Healthy You Challenge

Woman Loses 239 Pounds

2008-05-14T13:00:00.002+01:00

I love to read a good success story especially when I see a success story where someone has lost a significant amount of weight and did it naturally. Why? My reasons are purely selfish. Weight loss surgery isn't an option for me so seeing someone walk the path that I need to walk and be a success gives me faith and hope that it can happen for me too.

This link will take you to msn health where you can read the story of the amazing Angela T. who lost a whopping 239 pounds through good old fashioned diet and exercise. What an inspiration!

Check out Angela T here!

Tuesday Check In - Week 19

2008-05-13T02:45:00.006+01:00

I’ve had a busy week working on new buttons and badges for us. I’ve had some requests for announcing you’ve made goal, stayed on plan over the weekend or that you’re just kicking ass so by request, we have new buttons and badges. They are also a bit narrower to accommodate those of you who have limited column width.

For all of our UK team members we now have buttons and badges in STONES and for the rest of the world, buttons and badges in kilograms. Phew! I had a busy week getting all of these ready but it’s worth it. Links to all of these can also be found in the Celebrating Victory section in the side bar under Everything You Need for quick reference. You can find the codes for your blog there too.

Here are a few examples

Just a reminder, Wednesday is the deadline to sign up for the Free Your Y, Fuji Bike that I’m giving away on my site. Don’t miss out; this is a fabulous prize package worth over $400! Our very own Mama Bear June was the lucky winner on another site, you could be the lucky winner on my site!

I’m having a Summer Blog Party on the Scale Junkie site and you’re all invited. Yesterday I blogged an invitation for other bloggers to host the party on their blog for a week and give away a prize and I’ll promote it on my blog. Why? To join in the fun and to increase traffic to your blog, there are so many wonderful bloggers out there and this is a great way to get more people reading your fabulous words. Interested? Check it out on Scale Junkie. Even if you don’t want to host the party, you’re still invited. I’ve already had five people sign up to host the party and there are going to be some great giveaways and contests. Lets making staying on track this summer even more fun!

MOVED

Stephanie from Extreme Makeover ~ Stephanie Edition has moved and changed her name to The Journey Back Her New URL: http://www.blogtolose.com/profile/TheJourneyBack

WELCOME

We have a lot of runners on the HYC and this week we have two more runners joining us. I know you’ll give them a warm welcome.

Kitzzy's Road to Fitness

I Run Behind

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You’ll notice Mister Linky looks a bit different this week, I’m going to try embedding the sign in right into this post and hope we don’t explode it from all of us signing in. We’ll try it this week and if we decide we prefer the classic sign in, I’ll switch back. Remember, we’re visiting a few people who sign in before and after us, not everyone, we need to save some time for exercise and life!

Let’s get started! I hope everyone has had a wonderful week! To sign in, just fill in your blog name and URL and press ENTER

Weight loss celebration in kilograms

2008-05-11T21:12:00.000+01:00

For our friends who celebrate weight loss in kilograms! Use the code below the button you want to use.

Enjoy,
Diana

Weight Loss Celebration in Stones

2008-05-11T18:58:00.001+01:00

For our friends who celebrate their weight loss in Stones. Use the code below the button/badge you want to use.

Enjoy!
Diana

Celebrating Victory! More Badges and Buttons

2008-05-11T17:38:00.007+01:00

As requested, additional Celebration Badges and Buttons. Use the code listed below the button/badge you want to use.

Enjoy!
Diana

Tuesday Check In - Week 18

2008-05-06T02:58:00.001+01:00

Welcome to week 18. I hope everyone has had a good week. I've seen quite a few Exercise and On Plan badges posted on your blogs and I applaud you all!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lipton Tea's is having a promotion called Free Your Y, Y standing for youthful spirit. To promote the idea of youthful spirit, they've asked me to give one of the Scale Junkie readers a free bike. Its a pretty nice bike, the only drawback to the giveaway is that its open to US residents only. If you're a US resident and would like to enter, head over to the Scale Junkie blog and leave a comment. If you link back to the post I'm giving you two entries into the drawing, just be sure and let me know you've linked back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Awakenings has moved and changed name to Diary of Curvy Jones - http://curvyj.squarespace.com/

The Cake Hole has moved and changed name to Debiggering http://www.debiggering.blogspot.com/

Swizzlepop has moved to http://www.blogtolose.com/profile/swizzlepop

If your blog has moved or changed names, please email me so I can update the blog roll.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

WELCOME

Watch Me Lose Weight in 2008

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lets get started and checked in! To sign in click the Mister Linky logo below. When the new window opens, enter your blog name and URL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday Check In - Week 17

2008-04-29T13:17:00.001+01:00

I hope everyone has had a great week and has a wonderful week ahead. Has spring finally sprung where you are? I hope you've been able to get outside and enjoy the beautiful spring air.There are 9 more months in the year for us to really make a difference in our lives, lets make the most of every moment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MOVED:

Life Blooms has changed the name of her blog to Totally Losing It and her URL has changed to: http://www.totallylosingit.com/

WELCOME!

EvolvingMom

The Adventures of Slenderella

My Medical Weight Loss Diary

Caroline's Commitment

Fat To Fit: My Weight Watchers Journey

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To check in, click on the Mister Linky logo below and enter your blog name and URL. If you have any questions, email me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday Featured Blogger - Nicole's Journey

2008-04-25T14:46:00.000+01:00

Nicole wrote a beautiful post the other day called Take Care. It really spoke to me on such a personal level because I've always been the person who did what she should do instead of what I wanted to do. I think if you read her post, you'll agree that it has a true sense of purpose.

Enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Take Care

Admiring the view
Originally uploaded by epicxero

The other day I read an article about a pill that could possibly be the "miracle cure" to obesity. *sigh* As a society we are deeply entrenched in the idea that pills are what we need to cure us of all sorts of ills. I'm not disputing the fact that pills can indeed BE miracles. I have no doubt that I'd still be depressed and stuffing my face on the couch right now if it weren't for my antidepressants. However, I also acknowledge that if I'd taken proper care of myself, I probably wouldn't have needed the pills.

If speaking kindly to a friend makes her feel good, why do we expect our body to respond positively to comments like "You're so fat!" or "Look at those WRINKLES. Ugh!" We wouldn't say such things to our worst enemy, but how many times a day do such destructive thoughts flit through our heads?

I am firmly convinced that the keys to keeping myself happy are exercise and nurturing my spirit. Funny, but with all the very competent doctors I've seen regarding depression, not one EVER mentioned caring for my soul as being important, and they only discussed exercise with me if I brought it up.

I'm afraid that we've become a society that only believes what can be proven by science after years of study. Sure, in many ways that's fantastic, but one side effect is that we're trained to ignore our intuitive side. We "can't" take an art class because we don't have time. You know, because we're so busy multi-tasking things that a month from now aren't going to make a bit of difference to anyone. We refuse to set boundaries and ask people to respect those boundaries. We wear clothes that fashion magazines say are in style or decorate our homes and yards in a manner that's currently in vogue, all the while ignoring our desire to have a living room with purple walls or pink flamingos on the yard. For what? What does that get us, really? Sure, maybe we won't be judged for decorating tastes, but rest assured you WILL be judged for something. YOU WILL BE JUDGED. Get over it.

The other day I ordered a canvas bag from LL Bean for my yoga stuff. I thought I "should" get a color scheme that is fairly conservative so that I can carry it and look somewhat sophisticated. I "shouldn't" get a monogram, or if I did, it "should" be just my initials or it "should" be Nicole.

You know what I DID, though? I got white canvas--which of course, I "shouldn't" have gotten because it gets dirty too easily--with lime green accents and a monogram that reads, "Nicki." Because I feel more like a "Nicki" than a "Nicole" lately. And when I take that bag into the high end rec center where my yoga class is, I'll be happy because it makes my heart sing. And I could care less if I get judged because I'm a Nicki instead of a Nicole.

Tuesday Check In - Week 16

2008-04-22T14:25:00.001+01:00

Welcome to another wonderful week!

Happy Earth Day everyone! I hope everyone has had a happy and healthy week. Sorry for the late start posting this today I had an internet outage. I was just about to head to the library to post when service was restored!

Some of you may have noticed that I’ve done a bit of redecorating around here to freshen up the blog a bit. I hope you like your new home! The only problem I have with it so far is that I’ve somehow broken the clickable header function so to fix this without driving myself crazy, I’ve added a button in the side bar that says HOME so you can quickly and easily navigate back to the home page. I’m sure once I have a few free hours again I’ll edit again make the blog even more functional but for now, this will have to do.

Moved:

Leslie has moved to http://lowcarb-leslie.blogspot.com/

Danielle has moved to http://journey2healthyme.wordpress.com/

If your blog has moved, please let me know so I can update your link in the blog roll!

WELCOME

Alittlelessme

One mans trip to the half

Extreme Makeover: Stephanie Edition

La Vida Blueberry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To sign in, click on the Mister Linky Logo below and enter your blog name and URL

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Runners Diet

2008-04-21T14:09:00.000+01:00

I know we have many HYC'ers who are also runners but I think the advice in this article from Runner's World has something for all of us.

To lose weight without sacrificing energy or performance, you have to eat the right foods at the right times.

To read the rest of this article, head over to Runners World to check out The Runners Diet in their Nutrition and Weight Loss section.

UPDATE

2008-04-19T03:05:00.000+01:00

On Friday night the HYC suffered a bit of a "wardrobe malfunction" I've updated the template and the links and everything seems to be working. Should you find any missing or broken links, please let me know!

All the best,
Diana

Friday Featured Blogger - Less of Me - Lora

2008-04-18T13:02:00.000+01:00

Sometimes when I read the posts of women in their 20's my advice to them is to do something because inside I wish I would have done it at their age. The other day I read one of Lora's posts, Life is What Happens When You're Busy Making Other Plans... and I wish she would have said these words to me 20 years ago and more importantly, that I would have listened.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Life Is What Happens When You're Busy Making Other Plans...

Yesterday as I was taking a shower I started to think about my life. (One does that a lot on the "other" side of the hill.) I wondered...if I was allowed to live just one day over again - which day would I pick. I tend to get philosophical in the shower sometimes...

It was kind of an "Our Town" moment. Has anyone read that book or seen the movie? It was originally a play and I have to say it is one of my all time favorites. It's about a girl that has died and is given the chance to go back and relive just one day in her life. I'll reveal more later.

So as I'm sudsing up my armpits, I'm thinking about which day I'd pick. Would it be just an ordinary day? Or maybe a Christmas Eve at my Grandparents. Yeah...that would be good. Or no. Maybe my wedding day. Or the day my first daughter was born. No...as good as that was...there was a lot of pain involved.... The panoramic screen in my mind played out day after day and I just couldn't decide.

Want to know the wierd thing though? There were days that I skipped right over - that at the time they were happening I thought were the most important days to ever occur! I'm thinking like...old boyfriend days... Like when the guy I was totally enamored with finally asked me out in high school. At the time nothing else in the whole world mattered. But would I relive that day? Not in a heart beat. Or the day my new living room furniture arrived. I'd never had brand new furniture and was excited all week waiting for it. Would I pick that day? It wasn't even in the running. Or how about the day I reached my goal at weight watchers (way back when.) Nope. As good as that was - it wasn't a contender.

I guess my point is - that sometimes the things we pin our hopes on and devote so much energy to - aren't really all that grand in the scheme of life. The days I was torn over repeating were the days I was with people I loved. People who loved me. Ordinary days. Days that life was happening and I didn't even know it. Didn't even appreciate it.

Which brings me back to "Our Town." The main character realizes as she is given privy to observing herself in an ordinary day - how much she missed. The little nuances of life that slip past us when we're not looking. Or maybe looking - but not seeing.

My point to all of this is (and I've repeated this theme so very many times in this blog) is that life is such a gift and we need to keep our focus on what really matters. And yes it matters to me that I lose the extra weight. It's not good for me. But lately I feel as if I've devoted every waking minute to it and I'm not appreciating everything else!

It's easy to get trapped into the "life will be better when I'm thinner" mode. Because truthfully... some things will be better. But that's no excuse to put today - or this week - or this month - or even this year on hold until we're at goal. Because frankly - there's a whole lot happening right now that we won't get back again. Ever. People die. Relationships end. Kids grow up. And in between all that - life happens.

Often times when I watch old family videos - I see things that I never noticed before. Things I should have at the time. They were right before my eyes! And I missed them! And so it is with life.

So my challenge for all of you this day is - don't start waiting to live your life for that day when the weight is gone. Live it now! The weight will come off. In the meantime...yes.... we will blog about our efforts and encourage one another and glory in our triumphs. But don't forget that somewhere in between all of that - your clock is ticking. We are all allotted only so many minutes you know.... so make the most of each one!

Thursday Recipe - Spinach and Feta Souffle

2008-04-17T14:54:00.001+01:00

I was recently at a friends house for Sunday Brunch and tried this soufflé. I couldn't believe that 1/6 of this delicious dish was only 143 calories!! The recipe comes from Cooking Light and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

Spinach and Feta Soufflé

Spinach and Feta Soufflé

Cooking spray
1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
10 ounce (about 8 cups) baby spinach
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/4 cups 1% low-fat milk
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/2 cup (2 ounces) crumbled feta
6 large egg whites
Dash of cream of tartar
2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill

Preheat oven to 350°.

Coat a 2-quart soufflé dish with cooking spray; sprinkle breadcrumbs over bottom and sides of dish.

Cook baby spinach in boiling water 15 seconds or until wilted, and drain in a sieve, pressing until barely moist. Finely chop; place in a large bowl.

Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Place the flour, salt, ground nutmeg, ground red pepper, and black pepper in a medium saucepan. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook 1 minute or until thick.

Gradually stir about one-fourth of hot milk mixture into egg yolk, stirring constantly with a whisk, and add to remaining hot milk mixture, stirring constantly. Cook 30 seconds, and remove from heat. Stir in baby spinach, cheese and dill. Cool slightly.

Place egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl, and beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently stir one-fourth of egg white mixture into baby spinach mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Spoon into prepared soufflé dish. Bake at 350° for 45 minutes or until puffed, golden, and set. Serve immediately.

Yield: 6 servings

CALORIES 143 (26% from fat); FAT 4.1g (sat 2.1g,mono 1.1g,poly 0.3g); PROTEIN 10.1g; CHOLESTEROL 47mg; CALCIUM 167mg; SODIUM 490mg; FIBER 1.5g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 16.5g

There are so many fabulous recipes, menus and meal planning tips on Cooking Light, its a great site to bookmark!

Motivational Quotes

2008-04-16T05:58:00.000+01:00

Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired – Jules Renard

The world is full of willing people, some willing to work, others willing to let them – Robert Frost

To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift – Steve Roland Prefontaine

Those who believe they can do something are probably right – and so are those who believe they can’t – Unknown

People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily – Zig Ziglar

Don’t be fooled by the calendar. There are only as many days in the year as you make use of. – Charles Richards

There is a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you only do it when its convenient. When you’re committed to something, you accept no excuse, only results. – Kenneth Blanchard

Know the true value of time; snatch, seize and enjoy every moment of it. No idleness…never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. – Lord Chesterfield

A man who wants something will find a way; a man who doesn’t will find an excuse. – Stephan Dolley Jr.

Please share your favorite motivational quotes in the comments!

Tuesday Check In - Week 15

2008-04-15T13:42:00.000+01:00

Welcome to another wonderful week on this journey to find a healthier version of YOU! I hope everyone has had a great week, I know I’m really looking forward to making this week a great week!

We have a LOT of new members this week I thought it would be a good time to restate the guidelines we decided on earlier in the year.

If you are actively blogging and want to give and receive support, sign into Mister Linky on Tuesday’s.

If you sign into Mister Linky you will be considered “active” that week.

If you are active try to visit a few other blogs to give support

If you need support, please ask.

If you need a break, take one!! Don’t get derailed from your healthy life just to keep up with blogging or the challenge.

Don’t feel like you have to visit every blog in the blog roll, just visit a few of the people who’ve signed into Mister LInky in the current week. We said try to visit a few above your name and a few below your name, that seemed to work for most of you.

Don’t sacrifice things in your life for the challenge, always remember, this about YOU!

The challenge is and should always be about staying accountable and giving and receiving support.

With all that being said, lets give a warm welcome to our newest members!

Welcome!

From Behind The Wall

Overcoming Inconsistency

Skinny Momma

FIT NEW ENGLAND CHICK

Girl Stuck in a Rut

Foode Fight

My Journey To a Healthier Me

Absolutely Fabulous By Forty!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To sign in for the week, click on the Mister LInky logo below and enter your blog name and blog URL, if you have any problems doing this email me!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~