Monthly Archives: April 2011

Good and bad parts

Posted on April 28, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Gerry: I really appreciated Joe’s recent post and his suggestion about the “part of me” approach to facing the weight-loss challenge. The “bad” part has been with me so long, its voice is very familiar. And I’ve recognized over these last few months, just how powerful it is and how long I’ve been listening to it. The “good” part of me is more like a new acquaintance … bringing  interesting ideas and a fresh perspective. I’m very tentative about the good part … not sure if it’s telling the truth.

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I’m a runner!

Posted on April 25, 2011 | Comments Off

From Kristen: Three months ago, I weighed 270 pounds and had never run a full mile in my life. Today, I weigh 228 pounds and I just ran my first 5K! I am loving my new life. For pictures and a full report, visit http://startingthisminute.wordpress.com.

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Like to use Personal Technology for Fitness?

Posted on April 22, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Joe:  The New York Times talks about Illustrating Your Life in Graphs and Charts - For Fitness and Many Other Purposes:

 That idea led him to co-found Daytum.com, which makes software to help people tabulate whatever they do and turn it into a chart — a visual depiction of everything from blood sugar levels to how much beer they drink. Mr. Felton said he had even seen a woman use the service to track her irrational fears.

At Lifehacker, readers are asked to share thoughts about whether technology helps you exercise:

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Use the Part-of-Me Protocol to battle discouragement

Posted on April 21, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Joe: In several posts and a recent column, Gerry nicely illustrates how we fight ourselves when it comes to making serious personal changes. She started her training camp thinking that losing a few pounds would be a surmountable challenge, she says, only to find out that her new regimen was creating many daily problems that were far more complicated than she expected them to be.

 So what’s a person to do when a new regimen creates challenges that were never anticipated at its beginning?

Two important practical hints can be extracted from Gerry’s material.

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Conquering the stairs

Posted on April 21, 2011 | Comments Off

From Kristen:  I did it! I mastered the 10 flights of stairs at work without breaking a sweat. One year ago, I tried to do this and stopped at floor 5, convinced I was going to pass out or my heart was going to beat out of my chest. It took me about 10 minutes to recover enough to go back into the office.

Today, except for a 10-second rest on floor 8, I was able to walk all the way up to 10 in no time and carry on a conversation right afterward. This is so needed because the scale didn’t show much progress this week. Good thing the non-scale victories are just as sweet.

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Posted in Contestants, Uncategorized

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“It’s Only a Number”

Posted on April 21, 2011 | Comments Off

From Dee: I look back at the last 10 weeks and I am very thankful to The Daily Herald and Push Fitness. Last Monday’s column in the Daily Herald dealt with us thanking special people. Let me introduce you to someone that wasn’t listed in  the newspaper: Angeline Pearson, Encore Dept. Manager at Nordstrom at Woodfield. I went to Nordstrom’s looking for a dress for my stepdaughter’s wedding. At 30 pounds thinner, I thought that  had made THE transition from womens to the misses section. I hadn’t been in the misses section in over 20 years and so eagerly looked forward to shopping “in the normal size” area of the store. When I discovered that the largest size in the misses section was a 14 that I couldn’t get into, I slowly went up the escalator with tears in my eyes. When I arrived at the womens section, I was met by Angeline,  Angie as everyone calls her,  looked at my eyes and said “what’s wrong”   I explained that I was in a contest, had lost 30 pounds and thought for sure that I would be shopping in the misses section. She so patiently listened to my story and said “it’s only a number, be so proud of the weight that you have lost. The number sizing in the garment industry has changed dramatically, so be proud, it’s only a number.” She made me aware of the progress that I have achieved, how healthy I have become and most of all, when it comes to sizing, it’s only a number!!!! Thank you Angie, for teaching me the true beauty of this contest.

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Get those juices flowing

Posted on April 20, 2011 | 1 Comment

From Eileen:  And yet another good reason to exercise regularly … it gets your creative juices flowing.  A scientific study of 60 college students showed that 30 minutes of moderate exercise can increase one’s creativity for hours afterwards. Hours afterwards!

 If you don’t want to read the whole study, here’s a key finding:

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She’s stuck. Any advice?

Posted on April 18, 2011 | Comments Off

From Eileen:  Gerry’s column this week is about being stuck. Anyone who has ever been on a weight loss program  knows that feeling when the scale won’t budge. Gerry’s trainer, Tony,  told her to drink more water, do an extra hour of cardio and stretch.  Sounds reasonable, I suppose.

But who wants reason when you’re stuck? Anyone else have advice on what to do when you reach a dieting plateau? We’re talking sensible advice here  … Actually, the question should be how do you keep your motivation up when you have hit a bump in the road?

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Posted in Our Fittest Loser

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Tweak Yourself To Reach Your Goals

Posted on April 12, 2011 | Comments Off

From Joe:  How do you know if your journaling is an activity for self-indulgence or self-development? Perhaps the presence or absence of metrics in your writing provides a clue:

One of the reasons we might fail to achieve some of our goals is that we’re not always as objective about our progress as we could be, or sometimes we’re just stuck in a rut using the same approach that hasn’t really led us anywhere. That’s where the metrics come in. Having factual proofs of our progress (or lack of progress) can show us what adjustments need to be made.

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Fittest Loser Update

Posted on April 8, 2011 | Comments Off

Here’s where the Fittest Losers are  in the competition.

Bob Pearson, 37, of Hampshire: Current weight: 244 pounds;  weight lost this week: 6 pounds; total weight loss: 52 pounds, 17.5 percent

John Novak, 46, of Mount Prospect: Current weight: 274 pounds;  weight lost this week: 5 pounds; total weight loss: 50 pounds, 15.4 percent

Jayne Nothnagel, 52, of Bloomingdale: Current weight: 185 pounds; weight lost this week: 1 pound;  total weight loss: 28 pounds, 13.1 percent

Dee Levine, 59, of Hoffman Estates: Current weight: 219 pounds;  weight lost this week: 3 pounds; total weight loss: 30 pounds, 12 percent

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