Where we ended up:

Congrats to all those who stuck it out for the entire TWELVE WEEKS - and GREAT JOB everyone - Linda proved to be "practically perfect in every way" and pushed me to be perfect as well. Man, I'm tired - but so glad I did this again this year. Thanks everyone for participating. I hope you were able to develop lots of great habits and that you'll be able to maintain them and reach your goals, if you haven't already. Peace out!

Mystery Point...

for the VERY LAST WEEK was "Read the Sunday School or RS lesson before church".  If you did this this last week, then add that point to your total.

Man, I wish this would have come up the first week instead of the last... I read a whole lot of gospel doctrine lessons for nothing... Just kiddin' - I have to assume I read the right lesson this week; being over in Primary I'm kind of out of the loop!  Job did give me a bit to think about... sometimes I think I have it rough...wow.

(My husband wishes that the "yardwork" point wouldn't have come up 'til the end  - he barely had to touch our yard the first few weeks of the challenge, lol. I DID mow and trim yesterday afternoon, though, before the monsoon hit! You're welcome honey!)

ANYWAY - I digress. I hope everyone enjoyed the mystery points. I know I'm conscious of it, and regularly wearing sunscreen now, I'm more often looking for opportunities to serve others, digging in and cleaning/organizing more often in my home than I used to, (versus trying to half-shut my eyes and ignore those spaces), shunning fast food more often than not, I've read almost every conference talk from the last year (usually all I get out of general conferences are really good naps), and I've got a semi-regular pedicure date with a friend now - which is an excuse for some good-old fashioned girl talk every couple of weeks.  How about you?

That's what this challenge was all about - DEVELOPING GOOD HABITS. If these mystery points have lodged themselves in the back of your brain somewhere, then that's what they were supposed to do - be reminders that we should be taking care of ourselves and others, plus exercising our minds along with our bodies!  Congrats everyone!

Point Tallies - JUST THREE MORE DAYS!

Oops - don't mind the "8" points on my last week there, it's just where I'm keeping track of my miles.

Mystery Point...

this week was "Do a service for someone outside your household."  When we're helping, we're happy...

I have a fellow challenger to thank for my mystery point this week - Rachel and Julie are in the process of moving and I went and helped pack up their house! Hooray!  (Er, not hooray that their moving, but hooray for me and boxes, I mean) 

Think back to what you did this week - did you give someone a ride? Take a meal to another family? Jump start anyone's car? Babysit someone's kids, who needed help?  I think going to the temple should count for this particular mystery point, too, don't you?

If you did some kind of service and gave of your time this week, add that mystery point to your total and please get me your points by tomorrow (Mon) night!

Hip hip hooray!

So how is everyone doing with the "5 small meals"? I love it, of course, because I feel like I'm eating all day long, and I have a deep love affair going on with food. (It goes way, way back. Believe me.)  Even though some of my meals probably haven't been as small as they should have been, I've already lost 1.4 pounds this week - amazing, considering I'm usually squeaking in with barely a pound lost on Monday mornings.   How about you?

1/2 Marathon.

Okay - after taking everyone's comments into consideration, this is what we'll do next week:

You'll get a point for every mile you propel yourself (run, walk, elliptical) with a max of 13 earnable points. You can do it all in one day if you like, or you can split it among the 6 days. Whatever. So instead of that weekly challenge being worth 7 points, it will be worth 13.  I think we definitely DO need to put a cap on it, or else I literally might kill myself trying to run 100s of miles.  : )  And if I'm dead, there won't be anyone to send you your winning check!

Every other weekly challenge we've done has been in ADDITION to the "Exercise 30 minutes" point. So, as much as I dread how much TIME this will take, we should keep it the same. Otherwise you'd be getting double points for running/walking each day. If you've truly been exercising for at least half an hour each day, for six days straight, for 11 weeks, pushing it up to an hour shouldn't be difficult - your body can handle it. There have been lots and LOTS of days when I exercise twice anyway, and I'm sure I haven't been the only one.

Plus, this will be a good, strong finish to our entire fitness challenge!  So say you run for an hour - the first 30 minutes will count toward your "exercise" point, then the rest of the mileage will count toward your "marathon" miles point. Get it?  I'm planning to break it up a lot and do, say, 30 minutes of a DVD workout, then run for 3 miles each day.

Good luck!

Week #11 Challenge: Eat 5 Small Meals a Day

The point of this week's challenge is to learn to control our PORTION SIZES. This is a HUGE, WONDERFUL HABIT to learn, that I absolutely suck at. But I'm not the only one. Us pudgy Costco-loving Americans are used to supersizing everything and seeing ginormous portions served to us at restaurants, so it's difficult to even understand what "a serving size" should be - instead we usually end up eating muffins that are the size of our head! Instead of just looking at calories, carbs or fat grams on package labels, check out the SERVING SIZES. You'll find that what you may have thought to be a "serving" is actually two or three in a lot of cases.

Take this week to contemplate how much you're serving yourself. Eat slowly. Stop when you are FULL, not when your plate is clean.  Five small meals each day should keep you satisfied and not hungry, so you do NOT overeat.  "Meals" is kind of a misnomer I think here - grabbing a piece of fruit, a piece of string cheese, or a few carrots, to give some examples, for a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack is ideal - and hopefully will keep you from binging at lunch or dinner.  I found this online:

Instead of trying to memorize lists of ounces, cups, and tablespoons, simply compare the serving sizes of particular foods to familiar physical objects. For example, a single serving of:

• Vegetables or fruit is about the size of your fist.
• Pasta is about the size of one scoop of ice cream.
• Meat, fish, or poultry is the size of a deck of cards or the size of your palm (minus the fingers).
• Snacks such as pretzels and chips is about the size of a cupped handful.
• Apple is the size of a baseball.
• Potato is the size of a computer mouse.
• Bagel is the size of a hockey puck.
• Pancake is the size of a compact disc.
• Steamed rice is the size of a cupcake wrapper.
• Cheese is the size of a pair of dice or the size of your whole thumb (from the tip to the base).

Good luck!

Mystery Point...

this week was "Go get (or give yourself) a manicure or pedicure" - Now that we all should be at least slightly skinnier and most certainly in better shape, let's stay well-groomed too! Nothing's worse than nasty cracked, dry heels in my book...   For the men in our challenge, I'd say the equivalent for this mystery point would be earned if you trimmed your nails or got a haircut this week.  : )

How did everybody do with push-ups?  I'm a WIMP, but I only had soreness the first three days, and then I was fine. How about you?

Taking comments...

as to how we should do Week #12's challenge. Our last week's challenge is supposed to be "Run/walk a 1/2 marathon".

I guess when I planned this I was thinking about the way I exercise personally, and how I would chip away at that 13.2 miles a little each day.  However, I didn't consider that particular challenge being a "weekly" versus a "daily" challenge. Because really, our marathon types could do that in one day! Should this be in ADDITION to the 30 minutes of exercise we're doing per day? (shudder, please no - I don't have time or the stamina to do both!)

Should we just make that challenge worth 7 points, and if you get there, you get all 7 points? Should we change it to be "Run/walk at least 2.5 miles per day"  ?  Should we change that week's challenge altogether? Should we throw it up in the air and say you get a point for every mile you propel yourself that week? Ooh, wouldn't that make for an awesome finale - I wonder how many dozens of miles I could run that week... hee hee...

Thoughts?

Point Tallies - we're 3/4 done!

How is everyone feeling about this here shindig? I had no idea I'd have to be so PERFECT in order to win - and I'm TIRED! Since Feb. 1st, though, I have lost more than 25 pounds, and it's awesome to feel strong and thinner than I have since before I had kids. (Remember this is my SECOND fitness challenge for this year, I haven't lost all 25 since we started this second round) There are still a few items of clothing that I can't fit into yet, but I'm no longer discouraged that I'll never get there. How about you? How much weight have you lost? Or inches? Or body fat percentage? Are you fitting into your "skinny" clothes yet?

Week #10 Challenge: 50 Push-ups per day!

UGH - this week might be the death of me! Split them up so you don't kill yourself! Sit-up week didn't make me sore at all, but I guarantee in a couple of days I won't be able to pick up my little boy for the pain in my arms...

Mystery Point...

this week was "Take time to wash & moisturize your face 2 times a day" - yeah! This was an easy one for me because I am constantly trying to clear my face. I even had a facial on Friday - can I get a bonus point for that?

If you did this mystery point every day this week, give yourself the point and make sure you get your point total to me by tomorrow night (Mon) 10pm at the latest!

Point Tallies - We're 2/3 done!

If there is an empty spot for you, please let me know what belongs there!

Don't hate me,

but I lost the latest version of the spreadsheet in my hard drive debacle. I am missing LAST week's points for everyone  (from Week 7 - Melissa I need 6 & 7 from you) - send them over to me and I'll get the latest point tallies posted on the blog ASAP

fruit serving sizes:

The goal is to consume five servings of fruit daily this week. Google has varying opinions on what constitutes a serving, so use your best judgement. I've seen anywhere from a half to a cup of berries listed as a serving and generally one small to medium piece of fruit.

•one banana
•six strawberries
•two plums
•fifteen grapes
•one apple
•one peach
•one half cup of orange or other fruit juice

I, for one, will be enjoying many smoothies this week!

Don't forget to get your points turned in today! to me... not shellie.

mystery point and a new week!

Shellie drew our point this morning and called to report...

Play a group sport with a team - or attend a group exercise class

If you did this, add your point and send them in tomorrow! I went swimming with my kids, but we didn't really play a game... we went on a bike ride, can that count?? hmm, maybe I'm stretching it!

Fruit week begins tomorrow. Shout out your ideas for getting all your servings in and any questions you might have. Either comment here so we can all share, or email me (amberly) at amberly.robinson@gmail.com

Enjoy your Sunday!