Maintenance Weigh-In

Six weeks have passed since the final weigh-in and I am super impressed with all of the competitors that participated in the maintenance weigh-in. Everyone managed to at least maintain their weight, but most of them actually lost weight! Fantastic job, everybody!!!

That being said, let's get down to who won the drawing. I did the drawing tonight (in front of an audience) after getting everybody's weight, and the congratulations go to Susan!!!

I am, again, so incredibly impressed and so, so proud of everybody's success in this competition!! I loved having the opportunity to get to know everyone and enjoy this weight-loss journey with all of you!

Thank you!

Final Weigh-In!!

We made it and I am SO proud of everyone!! Thank you for supporting me in this and making it possible! I loved being able to get to know everyone a little bit better and see the weight come off :D

Here are this week's results:

1. Alex Jones 14.75%
2. Melissa Singleton 13.88 
3. John Bowe 13.35%
4. Jake Cantwell 12.75%
5. Sherry Ashford 12.63%
6. Linda Bowe 11.74%
7. JJ Bidwell 11.60%
8. Amanda Campbell 9.84%
9. Julie Sewell 8.92%
10. Brianne Sheaffer 8.83%
11. Amy Bowe 7.83%
12. Lindsey Eatchel 6.16%

Participation drawing winner: JJ

Exercise drawing winner: TJ

We're not quite done yet. On October 20th, we will have one last weigh-in. There will be a $100 drawing for everyone that has maintained their weight. Anyone that has stayed within 2 pounds of this week's weight (plus or minus) will put their name in the drawing. For every pound lost, they will put another name in. If you lost 5 pounds, you will put your name in 6 times.

If you can't make it to the weigh-in that day, let me know in advance and we will work out another time for you to come weigh before the drawing. 

Thank you again for playing, everyone! It was such a great experience!!!

p.s. If you think you'd like to join another competition, let me know! Some people have already expressed interest and if I get enough people, I'll start another one!

Week 11 Results

Eleven weeks down, ONE MORE TO GO!!! This week was one of the best we’ve had for a while. We lost collectively 29.8 pounds! Good job everyone! The pressure is getting intense, and I think everyone is pushing themselves to the finish line. The race is so close! Keep it up!

Here are this week’s results:

TOP TEN

Susan	3.55%
John	2.29%
Linda	2.10%
Amy	1.55%
Julie	1.43%
Brianne	1.13%
Matt	1.08%
Sherry	1.05%
Amanda	1.04%
TJ	0.85%

JJ .83%, Jake .45%, Sally .22%, Alex .12%, Melissa .08%

This week is the week to pull out all the stops: put your guilty pleasures on hold, exercise twice a day, add an extra mile to your walk. Do what you need to do to give yourself an extra edge on the weight loss this week. Be especially careful tomorrow at your Labor Day picnic! Don’t go overboard on your eating and maybe go for a bike ride instead of having a piece of dessert. We are so close to the end; this is not the time to blow it! J I know you can do it!!

This Saturday, I am going to present the winners with their prizes at 10:30 am SHARP! If you’re coming to my house to weigh in, please show up between 10:00 and 10:20. If you’re an outta-towner, I need you to send me your weight no later than 10:20. To be fair to everyone in the competition, you must wear the exact same outfit you wore at the first weigh-in. If you wore shoes to weigh, they must be worn at this weigh-in as well. Also, again to be fair to everyone else, YOU MUST BE PRESENT TO GET YOUR PRIZES (unless alternative arrangements have been made prior to Saturday morning)! Obviously, this only applies to the local competitors. Outta-towners, this is why I must have your weight in by 10:20. IF YOU CANNOT BE HERE BETWEEN 10:00 & 10:30, let me know and we can work out a time Friday night or earlier Saturday morning for you to weigh in. Once the first prize* has been handed out, no more weights will be taken.

*the first prize handed out will be to the person in 12^th place and then we’ll work our way up to the person in first place.

Here’s a rundown of all the prizes that will be handed out:

Participation- $50 (drawing from the names of everyone that missed less than two weigh-ins)

Exercise- $25 (drawing from the names of everyone that exercised at least 5x each week)

1^st place- $500

2^nd place- $375

3^rd place- $250

4^th- $100

5^th- $75

6^th through 12^th- $50 each

Remember the first week when I had you write down what you’d be spending your winnings on? Keep those things in your mind all week to give you the motivation to push yourself! We’re so close! WE. CAN. DO. IT!!!

Week 10 Results

The end is in sight and things are getting intense! There are 4 people within half a percent of each other, fighting for the top prize and several more people not that far behind! Now is the time to pull out the secret weapons (that are still within the parameters of the competition rules—no extreme diets/hcg/liquid diets/etc) and kick it into gear. I have no idea who’s gonna be taking home the money and it really is still anyone’s game!

Here are the results of this week’s weigh-in:

Top Ten

Jake	1.80%
Alex	1.64%
JJ	1.14%
Amanda	1.04%
Brianne	0.72%
TJ	0.66%
Sherry	0.63%
John	0.59%
Amy	0.55%
Sally	0.54%
Melissa	0.08%

This week’s challenge is to do sit-ups, push-ups and jumping jacks EVERY DAY! I don’t care how many you do to start out with, even if it’s only one of each, just make sure you’re doing them every day and with each day, add at least one more to your set. You can do these pretty much anywhere, so you don’t really have an excuse not to do it. J As always, good luck and have a great week!

Week 9 Results

We’re getting ever closer to September 8^th, the final weigh-in and I’m feeling the pressure! How ‘bout you? This is a good thing though… I think. It’s giving me that final push to get my butt into gear and hopefully lose those last few pounds. I hope that’s the way you’re looking at it instead of getting discouraged. Even if you don’t think you’re in the top three, don’t give up! There are going to be more than just those 3 cash prizes, so keep working!

Here are this week’s results:

TOP TEN… er, um NINE

Sherry	1.47%
Lindsey	1.21%
Melissa	0.93%
JJ	0.91%
Julie	0.71%
Alex	0.59%
Matt	0.54%
Linda	0.37%
Brianne	0.31%

So, maybe this week wasn’t our best but that’s ok. There’s always next week! I know we can all push ourselves to the finish line and be happy with what we see on the scale and in the mirror!

If you’re feeling discouraged or like you've hit a plateau, switch things up with your eating, your exercising, even your sleep! It’ll all help! Your body likes being surprised. Just like our minds, our bodies can get bored with the same old thing if it’s not given something new to keep it focused. So, this week’s challenge goes along that line. Try something new! To be more specific though, try something new that has to do with toning. Lift weights, do push-ups and pull-ups, try pilates or yoga. If you’re already doing that, find a new routine online or from a book, just make sure it's new!

I forgot to mention on last week’s blog the drawing winner. Week 7’s winner was Jake!! He got a nifty water bottle and a pedometer! Rack up the step-count and keep hydrated, Jake J Week 8’s drawing winner was an outta towner: Sherry! I transferred $5 into her account so she can go splurge on a box of skinny cow ice cream sandwiches or something! You’re so lucky, Sherry ;)

As always, good luck everyone! I know you can do it!!!

Week 8 Results

We are 2/3 of the way done with our challenge! I’m having a bittersweet feeling about this because it’s always fun to complete a competition but at the same time, this has been an awesome experience and I don’t really want to see it end. I’ve loved having the motivation from so many people and the weekly accountability that has helped me say no to temptations. I’ve also really enjoyed getting to everybody better! I hope everyone has enjoyed it as much as I have!

Here are this week’s results:

TOP TEN

John	2.16%
Jake	2.15%
Linda	0.99%
Julie	0.95%
Tag	0.87%
JJ	0.76%
Alex	0.70%
Amanda	0.52%
Sherry	0.42%
Chris	0.19%

Thank you to everyone that came to my house this week, despite the time change! I had a most fantastic time vacationing with my family and I really appreciated being able to have the time with them Saturday morning J

This week’s challenge is to eat your veggies every day!! At least one serving of green vegetables at least once a day—simple as that!

We have 4 weeks left in the competition and it is still anyone’s game. Pull out all the stops, kick it in gear and give it all you’ve got! I am still always happy to do what I can to help motivate you, so give me a call if you need someone to go swimming/running/biking/hiking with. I’d love the motivation that’d give me as well! Good luck everybody!!

Week 7 Results

7 weeks down, 5 more to go! Are you still in the game?

Here are the results for this week:

Top Ten

Melissa	3.86%
Tag		3.46%
Crystal		1.68%
Sally		1.68%
Elizabeth		1.54%
Alex		1.52%
Linda		1.48%
Lindsey		1.21%
Brianne		0.82%
JJ		0.68%

Amy .64%, Annalee .53%, John .46%, Sherry .32%, Jake .30%, Stephanie .30%

Congratulations to Lindsey for winning the week 6 challenge drawing! She got a cookbook of 100-calorie dishes, so if you find yourself in need of a new recipe to try, she’s the one to contact ;)

This week’s challenge is to get back in the game! People seem to be dropping like flies and it’s quite distressing, actually. Please don’t get discouraged! That’s what I’m here for! If you need someone to exercise with, call me. If you need someone to help create a meal plan, call me. If you need someone to talk to and curse our plus size existences with, call me! I want everyone to be successful at not only losing weight, but feeling better about yourself and feeling that personal pride in knowing you’re taking control of your body. So, how do you get back in the game? Go back to the basics! Journal every day, drink all your water, and exercise at least 5x this week. Simple as that. I KNOW you can do this! Please, please, PLEASE don’t give up and if you’re feeling discouraged, call me any time, day or night. Literally, day or night. I am here for you! Good luck to everyone! I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT!

***IMPORTANT NOTE***

This next Saturday, I am going to be coming home from a vacation, so the weigh-in is going to be from 12:00 to 1:00. If that specific time doesn’t work for you, let me know and we will work something else out. I know a lot, if not all, of you don’t eat until after weighing in on Saturdays, so instead of starving all morning long, I suggest weighing in on your own scale when you wake up. Then, right before coming to my house, weigh on your scale again. When you get the number from my scale, you can then figure out the difference between our two scales and with the magic of math, come up with your actual weight from the morning and that’s the number I’ll use.

Example

Morning weight: 153

Right-before-coming-to-my-house weight: 156

My scale weight: 154

156 – 154 = 2; 153 – 2 = 151

Your weight for the week will be listed as 151.  Make sense?

Week 6 Results

We’ve made it half way through the competition and I am so impressed with everyone’s determination and dedication to becoming healthier! We have collectively lost over 240 pounds! Good job, everybody!!

Here are this week’s results:

Top Ten

Amanda	1.55%
Jake	1.20%
Sherry	0.84%
Amy	0.82%
Matt	0.76%
Taylor	0.76%
Chris	0.67%
Annalee	0.63%
Ashley	0.60%
John	0.52%

Lindsey .3%, Stephanie .25%, JJ .23%

Here are the standings for everyone in the competition thus far. I’ve included the percentages of weight lost for the top ten people. If you would like to know what your percentage is, message me and I will tell you where you’re at. I am not posting this to be discouraging to anyone but to hopefully motivate you to keep going! This is still anyone’s game! 

1.    Amy	7.47%
2.    John	7.46%
3.    Brianne	6.98%
4.     Linda	6.55%
5.    Jake	6.30%
6.     Amanda	6.22%
7.     Sherry	5.89%
8.     Julie	5.71%
9.     Melissa	5.71%
10.   JJ	5.69%
11.   Alex
12.   Brent*
13.   Matt
14.   Taylor
15.   Mike
16.   Annalee
17.   Sheila
18.   Chris
19.   Stephanie
20.   Lindsey
21.   TJ
22.   Ashley
23.   Crystal
24.   Sue
25.   Jaymie
26.   Judy
27.   Heather
28.   Valerie
29.   Karlie
30.   Mark*
31.   Susan
32.   Elizabeth
33.   Leslie
34.   Sally
35.   Tag  *not competing for $$

This week’s challenge is to go for a walk at least 5 times for 20-30 minutes. This is such a simple thing and there are so many benefits to doing it. This is a habit that everyone should develop, no matter what physical shape they’re in. 

Specific Walking Benefits (http://weight-loss.emedtv.com/exercise/benefits-of-walking.html)

Based on research studies, walking on a regular basis has the following health benefits:

• ·      It reduces your risk of dying from heart disease or stroke
• ·       It lowers your risk of heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, colon cancer, and diabetes
• ·       It lowers high blood pressure
• ·       It protects against falling and bone fractures in older adults
• ·       It may help protect against certain types of cancer, such as breast cancer
• ·       It increases the number of calories your body uses, which helps to control your weight
• ·       It helps control joint swelling and pain from arthritis.  

Regular physical activity, such as walking, can also make you feel better, because it: 

• ·       Helps keep your bones, muscles, and joints healthy
• ·       Reduces anxiety and depression, boosting your mood
• ·       Helps you handle stress
• ·       Helps you feel more energetic
• ·       Helps you sleep better
• ·       Improves your self-esteem
• ·       Gives you an opportunity to socialize actively with friends and family

**ONE LAST THING**

Attendance each Saturday at the weigh-ins has been getting worse and worse by the week. PLEASE DON’T GIVE UP! If you can’t make it one week or are going to be late, please give me a head’s up so I can plan the rest of my day instead of sitting at home, hoping you'll show up. If you absolutely cannot make it to the house by 10:30, let me know beforehand and I’d be happy to work out a time for you to come over. Thanks!! :)

Week 5 Results

We are only one week away from hitting the half way point! Can you believe how fast this competition has gone by? I hope everyone is just as motivated today as you were at the beginning. Unfortunately, our numbers have been dwindling and I haven’t been seeing everyone each week. Please don’t give up! It is not too late to lose the weight and win some money! This Saturday, after I have gotten everybody’s weight, I will post everyone’s position in the competition so you can see where you stand and how much money you would win were this the final weigh-in.

Here are the results for this week:

TOP TEN

Sue Dewey	2.62%
JJ Bidwell	2.35%
Alex Jones	2.34%
Jaymie Maines	1.51%
Brianne Sheaffer	1.33%
Linda Bowe	1.24%
John Bowe	1.05%
Sherry Ashford	0.95%
Melissa Singleton	0.93%
Amy Bowe	0.82%

Susan .71%, Lindsey .40%, Stephanie .30%, Tag .23%

This week’s challenge is to try a new low-calorie recipe. For a second name in the drawing, share the recipe with the group either on the blog here or on the facebook event page, or bring a copy of it to the weigh-in.

Congratulations to Linda for being the week 4 drawing winner! She got a box of healthy-alternative snacks! Just be careful, Linda. Even though they’re only 100 calories each, the calories do add up, so maybe stick to one at a time ;)

As always, good luck everybody! I hope to see (or hear from) all of you on Saturday!

Week 4 Results

We’re a third of the way through our competition!! How are you feeling about your progress? This week was another good one. We collectively lost 21.8 pounds, which brings our total loss so far to 213.1 pounds!!!  Can you believe that?!? That’s insane!! Great job, everyone!!

Congratulations to Lindsey Eatchel for being the week 3 drawing winner! I would suggest not using your Subway gift card to buy a meatball foot-long with its whopping 960 calories. Maybe get a turkey foot-long, which has 400 fewer calories, and share half with your hubby. But, you know, do whatever you want ;D

Here are the results for this week:

TOP TEN

Brianne Sheaffer	2.77%
Alex Jones	1.58%
Julie Fairbanks	1.31%
Matt Bowe	1.29%
Stephanie Thomson	1.15%
Amanda Campbell	1.04%
Lindsey Eatchel	1.01%
Ashley Smith	0.97%
Sheila McFarland	0.95%
Amy Bowe	0.91%

Jake .9%, Judy .88%, Crystal .84%, Sherry .84%, Mike .81%, John .79%, Melissa .69%, Chris .67%, Brent* .59%, TJ .47%, Heather .43%, Linda .12%

This week’s challenge is to try a new form of exercise or restart one you haven’t done in a while. I’m thinking maybe I’m going to try yoga… maybe. I’ve never wanted to try it because it seems like it may be the most boring thing on Earth, but perhaps this is a good time for me to see why it’s so appealing. Or maybe I’ll pull out my Insanity DVD’s and see if it’s easier to do 50 pounds lighter.*shameless gloating, I apologize* ;D What are you gonna try?

As always, good luck everyone and keep up the fantastic work! If you’re feeling discouraged and need some encouragement, give me a call or send me a message. I’d love to go hiking/swimming/walking or just talk with you and try to help you light that fire within again. This has been a really neat experience for me and I hope you’re getting as much out of it as you can. 

Week 3 Results

Happy End-of-Week-3 everybody!

Thank you to everyone that came and weighed in this weekend! I was sad to see so few of you but certainly understand how holiday weeks go. Hopefully next week will be a lot better! :)

Despite the setback of Independence Day, we still managed to collectively lose 28.3 pounds! Not bad for a week where hot dogs, hamburgers, chips and s'mores were running rampant :D We just all need to make sure we hop right back onto the bandwagon and push ourselves a little bit harder to work off our indulgences.

Here are the results for the week:

   TOP TEN

Amy Bowe	4.46%
Melissa Singleton	2.39%
Susan McCoy	1.72%
Sherry Ashford	1.37%
JJ Bidwell	1.21%
Crystal McFarland	1.09%
Stephanie Thomson	1.05%
Lindsey Eatchel	1.01%
Sheila McFarland	0.97%
Annalee Hawkins	0.95%

Karlie .81%, Chris .76%, Linda .74%, Jake .3%, Heather .29%, John .26%

This week's challenge is to give up that one guilty pleasure you haven't quite been able to let go of. For some, it may be chocolate. For others, maybe it's soda. Think of the one thing you know you really shouldn't be eating and give it up. For now, it's just for this week, but you may be surprised to find at the end of the week that you don't really miss it all that much. Or maybe you'll have a secret stash of it set aside to devour after the weigh-in is over on Saturday ;) For me, I think I'm gonna have to give up ice cream. Wish me luck! And good luck to all of you this week as well!

PS Congratulations to Annalee for winning the Week 1 Challenge Drawing. I hope you're loving that water bottle! Also, congrats to Julie for winning Week 2's drawing! Since she's an outta towner, she got the $5 I spend on the prize each week transferred into her bank account instead. Buy yourself something nice, Jules! You've certainly earned it ;D

Get to Know Your Competition (cont)

Ashley Smith

Hi My name is Ashley Smith.  I am 26 years old. I am single and have my bachelors of science from Utah State University  in Archaeology.  My weight has severely limited my job options in my chosen field and that has been a very frustrating journey. So much so that I've altered my focus.  I want to go into Museum Education, which I love!  Eventually I want to go back for my Masters. I currently work at Antelope Island State Park. 
Other things. . . hmmm I love food and cooking. My secret fatal food that I can't get enough of is of course chocolate.  I live in Ogden. One of my favorite shows is Destination Truth, I love Cryptos! I am also so excited for this year because of the Olympics! I love watching all the proceedings and cheering the athletes on!   I am so excited for this Biggest Loser Competition. I really needed something like this to get me going. I have been overweight most of my life. It has affected my self-esteem  and my personality. If I win any money, it will definitely go towards a fabulous new wardrobe! I am so looking forward to actually enjoying the shopping experience.
Gook Luck everyone!

Stephanie Thomson

Hey! My name is Stephanie Thomson. I was raised in Park City, Ut and now live in Pocatello. I am the oldest of 3 girls, I am currently single and working at convergys. I have struggled with loosing weight at several points in my life. Between 17 years old and 18 I lost 80 pounds in 3 months. then in college i gained most if not all back. then I lost 50 pounds the spring of 2010 by just walking more and drinking as much water as I thought I could possibly hold. Good Luck to all!

Annalee Hawkins

I just turned 31 and am a stay at home mom of two little munchkins, Avery (almost 4 going on 16) and Rylee (15 months). I guess I am a pretty typical mom who puts everyone before themselves. I have baby weight to lose, but kind of forgot to take care of myself along the way. My husband has been running and finished his first marathon in June. Someday I hope to be able to run along side of him. (I don't like to be the heavy wife!) I have been married to my sweetheart 8 years and it has been the best years of my life. I love to go camping, sit at the beach, craft/scrapbook and travel. I'm hoping to get down to my goal weight by the second week of December!

Here's to losing weight! Thanks for letting me join the journey!