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PAMELAANNE
2/11/06 9:57 P
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Kamari,
You do have some challenges with the weather, don't you. You're right about the mindset. Once I made up my mind that I was going to do something, I figured out a way to get around my obstacles. Hope you can come up with something that works really well for you.
Pam
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PAMELAANNE
2/11/06 9:55 P
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Shesula, on the Main message board page, under Community Contact, you'll find SparkPeople Challenges. Tons of different challenges there. The only one I'm doing right now is "Our St. Patrick's Day Weight Loss Challenge". It's a real easy one that helps keep me accountable with weekly weigh-ins.
There are two huge challenges going on with the biggest loser (winter meltdown is in the title) and some sort of walking one. Both of these have been broken into teams. I believe the biggest loser teams use colors and the walking one uses animals. The biggest loser one has a definite start and stop. Not sure about the walking one. Many of the others you can join any time you want.
Hope this helps.
Pam
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Some of the challenges come from within...being motivated to succeed. And it is a challenge to stay within the nutrional values assiged, to do the exercises (which is where I fall short), and to watch your points increase daily.
Good luck...you can do it!
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| Where do I find the challenges? I haved looked and looked and cant find anything. I KNOW I must be looking in the wrong spot for them. Thanks
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Hi Shesula,
I know what you mean about walking in winter! I live in Saskatchewan and winter is usually bitter cold ...... and if the temperature isn't all that bad the wind is. On top of that I live very close to a major highway so it really isn't conducive to outdoor exercise. Summer is better as I can walk / work on my yard ....but winter is not so great. Pamela, parking away from where I work doesn't work as I need to be close to the building to plug my car in over the winter months. There are a few of us that do walk at lunch time..... but that's usually just in the summer. I just have to get into a routine of working out at home. It's my mindset that has to be worked on first tho! Hope you all have a good day!
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I used to skip breakfast and then many times lunch. Needless to say that by the time I got home, I would put anything I could touch in my mouth. And of course none of it was healthy stuff.
Anyway, eating breakfast was one of the most difficult things for me to learn. I still have to push myself to eat it. It's usually cereal, oatmeal, maybe a piece of toast or bagel. Sometimes I'll add fruit. But you know what I found, when I eat three healthy meals, I really find that I'm not getting hungy -- especially if I have had the complex carbs. I think where it has helped me is to keep my blood sugar more stable and not go up and down all the time.
I found the same type of thing when it came to sleep. I typically got about 6 hours. I really have to work at getting in 8 hours. But once I started doing it, I really felt better and my mind seemed more alert at work.
Simple things that I thought would never really impact my life that much, but they really have.
Snacking in the evening is a tough one. Sometimes when I can't fight the urge to snack, I go to bed early. My hubby has problems with snacking at night. The other day I suggested that if he has to snack, maybe take just one serving and leave the bag in the kitchen. That way he could hopefully satisfy his craving without over indulging.
Pam
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I used to always skip breakfast. But now I look forward to it. It is a habit one must establish though. My problem is snacking before dinner and then eating dinner even though I am no longer hungry. And then there is that dish of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream in the evening. I have found that I really look forward to being creative with my lunch and dinner this week to keep the calories low and the food to my taste. It is a great challenge and fun!!!
I am taking care of 3 of my grandchildren this afternoon and tonight and am trying to figure out now what to fix for dinner for all of us!!! That can be a real challenge because they all like different things. We may go out and I will have a salad...that might be easier!!! HA!
YOU CAN DO IT! WE CAN DO IT! 
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| I like to walk but am way up here in Michigan and walking is trechorous in winter. I dont like to walk the mall or the arena as it is boring. I do alot of walking in the warmer months. I have an exercise machine that does it ALL, but I am bored with it and it makes a wonderful coat rack. LOL I know I should use it and I think that I will give it a try to work it in with this program. As far as eating goes. I eat more at work than I do at home. I work in a care home where food is abundant and I take advantage of it. Here at home I do well except at nite again, when I use it as a comforting companion. LOL AND I dont eat breakfast so by the evening I am starving. I have made some soups today and will start to eat them instead of fast food or sweets. I think that may help me out. Take care and thanks for the support. S
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| Thanks for the upbeat message. MY downfalls are plenty but worst is the late nite snacking. My hubby goes to bed at 8 to get up for 4 and so I sit out in front of the tv and eat. It doesnt matter what either just as long as I can put it in my mouth. NOT good. BUT hard to break the habit. Well I will try to do better. THanks again. S
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Kamari,
I really detest exercise as well. I was just like you working long hours and too tired to do anything. But I made myself go out and walk for 15 minutes. Either at lunch or after I got home. Just those 15 minutes started making a difference. You may also want to consider parking as far away from your office as you can and walking. I found a spot that requires about a 5 minute walk from car to office door. That gives me 10 minutes right there.
Pam
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Hi everyone,
It sounds like we have some of the same pitfalls. I know, and do eat, a lot of the "right" things......but I'm not so great at doing the exercise thing! I sometimes work very long hours and most nights when I get home ......... I am way too tired to exercise - so I don't. Even tho I know that exercising is supposed to give you more energy. I've lost approx. 10 lbs since I started ...but I'm just kind of sitting at the same weight for the last 10 days or so. I'm going to have to jumpstart it somehow or I know I will lose my motivation and forget about the eating part too! So ...... hope to see you on here again soon. Talk to you then.
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I have no self-discipline and snack a lot in the late afternoon. I did get on the scales last Sat. and discovered I had hit an all time high. I immediately went to the interent, discovered this site and joined. I have lost 7 pounds, by just eating the right foods and cutting the calories to something reasonable. I know this rapid loss will change and need to remember that a pound a week is ok. Exercise is not one of my favorite activities. This site does have a lot to offer to help us remain motivated. Give it a chance. These are lifestyle changes we are making. 
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| Thanks so much for the reply. I think the challenge sounds fun as well as inspiring. I will play around in the site and see what I can find to help me out and see where I go with it. LOL I can only hope to lose some flab. I am SO weak though when it comes to diet and exercise and that is surprising considering that I am a very strong woman otherwise. Thanks for the help and keep me in mind. Shesula
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Shesula,
Welcome to the site. Don't think of this as a diet but a life style change. When I started last May, I started with very small changes. Like drink 6 cups of water to start, and go for a 15 minute walk. Once I was doing those things, I would do something else -- like try to get in 4 fruits or veggies. Gradually over time (a couple of months) I realized that my water intake was up to 10+ glasses a day and I was walking 2 miles 5 days a week.
The other thing I did was try to earn as many points a day as I could. Post messages, do my exercises, track my goals, log my food, read the articles, etc. Believe it or not, those things really helped. They aren't joking when they say that people who get on the site daily are more successful. Over the holidays I wasn't on the site much and I could tell the difference. The people here are so motivating. Plus it helps keep you focused.
You may also want to consider joining a challenge. I'm in a real easy one called Our St. Patrick's Day Weight Loss Challenge. You determine how much weight you want to lose by 3/17 and then weigh in once a week (any day of your choice) and report your weight for that week. Really helps to keep you accountable. When I've had a bad period, the people there are really encouraging. Likewise they celebrate when there is a loss.
Hope some of this info helps.
Pam
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| I have tried EVERY diet you can even imagine and failed miserably. I was told about this site by a friend from work and thought I would try it. What do I have to lose? SO here I am . I know what my downfalls are. Sweets and not exercising. I just cant get it together. I know the proper nutrition charts and am calorie wise. BUT just trying to stick to a plan and follow through with a diet is SO hard. Would appreciate any and/or all the help I can get. Thanks before hand. Shesula
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