Who is shaping your life? Beautiful quote...

And the winner of the Go Sport ID is...

And the winner is:  Marathon Sweetheart who was the second comment in the Go Sport ID giveaway!! Congrats, Brittny - - I know you'll put this to good use!  For those of you who are looking for some inspiration, you should check out Brittny's blog.  She went from overweight and unfit to being a marathon runner WHILE she's studying to be a doctor and is an ambassador for Boys & Girls Clubs of America.  This girl is amazing! : )

More giveaways through the remainder of this Awesome August, friends, so don't be disheartened if you didn't win the Go Sport ID!  And, by the way, the Go Sport IDs start for under $20 so they're a really good investment for your own personal health and safety and, if you're like me, peace of mind while out and about!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

PS: If you ever need a random number generated for a giveaway or whatever... I used random.org - so easy! 

So Honored! Voting for 50 Most Inspiring Healthy Tweeps

I am delighted to be included in the running for Mamavation's Top 50 Most Inspirational Healthy Tweeps for my twitter presence!  Sooo nice of Leah to include me and I would be honored to be part of the list with people that I turn to daily for inspiration, advice and great tips.

I'd really appreciate your votes over the next two weeks and am hopeful to make it onto the final Top 50 list! : ) 

Thanks, friends!

This is one of those Dream. Believe. Achieve! moments! *grin*

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Go Sport ID Giveaway ~ Be Safe When You Sweat! :)

I have been so fortunate to meet many really inspiring people along this weight loss and fitness journey.  Kase at Go Sport ID and I have become Twitter friends and it has been great fun to support them in the launch of their business. Please check out the newly launched Go Sport ID website for all of their products.  I am so excited to offer one Healthy Loser Gal blog reader the chance to own this great Go Sport ID in this anniversary giveaway!

As a person who lives alone, I really feel much more secure when I'm out walking or hiking or biking now because I'm wearing one of the Go Sport IDs.  It has my personal info on the inside of the ID (says I'm asthmatic, who to call in emergency, my hospital name) as well as my name and a motivational mantra on the front.  You can actually design it with whatever you would like on the front or back within the constraints of the space allowed.   

The colorful bands allow you to switch up the Go Sport ID to whatever you're wearing as it is very stylish and you could actually wear it all the time if you chose.  One of the things that I like about it, too, is that it is light... it doesn't feel heavy on your wrist when you're exercising.  You don't really notice it is there and, because the band is silicone it is durable and can take your sweat! lol

So how do you win this great giveaway? You 1) leave me a comment below to let me know you're interested  and 2) you follow Go Sport ID on Facebook or Twitter.  That is it! :) 

Thanks for your support on my weight loss and fitness journey, friends!  This weekend and next week there will be giveaways galore, so be sure to check back in on the blog!

Here's to our health!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!

Jan / Healthy Loser Gal

One Hundred Pounds Lost & One Year Anniversary of Maintaining! Hallelujah!

I've done it!!!
Through the emotional ups and downs of a crazy year, I've maintained my 100 lb. weight loss and have made it to the one year anniversary!  I'm fist bumping myself!!

I thought last year was a milestone when I hit the one hundred pound mark, but this year, in many ways, proved to be more difficult and so - for me - the celebration is sweeter. 

At New Year's I was down a total of 122 pounds and felt incredible... I remember working out at the YMCA the week between Christmas and New Year's and thinking "I have this... this is habit now... this is so cool!" Little did I know that with the new year would come emotional personal drama and with that all my new healthy habits would be challenged.  And little did I know that I would fail miserably in some of those challenges and begin to let weight creep back onto my body.

By mid-March I had stopped exercising regularly and began to back pedal dramatically 'til I took contol of things and kicked the drama out of my life, reclaiming me again.  The lessons I'd learned about portion control and walking and exercising were back front and center in my life and I began to drop the excess weight I'd put on, turning my own emotions back to "positive" from having slipped to feeling negative.

While in January I was only 15 pounds from my goal weight, tonight I am 28 lbs. away.  But I feel good again, feel healthy once more and have been exercising regularly and eating healthy without thinking about it.  That habit has been learned and not broken.  I eat remarkably good foods and continue to lose weight when I keep my walking up.  What I'm concentrating on now is getting myself backed to how toned I was in January.  Let me tell you something - when you're working out and getting into shape - don't take a break because you're going to very quickly lose that momentum!  That is a valuable lesson I learned this spring!

So, I'm still on the journey, friends.  I still am concentrating on 5 lbs. at a time... still celebrating the small and the large victories as they come along to reward myself in non-food related ways.  And this week is a big victory... I've kept 112 lbs off for a year.  I'm no longer morbidly obese.  I'm no longer obese.  I'm overweight and only about 10 lbs away from normal weight for my height and age.  *fist bump*pow*  I'll take it! : )

What's my new goal? I have a special event coming up in October that I'd like to be 15 lbs. lighter for. I'm setting my first 5 lb. goal for September 10th. I believe in my own abilities and what I've learned over these last two years and know I'll be able to make that goal. What I hope you know is that if *I* can lose this weight and get healthy after having been morbidly obese and having NO fitness in my life whatsoever, YOU can do this, too! If you need some help... just ask me and I'll do what I can to get you on the right path!


Dream. Believe. (Work Hard!) Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoser(AndMaintainer! lol)Gal

FitStella Is Headed to Visit FabKate!

My fitness pal, FitStella, is winging her way to visit FabKate in Albuquerque as I write this... off for yet another fit & fab adventure!  Before she left Beantown, though, I wanted to be sure she saw the ocean and got to feel the salt air on her flat little fit face, so off we trekked to Newburyport in search of the Atlantic Ocean! :)

Along the way we stopped at my all-time-favorite lobster shack: Woodman's in Essex, Massachusetts so FitStella could see what really fresh New England healthy seafood is all about. 

We arrived at Woodman's just in time for the lobsterman to be taking steaming hot lobsters from the tank to display for the people waiting in the lines that stretched out the door and around into the parking lot. (Name dropping alert: the ex-fiance and I were here one day a few years ago and said hello to Senator Scott Brown & his wife as we all waited in line for delicious, fresh seafood!)



FitStella promoting "lobstah" without "buttah"
MmMmMmmmm!



We made our way up the "north shore" (as it is called in Boston) to the quaint community of Newburyport, a town I happen to love! Newburyport has a 3 mile river walk which starts in town on the Merrimack River and ends up on the ocean - the perfect trek for a beautiful day!

FitStella = the perfect guest!
Always willing to do whatever you'd like,
quiet & never leaves a mess! :)

I'm looking forward to reading FabKate's (who is also Fab at Fifty!!) adventures with FitStella on her blog and hope you'll follow both FitStella's and FitStanley's updates on http://www.fitstanley.com/!
Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Healthy Words to Live By

Exciting Biggest Loser Ranch Trip Giveaway from Joy Bauer & SpaWeek



Helllloooo, Bob! :)

You all know I am a fan of The Biggest Loser on NBC and love to tweet during the shows live (to the point where I have been put in "Twitter prison" for tweeting TOO much during the show! lol).  So when SpaWeek.com approached me to find out if I'd like to share links on our sites to offer up an incredible prize package, I jumped at the opportunity!  (But, okay, I didn't jump UP and onto a box... because I *still* can't do that!!! *insert muttering here!*)


Joy Bauer (right) and a fan

 In June I saw Joy Bauer in person at the Boston Health & Fitness Expo and listened to her motivating talk on getting healthy and living a healthy lifestyle.  I've always liked Joy's segments on NBC's Today Show and have enjoyed her nutrition advice through her Woman's Day column and Slim Down Plan!.  Now Joy is co-sponsoring this "Fast Track to Health Giveaway" with SpaWeek.com and the Biggest Loser Resort and it is an incredible!

If you don't know about this giveaway yet, friends, you need to check it out because the "ultimate weight loss journey for one deserving winner" is the very cool prize and includes a six night stay at the Ranch, three meals a day, spa services, a private cooking class with the Executive Chef of the Resort, a nutritional plan developed for you by Joy Bauer, and more!  The details are below and you'll need to go to SpaWeek's Facebook page to enter the Fast Track to Health Giveaway.

Please do note one thing about the prize, friends... airfare is not included so if you do win, you'd have to find a way to get to and from Malibu on your own! ; ) 

Did I mention that I'm excited to be one of the featured healthy bloggers on SpaWeek Daily's blog? I am answering what my #1 Diet Tip is along with other spa and fitness bloggers.  Can you guess what my tip is before peeking? : ) You can skip over to SpaWeek Daily's blog by clicking here! :)



How awesome would it be if one of the HealthyLoserGal blog readers won the grand prize to The Biggest Loser Resort in Malibu? Maybe Sam Poueu would be your trainer during the week... he works there, you know, and a gal can day dream! ; )



BL9 Fan Favorite, Sam Poueu

Here's to our health!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Awesome August: Healthy Habits & Having FUN!

Friday was one of those great summer days when the sun is out and it is hot but there are billowy clouds that are calling for you to get outside and DO something!  Luckily for me, my job allows us to have a couple of Fridays off over the summer and this past Friday afternoon was my turn!

I'm proud of myself for how well I've been doing planning and then logging all my meals.  I can't say that I have stuck 100 percent to my planned out food, but I bet I'm averaging well over 85 percent and - for me - that is a win! : )

To keep up with my planning of food, I needed to hit the local farm stand and grocery store to get some healthy foods ready for the weekend and coming week.  I have a friend who wanted to go with me - talk about your healthy eater - this gal is paper thin and up for any sort of challenge... and I'm not kidding! ; ) (Cue the FitStella montage!)

It is soooo wonderful to have the farm stands stocked with local summer fruits and vegetables!  I picked up local watermelon and berries, cantaloupe, three varieties of fresh lettuce, sweet corn, onions, green peppers, and tomatoes - all from Wilson Farm in Lexington, Mass.  I stopped at my favorite little local fish market and picked up scallops and the local Stop 'n Shop for skinless chicken and avocados.

After getting home, it was time to get ready for the weekend ahead with some food prep... one huge garden salad and one huge fruit salad were in order with FitStella overseeing the whole operation! : )

All the lettuces got broken into smaller pieces and rinsed and spun dry.  When that was done it was onto the fruit salad... 

Personally, I could eat fruit salad everyday of the week if it was always THIS fresh and juicy.  But I have to portion it out because there are many more calories in fruit salad than a green salad... but still... I'm oh-so-willing to walk a half a mile to burn off a few extra scoops of fruit salad that is this delicious! : )

After the salads were stored in the frig, it was time for some fun exercise in the sun... bike riding! Yay!  Helmet and Go Sport ID both in place, an expected 30 minute bike ride ended up being 90 minutes on the bike path because it was so darn nice out I didn't want to turn around and come home! : )  But FitStella suggested we probably should ride home before dark since I hadn't brought my headlight or blinking rear light for the bike with us.  (Not only is she fit and healthy, FitStella is smart!)

We made it home long before twilight with just enough light outdoors left for me to snap this photo! 

FitStella will be traveling to someone else's home this coming week... and she'd love to visit a home that has kids in the house!  Any chance you're a health, weight loss and/or fitness blogger and interested in hosting her for a week?  Let me know if you would like FitStella's adventure to continue at your home and I'll let you know the details! : )

It was a great day and leisure biking is an easy way to burn calories without even realizing you are! Those are the best activities sometimes! : )

Here's to our health, friends!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

FitStella: A Healthy Snack That Kids Can Make

It is summer and it is hot and as everyone knows FitStella is all about eating healthy food to grow big muscles (just ask her)!  So here is a recipe for kids to make that is a healthy and fun summertime snack that is FitStella Approved!

FROZEN GRAPES

Step 1

Ask a grown-up to buy green, red, or concord grapes at the farmers' market or grocery store.



Step 2

Wash your own hands and then wash the grapes under cool water.

Step 3

Put the grapes in a plastic zip bag and place them in the freezer until they are frozen.

 

 

Step 4

Take them out of the freezer,

pop them in your mouth

and ENJOY!

FitTastic Fun with FitStella at Healthworks Fitness..."You're in Beantown, Stella!"

So much fun to have FitStella visiting me this week, all the way from Austin to Boston! 

As I mentioned August 1st, you can find out a little bit more about FitStella and her counter-part, FitStanley on MizFitOnline's site, but the original idea came from the worldwide Flat Stanley Project with MizFit's daughter.  From FlatStanley was born the idea of FitStanley... and (insert Marlon Brando montage here) everyone knows that Stanley goes hand-in-hand with Stella. *grin* (Yes, I'm doing the "Stelllahhhhh" yell as I write this!)

So tonight, I bring you a little preview of what the FitStella visit wrap up at week's end will hold...

FitStella and HealthyLoserGal

Hit the Gym!

Hey! Look who has been waiting
for me to get out of work!

Healthworks Fitness in Porter Square is really great..
FitStella agrees!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!

Jan/ HealthyLoserGal

& FitStella : )

Such a great quote for living a happy life!

Thanks to Attune Foods for posting this on Twitter this afternoon. So positive!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

An Awesome August 1st in Pictures : ) PS: FitStella Arrives! (Woot!)

I've had a great on-plan day for the first day of the Awesome August Challenge... so great and so busy that I'm tired out and want to get to bed to get a good night's sleep to start it all again in the morning! : )

So tonight's post is a pictorial (kind of...) of Monday, August 1st... a day in the life of a healthy loser gal! *grin*

Breakfast looked something like the photo over there... 'cept it was plain yogurt and raspberries and blueberries. But the photo I took of breakfast is on my work laptop which is... unfortunately... in my office.

I made a turkey, avocado, tomato with dijon mustard sandwich for my lunch at home and brought it into the office... with a fresh, juicy peach.  Really delicious! :)



Did my food journal thruout the day!



After work I headed for my first workout at Healthworks in Porter Square to take advantage of the all club pass I won at FitBoston.  I really "got my sweat on" and was only there for 35-40 minutes working out.  More on Healthworks tomorrow night, but this is a photo of Danielle who oriented me to the great fitness club and spa yesterday.  She shared with me that she has lost 100 lbs and started at over 230 lbs.  Now she's toned and sculpted and just ran over 4.5 miles last week.  So very cool. 

Drove back home and was pretty tired out by this point, but - lo and behold!  What is this in my mailbox?! Ohhhh... woohooo.... Fit Stella has arrived in Lexington!   She and I are going to have an awesome week together.

What's that? Who or what is FitStella?  Well - short 'n sweet, you can read about her on MizFitOnline's site but you'll be seeing her plenty this week on the blog.  She's a world traveler... she's a health icon... a fitness guru.  And Stella and I have some sites to see, some healthy food to eat, some adventures in store.  Stay tuned!

Nearly 8:30pm by the time I'm out of the shower, flowers are watered and I'm ready to make my planned dinner.  Huge salad with balsamic dressing, skinless 4oz chicken, fat free Hood cottage cheese with a little salsa on both the chicken and cottage cheese - oh so delicious.  And a small (4oz) glass of Reisling.  Reward for staying on plan and a great day!

A pretty perfect day, all in all.  August really IS going to be awesome! : )

Dream... because we all need to believe we can do great things.
Believe... 'cause when you truly believe and work hard toward your dreams, great things begin to happen!
Achieve... you'll be amazed at all the goals you'll surpass, all the magical moments your life will hold!

Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Awesome August Challenge! Let's Go For It!

Last August I started monthly challenges on the blog and over the course of a year we have had 327 people (!!!) join into healthy challenges for weight loss or fitness or... like me, for both! :)  This month, I'm going back to the original challenge and hope you'll all join in!  I want to ROCK this month of August... I want to end it looking back and by us saying "I really gave this month my all... it truly has been AWESOME!" So who is with me?

Oh! and I'm still working on my Healthy Habit Challenge, too, believe me - - and so far so good - I'm planning my food and exercise and logging which is my goal for a new habit!

How did the summer come and go so quickly? I am determined to make every little second of August count for me - both for summer fun and fitness! When thinking about this earlier tonight I logged onto Twitter and posed the question "If I were to challenge you to an #AwesomeAugust for #fitness, would you join me? Maybe something like committing to exercise 24 of 31 days?" Well, within an hour or so, I had well over two dozen resounding "I'm IN!" replies! I was so shocked and happy! How totally cool are our Twitter friends and I am SURE some of you reading the blog will join in, too.



Sweaty, happy,
HealthyLoser :)

 So here is the idea... let's really commit to ourselves to make August count with our own personal fitness pledge. Of the 31 days of August, commit to yourself and to the #AwesomeAugust group that you will walk or exercise 24 of those days. It is really incredibly hot in some parts of the country so the rest days will be recovery days to use! : ) We can make the last month of the summer our best month of the summer and enter September proud of ourselves for the commitment we made and KEPT to ourselves!! You can post here on the blog or on Twitter when you've exercised or group the days together and post what you did for the week. If you're posting on Twitter, please use the #AwesomeAugust hashtag so we can find one another and support each other during the month!! It'll be fun! :)

If "you're in!" on the Awesome August Challenge and want to use the badge above or over on the right, simply right click on it and save it to your photo directory to add to your webpage or blog!

Happy first day of August, friends, and let's have an Awesome August!!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Easy Summer Dinner: Panko Crusted Chicken & Garden Salad

Every once in awhile I want to change up an old recipe and try out a healthier version.  Sometimes it takes a few attempts to perfect the recipe and sometimes - you nail it on the first try!  The latter was tonight! : )

I cut a skinless 7 oz chicken breast into strips, shaking them in a plastic bag to coat them lightly with whole wheat flour (about 1/2 cup).  Taking them out of the bag, I brushed them sparingly with one egg white and 2 Tbsp of water whisked together, removing them to a mixing bowl holding 3/4 cup of seasoned panko crumbs, coating the chicken pieces thoroughly. 

In a medium cast iron skillet, I'd heated 4 Tbsp of rosemary EVOO (which, I'm proud to say, I made myself from my own little herb garden) and placed the chicken pieces together in the skillet for about 3 minutes on the 1st side, 2 minutes on the second, creating a nice brown, crunchy coating on the chicken.

Removing the chicken pieces with tongs, I placed them on a paper towel to remove any excess EVOO (there wasn't much) and cool a bit while I whipped up 1/4 cup each of Dijon mustard and fresh honey, squeezed a lemon over the chicken and about a tsp into the dressing, adding 1 Tbsp of light Hellman's mayo and whisking all together. Perfect honey mustard for dipping the chicken into!

My Lexington Farmers' Market trip had provided me with fresh baby greens and tomatoes and fresh mushrooms so I quickly rinsed all and arranged them in a bowl with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. 

Dinner in about 15 minutes total from start to finish and enough left-over chicken to have as part of lunch today! All good and all healthy! : )

Bon appetit!

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal

Thank You HEALTH Magazine! : )

I was delighted to find a package waiting for me last week when I returned home from work one evening!  Inside was the new book The Carb Lovers Diet: Eat What You Love, Get Slim for Life from Health Magazine's Editor in Chief, Ellen Kune, and Frances Largeman-Roth, RD, also of Health.  I'd won this a few weeks ago during Health's first Twitter party about healthy swaps which had been a lot of fun and I picked up some good, healthy tips over the course of the evening! : )

Not only did the book arrive, but a copy of this month's Health magazine AND a surprise bronze bag/pocketbook was in the package -- so nice!



Recipe on pg 132 of Carb Lovers Diet

 I haven't read the book yet but I have thumbed through it and it looks great.  It includes a food plan in the book which incorporates "CarbLovers approved" foods I already eat like Kashi bars and Boca burgers with recipes. There is a section with CarbLovers workouts. too, that are easy to follow and have photos to go along with each move (this is always a great thing about Health Magazine, they make it simple to do what they are telling you with clear photos)!  Carb Lovers Diet looks like a great overall plan so I'm willing to give it a read and a shot! : )  I *do* like carbs, I must admit!

Many thanks to Health Magazine for the great book, bag and mag I received! I've been a Health subscriber for years now and always look forward to the new issue arriving in my mailbox. 

Dream. Believe. Achieve!
Jan / HealthyLoserGal