It's a brand new month! Whether you had a fantastic August or a really rough month, now is a chance for a fresh new start. What are YOU going to do to make September a WINNING month?

I am going to:
Pay attention to how I spend my time.
Be aware of what I eat, how much, and WHY.
Stop buying junk.
Start eating more produce again.

Specifically, I will:
Aim for 1300-1600 calories per day
Bike 30 minutes 6x a week (I had slacked on this)
Lift weights 3x a week (I slacked on this as well)
Walk after dinner (another slack)
Stop sitting on my butt so much.

I am sure I can do this. I feel it.

I had a bad gain in August. My Sept goal is to lose whatever I gained, plus 2 pounds.

How about YOU?

I am going to suck up as much as that New England Fall air as I can by increasing my mileage on the bike and walking - one mile per week! Who needs sweat when you have foliage?

I'm going to
- eat in more. Good for the waistline and the pocket book.
- make a concerted effort to exercise. Running around with the kids in the yard isn't enough.
- ditch the baggy (comfortable) jeans, and switch to something a bit snugger.

I lost 6 lbs. over the summer, which is good, and I will gladly take it, but less than I had hoped for. My goal was to lose 15 by the time DH comes home in November, so 7 more to go. I hope to lose 5 in September. Although my eating has been on-plan, I let the exercise routine fall by the wayside, thinking I was active enough in the summertime to make up for it, so my plan for September is to continue eating on plan, and to crank up the exercise voltage!

I am challenging myself to follow a 28 day body strengthening program. It has different lifting routines in it that you follow each week.

I am also running in another 5K race on the 21st.

I am fiddling with my macros a bit, striving for 40/30/30 - which is challenging.

I am focusing on tighter control on weekends.


Oh, and I will be enjoying lots of football! GO BRONCOS!!

I am training for a triathlon. I don't have a specific triathlon in mind but I'm starting from the very beginning so just getting and brushing up on some of the skills is my goal for the month.

- Swim 2 - 3 days per week
- Bike 2 - 3 days per week
- Running - TBD
- Kettlebells and other weights 2 - 3 days per week

I also plan to follow my plan. Lots of veggies, legumes, some fruit, some whole grains, some nuts, etc.

I am hoping to lose 5 lbs. this month, if I can. The best way to achieve this is to continue with my excersising but to stay within my calorie range. The worst time for me is the week before my period, so I have to make sure I don't binge. I'm also hoping to reduce my stress this month...not to over-react to stress because then I get migraines (I have had one since Thursday) and it takes a very long time to get over a migraine.

August was my first full month of being serious about weight loss -- and it paid off! 14lbs gone! For September, I want to keep up the positive attitude, even if I hit a plateau (which I know is eventually coming!).

Other things:
* Drink more water!!
* Start lifting weights at the gym, not just cardio (who cares what the scary buff guys think!)
* Work more veggies into my diet
* I hope to lose another 5-10lbs in September

Good Luck to everyone! We can do this!

Make sure I'm eating lots of vegetables (at least 4 1/2 cups a day)
Drink water
Exercise

Great plans everyone! I am excited to see us all reaching for our goals over the next weeks. We are in this together.

I am going to:
eat less processed foods
increase my exercise time by 10 mins by the end of this month

I have been slowly getting away from the Core Plan on WW and eating somewhat healthy on the Flex plan but not like I was doing.

I am going to stay on plan each and everyday! I swayed alittle during vacation last month and just now took back off the 3 pounds I gained then! The kids are both starting school tomorrow so I will increase my walk time and exercise time! I want to at least be 160 by month end which will only be 20 pounds away from goal!!

I am, frankly, scared to death, of facing September!

I have been off work since April of 2006 on disability with a combined diagnosis of "burnout, stress, arthritis, fibromyalgia, needs another surgery (sixth in five years)"

I haven't really had to deal with an alarm clock or "what am I going to wear to work" for over two years.

I have had two years in which to be totally absorbed in "me", and now that is over. Nothing really has changed in my job...my principal..who is very good at making promises to parents that then become MY job to make them work...hasn't changed. If anything, my caseload has increased by one third, but my work time hasn't" I am determined that I am NOT going to work fulltime for halftme pay..which is what I tended to do in the past. I would still be there at 2 PM when they stopped paying me at 11:15 AM

I have written out a full day plan for myself as if I was working all day. Teachers would call it their daybook. Here is my plan"

M - work - off - tai chi
T - work - ironworks gym for weights and treadmill - off
W-work - off- tai chi
TH - work - gym - TOPS meeting
F- work - gym - off
S- do everything I didn't manage in the week
Sd - off - gym - off

I hope I manage to stick with it. In the past, my principal would book meetings etc. in the afternoons when I wasn't being paid, and then make me feel guilty and unprofessional if I refused to attend. May of my resource teacher monthly meetings are in the afternoons or full days. I met with my principal and made it clear that I would not attend these meetings or attend full day meetings WITHOUT RECIPROCAL TIME OFF!

I have let myself to be taken advantage of by work (oh if you are professional you will attend for free) and men ( let's just not go there) and I REFUSE to let this happen to me again!

Well I rambled well didn't I LOL

In September, I will:

1. Walk daily, as often as I'm able (I'm having surgery this month), even if it is just a short walk.
2. Tackle the clutter in my home and address the connection between out-of-control surroundings and my health habits.
3. Not eat beyond "enough" at ANY meal.

I'm gonna keep on keeping on. I saw Al Roker on the Today Show reporting from New Orleans. He was really struggling to stay upright in the hurricane winds. I feel like that sometimes on this weight loss journey. Keeping my head into the wind. Treadmill five days a week for 30 minutes every time. I bought a new exercise bike so I'm hoping to get on that too. Keeping the calories in the 1200-1500 range, closer to the middle of that most days. I'm hoping to get more activity on the weekends this month. It's very hot here so it's hard to get active outside in the summer. I'm looking forward to fall.