Thanks, everyone! It has been hard to work these past few days. I'm soooo ready for a break! I am VERY excited about Mexico, I've only ever been to Tijuana (I know, right?) so this will be a really nice getaway for a week. We are staying at an all-inclusive and I'm scared I'll just go nuts with the food, but then again, a huge part of me does not want to come back 5 lbs heavier and have to re-lose this weight again. It took me forever to get out of the 180s and I soooo do not want to see them again. Maybe that fear will be with me at the buffet table!

Also!! I went shopping yesterday and bought two size 12 dresses!! I can't even remember the last time I fit into a size 12! It's been like...years. So that has been really motivating in terms of exercising/eating well.

dancer- we did fish creek falls. Now I feel like a wimp because you've probably done it before and thought it was easy...hahaha. I had a hard time with it though. We went up for the rocky mountain mustang car show so I had been walking around for two hours beforehand, so I was a little tired going into it, but man. I wanted to quit several times on the way up! I think right when I said "I really can't go any farther" we reached the upper falls. Next year I'd like to continue 3 miles to the lake, but it was already past 3 when we reached the top so we decided to head back down.

TakingCharge- haha I thought I was the only one who weighed myself after a run.

blueridge -wow, thanks for adding up all of our weight loss! 25 lbs is unreal! And to still think we have quite a bit of time left!

edzard - we all have times when we get off track..the important thing is to get back on track, which it sounds like you're doing! keep up the good work!

Is it too late to join? I have been a MAJOR slacker lately but have decided that I really want to get to goal...as my hubby would say "game on!" LOL! We've been working out everynight...usually biking or hitting the treadmill, but I'm thinking of starting back up on the Shred.

The Sexy By Labor Day Challenge

SW:187
Goal by Labor Day: 165


June 29:
July 6:
July 13:
July 20:
July 27:
Aug 3:
Aug 10:
Aug 17:
Aug 24:
Aug 31:

LABOR DAY Sept 7:

edzard - way to get back on plan!
fatpants - Fish Creek is a tough hike! The few times I've done it, I've only made it to the upper falls too - I need to get an earlier start next time as I'd like to shoot for making it to the lake.
wannabe - welcome!!

LOL that makes me feel better... I was just dying the entire way up! Part of it must be the elevation, too. I always forget that just because I can breathe at 6,000 ft doesn't mean that I can breathe at 10,000 ft.

Well this will be my last check in until after the 4th - here's to hoping I don't gain a billion pounds on vacation!

SW: 185 (technically 185.8, looking at my weight spreadsheet...nerdy, I know!)
CW: 177.8
GW: 165

So that makes 8 lbs lost since starting this challenge. Only 12 more pounds and just over 10 weeks to go!

Have a wonderful 4th of July, everyone!!

Fat pants - I hear you about worrying about vacation, a week from Sunday I am leaving for Boston for four weeks and will be out of my routine. I think the key is to just plan ahead and know what limits you want to set in how much to splurge, how to maintain exercise while you're there, etc. Congrats on the size 12. yesterday I wore my new size 14 old navy capris and felt like a rock star.

Edzard - glad to see you back! No matter how many times you derail, you can always recommit.

Wannabe - glad to have you here. I just started doing the shred (okay, so I've been doing it every other day, but have been doing other exercise on my non-shred days) and I really like it. Super convenient on my busy days since it is so fast. How do you like it?

Having a good day today - spent a good amount of time weeding in the garden this morning which is good physical activity. Got hungry about 11 and had a handful of raw unsalted cashews which just hit the spot and kept me from being ravenous at lunch at 12:30. I'm finding the mid-morning snack to be key for me. Now, sitting here at my desk drinking water. Going to do the 30 day shred DVD tonight again after dinner. Have a great weekend everybody!

blueridgegirl- I hate the Shred! LOL! But it works. I tell Jillian I hate her...it's quite comical actually. But the first week I did it faithfully every day in addition to eating right and I lost 6lbs! I quit after about L2D3 but I need to start back up again....I felt so much better when I was doing it, and like you said it's so convenient that its only 1/2 hour.

Doing pretty good today. I have been eating only what I allowed myself. I really haven't drank enough water though, but there is still plenty of time for that.

today i weighed in at the lowest i've weighed in about 8 years. this is really exciting for me.


June 15: 180.4
June 22: 179.8
June 29: 176.4
July 6:
July 13:
July 20:
July 27:
Aug 3:
Aug 10:
Aug 17:
Aug 24:
Aug 31:

LABOR DAY SEPT. 7:

Morning, ladies! It's been a pretty good week for me with food and exercise, though I took 2 days off from the gym, which I don't usually do! I think my body needed a little rest after a few hard runs and spin classes. I also had a little too much sangria on saturday night, but I'm starting to think my body appreciates a "high" calorie day (I reached 1516) and it helps the metabolism. What do you guys think?

Like onestar (congrats, btw!!), I weigh lower than I can ever remember weighing and am squeezing myself into size 6 jeans now, though they're a wee bit tight, but it's good motivation! I still feel like this is some great dream that I'll wake up from and be miserable again, but with hard work, I hope I can prevent that from happening! Anyway, enough rambling...

5/21/09(SW): 147.4
5/25/09: 145.8
5/31/09: 144.6
6/8/09: 143.6
6/15/09: 140.8
6/22/09: 140.4
6/29/09: 138.8

Hope all is well everyone!

Hi everybody,

I've got great news to report: I am down 1.5 pounds this week, at 212.5, which means that I have lost a total of 23.5 pounds so far since January 1, and have made my first mini-goal of 10% lost!!! I'm down 4.5 pounds since starting the challenge in May. Not sure if it is the 30 day shred, or the increased thyroid meds, or just the hard work of the last few weeks finally catching up with me, but I'm glad to see the scale moving, and to have acheived my first mini-goal.

Also had some good NSVs this week. Hanging out with a friend Saturday night, out of the blue, she said, "wow, you've got great arms!!!" I was wearing a sleeveless shirt and definitely have more toned muscles than I did - the weightlifting and strength work in the 30 day shred are showing results.
Yesterday I had a party and I wore a dress I haven't worn in a long time and I have to say it looked great. I made an incredible discovery: I have a waist!!! Okay, not like I have an hourglass figure or anything, but there is definitely some shape there between the chest and hips which is nice to see. I was practically dancing around my room singing "I'm too sexy for my dress, too sexy for my dress..."

10 more weigh-ins before the end of the challenge, and I've got 13 pounds to go to be in onederland on labor day. For the moment, my sights are set on getting out of the 210s and into the 200 range.

Onestar - congrats! your hard work is paying off!
Takingcharge - way to go on the size 6 jeans. This is not a dream, this is the reality YOU are creating for yourself with your discipline and commitment. Taking two days off from time to time is good, as it gives the body a chance to recover and recharge. And, hey, in terms of sangria...that's what summer is for.

Look forward to hearing how the rest of the sisters in the challenge are doing! Best wishes for a strong start to the new week!

Morning all! I am actually checking in on time WOOT!

SW: 185
GW: 170

May 18: 185
June 22: 192
June 29: 189

Well I managed to lose about half the weight gained from my vacation so I am almost back to my start weight for this challenge, yea!

Congrats onestar, blueridge and takingcharge you guys are doing great!! Its so exciting to be lower than ever before, I know at 185 that was my lowest in ... a long time! It feels really good and like your actually making progress! Keep up the good work.

Well, I can't really say I stayed OP this weekend, but I did work outside all weekend and ate less, so I guess its a toss up. Feeling pretty crummy today though things not going so well at work, and not looking so good with my fertility meds either so I'm trying not to feed my feelings. But I did loose some weight so YAY!

The Sexy By Labor Day Challenge

SW:187
Goal by Labor Day: 165
June 29: 183.6

Thanks for the support girls!

blueridge - That's fantastic!! The best part is that you sound SO happy, and isn't that what all of this is really about?

edzard - Way to get right back on track. It takes a lot of determination to jump back on the wagon after vacation, but you did it and it's paying off!

wannabeskinny - Sorry you're not doing so well today. I hope things look a little better tomorrow! If not, we're here to listen

Hi girls! What a fantastic string of messages to long in to see! Congrats everyone on such a great week. Blueridge - CONGRATS on reaching your 10% goal. That is my goal for the SBLD challenge so thanks for being such a great role model.

Scale is not being too cooperative this weigh-in for me, but I'm not losing my perspective about it. I just logged in at 170.4, which is technically up .2 from last Monday. This is actually an improvement over yesterday's weigh-in, in which I was up into the 171....I'm a bit bummed because I had really hoped to get into the 160s.

But there are plenty of NSVs to celebrate -- Ran 5 miles on Saturday (without stopping...except for when I accidentally pulled the emergency cord off the treadmill. ooops.) and the weightlifting class I've been going to for the past several weeks is getting easier!

I went to a wedding on Saturday night and ate and drank way too much. I am noticing a trend of these "big event" weekends and disappointments on Mondays. I wonder if there is a connection??? The scale was actually in the 160s before I left on my trip!

Next week...I'll get there! This is an awesome group to be a part of. Congrats everyone!

Just got back home and still holding steady at 187 after 4 days of vacation and may have a bit of extra water weight from sore muscles after a 5 hr hike. May still make this week's goal of 186, just later in the week : )

KP and Dancer - sounds like you have had some real successes with exercise even if you haven't seen scale movement. Remember, muscle weighs more than fat and it sounds like you both are building muscle.

Having a pretty good day - doesn't look like I'll be able to squeeze in a workout today with lots of meetings at work but I did the 30DS yesterday and will be able to get one in tomorrow, so that's not bad.