela wasn't going to beat you, she was a driven woman and worked her tail off, obviously.  I berated myself at one point for having the one bad week in week 9 as I thought it probably cost me 2nd place but Angela would have beaten me anyway.  Good for both of you and good luck in the next few weeks, let us know if you reach the 40 lb. loss.  How incredible that you already have 30+ under your belt, what a phenomenal accomplishment.

And GO JULIE too, I know she dropped a lot of weight as well, good for her!

before & after

Before (October 2008)



After (March 2009)

So here's the difference maker!! I'm sure to have cut at least half a pound of hair off on weigh in day and I won by 8/100th's of a percent! I gotta thank Sara for the idea though, early on in the contest!

0.08% = 0.17lbs = 2.7-ounce margin of victory

Angela, wow you must have worked your TAIL OFF to even make it that close!!

Congrats to us all! Greg and Sara, this was a great idea! I still am hoping to lose another 10-ish pounds or so before all is said and done until I am in the shape I want to be in. (I've given myself 4 weeks to do it so I'm not tempted to slack.)

Julie and I are going to the gym on a regular basis and are making a habit of it (I still got up this morning at 5:30 to hit the gym) so this has been a positive experience all around. I would love to do this again next year (though I hope I don't NEED to do it)

Thank you all for the dedication and motivation!

And the winner is...

...(drum roll please)...

JASON REYNOLDS-14.48%
SO CLOSE IN SECOND-Angela-14.40%
THIRD-Julie Montgomery-12.8%
Justin-11.5%
Julie Reynolds-10.6%
Matt-10.1%
Adam-9.3%
Helena-9.0%
Greg-8.0%
Dave-7.0%
Doug-6.4%
Sara-4.2%
Wayne-4.0%
Lianna-3.8%

CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE!

Also, the estimate of the total weight loss is 237.2 pounds. That is amazing!!!!!! Basically, we have lost the whole weight of one of our guys. A person's worth of weight, that is something to be proud of.

First item of business. Money is in the mail today. Not that anybody is interested.

Second item of business. It has been suggested, and I agree, that it would be nice to keep this site up. People can continue to post good recipes, any weight struggles or triumphs they'd like to share, and come back here to get reinspired if a pound or two creeps back.

This has been great and thanks to everyone for participating. We plan on making this an annual event for anyone that is interested. Of course, next year we'll need new participants since all of us will still be so slim and sexy!

CONGRATS AGAIN TO EVERYONE!

Dying of suspense!

I know I have to wait a few more hours for our final results but it's nearly killing me.  At this point I'm hoping for third place but don't know if I could have possibly managed that or not.  I worked my tail off this week in an attempt to do so at least and I am thrilled with my outcome so that is mainly what counts.  I'm also so interested in our total loss as a group, I know it's going to be impressive.  I am POSITIVE it'll be at least 200 pounds so just picture 20 ten pound bags of flour laying out on your counter, that is a LOT!!!!!  WE DID GOOD!  Congratulations to everybody, as I've said before, I'm proud of us all.

I'm interested too!

I am really hoping everybody would send in their grand weight loss too as it'll be so fun to see how much the grand total will be.  With Jason having lost 30 pounds and I know of at least 3 who have lost over 20 pounds that right there is pushing 100 pounds!!!!!  WOW ARE WE GOOD!!!!  That leaves 10 more people so I am sure we'll top the 200 lb. mark.  Isn't that gratifying to think about.  Can you believe we're down to the last 4 days, it'll actually almost be hard to figure out what to eat now to maintain our weight and not keep losing for everybody who will then be done.  I'm inspired by those of you who are going to continue on.  Ten weeks was PLENTY for me and I have no intention of dieting one more day after Monday.

Cold hard cash

Just a reminder: It was decided that third place will get $20, second place will get $50, and first will take home $210. In case you forgot. Or were thinking about having a cookie this evening.

Total tonage

Six more days! I was hoping that when everyone sends me their percentages on Monday that they will also send their total weight loss. I won't post individual results but thought it would be fun to total them and show how many pounds we have lost as a group. Greg and I are estimating it to be over 200 pounds!

Angela and I were talking and no matter who wins, we all win because we have all lost weight. How's that for a little bit of motivation in these final days?

GOOD LUCK!

Poor Julie

So, I spent a week in Sioux Falls, S. Dakota with my daughter and son-in-law and even though I felt like I did awesome for the most part, I had one REALLY bad day (ingested approximately 20,000 calories at a Brazilian brunch buffet) and never did work out so my weigh-in was dismal.  Plus, since I  was on a foreign scale I wasn't really sure where I would stand so guessed at 10.5% but I don't think it would have been that good after weighing myself here, I think it would have been under 10% so that means both Adam and Matt also beat me.  So after killing myself for 8 weeks I blew it in the 9th.  I'll kick it into high gear again for the last few days but it'll be too little too late.  But what a ride it has been huh, what a great idea this was and no matter what, I went beyond my goal so like Angela keeps telling Sara, no matter what, we have all won.  And on that note, and sorry to the rest of you, GO ANGELA!!!!!!!

Adam's percentage

Adam clocked in at a very impressive 10.7% this week. Go Beede!

Results-Week 9

This is it guys, the last lag of our journey. Greg and I are committed to go out with a bang. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!

Jason-12.6%
Angela-11.4%
Julie Montgomery-10.5%
Matt-10.0%
Julie Reynolds-9.8%
Justin-9.3%
Helena-9.0%
Greg-8.1%
Dave-7.0%
Doug-5.0%
Sara-3.8%
Wayne-3.1%
Lianna-2.5%

Adam was having technical difficulties so I hope to get his results posted later today.

You can't stop fate...

Last week we went to Spokane to visit family and they did their best to sabotage my lead with delicious foods (Even Marian and she's not even in the contest!!)

Among the weapons used were pizzas, coffee cakes, sausages, italian sausages, doughnuts that were left out all day for me to munch on (even saving the cream filled ones just for me), and just a lot of naughty delicities.

But I held out for most the weekend...

...and then I had half a doughnut.


...an example of the sabotaging last weekend...

I wish I could say I fought the good fight against hunger and cravings, but alas, I caved...among the extra poundage I was sure to gain were 3 slices of pizza, doughnuts, and some extra sausages...

Feeling the strain of the calling of carbs and fats, I immediately ran 4 miles to curb my appetite.

Later, on the way home (weigh in day) the strain was more than I could bear. As soon as I got back I indulged in some very fattening, orange chicken, broccoli beef, fried rice and goodness that is the Panda Express takeout... after feeling a bit guilty over the frivolous carbs and all the baddies that go into 'take-out' I figured I might as well go all out and top it off with the fortune cookie.


...and then I read this and with renewed confidence, went and ran 5 miles.

I lost 4 lbs in 1 run. No joke.

Fate is obviously on my side. You can't stop fate.

Final results

JASON-11.2%
Julie Montgomery-10.7%
Angela-9.4%
Helena-9.0%
Greg-8.9%
Matt-8.8%
Adam-8.0%
Julie Reynolds-7.8%
Dave-7.0%
Justin-6.9%
Doug-5.9%
Sara-4.1%
Wayne-2.6%
Lianna-1.9%

I got Helena and Dave's email late today (internet woes) but am not sure how I missed Adam's results which were right there with Julie and Jason's. If you know me, you will understand that being scatter brained is one of my more endearing traits.

Results-Week 8

I didn't receive results from a few of you so I'll post what I have and we'll just see big numbers from you next week I guess! :-)

JASON-11.2%
Julie Montgomery-10.7%
Angela-9.4%
Greg-8.9%
Matt-8.8%
Julie Reynolds-7.8%
Justin-6.9%
Doug-5.9%
Sara-4.1%
Wayne-2.6%
Lianna-1.9%
Helena-?
Dave-?
Adam-?

Also, in more important news, today is my parent's 30th ANNIVERSARY! Be sure to send them a shout out for being awesome people and amazing examples. I love you Mom and Dad!

I deserve a freaking medal!

I don't care what the results are tomorrow or two weeks from now, you all need to just hand over the money to me because nobody deserves it more and I'm not kidding.  I also want you all to curtsy and bow down to me.  I had a weekend chucked full of chips, pop, nachos, birthday cake, ice cream, homemade fresh cinnamon rolls, mini-quiches, sausage, egg and hash brown casserole, chocolate and raspberry torte, pound cake, etc., etc., etc. and not one morsel passed my lips even though I wanted to plant my face in all of it and start inhaling.  It was all I could do to not wrestle everybody to the floor who partook in the delicacies and lick their fingers.  It was brutal but I reigned triumphant.

I had a birthday party for my daughter Friday night with about 20 people here with all sorts of yummies and the very next morning I had a bridal shower brunch that had my mouth watering just from the smells emanating through the front door while I waited to be let in.

COME ON PEOPLE!  I deserve this!

For Helena

Hi Helena, I was going to write back to you but then couldn't find the message you sent with your results so I guess I'll hopefully get you on this.

You asked me what my "secret" was and I guess the only thing I can say is Weight Watchers.  I am a die-hard fan.  I've tried a multitude of diets, all of which worked but I gained the weight right back.  I LOVE this diet because it doesn't seem like a diet that much because you don't have to deprive yourself.  If you want to use some of your points on a cookie then you can, and I have.  The point system is great and they give you a range you can have.  For my weight it is an 18-25 point range (most fruits are 2 points and a LOT of vegies are 0 points and the higher the fiber content the less points which means a w.w. type slice of bread is only 1 point whereas a white piece is 2 so it definitely pays to eat healthy on this diet) so on the days I'm hungrier I eat closer to the maximum and on other days I just use the low end.  I've also exercised for years and years so have continued that plus have added a bit during the contest.  I never lose a ton of weight each week but it's pretty steady which is nice.  You are doing awesome though, I think everybody is and we should all be proud of ourselves, I know I am.

Redundancy rules!

O.K., I'm just going to make a cohesive list and put them all together in one column for our week #7 weigh-in.

Jason-9.8%

Julie M.-9.6%

Greg-9.1%

Angela-8.6%

Helena-8%

Matt-7.4%

Julie R.-7%

Justin-6.4%

Adam-5.4%

Dave-5%

Doug-4%

Sara-3.2%

Lianna-3.1%

Wayne-2.6%

There, that is just easier to follow I think.  I'm glad I checked my "Trash" file as that's where I found Helena and Dave's results!  Good job everybody!!!!

Three more

O.K., I got three more results in so only now need Dave and Helena.  So, here are the three others.

Jason (who was mean and beat me)-9.8%

Julie R.-7%

Adam-5.4%

Oops!

I just noticed that I put "Julie J." rather than "Julie R.",  sorry Julie, there are still times I think Julie Jones even though you've been a Reynolds for a few years now.  

Results to me please

Hey, this is for Julie J., Jason, Dave, Helena and Adam.  Sara and Greg's internet is down and has been for a couple of days so she hasn't been able to get on her computer so not only can't post but can't get the results that people sent to her.  So, would those of you that I mentioned please send your results to me and then I'll add them to the list below that I'll post for the time being.  My e-mail address is "Justussix@charter.net".

So here are the standings minus the 5 of you.

Julie Montgomery-9.6%

Greg-9.1%

Angela-8.6%

Matt-7.4%

Justin-6.4%

Doug-4%

Lianna-3.1%

Sara-3.2%

Wayne-2.6%

I'll send and amended one as soon as I get all the numbers in.

Gung-ho... (a little motivation for you)

So I've completely scrapped the South Beach Diet. Not that it wasn't working, but the phase 2 average of 1 lbs a week of weight loss just was not going to cut it for this competition.

Did I mention I am competitive? Really...reallly...really competitive...and I fully intend to win.

It is time for drastic measures. Call it the "final lap." 3 weeks left, and my lofty goal is to drop 3lbs every week. I have gone with an over-the-top work-out regiment, very light high-energy meals and lots of water.

I've drastically pulled back my portions to the point where I literally can barely finish a bowl of cereal.

I'm running 3 miles of hills (on the treadmill if I have the little guy with me) every morning, followed by strength training (alternating days between arms and legs, light weight reps of 30) followed by a gruelling ab workout.

2 days a week I will also play an hour and a half of basketball or I will do an hour of tae-bo if I don't play. Julie has a "wedding day workout" dvd which has neat little 11 minute workouts (arms/legs/abs/cardio) so sometimes I will also do those as well.

Gone are the days of the Dance Dance Revolution or the 3-egg omelets with 3 strips of bacon for breakfast. It's a 3 mile run, a banana and a cup of coffee now.

You may beat me, but you're gonna have to work hard for it. :)

Good luck. That is all.

You just can't win.

So, I was so proud and smug last week because without doing ONE thing different I lost about 3 lbs. and had my best week ever.  Naturally I then assumed I was going to be able to coast the next 4 weeks if my weight was just basically going to melt away.  Harumph.  Again I have done nothing different but as of today, Saturday, I have not even lost half a pound!  What gives with that, I'm so insulted.  I told Wayne I was going to enjoy my place in the sun for a week as I knew it wouldn't last and I predicted right.  I can actually feel Angela and Jason breathing down my neck.  Wow, we now only have about 3 weeks to go.

Week Six Results

The results are in. I would just like to say that my mother sabotaged us this weekend. We ATE AND ATE AND ATE SOME MORE, all while she snuck around, flexed that will power gene, and got skinnier by the minute. We were duped!

Julie Montgomery-8.6%
Angela-8.1%
Jason-7.9%
Julie Reynolds-7.0%
Helena-7.0%
Adam-6.6%
Greg-6.2%
Matt-6.0%
Justin-5.5%
Doug-5.4%
Dave-4.0%
Sara-3.1%
Lianna-1.5%
Wayne-1.0%

I'm sure others can count

But obviously I cannot.  These are week FIVE results.  You know, halfway to 10.  One more than four and one less than six.  

Week Four Results AND The Winner is...

Congrats everyone, we are halfway there!  I am hoping at the end of this to do a cumulative number of pounds lost.  I wonder where we are right now?

The first thing I'd like to announce is our winner for the greatest percentage lost this week.  It is (drum roll), Justin Baerlocher!  He is now the proud owner of a $10 Starbucks gift card.  He lost 1.5%, going from a loss of 4.0% to 5.5%.  However, there were a number of people who lost 1% or more this week and I think they are all to be recognized.  They include Julie Montgomery, Wayne, Doug, Jason, Adam, and Matt.  I think at this stage in the game that is very impressive.  Good job!

Results

Greg-8.0%

Jason-7.0%

Julie Montgomery-6.7%

Angela-6.4%

Doug-6.4%

Helena-6.3%

Julie Reynolds-6.3%

Matt-6.0%

Justin-5.5%

Adam-5.2%

Lianna-4.0%

Sara-4.0%

Wayne-2.0%

Dave-2.0%

p.s.  Keep working because you never know when a special weekly bonus might show up again!

Half-way there!

In some respects I can't believe that 5 weeks have elapsed since we started this but then other times it seems like it has gone on forever.  I will be the first to admit I'll be glad when the next 5 weeks are behind us too.  

Now I'm already looking ahead to next year when I'm assuming we'll do this again (I like the idea myself, it really helped me take off my holiday weight and then some).   I personally think 6-8 weeks would be long enough, what do the rest of you think?  Especially 8 weeks, that would be long enough, I think, for a few to have lost all the weight they need to and will have given the others who may still want to drop a pound or two a really good start.  Comments?

Crock pot site and recipe

I have been using so many recipes off a slow cooker blog. I thought I would include the link if anyone is interested. The salmon recipe below is off of her site and we LOVED it. REALLY LOVED IT. My notes are that I obviously doubled the recipe for my family, two hours on high was perfect in my slow cooker, and those who like heat (as in Greg) can up the amount of red pepper flakes.

www.crockpot365.blogspot.com

Sweet and Spicy Salmon

--2 largish pieces of salmon
--2 T brown sugar
--1 t paprika
--1 t cumin
--1/2 t crushed garlic
--1/2 t oregano
--1/2 t kosher salt
--1/2 t red pepper
--aluminum foil


The Directions.

--in a medium-sized dish or small pan ( I used a glass pie plate), combine all of your spices with the brown sugar
--spread out a length of foil on the counter for each piece of fish
--put each piece of fish in the center of it's own foil
--rub the top of the salmon with your spice and sugar mixture (it's okay to mound up the spice a bit, and it is fine to only rub the top)



--fold the foil over and crimp up the sides to make a contained packet



--put the foil packets into a dry crockpot

--cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours, or on low for 3-5.




--serve with rice or quinoa and some steamed or roasted vegetables.

Week Four Results

So, I think this week was hard for a lot of people. I'm not going off numbers, more the annecdotal evidence and a weigh in the day after the Superbowl. In order to provide a bit more motivation Greg and I are donating a small but fun surprise to the person who loses the greatest percentage THIS WEEK. Not cummulative, but between now and Monday. Go get them tiger!

Greg-7.5%
Julie Reynolds-6.3%
Angela-6.0%
Helena-6.0%
Julie Montgomery-5.7%
Jason-5.7%
Doug-5.4%
Dave-5.0%
Matt-5.0%
Lianna-4.0%
Justin-4.0%
Adam-3.8%
Sara-3.4%
Wayne-0.9%

Everybody needs a week like that!

Jason, I don't know a dieter out there who doesn't say the heck with it for a week and then that helps them get re-inspired.  We went to a movie today and Wayne and I split their GIANT bag of popcorn and enjoyed other delicacies so I'll be ecstatic if I drop a pound this week.  It'll get easier on the downhill side of this contest as we'll all be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel and then and will want to make a killer finish.  I have to say, I'll be ready for the next 6 weeks to be over with, my craving for chocolate-covered peanuts is nearly getting the best of me.

I'll be lucky to get back to my weight last week...

I just finished my production week (high stress, deadlines, long hours) and am relaxing now a bit.

Julie was working for part of the time so Mom and Dad came over to help watch Jonny for a couple days. Mom (the superhero) came over and made dinner 4 days in a row so Julie would have dinner ready when she got home and I could continue to work. Delicious meals, salmon, spare ribs, meat loaf, veggie soup. All using 'sugar substitutes' and friendly to my diet...

and yet, 2 days and 6+ lbs later...arrrrghh@##$%$


So I'm working hard to get back down but the superbowl party will be tough ...grrrr!!!
I think I'll send my results Monday night after I've starved myself all day after gorging myself on Superbowl necessities.

Fickle Scale

Sara you would think it was me who "jumped off the wagon".  I'm still following my diet to a tee, exercising like a fiend and was one pound HEAVIER today!  WHY do I weigh before Monday????  It is way too discouraging doing that.  But I did that another week and had a fine loss on Monday so I'm not worried about it.  They say your body can fluctuate as much as 2 lbs. a day and I believe it.

Also Sara, you were skinny from the get-go so a couple of Cadbury mini-eggs and a cherry pepsi or two are actually probably good for you.

And Doug, LOTS of Cadbury mini-eggs, and cases of cherry pepsi, and tables full of pizza would be really good for you.

I didn't fall, I jumped

Off the wagon that is.

The boys have been sick the last few days and we have all felt cooped up and a little edgy. I have discovered that when I have a hard day I end it feeling like I DESERVE a treat. Today, all day, I felt like that. And I indulged it. I ate an absurd amount of hummus and pita chips, had a chai tea, had a cherry pepsi (the first I've had in over four weeks) and bought and ate some Cadbury Mini Eggs. It was truly a spectacle of self-discipline gone unconscious. I did work out which maybe burned off half the Pepsi but that's about it. I have every intention of getting back on that wagon but for today, oh, did it feel good to not be good. Worth every calorie I tell you. Doug, you really ought to try it!

Week Three Results

Well, another amazingly good week for our small yet mighty group of fitness buffs.

Doug- 6.4% (He is the man to catch! Contact me for his address if you'd like to send him beer or doughnuts. I bet a heaping mound of spaghetti with bread would work too.)
Jason-5.6%
Julie Reynolds-5.6%
Angela-5.0%
Greg-4.9%
Helena-4.8%
Adam-4.7%
Julie Montgomery-4.5%
Justin-4.5%
Matt-3.9%
Sara-3.8%
Dave-3.5%
Lianna-2.6%
Wayne-0.8% (I should clarify that he did in fact loose several pounds this week and that I misrepresented his total loss last week. So, this is a step forward, not backward. My bad.)

Keep up the good work! I just got home from the gym after a 2.5 mile run and some upper body lifting. What have you lazy bones done so far today?? (Angela, I know you were right there with me girl!)

What works for Greg and Sara

We have stopped eating. We are hoping to kill our metabolism so that from here on out every time we eat a morsel of food our body clings to each calorie because it believes we are starving.

Actually, our two main focuses are getting more exercise (4-5 times a week) and portion control. Our diets have always been reasonably healthy but I'm upping the ante for our family these last few weeks by eating more fish, trying new healthy recipes, and eating organic whenever possible. We both want these changes to be long term so are trying to be fit, healthy, and realistic.

And, while on the subject, tomorrow is weigh in day. How is the motivation? Do we need to do something to add more incentive? I'm looking forward to seeing the results tomorrow.

Happy Sunday to you all.

Weight Watcher's

I guess I've made it clear that I use Weight Watchers.  I have the South Beach Diet book and cookbook too as tried that in the past, which is similar to Atkins, which I have always done.  For me personally, W.W. works the best only because it's not much of an adjustment back to "real life" as it basically just teaches you to eat in moderation.  You can eat whatever you want as long as you stay in your point system which isn't hard because they give you a pretty good range.  For instance, my range is between 18-25 points so if you're somebody who doesn't get terribly hungry you can linger around the low end but if you need a bit extra then you can use them all.  I know most of you probably don't really know what the point system is so for instance, 4 oz. of salmon is around 4.5 points, 3 oz. of chicken is 3, bread is different because the more fiber in it the less points are in it.  I make w.w. bread so a 2 oz. piece is 2 points.  Most fruits (depending on their size) are usually 2 points as well.  A TON of vegies (broccoli, onions, carrots, zucchini, cabbage, cauliflower, spinach, peppers, lettuce, tomatoes, gr. beans, etc.) are 0 point so you can eat as much of those as you want.  I like to dip some of those in hummus and you can have 1/4 c. of that (which is more than you'd think) for only 2 points.  I like it because I don't have to deny myself anything, if I want a cookie, I eat a cookie, I just have to decide if it is worth it to give up that many points.

The one thing about W.W. though is it's kind of a slow and steady thing, it's not one of those where you lose a ton of weight the first couple of weeks as like I said, I think the most I've ever lost my first week is 3 lbs. but the more you have to lose, the more those results are too.  The first time I ever used it, 3-4 years ago, it took me a little over 3 1/2 months to lose 20 lbs. but until this last holiday season, I'd been able to keep the bulk of that off by doing the proportion thing better.  However, I really partied this year so needed to lose 11 lbs.  versus the 5-6 I usually have to at the new year.  Gotta love that divinity!

What method are you guys using to lose weight?

I'm going with the South Beach method...

You must eat at least 6 times a day 3 meals and 3 snacks. and LOTS of water.

Phase 1: The first phase lasts for two weeks and has you remove starches like bread, pasta and rice, potatoes, fruits, milk, yogurt, honey and baked goods. Sugars are completely eliminated. During the first phase of South Beach, you'll enjoy three balanced meals and some snacks that should include lean meats and fish, eggs, low-fat cheese, fresh vegetables, beans and nuts.

Phase 2: Phase two of the South Beach Diet will allow you to slowly re-introduce fruits, whole-grain breads and pastas. You'll choose just one carbohydrate and include that in one meal each day for one week. You are encouraged to wait a few days and if there are no noticeable effects, introduce one more healthy carbohydrate. Continue this until you're able to successfully have two or three healthy carbohydrates each day. Phase two will continue until you meet your goal weight.

Phase 3: You'll begin the maintenance, or third, phase of South Beach once you've met your goal weight. It's here that you'll put to practice all that you learned in phases one and two.



My typical day goes like this

Breakfast: 3 egg omelet - olives, and 3-4 pieces of turkey bacon or sausage. 1 cup of coffee
Mid morning snack: sugar free jello or some unsalted mixed nuts,
Lunch: Leftovers from dinner :) or some tuna with relish, mayo, and mustard
Mid afternoon Snack: Kind of the same as mid morning snack... maybe munch on some smoked salmon.
Dinner: Lean Cuts... steak, chicken, shrimp, pork chops, fish veggies w/ cheese, and lots of water.

Best part is I'm never really hungry so it doesn't feel like I'm dieting.

Although I am extending the 'phase 1' from 2 weeks to...indefinitely? Until I finish the actual book.

All things considered, I'm fairly happy with the results. I have really only excersized a small amount 2 to 3 times a week (less than half an hour a day?) so it has not been a lot of hard work yet. I know I will plateau and I have reserved all the hard 'working out' for pushing through that plateau.

Probably the hardest part is staying away from sugars as I have a RAGING sweet tooth but have curbed it temporarily with sugar free fudge bars and pudding. :)

Another good recipe

I like people sharing good, lo-cal, lo-fat recipes so I'm going to share one I just tried tonight that both Wayne and I loved.  I've been looking up Weight Watchers recipes and this was one of them.  I'm going to write out the recipe just as it was and then at the end will tell you the changes I made but to each his own.

Low-Fat Mexican Tamale Pie

1 c. corn meal 4 c. water

1 onion, chopped 1 green pepper, chopped

1/4 c. fat free chicken broth 1-20 oz. can tomatoes

1/8 t. chili powder 1 lb. ground turkey or chicken

Preheat oven to 375.  In large bowl combine corn meal and water.  Mix well and set aside.  In lg. nonstick skillet over high heat, saute onions and pepper in broth till tender.  Add tomatoes and chili powder and cook till thick.  Cook gr. turkey in another nonstick pan and brown.  Remove from heat and rinse with hot water.  Combine meat with tomato mixture and mix well.  In 8x8 nonstick pan, pour half of the corn meal batter and top with meat mixture.  Then cover with remaining corn meal batter.  Bake for 30 minutes or till golden brown.

O.K. so that's the recipe but I am certain the 4 c. of water has to be a misprint.  I mixed it that way but decided quickly it couldn't be right and dumped out about 3 cups worth of the water so I think I'd start with just 1 c. of water and see what you think.  I also used hamb. being as I have REALLY lean burger.  I also only had a red pepper so used it and my can of tomatoes was a 15 oz. can so that's what I used.  Since I didn't have any chicken broth I just didn't use anything and finally I just did not think 1/8 t. chili powder would season it enough so used quite a bit of taco seasoning instead.  So, as you can see I changed it quite a bit but it was still awesome and for those of you doing W.W., for 1/6 of a pan it was only 4 points so very low.  Of course since I had enough points I ate 6 points worth and it was worth every one.  I have a couple other recipes I'm going to try and if we end up liking any of them too I'll pass them on.

Slow cooker salmon and other wonders of the world

I made the most rocking dinner tonight that must be passed on. It's salmon, cooked in a slow cooker. I found it of a blog called 365 days of slow cooking. It will change your life.

Ingredients
9-12 oz. of fresh spinach
1/2-2lbs. of salmon
2 lemons
Seasoning of choice (the original recipe calls for dill, salt, and pepper)
1/4 cup white wine (you can also use water, apple juice, or broth)

Put all the spinach in the crock pot. It will be heaping to the top. Place the salmon on top of the spinach and season as desired. Place slices of lemon over the whole piece of salmon. Pour the white wine on the top of everything. Cook on low for 2 hours. (That is what the recipe said. I had to cook it on high for two hours and it was perfect.) It is AWESOME!

Are they catchable?

Wow Julie and Doug, you threw down some pretty amazing numbers, they're going to be hard to beat if you keep it up BUT I'm still going to try.  :)  We all did good and should all be proud of ourselves.  Here's to the next 8 weeks!

Results, Week 2

There are some serious competitors in this group. This will be a some hard earned money, there's no doubt about that.

Adam has had a death in his family so has a bi this week. Other than that, the results in full are below. Send a prayer for him and his family.

Happy trails and no carbs to you!

Julie Reynolds- 5.6 %
Doug- 5.4%
Helena- 4.3%
Jason- 4.2%
Angela- 4.1%
Julie Montgomery- 3.7%
Dave- 3.5%
Lianna- 3.4%
Justin- 3.2%
Matt- 3.0%
Greg- 3.0%
Sara-3.0%
Wayne- 1%

Whining helps!

It's hard to say how all this dieting stuff works because like I stated, I broke my cardinal rule and weighed mid-week and had lost .2 lbs. which naturally caused me to cry.  I even weighed myself after my pity party hoping the tears I'd shed weighed 3 lbs. but no luck, still .2 lbs.  Then I ended up with a 3 lb. loss this week, better than last week and I NEVER lose more weight than my first week when dieting.  I think God got tired of hearing me whining and scraped some excess fat off for me.  Whatever, I'm far happier with my numbers now.  From this point though, I typically really slow down, to 1-1.5 lbs. a week but I'll still be happy with that because it'll get me to my goal, not in the money, but to my goal and that's really what I want anyway.  Good luck all!

My Bathroom Scale Hates Me

Honestly. My scale will spit out one weight 3 times in a row... I will take a hot shower hoping to sweat off another 1/2 pound maybe get another pound lighter, get out of the shower, completely dry off and it spits out a weight 2lbs HEAVIER than the first time! Julie measures herself on the same scale too. Wondering if the scale has a flaw for people as 'heavy' as me I went to double check on my uber-high tech Wii fit and it spits out a weight 1 pound LIGHTER than the pre-shower weight. So there's a 3lbs discrepancy between my bathroom scale and my Wii Fit Scale. Of course I began using the bathroom scale so that is begrudgingly the weight I will use to report.

On the flip side, Julie weighs exactly the same on both scales...but I'm 3lbs heavier on the bathroom scale?

The Wii Fit loves Julie too. It tells her she is of 'normal weight' and applauds her progress. It tells me that I am 'overweight' with a cute little frownie face and 'disappointed' sound effect. The worst part of the Wii Fit is, if you are measured at 'overweight' it substitutes your would-be torso for a huge beach ball shaped one...

Oh well. One day I'll be "normal" again.

Working hard, losing nothing.

Lianna, if it makes you feel any better I have never worked so hard at a diet in my life with worse results!  I'm exercising like a maniac, and like Jason pretty much living on water and gravel with a pine cone thrown in every once in a while and by mid-week I'd lost POINT 2 lbs.    So, at weigh-in tomorrow I'm sure I'll have lost, at best, half of a pound.  There is no  justice so I guess we'll just have to forge forward and hope for better results next week.  You honestly may have just gained muscle weight, you have always had a tendency to do that and there's nothing wrong with that.  Good luck to all but it really looks like it's me who needs that the most.  I'd counted on the rest of you to not be as focused as I am but boy has that not been the case, you are all animals.  Eight weeks to go!

It's that time again

First of all, Lianna, I am sincerely sorry. Maybe it's because you now have a rock hard body and can crush nuts with your rear.

To the rest of you, the time is near. Tomorrow is our week two weigh in. Please email me your CUMULATIVE percentage lost, not just what percentage you lost in the last week. (See Lianna, you'll still be okay.) I will have the results posted by Tuesday morning.

Good luck to all. Go ahead, wear a garbage bag and run six miles. Nothing like a little dehydration to make those numbers look good. (That was a joke by the way.)

i GAINED this week. i'm furious. would someone mind sending me a big spoonful of quit eating?

thanks. (hope everyone was more successful than me.)

I'm Hungry!!!

Enough trash talk...I'm hungry! :) I have the late afternoon munchies and sometimes a cup of tea has really helped me through that time. Today, I want more than tea! What other suggestions does everyone have to get through these cravings? Anyone? Anyone? Anyone?

Hi fellow dieters,

I thought you all might be interested in a soup that is for the Weight Watchers diet and is "zero points" meaning you can eat as much of it that you want without having to count it.  It's good too, if you like vegetable soup.  It's called "Garden Vegetable soup".

2/3 c. sliced carrots 1/2 c. diced onion

2 minced garlic cloves 3 c. broth (any kind)

1 1/2 c. diced green cabbage  1/2 c. green beans (I use frozen)

1 T. tomato paste 1/2 t. dried basil

1/4 t. oregano 1/4 t. salt

1/2 c. diced zucchini

In large saucepan, sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, saute' carrot, onion, and garlic over low heat until softened, about 5 minutes.  Add broth, cabbage, beans, tomato paste, basil, oregano, and salt; bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer, covered, about 15 minutes or till beans are tender.  Stir in zucchini and heat 3-4 minutes.  Serve hot.  ENJOY!  It actually is quite tasty, I have a mongo batch in my fridge right now.

Need a math check...

So I was an art major...

I got my percentage but I think I did it wrong....and i think I told adam wrong...and julie wrong.

method 1 *easiest

lbs lost/starting weight
8/214=.0373 correct?

method 2 (much more complicated which I used of course)

I took current weight 206/total weight 214=.962616
subtracted result from 1 (1-.962616=.037384) move the decimal over...somehow my calculator spat out 2.8 for some reason.

Now I can't figure out how I came up with 2.8...but I think I'm at 3.7% I must have lost the weight from my brain.

Week One Results

I think everyone did great. Keep it up for week 2!

Lianna -4.0%
Julie Reynolds-3.5%
Greg -3.5%
Jason -2.8%
Helena -2.7%
Doug -2.5%
Matt -2.5%
Sara -2.5%
Angela -2.3%
Adam -2.3%
Justin -2.2%
Dave -2.2%
Julie Montgomery -1.6%
Wayne +1%

Technical difficulties

I am having trouble getting email to send tonight so I'll post the email here. Hopefully everyone found this blog.

I listed all of us as authors to the blog. That means anyone should be able to post here. Some ideas include trash talking, healthy recipes, and anything you'd like to communicate to the group. You know me, I sure love this whole blog thing! Let me know if you have trouble accessing the blog or submitting a post.

Also, just in case you forgot (haha), tomorrow is weigh in day. Please send your percentage lost to me tomorrow and I will list all of them, from high to low, on Tuesday, on the blog. If I dont' get your results I will list you as a 0% loss. By the way, I cheated on my weight because I cut a lot of my hair off. It's a weight loss tactic I highly recommend, no self control needed. Similar to cutting off a limb.

Last thing. Credit where credit is due. This blog idea was Helena Reynolds (my brother-in-law Jason's mom). Thanks for the good idea!

Happy weighing!

First, Second, and Third

There has been some discussion about instead of having a winner takes all money pot, allowing for a second and third prize. One idea was to give third place their $20 back, second place gets $50, and first takes $210. It does give the winner less but may keep everyone still interested and motivated if there becomes an obvious front runner. What do you think?