Hello Team- This is our new forum.. Okay, now for this week lets step it up a notch. Lets all start posting our weekly goals.

My goals for this week are to:

Lose 2 pounds
be a supportive and good buddy
drink 9+ glasses of water
exercise 6x a week
eat right and smaller meals spread out

My Weekly Goals Are:
Be here for my buddies
do my challenges every day
watch my carb. intake
drink water( at least a Gallon)
loose at least 2 pounds this week, and inches!!

Weekly Challenge #10 Commit to be Fit !!!

Start with a light warm up for a few minutes. (This can be walking, marching in place or stepping side to side. The goal of the warm up is to get your blood circulating and you body temperature rising in order to prepare for higher intensity exercise)
Mon/ Wed
#1 Jumping Jacks
The basic jumping jack is a good cardio and strength training exercise (30x3 times)

#2 Mountain Climbers
Start on your hands and knees and get into in a sprinter’s start position. Keep your hands on the ground and push off with your feet so you alternate floor placement (run in place) as long as you can. Be sure to keep your back straight, not arched (30x3 times)

#3 Abdominal Crunches
Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Place your fingertips to the side of your head just behind your ears. Push your lower back into the floor flattening the arch and hold. Curl up slowly so both your shoulders lift off the floor a few inches. Hold for a count of 2 and return to the start position. (15x3)


#4 Side Jumps
Stand with feet together. Jump to the right several feet, keeping knees bent and landing in a squat position. Jump back to the left and continue jumping from side to side. Use a small object to jump over if you like (book, pillow etc...). (30x3 times)

Tue/ Thur.
#5 Wall Sit
With your back against a wall, and your feet about 2 feet away from the wall, slide down until your knees are at a 90 degree angle. Hold the position as long as you can. This is great for ski conditioning. (15 Reps)

#6 One-Leg Balance / Squat / Reach
Stand on one leg and hold it as long as you can. If this is too easy, add a slight squat motion. Still too easy? Place an object on the floor, several feet in front of you (a book, perhaps), and slowly squat down, and reach out with one arm and touch the object and slowly return to an upright position. Stay on one leg at all times. Repeat on the other leg after a minute or so. (15 Reps)

#7 Push Ups
Begin in push up position, on knees or toes. Perform 4 push ups, abs in and back straight. On the 5th push up, lower halfway down and hold for 4 counts. Push back up and repeat the series - 4 regular push ups and 1 halfway--5 or more times.

#8 Squat-Thrusts
Stand with feet together. Squat down and place your hands on the floor next to your feet. In an explosive movement, jump feet backwards into a push-up position, jump feet back between hands and stand up. (15 Reps)

For my Friends, who like to use an exercise ball, you can add these exercises!!!
Core crunchers
Get on your knees, bend at the waist and rest your elbows on the ball. Squeezing your abs, roll the ball forward until your upper body and thighs form a straight line. Roll back to starting position.

Basic crunches
With your feet flat on the floor, place your lower back on the ball and keep your upper body and thighs parallel to the floor. Do crunches as usual; use your abs to lift only your shoulders and upper back off the fitness ball.

Elevated push-ups
Place the front of your knees on the ball and your hands flat on the floor (your whole body should be parallel to the floor). Look down at the floor and lower your face to within a few inches of it, then push back up to the starting position.

Opposite limb extension
Lie with your stomach on the fitness ball and stabilize yourself with your toes and hands. While looking down at the floor, extend your left arm and your right leg simultaneously, hold for two seconds, and return to starting position. Repeat with the opposite arm and leg combination.

Balanced push-ups
Place your hands on top of the ball and your body at a 45-degree angle with the floor, balancing yourself on the tips of your toes. Bend at the elbows and lower your upper body to a few inches from the ball, then push yourself back up to the starting position.
Seated wall roll
Stand with your back to a wall, feet shoulder-width apart, and place the ball between the wall and your lower back. Squat, letting the ball roll along your back, until you are in a "sitting" position with your knees forming a 45-degree angle. Return to starting position.



Friday: Last Chance Workout
#1 Jumping Jacks
#2 Mountain Climbers
#3 Abdominal Crunches
#4 Side Jumps
#5 Wall Sit
#6 One-Leg Balance / Squat / Reach
#7 Push Ups
#8 Squat-Thrusts

Go through the entire routine 3 times 12 reps

Saturday: Weigh in
Good Luck

Here is the roster for the week.
Accountability Partners are posted together.

Kim Nichol

Sabine Michelle


Crystal Jaci


Rebecca Luka


Beth Tami


Shana Christine

Shannon Nancy


Cynthia Mikayala



Robyn Courtney


Darci Kenzie


Monica Mari


Emily Sara

Mindy Elizabeth

Do the challenges every day.

Be supportive to my buddy.

Lose 2 pounds.

Journal everything I eat.

Exercise for 60 minutes daily.

Take fruit and water to work for lunch rather than skipping it.

Take a brisk 2 mile walk daily.

i have a month to get bikini-ready.... augh. any suggestions?? lol.

my goals:
1) stay within calories, i'm going to try for 1200-1300 a day.
2) workout every day, i want to come up with a weekly plan i can follow
3) support my buddy rebecca and everybody on here

i'm usually good on water, and i try to get a little bit exercise in, although i should do more.. i think food is just the big thing with me, esp. when i'm annoyed or bored or something.

good luck everybody this week

Found this on a Website!!!
Seems to explain alot..

10 Strategies for permanent weight loss

1. Exercise is essential for weight loss
It's nothing new, but exercise is probably the most important predictor of whether you will succeed at long term weight loss and weight loss maintenance. In order for exercise to be helpful in weight loss, you should strive for a minimum of five 30 minute sessions per week. The good news is that recent research has shown that three 10 minute sessions in a day are as good as one 30 minute session. This helps many in combating the old "no time for exercise" excuse. Be certain to find something you enjoy. You'll be more apt to stick with it. Try walking with a friend, joining an intramural sports league, participating in outings with a group like The Sierra Club, or trying some classes at your local gym. Once you give exercise a chance, you will begin to enjoy its positive benefits on your psyche as well; you will literally become "hooked."

Having trouble getting a workout in? Why not try one of these Diet Channel recommended programs:

15 minute boot camp workout
Power workout for busy executives
10 minute workout for busy moms
2. Weight loss and weight training
We chose to list this separately from the "exercise" category because of the significant weight loss benefits attached to weight training in and of itself. The basic equation is this: the more muscle tissue you have, the more calories you will burn. This is why world class weight lifters must eat thousands of calories a day to maintain their weight. Muscle is active tissue, fat is not. Thus, muscle "burns" a significant number of calories each day for its own maintenance. In her book Strong Women Stay Slim, Miriam Nelson, a Tufts University researcher, showed that a group of women who followed a weight loss diet and did weight training exercises lost 44% more fat than those who only followed the diet. While aerobic activity can help burn calories, muscle's where it's at when it comes to giving your metabolism a significant daily boost even at rest.

Read Cardio and Strength Training: How do you create a balanced routine? to find out how best to pursue numbers 1 and 2 above in tandem.

3. Keep a diary for triggers that hinder weight loss
Keeping a food diary can be a huge asset in successful weight loss. Devote some time each day to record what you have eaten and how much, your hunger level prior to eating, and any feelings or emotions present at the time. A food diary can provide a large amount of self-awareness. It can identify emotions and behaviors that trigger overeating, foster greater awareness of portion sizes, and help you discover your personal food triggers. Study any patterns that emerge from your food diary and identify where you may be able to make more healthful changes. A food diary provides an added benefit of keeping you focused on and committed to your goals. Start keeping a food diary today by printing our food diary.

4. Stay focused on being healthy, not on becoming thin
Many people become more successful at long term weight loss when their motivation changes from wanting to be thinner to wanting to be healthier. Change your mindset to think about selecting foods that will help your body's health rather than worrying about foods that will affect your body's weight. The Food Pyramid offers a basic outline of the types and amounts of food you should eat each day to give your body the nutrients it needs for optimal health.

5. Find out why you overeat
All too often overeating is triggered by stress, boredom, loneliness, anger, depression and other emotions. Learning to deal with emotions without food is a significant skill that will greatly serve long term weight control. The Solution, a book and national program developed by Laurel Mellin, RD, helps participants to identify their eating triggers and respond to them without food. A research study showed that the participants in this program demonstrated a better rate of long term weight loss maintenance than those who simply diet and/or exercise and don't address behavioral and emotional issues. Chronic over-eaters and "emotional eaters" can be significantly helped by learning new behavioral skills such as those Mellin presents. You can also seek help with behavioral and emotional eating issues from a licensed counselor or psychologist in your area.

6. Weight loss support: join a weight management group
A big key in long term weight control comes from receiving encouragement and support from others. You can check to see if groups such as Jenny Craig offer programs and resources in your areas. You may also wish to check with your local hospital to see if their registered dietitian conducts group weight loss programs.

7. Weight loss and portion control
With the advent of "super-size" meals and increasingly huge portions at restaurants, our concept of normal serving sizes is a distant memory. Be mindful of the amounts of food you consume at a sitting. When necessary, divide your food in half and ask for a take home bag. It is all too easy to be a "plate cleaner" even when served enormous portions. Learn to pay attention to your hunger level and stop eating when you feel comfortably full, not stuffed.

8: Lose weight slowly with small changes
Try to remember that "losing 15 pounds in two weeks" is nothing to celebrate. It is important to realize that the more quickly weight is lost, the more likely the loss is coming from water and muscle, not fat. Since muscle tissue is critical in keeping our metabolism elevated, losing it actually leads to a decrease in the amount of calories we can each day without gaining weight. Fat loss is best achieved when weight is lost slowly. Strive for a weight loss of no more than 1-2 pounds per week. One pound of weight is equivalent to 3500 calories. By making small changes like eliminating 250 calories a day from food and expending 250 calories a day from exercise, you can lose one pound (of mostly fat) per week. You can calculate how much time you need to exercise to burn 250 calories by clicking here. You can calculate your caloric needs by clicking here, and then subtract 250 from that number.

9. Eating slowly can lead to weight loss
Did you ever notice that thin people take an awfully long time to eat their food? Eating slowly is one method that can help take off pounds. That's because from the time you begin eating it takes the brain 20 minutes to start signaling feelings of fullness. Fast eaters often eat beyond their true level of fullness before the 20 minute signal has had a chance to set in. The amount of calories consumed before you begin to feel full can vary significantly depending on how quickly you eat. So slow down, take smaller bites and enjoy and savor every tasty morsel.

10. Weight loss through eating less fat - but do it wisely
We've known for some time that limiting high fat foods in the diet can be helpful with weight loss. That's because fats pack in 9 calories per gram compared to only 4 calories per gram from proteins or carbohydrates. To many, the message to limit fats implied an endorsement to eat unlimited amounts of fat-free products. Just to clarify, fat-free foods have calories too. In some cases fat-free foods have as many calories as their fat laden counterparts. If you eat more calories than your body uses, you will gain weight. Eating less fat will help you to lose weight. Eating less fat and replacing it with excessive amounts of fat-free products will not.

Well I can't believe I am on the forum before it is 10 pages long. Gonna try and keep up with it this week.

My goals are
Be a good buddy and partner
Exercise everyday (and yes I am gonna stick to it)
Eat right, Keep track of what I eat
Drink lots of water and.....
No snacking all day even if they are low cal snacks (three 100 calorie snacks is like eating a meal.... got to cut that out.

GO TEAM!!!!!