[redballoon]

Okay, everyone, as is the tradition, I start a new thread when I personally start a new challenge.

Below is a short explanation of how this challenge works so all you newcomers can take a look and decide if you're game or not! I hope you are! Hop aboard and enjoy the ride. We've got a great bunch of supportive people, so I hope you'll give us a try. A lot of people try for a while and then disappear.. I hope some of you will keep trying. There is NO shame in starting over. Remember, it's not over till you give up. And our motto around here is:

NEVER GIVE UP!!...Just start OVER!!

EXPLANATION AND RULES:

It works like this: you decide you'll do something for 21 days straight, every single day, so keep it doable. Then you count ....one through 21.....and if you flub it, you MUST go back to zero and start over again. Everyone will be on different days. You can start anytime. At the beginning of the challenge you declare what level it is -- Level 1, 2, or 3. Level 1 means you feel it's a relatively easy challenge for you and means you only give yourself ONE pause day (see explanation of pause days below). Level 2 would give you two pause days and so on...
And taking NO pause days is what I'm going to call "aceing a challenge," as in "I'm aiming on aceing this one!" Yowzah!!

With a pause day you pause in your counting and continue the next day with the number you left off with. Pause days are NOT substitutes for days, i.e. Day 12 -- Day 13 -- Pause Day -- Day 14..... I suggest taking a pause day late in the game (better to go back to Day 1 early on) if you need a break or screw up when you're well into the challenge, meaning, when you're on Day 15 or something like that.

In any case, the trick is to keep going. The momentum builds and it's great incentive to stick to your guns, cause if you don't.........back to START you go. And the really great thing about this challenge is that you are forming new habits that will wipe out the old! AND, you get to do it with a great bunch of really supportive people to whom you are accountable!

THREAD GUIDELINES:

In the interest of maintaining structure, a sense of solidarity and facilitating support I ask anyone who wishes to join this thread to please strive to follow the following guidelines while participating in this challenge and in posting.

1. Although this is a fabulous support group, the focus is to be on your CHALLENGE/S and/or other people's challenge/s AND weight loss, whether your challenge is about it or not. Please keep the challenge a priority, although we welcome chattiness! This means tell us what day you're on when you post and it's a good idea to make regular mention of just what your challenge is. This an action-based thread. Our members are ON a challenge, RESTARTING a challenge, or just in between and looking to start up again REAL SOON. We also welcome posts from admirers, encouragers, and old friends!

2. Please refrain from posting food logs or recipes, except where you are really looking for help and advice on your eating. If journaling is your challenge, please keep the journaling off the thread and in a notebook or blog and just tell us if you've done what you set out to do. We have ALL types of dieters here, low-carb, high-carb, low-fat, high-fat, vegetarians, meat-lovers...please use simple mentions if you have something you want to share and then links and/or private messages to do so.

3. Please do NOT go into glowing accounts of any slipups, food indulgences or binges, what we here call "food porn." Simple mentions are fine, but use of smilies etc. as substitutes where possible is encouraged.

4. Please keep this a nonsecular thread. Of course, passing references to your beliefs, a bit of introduction about your beliefs, brief faith-related words of encouragement are fine.

5. Please show support, support, support! This is key. You can waffle on about yourself but please, at least occasionally,come up and look around at others and what they are doing and MENTION it with words of encouragement and/or praise or sympathy. We understand "busy," poor computer connections, and bouts of self-pity and life problems where the focus turns to "me" and dealing with those problems, but these should be temporary, not a habit! ('cept in the computer case.)

In conclusion, let me say, the above are just that, GUIDELINES. Please realize that these guidelines have been added in an attempt to keep this a supportive and beneficial thread, at the LEAST, to those who need it MOST, those for whom weight loss is the hardest and, more often than not, the most crucial as well as for those who still, perhaps despite great success, know all too well that the road they walk will always be a slippery one.

The guidelines are also meant to cultivate an atmosphere of consideration and concern for ALL, not individually, but AS A GROUP.

Well, all's said. Please join us!!

[redballoon]

Morning all. Monday here. Attempting to get to the gym before work... As I said yesterday, the fun and games are OVER! I am getting back on the straight and narrow, disciplined and determined...this is my image, no more of the endless pints after work buddying up to the coworkers. That is over as well. So, here is my declaration.

Alcohol Challenge -- NO alcohol!! -- Level 3
Sugar Challenge -- NO sugar, including in foods -- Level 3
No Processed Foods Challenge -- This includes no white flour (I am allowing white rice) -- Level 3
Crunch Challenge -- 10 sets of 20 reps of crunches -- Level 3 (just to keep it easy)
Walking/Running Challenge -- Pedometer of over 10,000 steps or 3-5 K on the treadmill (gotta dig out the pedometer!)

OK, you see, people, when I get cracking, I REALLY get crackin!!! No more waffling!

[redballoon]

sweet -- Glad to see you're doing a challenge. Please come and post here and give us support if you can.

trob -- Your challenges don't sound all that easy! Good luck! The walking one doesn't fit the 21-day parameter, so I guess you can make that an extracurricular one.

Nixxie -- Hope to see you here with us bright and early tomorrow morning! Where are you, by the way? Land of Oz? I see you're doing the kilogram thing....

[Liz-z78]

Hi redballoon!
I'm in! Those are some lofty goals! Good luck to you!
As for my challenges:
Exercise challenge: At least 30 minutes of exercise everyday....level 3
Whole food Vegetarian challenge: If it isn't all natural (fruit etc.) I'm not having it, with the exception of veggie burgers....level 1
Journaling challenge: Writing down all food and exercise.... I'm Aceing This One!
Water challenge: 64 oz. or more everyday! ..... I'm Aceing This One!

Whew... I'm serious about this as well! Let's get down to business!

[LadyOnFire]

Count me IN!!!!
Gym Challenge: 3 times a week to gym for classes Level 2
Daily Challenge: Move (walk, dance, bike etc...) 30 minutes daily Level 3
Food Challenge: Stay within 1500 calories a day Level 3 (My bithday is this Friday!!!!)

[Shad]

Hiya everyone - just dropping in to see how you people are going on some very exciting and challenging challenges. There are some very lofty challenges in this thread recently.

Not much point in me joining you while I am up here in Weipa. I am doing some exercise everyday. I do pilates class at the gym 2 or 3 times a week, I do a few weights a couple of times a week, I did an aquarobics class on Sunday and will do so again tonight, I run in the cool of the morning. However my schedule is such that though I have a fair amount of free time, it is not always when the gym or pool are open and at 27-29 C during the day, one has to be troppo to run in daylight hours.
I have little control over the food that I eat - I do try, however if I don't eat in the mess hall, then I don't get to eat. Weipa has little in the way of restaurants and cafes. There is little choice. We did have a wonderful Samoan chef who is a dab hand at veges and that made for some interesting meals I can tell you. His satay is to die for. He also understands quality meals. However he has gone home on furlough for a week (only two days left of that Nick!!!!! - get back here) and we presently have a chef who only understands the deep fryer. Every single thing is fried. Yesterdays lunch consisted of fried, crumbed chicken snitzel, fried crumbed fish fillets, deep fried dim sum, deep fried Kalamari and chips. Actually, I lie somewhat because he also understands frozen veg, and vege which have been cooked to the death. Come back Nick - all is forgiven. Last night I got a lamb chop and some broccoli, carrot and cauliflower as the best of the bunch. As a result I was starving today. The lunch menu was pretty ordinary - salads looked tired and oily, cold cuts were a bit wrinkled. I know it is difficult to get fresh food up here. Most stuff comes in on the barge on a Thursday - even the supermarket has empty shelves from Monday to Thursday.

Anyway, this wasn't meant to be a litany of the woes of Shad in the Tropical North of Queensland, I really dropped in to encourage and support any of you who are flagging or attempting to do challenges which are really challenging.

GO YOU GOOD THING!!!!

[Nixxie]

I am in Sweden...Land of Vikings. hehehehe

Okay, I was going to get up at 5am buuut bad nights sleep (I never sleep well sunday to monday) so #1 begins when I get home from school:

1. Walk 1 hour a day (level 2...it's the actual going and doing it that makes it a level 2)
2. Drinking 3 bottles of water a day minimum (level 2..I loooooooove me some diet coke)
3. and with that last statement in mind, only one small glass of soda a day (level 3)

It's small but it's a start!!!

Good luck to everyone!
See ya all on the flip side!

[girlieyorkie]

New thread! Wow~ that means you're up and running again Red, so I might as well jump in if you don't mind.

My level 3 challenges are: (will try not to use pause days )
1. Exercise daily for at least 30 mins. (shopping which entails walking and standing for at least 4 hours will be considered as exercise)
2. 1200-1500 net calories daily
3. daily journals

Good Luck everyone.

[redballoon]

Heh all. Just home. It's late and I have to be up at 4:30 a.m. I DID get to the gym this morning! Hurrah! I was good on all the challenges except the no white flour part. I forgot about it and had a little pack of rice crackers. Well...that was rice, not flour, but....oh, my God! I just realized there was a touch of sugar in those as well... Oh well, I'll start those two over tomorrow. Day 2 is done on crunches and Day on the others. I am flying!

Its SOOO great to have new people and I welcome you all aboard!!! Liz, Lady, Nixxie! shad, girlie! Hello!!

I can't write anymore now. Will get back to you all later! Good luck!!

[djstorey]

Hey Red! So glad to see your back to it! I'm coming back myself. I don't want to let myself get too far off track.

Back to basics for me on my challenges:

Exercise 30 minutes per day Level 3
Journal all food in fitday Level 3

to all you new people! Glad to see you here. Good luck with your challenges.

Gotta run, so tired today. My 2 1/2 year old kept me up until 11:00 last night and my alarm goes off at 2:30! I'm going back to bed.

[Liz-z78]

Day 1 has been a success on all accounts!
Thanks to everyone for the welcome!

[pgray1229]

This sounds like a fantastic idea!!

My 21 day challenge will be

No Bingeing for 21 days (level 3)

[trob]

hey red, didn't think the 10,000 steps would work in the 21 day challenge so it will be just a bonus challenge for me. wow, yours look pretty hard. good luck with them.

hello to all the new folks!! i wish you luck with all of your challenges.

day one-
100 curnches done
water done
food journal done

my non 21 day challenge extra curricular challenge- done
(over 14,000 steps in today!)

[sweet_yellow]

lots of zigs and zags today, but still headed in the right direction. 2 miles in,
points decent, gotta go journal now.

15/8/1

[djstorey]

Good morning all!

Day 1 logging food and exercise good!

It's only been 1 day but I feel like I'm already getting back into the mindset, which is great. I'll probably add to my challenges soon.

Hope everyone is doing great! Have a good day.