and the WINNER is.......

Congrats to Douglas Bean!  He won the weight-loss challenge, losing a total of 32.8 lbs and 12.3% of his total weight.  The silver medal goes to Christopher Whitney.  He lost a total of 29.8 lbs and 10.6% of his total weight.  The bronze medal goes to Valorie (Mom) Lystrup! She came from behind to lose a total of 16.6 lbs and 8.7% of her total weight.

Winnings are as follows:   Gold $170

                                                    Silver $61
                                                    Bronze $12

Here are the honorable mentions:

Aaron:           total of 25 lbs and 7.8%
Bob:                total of 19.6 lbs and 7.5%
Annie:            total of 16.2 lbs and 7.0%
Alison:           total of 9.8 lbs and 6.7%
Kim:               total of 11 lbs and 4.9%
Mindy:           total of 7.2 lbs and 3.7%
Kaden:           total of 2.2lbs and 2.1%
Kiel:              total of 1lb and .2%

*a few of us owe money:   Mindy you owe Doug $6

                                                     Kaden you owe Chris $1
                                                     Kiel you owe Doug $23

The total amount of weight loss for the group was an awesome: 171.8 lbs for a total of 6.7%

Great job everyone!! 

I know I really benefited from this challenge and it help me get a jump start on losing the extra pounds.  I definitely needed the motivation.  For those of you who want to continue to lose weight, I have another competition proposal for you.  The rules are a little different and ANYBODY can join and win!  Here are the rules (let me know how many of you want to do it):

1.  Everyone sets a goal weight (one that is worthwhile, but not impossible)

2.  Everyone votes on the fairness of the all the goal weights and adjust accordingly

3.  Everyone puts a certain amount of money into the pot (enough to make you really not want to lose it) (Think of it as a great way to save some Christmas spending money)

4.  For those who meet their goal weight and maintain it during the contest (Let's say until Thanksgiving day) they get their money back.  For those who don't:  they divide it among those who did. So basically you are competing against yourself for your own money, but you may end up with more.

5.  There will be a few surprise weigh-ins just to keep us on track.

6.  The first person to meet their goal gets to add some cushion weight to their final goal (so that they are more likely to get their money back)

It's just an idea...I know for me, this works better because I am working against myself but it is enough motivation for me to maintain my weight loss.  For those who want to join in, let me know and start thinking of a  weight goal and the amount of money we should put in. 

Once again....congrats to everyone!  Every single person lost weight!

Don't give up!

We only have a few more weeks left!  I hope that we use this challenge to jump start our healthy lifestyle change permanently.  I looked up some ideas on how to continue to be healthy and keep weight off.  I hope some of these will help us in next several months.

   1.) Plan, Plan Plan.  Whether it's planning out our meals or reviewing what food challenges you might encounter during the day, it will help us fight those extra calories. The prophets have told us time and time again to be prepared!
  2.) Measure yourself.  Keep tabs on your weight.  We need to periodically check  ourselves either by the scale or our favorite pair of jeans. Don't let your weight get away from you.  It's a lot more daunting to know that you have to lose 10 lbs instead just 3!
   3.)Get a Mini-Mantra.  Have a inspiring slogan that help you say no to unhealthy foods.  I have several times said to myself, "I WILL regret this." and it seems to help. 
  4.) Keep a picture of yourself.  Take a good picture at your current weight. Put it on the fridge or in your car.  Put it in places that you know you will see it when you have a craving for unhealthy foods.
   5.)Make it for good. Eating healthy foods only until you hit your target weight doesn't do much for your weight--or health--in the long run. Getting healthy is a lifestyle choice that has to last. As my dad puts it: "If you do what you have always done you will always be able to do it."  It may not be as fast or without aches.  This is why my dad, who is over 60, can run 6 miles without thinking about it.  If you exercise on a regular basis, you will be able to do so your entire life.
   6.) Take a Break. Don't take a break from eating healthy, just take a break from eating!  Have parts of your day where you immerse yourself in non-eating activities. The hormones that work to break down fat and glycogen need time to work, that means not eating for an hour or two.
    7.) Have a Love Affair with Exercise. It revs up your metabolism, making your body a fat-burning machine. This allows you to eat more and still have even better results than healthy eating alone.  The more we move, the more our bodies crave it! It becomes a "GET TO" instead of a" HAVE TO".
  8.) Find Support. Strength is all about numbers. Women, especially, have a chance to instantly create support groups (willing or not). If we buy, prepare, cook and eat healthy, our family will have no choice but to join in the fun.  This challenge has been the push that many of us needed.
   9.)Treat Yourself. Once a day, you can eat just to eat. What food lover doesn't love that? Don't  wreck your whole day, but make it tasty enough that you look forward to it. Also make sure that it's satisfying enough that you won't be craving more right away.
    10.) Enjoy life.  There is no reason that you can't enjoy being healthy.  If you can't find joy in your lifestyle change, it will never stick.  Find exercises and activities that you enjoy doing.  Set goals for yourself so that you can enjoy the satisfaction of accomplishing them.  Who's up for running the half-marathon (13.8 miles) in Vegas this year?  Wouldn't that be a huge accomplishment?  It's a great goal, and who knows, you might actually enjoy it!

Still in the lead

Congrats Doug!  It doesn't look like he is going to let go of his lead easily.  He wins this weigh-in again by percentage points! A big shout out goes to Aaron for losing the most weight - 9lbs.

As a group we have lost just over 142 lbs!  That being said, most of us seemed to slow down a little bit this past two weeks.  (looking at the weight lost alone)

I thought this would be a good time to use myself as a bad example.  I was by far the worst this week gaining one pound.  I have thought about this and I learned a couple of things that I will share with you.

            Being on vacation for a week made it really difficult to work out.  I did find opportunities to take walks and swim etc, but I didn't dedicate time to exercising.  I noticed two things happened because of this:

            1.  I was hungrier! It's odd to think that not burning more calories during the day makes you hungrier, but it did.  I didn't just eat more for the sake of it.  I really was hungry.  I don't know if there is any science behind this.  On days that I exercise hard, I notice that I don't crave snacks or even seconds.

            2.  I think subconsciously I knew that I wasn't exercising so I kind of gave up.  I noticed that when I did snack,  my choices were terrible.  Instead of looking for something healthy that would fill me up, I ate junk food. 

I have since got back into my workout routine.   I already have noticed little changes in my appetite.  I am eating and desiring healthier food.  Yesterday, I made the Cauliflower Mac and Cheese (from the eat-yourself-skinny website) and it was a big hit with the family.  I paired it with a cucumber salad which has almost no calories.  Basically, our dinner was around 350 calories and we left the table feeling completely full!  Yea!

Still Leading

Congrats to Doug again for winning this weigh-in.  He has lost a total of 22.6 lbs in the past month!

Everyone should give yourself a pat on the back.  As a group we have lost over 110 lbs!  That is more than Kaden weighs! Amazing!

There was a study done on a group of people confined to a  dormitory for 24 hours.  The people were allowed to do whatever they wanted for the 24 hour period.  There were fed the same exact food.  At the end of the study they found that some of the participants burnt less then 1300 calories over the 24 hour period, while others burnt as much as 3600.  Why the difference of 2300 calories?  Fidgeting!  Those who were constantly moving burnt 2300 more calories!  I am not even talking about working out.  Just moving.  Research has shown that fidgeting is a genetic trait.  There are those who are natural fidget-ers.  Those 'good genes' that people talk about could actually be the fidgeting gene.  Natural fidgeters all tend to be naturally lean but eat the same amount of calories that others do.  However, we can all become fidgeters if we think about what we are doing on a daily basis.  Instead of sitting down when talking on the phone: Pace around the room. 

 Stop looking for the closest parking spot.

Get up and doing something during a commercial break. 

Do those things around the house that you know needs to be done.

Kids are a great example of fidgeters!  They are always on the move.  Let's all try to be more child-like.  By just fidgeting alone, you can burn up to an extra 800 calories a day!  MOVE!!

Eating healthy on a budget

One thing I have noticed while grocery shopping lately is that eating healthy is expensive!  I looked up some ideas to help with costs of eating healthy. 

1.)  Eat less meat.  Buy good quality meat, but just eat less of it.

2.)  Emphasize grains and legumes.  This is an inexpensive way to fill up without relying on meat.

3.)  Buy in bulk. This doesn’t mean you have to buy a 25 lb. bag of rice.  It just means to look for the bulk isle in the supermarket.  You can buy as much as you need, and save on the cost of packaging.

4.)  Buy locally.  There are some good farmer’s markets here in the valley.  Look into Bountiful Baskets, which is a co-op for locally grown food.

5.)  Eat seasonally.  It’s cheaper to buy fruits and veggies when they are in season.  Plan ahead.  Freeze or can fruits and veggies in season so  you can have them all year round.

6.)  Forgo processed foods.  It is true that these types of foods are cheaper, but they really aren’t in the long run.  Empty calories leave us hungry for real food.  Not only do we pack on the pounds by eating process food, but we are hungrier in general.  Besides, many of the process foods can be duplicated at home for a much healthier version. 

I know a big issue with eating healthier is cooking for the kids.  As much as I want my kids to love healthy things, there are times, they just won’t eat it.  I read several posts about moms sneaking the healthier versions of the same stuff they like.  It’s sneaky, but I can attest to this.  My mom was notorious for doing this.  We would always had so many squash from our garden.  My mom would shred them up, and freeze them.  Through-out the year, she would put them in our dinners, i.e. spaghetti, lasagna, without us having a clue they were in there.  Many mothers suggested mashing up beans to put with the meat for taco’s and spaghetti, even meatloaf.  I grew up eating like this, and still would pick a nice ripe strawberry over a cupcake any day!  Be creative, be resourceful, and be healthy!  Any other ‘sneaky’ suggestions are welcomed!

The Leader of the Pack....this week!

Congrats Doug for losing 14 lbs in two weeks!

Sorry men, this section is just for the ladies.  Let’s face it, the real incentive for this challenge is not just the money, but also for even hotter wives…so let us have our moment.  I did some research regarding women and losing weight.  This is what I found: In order to lose weight faster, we have to combine a high intensity cardio with a steady-state cardio.   High-intensity is defined as something so intense that you couldn’t keep it up for more than 60 seconds — no matter how badly you wanted to! Steady-state cardio is any cardio that’s done at an intensity low enough such that it can be maintained for a longer period of time.

I will do my best to explain the science behind this: Basically your body uses two kinds of energy-carbs and fat.  We all know that if we don’t use our carbs in our body, it turns to fat.  With steady state cardio workouts, our body uses fat to burn for our energy, which is good.  However, later in the day when our body needs energy, our body will turn the carbs into fat and if we don’t use all of them, they stay as fat.  With a high intensity cardio workout, our body doesn’t have time to turn carbs into fat so it triggers the carbs directly.  We burn off the carbs first, and later when our body needs energy it will burn it from the fat we already have!! You can burn fat TWO TIMES FASTER and in HALF the time by incorporating high intensity cardio into your exercise routine and we will see better results.  These high intensity workouts could just be stepping it up a couple of notches on the elliptical or running as fast as you can for one minute.  Push yourself the hardest you can go in a minute then go back to a steady state cardio.  If we do this several times in a workout it will help trigger those carbs first. (Also I should mention that it’s really important to include toning exercises in our routine as well.  As we build more muscles, the more energy/fat we will burn when we are not working out. ) 

Second Place is First Loser!

The other night, I was running my normal route and thought: 'I know how competitive everyone is...if I am going to have a chance of winning this challenge, I need to do things that I haven't done before.' So I did it! 

It was something that I have wanted to do since I moved to this house.  I ran to the 215 and back! (about 6 miles round trip).  I am not telling you to brag, but rather to motivate you to push yourself harder than you think you can.  I have sore legs, and blisters to show for it, but I am grateful that I finally did it.  It's been over a year since I have ran that far and now I want to do more!

I found a fantastic website with a ton of low-calorie recipes on it.  It includes, breakfast, appetizers, salads, main dishes and even dessert (check out the Diet Coke Brownies..only 115 calories!)  These will help make sure our accomplishments won't go unnoticed.  (I am using these to plan my meals for next week..I will let you know what our families' favorites are.)

Website:
 http://www.eat-yourself-skinny.com/p/recipe-box_20.html
(I also pinned it for those on Pintrest)

Sweat is just your fat crying~Keep Moving!

As much as I want to let this challenge be only about losing weight and ignore the fact that I may need a lifestyle makeover, I have come to realize that losing weight has to include a lifestyle change.  I did some research and found a few things that all doctors agree should be done on a daily basis for our health.  These may not help you drop the weight fast, but those who do these daily will be able to lose more weight and remain healthy.

1.)  A healthy breakfast is the cornerstone of a good diet. Studies have shown when we skip breakfast; our bodies go for 10-16 hours with no outside source of energy. Our chemistry begins to shift to a mode of starvation, which increases appetite and changes how our bodies regulate blood sugar.

2.)  Drink at least eight 8oz. glasses of water a day. A recent study surveyed peoples' various aches and pains, energy levels and sense of well-being. When they were instructed to drink 8 glasses of water a day and their symptoms were reevaluated, notable improvements were seen in improved energy levels, fewer aches and pains, and generally improved sense of health.

3.)  Make meaningful connections with people. Many go through their day-to-day lives surrounded by other people without making meaningful connections. This doesn’t mean getting more Facebook or Twitter friends! A study was done over long period of time among classmates. Those who subsequently developed cancer were more likely to have described a lack of closeness with their parents and friends than their healthy classmates, even 50 years later.

4.)  If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times: Eat your fruits and vegetables!  There are too many benefits to list, but we all know what they are.

5.)  Sunlight is every bit as central to our health and well-being as proper nutrition, and exercise. (This is for my husband who thinks walking to his car is enough time spent outdoors.) Exposure to sunlight stimulates the pineal gland to produce melatonin which plays a role in proper sleep and has been shown to fight cancer. Also, when we are outdoors we tend to be more active by walking, hiking, and enjoying other physical activities.

6.)  Learn how to cope with stress properly; take time to relax and meditate. Every day you need to find a way to cope with the stresses, big or little, that come your way.  When you encounter stress, your brain releases hormones that go to various parts of the body to help you fight; fat and sugar are released into the bloodstream, and at the same time you blood vessels constrict, increasing your blood pressure. Your heart beats faster and your muscles tighten, which contribute to an overall unwell feeling.

7.)  Get at least 7 hours of sleep. A brand new study showed that people who don’t get enough sleep are not as sharp the next day and most alarmingly, they don’t even realize it. There have been numerous studies that link obesity and not enough sleep.  With kids, jobs, school and church obligations, I know this may be hard to do.  However, studies have shown that those who get 7 hours of sleep each night are better able to perform their duties.  So look at sleeping as an important part of being the best ‘YOU’-you can be.

They are haunting me.  Gummi Bears…just sitting there asking to be eaten. How do I eat these without feeling guilty about it?  I just need to burn off the calories so it is as if I never ate them.  Here are few easy ways to burn off calories for those haunting moments during the day:

Cook Dinner: Between chopping and table setting, you'll burn 100 calories in 38 minutes.

Garden: Spend 21 minutes tilling soil and planting in your garden to burn 100 calories.

Walk the dog: Hoof it to the dog park at a relaxed pace to burn 30 calories in 10 minutes. At the park, use the leash to jump rope for only four minutes (40 calories).

Play Soccer with the kids: Dribble and shoot your way through soccer drills for 14 minutes to boot 100 calories.

Dance:  repeating a song four times, you'll torch 100 calories.        

(Close your eyes Annie and Kaden:)

Sex: slide under the sheets for 20 minutes to burn 100 calories.

Vacuuming:  25 minutes of vacuuming around your home will burn about 100 calories

Walk: 15 minutes of brisk walking will burn approximately 100 calories.

Jog: Do it in-place as you wait for your favorite show to come on. 12 minutes will burn more than 100 calories.

Volleyball: Twelve minutes of volleyball is all it takes to reach 100 calories burned.

Swimming:  Of all the summers not to have a pool! Just a 15-minute leisurely swimming will help burn over 100 calories.  I’m not even talking laps.

Laugh: If you laugh for 10 to 15 minutes a day, you'll burn up to 50 calories. No joke!

I, of course, gave in to the haunting Gummi Bears, but had fun dancing them off!

Better choices on the run

As I was running today, I could not stop thinking about McDonald’s french fries and cheeseburgers.  (I don’t like McDonalds…my body must be really craving fat!)  However, that got me thinking about fast food.  We are all busy; sometimes a meal on the run is the only option we have.  (or in my case…I just don’t feel like cooking) I did a little research to find the best options for us as we eat on the run. Here are a few:

 McDonald's Chicken McNuggets with Sweet 'N Sour Sauce

4 pieces, 220 calories
The sauce is low in calories and sodium.

McDonald's Hamburger

260 calories
This less-than-two-ounce burger is pretty small, so it's one of the diet-friendliest sandwiches in the biz.

McDonald's Egg McMuffin

300 calories
With its lean Canadian-style bacon and English muffin, this breakfast sandwich is a better choice than the 500-calorie Sausage Biscuit with Egg.

KFC Mashed Potatoes with Gravy

120 calories
Mashed is always better than fried. Don't worry about the gravy; it adds only a few calories and just half a gram of fat.

KFC Original Recipe Drumstick

140 calories

KFC Honey BBQ Sandwich

300 calories
This Southern specialty is actually the lowest-calorie full-size sandwich on the menu.

Taco Bell Fresco Style Crunchy Taco

150 calories                     
Pair your taco with a filling side (like beans or rice), so you won't be hungry again before you leave the parking lot.

Taco Bell Fresco Style Grilled Steak Soft Taco

170 calories                                                    Taco Bell Fresco Style Tostada

200 calories                  

Taco Bell Gordita Nacho Cheese -- Chicken

270 calories

Pizza Hut Fit 'N Delicious Pizza with Diced Chicken, Red Onion, and Green Pepper

2 slices, 340 calories
A dietitian's dream: thin crust, lean chicken, and vegetable toppings.

Pizza Hut 12" Veggie Lover's Hand-Tossed Pizza

1 slice, 220 calories

Wendy's Jr. Hamburger

280 calories

Wendy's Large Chili

330 calories

Have a sweet tooth?  Here are a few choices on the sweeter side:

McDonald's Vanilla Reduced Fat Ice Cream Cone

150 calories                                      

Taco Bell Cinnamon Twists

160 calories

Wendy's Jr. Frosty

160 calories

5 Disasters to avoid:

1.     Wendy's Big Bacon Classic: 580 calories,

2.     McDonald's Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese: 730 calories

3.     KFC Chicken Pot Pie: 770 calories, 40g fat

4.     Burger King Triple Whopper with Cheese: 1,230 calories,

5.     Taco Bell Fiesta Taco Salad: 860 calories

The Team~Before Pictures

                                                                       Alison

Annie

Aaron

Chris

Doug

Kaden

Kiel

Kim

Mindy

Mom

Dad

Don't be stressing about these pictures.  They are simply meant to motivate.  It's the AFTER pictures that we all care about.