A Valentine Goodbye Kiss...

... to The Biggest Loser Season 13 remaining shows.

I have been contemplating all week whether or not to continue watching this season's shows and I've finally decided to give up on the eye rolling (Bob Harper, really?!?) and the ridiculous claims to 'my workout routine' (again, really Bob?!) and all the negativity!  Does Bob own every fitness move and someone forgot to tell the rest of the world... isn't this show supposed to be about people getting fit and reclaiming themselves through The Biggest Loser, not some personal concern that Bob has that Dolvett Quince may be training people with similar or even JUST THE SAME workout regimes and then worsening the situation by letting the people he (Bob) is training on the black team see his hostility? What happened to your tai chi and yoga balance in that workout, Mr. Harper?

But that was just the beginning of it for me.  I watch the show to be inspired and to feel some connection with the contestants that are on the ranch.  I enjoy rooting for them and laughing with my Twitter friends on Tuesday nights about the foibles and the remarkable things they're accomplishing.  I watch the 'last workout' segments intensely to see if I can find new moves to incorporate into my hours in the gym.

I *loved* last season's contestants.  Even the older woman who cried continually (Bonnie) and I felt,unfairly, blamed Ana for her own downfalls and giving up, was annoying to me but not unlikable.  I routed for both teams, for young and old and loved the season and was inspired by it.  I was, honestly, disappointed tremendously when John won over some of the other finalists but was more upset when he didn't give Dolvett the credit he had due him as the winning trainer.  Vinny, Ramon, Courtney, Jennifer, Jessica, Sunny, Becki, Antone, Joe and so many more made last season SO enjoyable and inspirational to watch from the 1st week to the finale.

This season has had people decide they just want to go home.  No real reason other than they miss their family and want to go.  Do they have any idea how many people would have cut off a finger (an arm probably isn't realistic... lol) to be in their spot on the ranch?  And Ms. Conda thinking she is not able to give one of the trainers (Dolvett) the respect he deserves and give him back talk in front of both teams during final workout?!  Are you kidding me?

And so many other things from the past weeks... I just don't feel uplifted by the show this season.  Quite the opposite, I feel dragged down when I turn off the television. When someone begins wearing an ascot to personally promote their own ventures (non-profit or not), I think that is just weird.  An ascot with a t-shirt... and the producers said 'okay' to that?

So, my decision - as much as I love the camaraderie of Twitter #BL friends on Tuesday nights and seeing Dolvett's enigmatic smile -  I'm giving up. Turn off  my elimination room frig-light... Healthy Loser Gal has left the building for the remainder of this season!

Let me know if you feel the same way or if you think it is editing, forced conflict, etc. that has made this season of The Biggest Loser seem so different by leaving a comment.  Thanks! ; )

Here's to our health, friends!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

January 20 for 20 Gaiam TV Fitness Winner is...

 @FionaHematoma!  This Philly native is now living in Arkansas and I am so glad she won because Fiona faithfully checked in on Twitter during the 20 days of the challenge and did all sorts of exercise, from hitting the gym for the elliptical and treadmill to walking her dogs to lacing up the skates of one type for ice hockey and the other type for roller derby.  CONGRATS!! (Fiona, please send me your mailing address through DM on Twitter!)

The folks at Gaiam.tv will be sending Fiona their Fitness basket with (this is just a partial list!) a gym bag, Pilates toning ring, pedometer, balance ball and resistance cords!  MANY THANKS to Gaiam.tv for this tremendous giveaway for the HealthyLoserGal January 20 minutes for 20 days challenge. 

If you haven't checked out Gaiam.tv, please take some time to do so.  Their site is awesome and - in my humble opinion - well worth the minimal monthly membership fee because of the diversity of programs offered. : )

Thank you to ALL of the 20for20 challengers... you all inspired ME to keep active all 20 days in the midst of a hectic and very busy month for me!  Thanks for that! :)

Here's to our health, friends!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Inspiration: Instructions for Life

While this list was first published in 2006 by The Dalai Lama, it is timeless in the message.  I've printed it out and plan to put it in MANY places around my home and office.  I hope you'll enjoy the inspiration as much as I have in reading it.

20 Ways to Get Good Karma

Instructions for Life by The Dalai Lama

1. Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

2. When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.

3. Follow the three R’s:

    - Respect for self,

    - Respect for others and

    - Responsibility for all your actions.

4. Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.

5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.

6. Don’t let a little dispute injure a great relationship.

7. When you realize you’ve made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.

8. Spend some time alone every day.

9. Open your arms to change, but don’t let go of your values.

10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.

11. Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.

12. A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.

13. In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past.

14. Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.

15. Be gentle with the earth.

16. Once a year, go someplace you’ve never been before.

17. Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

18. Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.

19. If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.

20. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.


Dream. Believe. Achieve.
Jan / Healthy Loser Gal

January Challenge: 20 for 20

So we're already ten days into 2012... and I hope that the year is off to a terrific start for you.  I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all the changes I'm making and have decided there is nothing like a good challenge to make me feel like I can do anything! [Que memories of reading Supergirl Adventure Comics at the beach when I was a kid...]

For the next 20 days in a row (no breaks for good behavior this month... the first 10 days were all the break we should have needed) I challenge you to join me in twenty minutes a day of some sort of workout.  You can - of course - exceed the 20 minutes per day but to be in the 20 for 20 (or #hlg20for20) you need to commit to twenty minutes of moving / exercise for the remaining 20 days of January.

This January Healthy Loser Gal challenge is about two things... self-discipline and starting the year off with a healthy attitude.  Everyone of us can find 20 minutes in our days to have the self-discipline to commit to exercise, walking or just moving it to lose it!  You could just do exercises during the commercial breaks of an hour television show and you'd have nearly 20 minutes in!

I'm a huge fan of walking so I'm going back to my morning walks before work once I'm in my new home as of Sunday.  And I'm going to add the extra challenge of the 20 minutes of exercise for 20 days to that. 

Are you in? : ) I think this is an easy, fun challenge and I hope to hear what your 20 minutes per day will take the shape of.  If you need some help with ideas for the next 20 days, I've put together a list of online resources from sites I trust and that I believe will inspire and motivate you.

Do you know about GaiamTV.com? This is a WONDERFUL site that has an incredibly diverse selection of streaming exercise routines available for a low monthly subscription fee.  GaiamTV features Yoga Studio, Fitness Studio, Wellness Center, Spirituality, Metaphysics, and much more.  You're going to recognize many of their instructors, too! 


Some of the GaiamTV instructors

 During this 20 for 20 Challenge, I've teamed up with GaiamTV.com to offer one OUTSTANDING Fitness themed gift basket to one of the 20 for 20 Challengers. That, alone, should encourage all of us to exercise for 20 days straight for 20 minutes so you can be in on the fantastic giveaway from GaiamTV on January 31st! :)

Other inspirations:
Dr. Oz' "You on a Diet" has a companion workout section on the RealAge site.  Check out the workouts here for 20 minutes of beginning exercises to help you feel good about challenging yourself to 20 minutes for 20 days!


Women's Health Magazine Fat Burning

 I am a huge fan of FITNESS Magazine and their 20 minute express workouts feature something for everyone.  Check out the ultimate lunch workout slide show!

Do you love Joel Harper workouts?  Well, apparently Dr. Oz does as he features @JoelHarperFit (NYC trainer extraordinaire and no relation to our beloved Bob Harper from The Biggest Loser!) in this 20 minute workout to blast away fat!  (Yes, please!)  Also search Joel Harper on YouTube and find some great workouts there.

Want 20 minutes of intensity that you're going to feel the next day?  Try Women's Health Magazine's Lose Belly Fat: 20-Minute Fat-Burning Workout. The next day, as you recover, you may want to opt in for the 20 minute walk (read the info carefully and make certain you're fit enough to do high-intensity workouts... it is good to push your comfort zone a little bit but not good to hurt yourself if you're just starting to exercise).

Let me know on Twitter (@HealthyLoserGal) or on Facebook (HealthyLoser Gal or page: Healthy Loser Gal) or by commenting here if you're part of the January 20 for 20 Challenge, friends. If you want to be in on the GaiamTV.com giveaway, please follow @Gaiam on Twitter or GaiamTV on Facebook.

C'mon and join me... let's make January a healthy, I'm-proud-of-what-I'm-doing kind of month! :)

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / Healthy Loser Gal

Happiness is Your Choice...

Believe in Yourself: Change is GOOD!

You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change.
Les Brown

All of my life, when asked or the conversation topic came up, I would state "I really don't like change!". And I meant it.  I believed that I disliked change.  I resisted change whenever possible saying that I loved traditions, liked the 'comfortable' and embraced 'old favorites'.  The truth that I realize now?  I was plain old SCARED of change. 

Don't fear change -- embrace it. Anthony J. D'Angelo

When, in 2009, I finally decided to reclaim my own life and start to work hard on becoming who I thought I was deep-down-inside of me, I realized that the ONLY way to get back to ME was to make changes and some big ones!  And so the shift from disliking change to embracing it and actually looking forward to changes began.  Slowly at first with some trepidation.  I stumbled plenty when trying to make the life changes and there were times when the familiar seemed much more appealing than the new, the change I was endeavoring to move toward, but - - you know what?  I kept moving. When I fell, I got up and looked toward the destination and kept going. And life started changing - - all around me -- and always for the better!

And then... in 2011, I became stagnant.  I stopped changing.  And 2011 was a year of questions for me and self-examination until... sometime in the late months of the year, I decided it was time for a big, bold change in my life. I realized I'd let negativity creep into my life, worries... and with one big shove of determination I pushed them OUT! 

After 20+ years in one town - the beautiful, historic town of Lexington, Massachusetts - the town I raised my son on my own in, the town where I coached little league and taught Sunday School, and found special magical places that I would go to restore my soul at, I have decided to strike out and start a new chapter in a new house, in a new town further out of the city.  I'm doing it because it is the right thing for me.  I know it in my heart. : )

I'm excited.  Oh, and a little scared, too.  But I know this is the right thing and the right time for me.  I'm making the right choice and the change will do me good.

All changes, even the most longed for, have their melancholy; for what we leave behind is a part of ourselves; we must die to one life before we can enter into another! Gail Sheehy

So... please wish me luck and send me good energy as these next three weeks I find myself moving from the old to the new... and settling in.. and exploring... and, with eyes and heart wide-open, embracing the CHANGE my life is involved in.  I'm excited, rejuvenated... and happy!

Here are a few pictures of my new home... come May (when my company moves from the suburbs into downtown Boston), I'll also be a commuter rail rider! 



I'm the left half of this two family home built in 1900! :)

  



This gorgeous lake is less than 1 mile walk!

Dream! BELIEVE! Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

This New Year: don't feel the guilt of unkept resolutions...

I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions... I am more likely to make a resolution in the Fall when the pressure to make them is off since I often feel like the Fall is when New Year *should start*.  :)   And when I do make a resolution, I don't make a lofty one any longer that I know I won't be able to keep.  I have kept journals and diaries since I was in my early teens and looking back on past resolutions is both funny and sad. 

"I will lose 80 lbs. by the first week of June", I wrote in 2004.   I didn't.  I gained weight that year.  That was the year of my son's high school graduation.

"I will lose 100 lbs. by May 1st of this year" I wrote on January 1st, 2008.  I didn't.  I lost 12.  That was the year of my son's college graduation and I still wince when I look at the few photos of me on that joyful day.

In March of 2009 I wrote.  "I am going to reclaim myself.  I have 100 lbs. to lose.  I am going to lose 5 lbs. this month.  I am going to begin to walk again.  I will do this."  I lost 18 lbs. that month, I believe.  I began to walk 1/4 mile around the local high school track and was darn proud of doing it.  After the first five pounds were lost, and then the next five pounds, I celebrated 10 lbs. here on the blog.  And then the next ten pounds.  And then the next five when I hit 25 lbs. gone.  The small changes, the small goals, the rewards for small achievements gained worked for me.  I believe they will work for you, too, friends!

This year consider making just a small change.  Don't make a HUGE resolution.  Join me and my friends over at MeYouHealth and sign the Anti-Resolution Pledge.

Whatever your weight, health, or fitness goal is... I know you can achieve it this coming year if you believe in yourself and go for your goal by making small, sustainable changes and setting realistic milestones. : ) 

If you need help along the way staying the course, I'm only a tweet away and MeYouHealth has a great community of support at their Daily Challenge site and on Facebook. I joined the Daily Challenge community a year ago and have loved the small daily positive suggestions in my life. They're all about small actions making to attain big changes in the long run! :)

Happy New Year and New YOU, my friends!

Dream ~ Believe ~ Achieve!
Jan /
HealthyLoserGal

Merry Christmas, Friends!

From my house to yours... wishing you a wonderful holiday!

Ocean Spray Cranberries... Bogging & Blogging!

Over the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend, I took a little drive on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to the Ocean Spray cranberry bog which is located just beside Patriot Place in Foxborough, Massachusetts.  Not only did I learn a great deal about harvesting cranberries but I also enjoyed the beautiful MA Department of Conservation and Recreation "Healthy Heart Trail", something I never knew existed in the State! (More on this in a bit...)

I've been a cranberry fan for as long as I can remember.  Last year at the holidays I posted a photo on the blog of my cranberry relish. When I was growing up, my family drank "cranberry juice cocktail" and while I raised my son, we always had 100 percent Ocean Spray cranberry juice in our frig. 

In the past year, thanks to Ocean Spray providing me with samples, I learned of Diet Sparkling Cranberry juice which is now my fav drink (and mixed 50/50 with pinot grigot over ice makes a heck of a low-cal Cranberry Spritzer!).

What I didn't know about Ocean Spray is that they are a grower-owned cooperative and that the Gilmore family ancestors from South Carver, MA founded Ocean Spray and is a 6th generation (think about that for a moment... SIX generations!) grower. Their newest bog was named after their first grandchild, Charlotte, the 7th generation. : )

I encourage you to enlarge the photos (click on each photo) I took during my visit to the Foxborough harvested Ocean Spray cranberry bog (if it weren't yet harvested, the bog would be flooded and the berries skimming the top of the water) and learn about cranberries, the history of Ocean Spray, and harvesting cranberries.

And, I also hope you'll check out the Mass. Dept. of Conservation and Recreation's Healthy Heart trails in your area (if you live in MA).  I was really impressed that they have trails for ALL skill levels.  This means that morbidly obese walkers can get out into nature as they begin their weight loss and fitness journey and walk on well cared for trails (the bog trails were beautiful!) that you'll know the intensity level and length of.  The department's information on the trails take away the anxiety of not knowing what lies ahead and whether or not you'll be physically able to complete the walk.  You WILL be able to and then - when you're finished - you'll be able to say "I did it!" and be proud of your accomplishments!

Enjoy the tour, friends!

Tastes good. Good for you! (Click to enlarge)



The harvested cranberry bog



Beautifully landscaped trails lead to the bog

  

Great easy trails make this a great spot for families



Canadian geese enjoying the late Fall unseasonably warm weather



The stream floods the bogs for harvesting

How the cranberries are cultivated

A few lonely cranberries that weren't harvested remain

Beautiful male and female Mallard ducks blend in with the pond

Sloping Heart Healthy nature trail

Remnants of Hurricane Irene's damage



Beautiful late afternoon pond silhouette

I hope you'll check out the delicious, healthy recipes on the Ocean Spray site.  If you look hard enough you'll find my libation recipe for Cranberry Spritzers! :)   

Here's to our health...

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Healthy & Fit Challenge: Week 11 (WOW!) Check-in

I was so happy today to be able to give away five $25 gift cards to Sephora courtesy of the fine folks at SlimFast who wanted to reward the challengers hard work and dedication to wellness and fitness.  (By the way, if you were one of the seven getting the Slim Fast coupons, you need to send me your mailing address, please...)  Congrats to Andrea, Jessica, Dani, Samantha, and Tiffany - - I'm so happy for you to receive the gift cards but MORESO for you all sticking it out for the 90 (well, 78 to date) Day Challenge!  Be proud of your accomplishments!  Others are sticking in there with you - and we should ALL be proud of how well we've done.

Let's finish STRONG!

Check in by leaving a Comment and, as we move closer to the big holidays, let's support one another to keep working out and mindfully eating and logging our food.  All those nibbles of cookies and candies can really add up and sabotage your good work, so if you bite it, write it! :)

In the next eleven days there are two final giveaways... both are great ones.  If you are vegetarian or enjoy vegetarian foods, please let me know in the comments this week!

Here's to our health and our dedication, friends!

Dream.
Believe.
Achieve!

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Gift of Fitness & Health Challenge: Week 10 Check-In

Can you believe it?! Here we are in Week 10 of the challenge... only 19 days left, my friends!  Give yourself some love for hanging in!  How are you doing? I am so darn impressed with you who have stuck it through all these weeks.  I know some have fell off and then rejoined and I think that is so great... don't give up.  Keep believing in yourself and get back on the plan and go-baby-go!  Together we can finish stong! 

So how has this past week been for you?  How has the overall Gift of Fitness and Health 90 Day challenge been for your fitness and /or weight goals?  Have you been supported by others in your life or through the blog or on Twitter and Facebook?  Let's hear how you're doing in Comments!

xo

Dream... Believe... Achieve!
Jan / Healthy Loser Gal

Revisiting Slim-Fast... 'cause sometimes you're just too darn busy!

I have been really a bit crazed in the past three weeks or so.  Life is not 'out of control', but life right now is REALLY REALLY busy!  And in one of those indisputable 'law of attraction' moments in my life, the nice folks at Slim-Fast contacted me asking me if I'd like to try their newly formulated products.  Hmmmmm....

I hesitated to accept at first.  I mean, I am all about whole foods and eating local fresh foods and eating healthy!  When I was relearning how to eat last year through the Vtrim Online I remember one of the changes they encouraged in our behaviors was 'don't drink your calories', so accepting Slim-Fast's generous offer didn't feel like a fit to me.

But then life stepped in.  And I realized that I am going to have to move from the town I've been living in for the past 20 years (my choice for financial reasons) and started working hard to move toward that goal.  I began having less and less free time (more on this later in a separate blog post) and began to skip meals and - worse - much worse - began to then be starving hungry by the time I'd finally get home and would eat like a maniac.  THAT is when I revisited the email offer from Slim-Fast and accepted their offer to send me product. (And wait 'til you read on and see how incredibly generous they are not just to me, but to YOU, too!!)



Click to enlarge to see label



Guess what - the old Slim-Fast I remember from when I was in my early 30s (no, I'm NOT saying how long ago that was...lol!) is replaced with this great tasting Slim-Fast in their way cool redesigned bottle.  And - as it claims - it really does leave you feeling full for 3+ hours!  That surprised the heck out of me.  I've tried both the Strawberries 'n Cream and the Creamy Milk Chocolate shakes and both taste great. I remembered the Slim-Fast shakes as having an after-taste but that is long gone.  And the new design on the bottles makes them so easy to pop into your frig and then grab on-the-go. 

If you've been part of the 90 Day Challenge to Health & Fitness, and you've stuck in there and are in the final 30 day stretch with me, I've got a great surprise and giveaway for you, thanks to the folks at Slim-Fast.  They want to reward your dedication for committing to be healthy and fit and have offered me coupons for Slim-Fast product to give to you.  ADDITIONALLY, they've given me a limited number of Sephora gift cards to send to #hlgFitGift challengers who have stayed with the challenge. All you need to do is follow @SlimFast on Twitter or on Facebook and let me know by commenting that you'd like to receive the coupons to try Slim-Fast. If you're already a Slim-Fast fan, I'd like to hear that, too! I'll contact you directly about the Sephora giveaway from Slim-Fast. : )

THANK YOU for being a part of the 90 Day Challenge and hanging in here.  There are still more giveaways coming in this last home stretch. : )

Dream. Believe. Achieve!

Jan / Healthy Loser Gal

Greater Boston Food Bank & Healthy Loser Gal Gobblers Team Up!

There are so many who have less than they'd like you to believe.  A Wall Street Journal study recently found that 50 percent of Americans don't have $2000 in savings for an emergency.  I understand that struggle and know that many hard working families cannot manage to put together enough money to feed their families three nutritious meals each day and turn to the Greater Boston Food Bank for help. 

This Thanksgiving day I will not be hosting my regular Thanksgiving dinner at home... my son is off to his girlfriend's family's home, my 85 year old Mom has decided she doesn't want to travel or host dinner at her home and my sister and brother and families will not be traveling home to New England for Thanksgiving.  All of that said, I won't be cooking, so I thought of donating to the Food Bank and did a little research, finding out they are hosting their annual Turkey Drive for needy Boston area families in hopes of having 40,000 (!!!) turkeys donated by Thanksgiving day.

Enter the HealthyLoserGal Gobblers team idea!  I thought it would be great if we could join together and donate ten turkeys and sent out an announcement on Facebook and Twitter.  Within a day (Monday), nine of the ten have been donated for $16 each by friends.  That $16 will buy a turkey for a family of 4-6 for a nutritious holiday dinner.  A small investment by each of us so we can wake up on Thanksgiving morning and know a family isn't going hungry on this day of thanks.

I'm very thankful for all of you, my friends.  You're generous, good people and I'm honored to call you friends!

If you'd like to donate to the HLG Gobblers turkey team and help out a needy Boston area family... click here!  Thank you! :)

Here's to our health and living a grateful life...
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Gift of Fitness Challenge: Week 8 Check-in

Simply put:  We're halfway through the challenge... we have 7 weeks left to our December 24th end date. 

Where are you on your journey for this challenge?  What have you learned about yourself?  How have you changed your habits?  What obstacles have you conquered and what do you still struggle with?  Have you asked others for help?  Have you offered help to others along the way?  Check-in through COMMENTS on how you're doing! :)

Dream.
Believe.
Achieve.

Jan/HealthyLoserGal

Halfway up the mountain! Gift of Fitness Challenge: Week 7 Check-in!

Have you ever gone rock or mountain climbing and you get halfway up to the peak and you look down?  And you stop a moment and think to yourself "Oh, I have climbed halfway, that is really great... I didn't think I would get this far.  Look down there at the base... I could climb down now and still be satisfied... and safe because I know I'll get down there without any difficulties."

Or you can keep climbing up!  You can dig in your heels and plant your feet and reach for your goals and CLIMB to the top... go for the finish... especially when the end is in site.  Does it get easier in the second half of a journey?  Not always.  You may have trained yourself and conditioned yourself during the first half to expect certain obstacles and overcome them.  But, in my experience, there is always something new that will pop up to challenge you, to allow you to test yourself and feel that thrill of reaching a once out-of-site goal.

Let's do this!  Let's finish the rest of this challenge strong and on target.  Remember to write down your goals... revise them if you feel that will help you... believe in yourself... journal your activities and food daily... plan your meals and snacks and exercise... don't waiver from your belief in your own abilities and CELEBRATE every single achievement, large or small.  Every ounce of energy you put into this challenge of fitness and health will come back to you in unmeasurable ways.  You may see 'measurable' results on the scale or the tape measure or in besting personal fitness goals, but you can't see the internal pride you'll feel by keeping promises to yourself.

I'm rooting for you, friends.  And I'm rooting for myself, too.  Let's keep supporting each other and hit the second half of this challenge full throttle! : )

Check-in here for WEEK 7 through the comments... I want to hear your accomplishments and challenges and will be rewarding those of you climbing, stretching, challenging yourself to reach your own goals!

Dream.
Believe.
Achieve!

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Gift of Fitness Challenge: Week 6 Check-In

Apologies for getting the check-in posted a day late.  I didn't have any power at my home from Saturday night until last night (Monday) due to the freak Nor`easter than blanketed New England with snow and then with fallen trees and power lines!  I did a little happy dance and yelled out 'woohooo!' when the power was restored last night.  I think sleeping in a room that is below 50 degrees is not exactly my cup of tea.  At one point I wondered how many calories I was burning from shivering! ; )

So we're into week six now.  I'm down 8 pounds since the challenge began which I'm happy with.  I know other challengers are doing incredible on their goals and have far exceeded my 8 lbs.  But we need to remember this isn't a competition against one another but a challenge to meet our own expectations and goals that we've set.  And it isn't all about weight loss, fitness is key, too. 

Are you walking, moving, biking, Wii'ing (lol...sounds funny that way, huh?) so you can Move It to Lose It? Check-in below and let me know how you're doing... remember there are incentives coming up for those of you who keep up with the challenge and continue to check in and support and encourage one another.  Also, friends... if you're struggling -- shout out to us and let me and others know you need support.  There is power in numbers.

Here's to our health!

Dream.
Believe.
Achieve!

Jan/HealthyLoserGal