Coach 12: Sean Hyland

Sean & I met over a year ago in a lunchroom in Bethesda Maryland (we work together).  We became fast friends.  Maybe it was because we enjoyed making fun of others, maybe it was because of our mutual respect/love of Detroit (where Sean lives), or maybe it is because we are both awesome!  Over the past year Sean and I have shared many fun days and nights in Maryland, Virginia, Memphis, Chicago and Atlanta.  He is one of the funniest people I know and I wish Sean was on all my deals.  Unfortunately we haven't worked together much over the past 6 months but we still do keep in touch.

Sean loves to travel as much as I do and he works hard to stay in shape while on the road.  He has a lot of suggestions and tips of how to stay healthy.  Sean also is persistent so he was the perfect coach.  He didn't let me slack at all and if I didn't answer a text he got mad.  Thank you Sean for being a great Coach and a great Friend. 

Merry Christmas to All!

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The Fresh Diet

I'll let you in on a little secret... after my Plateau I took advantage of a Rue La La coupon and ordered 1 month of meals from The Fresh Diet.  And I really enjoy the food and the convenience.  Every night (between 7pm and 5am) they deliver a cooler of food for the next day to my door.  It includes 3 meals + 2 snacks that I have selected from their online site. Below is some more information on how it works.

The Fresh Diet provides the right balance of food in proper portions to help you lose weight, feel energetic, and maintain proper health. This is done by providing our customers with a healthy balance of good carbohydrates such as “low-glycemic” whole grains, legumes and vegetables, lean meat and fish proteins and healthy fats. Our program consists of a healthy balance of 40%, 30% and 30% carbohydrates, fats and proteins.

The Fresh Diet’s meals are designed to help your body work more efficiently. Gone are the overly refined foods. And gone is the concept of inflammation. Put simply, there are foods that increase fat cell inflammation (a contributing factor to being overweight, and slowing weight loss), and there are foods that also decrease it. The Fresh Diet meals include many foods that reduce the inflammation that keeps people fat, allowing for simple, controlled weight loss.

I HAVE LOST!

A TOTAL OF 20 pounds… that is equivalent to a car tire. Wow - THANKS to ALL of you! I am so excited and glowing! I am determined to get through the holiday’s by losing another pound rather than gaining any weight.

PS - I'm enjoying a glass of Champagne while I type this. Only one glass but a well earned treat.

Coach 11: Shannon Fitzgerald

Shannon is a neighborhood friend who I met through Ryan & Emily Elliott.  Shannon & I have probably known each other for 6 or 7 years.  She is passionate, fun, and loving.  Like me Shannon travels a lot for work so she has a lot of insight on how hard (and easy) it is to stay healthy on the road.  She jumped right on board for this challenge.  And a week when we were both in town Shannon volunteered to be my coach.  Even better - Shannon is a runner and has signed up with me to run the A1A Half Marathon in February... anyone else want to join?  Shannon also reminds me to treat myself when I reach goals but pushes me REALLY hard to meet those goals. 

Every year I vacation to Canada with Shannon & the Elliott's and they have all come to feel like family.  We have so much fun in the water, on the dock, cooking in the kitchen and reading on the porch.  And when speaking of Shannon I cannot leave out her big lovable dog- yellow lab Bugsy.  He is also family.

Last - as I go through this challenge I want to highlight a huge success of Shannon's.  She was a smoker when I first met her and has now been many many years clean.  Not sure how long it has been but it is something of her past.  If she can battle through that then I can make these changes in my lifestyle to lose weight.  Way to pave the road for me to success Shannon. 

Coach 10: Liz Traines

Liz was my coach for 3 weeks and she was AWESOME.  Unfortunately she got my plateau weeks.  My favorite was all the articles she found online that she forwarded to me (see below).  She also inspired me to workout when I wasn't in the mood.  She sent many many texts and overall she encouraged me.  Her nice and supportive words were such a motivation. 

Liz & I work together in Chicago.  She is from Chicago then worked out of our DC office and just moved back to Chicago this past year.  We became friends quickly because of her constant smile.  She is always sharing a great story or helping others.  She is so much fun to hang out with and I'm glad she signed up for this journey even though we haven't known each other very long.  Her motivating words have pushed me.  Thanks Liz.


Articles:

Feeling a little food hangover (like myself), here are some good healthy foods to get you back in line
http://www.fitsugar.com/10-Detox-Foods-6856184

I like this one because it tells you that whole eggs are important (in moderation - I know you’re watching the cholesterol!) Apparently the yolk burns fat that the whites don’t!
http://www.fitsugar.com/Dont-Avoid-Foods-When-Trying-Lose-Weight-20430275?page=0,0,0#4

Quick slideshow that has some good reminders for picking up healthy snacks/salad ingredients from Whole Foods:
http://www.self.com/fooddiet/2009/10/fat-fighting-foods-slideshow#slide=1

A Few Yummy Breakfast Recipes
http://www.fitsugar.com/Veggie-Recipes-Savory-Breakfast-20312973?page=0,0,0#0

Are you “too tired” to work out?
http://www.fitsugar.com/Signs-You-Too-Tired-Work-Out-20656906?utm_campaign=digest_email_2011-12-02&utm_medium=email&utm_source=popsugar.com&spi_campaign=digest_email_2011-12-02&spi_medium=email&spi_source=popsugar.com&utm_content=post_title

Official Plateau but Going Hard Core

Well it is official. I hit a Plateau. After 2 weeks in Arizona (with a lot of hiking & exercise) I came back the same weight as I left (probably too much wine with Mom & Dad). With that said I’m not discouraged because it was Thanksgiving and it was Arizona and I didn’t gain anything. So I have a RENEWED Spirit. I’m back in full tilt as of yesterday. Shannon Fitzgerald has asked to coach me this week and has already signed us up for Yoga tomorrow.

I also just went outside to run 3 miles. It was my fastest run in over a year... maybe because of the cold weather (see left).

Therefore, I'm now calling myself HARD CORE in this Journey.

Accenture Live Well Challenge

My company, Accenture, has launched a four week Healthy Holidays Challenge that started yesterday.  I've explained a little bit about the program below.  But I think with this Challenge I'll be able to lose another 4 - 8 pounds on my journey.  But more importantly it is also fun that is a competition so I have a new way to keep myself motivated - to beat the other 400+ Accenture teams. 

My team, Mission Slimpossible, is made up of 5 individuals from Chicago Accenture (randomly including my current Coach #10 Liz Traines).  I plan to keep our team connected on a daily basis through humor, tips & motivation.  


*****

Accenture Team Challenge!

The holidays are one of the toughest times of the year to stay on track with your health and fitness. Make it easy—and fun—with a team competition!  Help your team by logging your healthy behaviors like hitting the gym and eating low-fat foods. Teams compete against each other, spurred on by online trophies and watching their points add up on the Leaderboard.

How it works: Form a team with your co-workers (2-20 people) and log your exercise & nutrition daily.  Exercise is points per activity and time exercising.  Nutrition is points for doing the following:

• Ate a healthy breakfast (e.g., high fiber cereal, fruit, yogurt, whole grain toast) (15 points)
• Ate at least 5 servings of fruit and vegetables (15 points)
• Ate healthy snacks – fruit, veggies, whole grains, protein and healthy fats (like unsalted nuts) (10 points)
• Ate lean protein, high fiber grains and vegetables with every meal (10 points)
• Did not add salt to foods/made low sodium choices (10 points)
• Drank 8 glasses of water or chose water instead of a soda or sugary drink (5 points)
• Measured and ate appropriate portions (15 points)
• Ordered a healthy restaurant option when I ate out (5 points)
• Recorded what I ate today in a food journal (10 points)
• Replaced high fat dairy with low fat alternatives (10 points)

Top prizes: $1,000 for a team of 2-10; $2,000 points for a team of 11-20 (points split evenly between all team members).

Pre Thanksgiving Plateau???

Happy Thanksgiving Week – This year I am SO VERY THANKFUL for all of you!  You have supported me (and will continue to support me I know) down this journey so THANK YOU!  I hope you, your family & friends have a wonderful holiday.

Today is 1 week since I last wrote you - before I left AZ (Sunday) I weighed in and I had no weight change.  So it could be that I didn’t eat as well as I should have last week (I definitely worked my ass off sweating) or that I hit my first plateau.  Either way I reached out to my coach Liz and she is determined to get me down 2 pounds so she is staying on board as coach!  She has been awesome in inspiring me to get to the gym and make good food choices.   So  I have a scale here in AZ and I weighed in this morning and can see how that changes over the next 10 days that I’m here. 

Happy Thanksgiving – and don’t worry I’m working REALLY HARD early this week so I can earn a nice splurge on Thursday with family.  I hope you do the same!

Tuesday Nov 15th

Today at work I asked my friend Liz to be my coach as she was sitting next to me (and is on this chain).  So she has already been standing over me inspecting my food choices and has an order to send me to the gym at the end of the day.  She has also informed me she may try to lose 1 pound with me.  So here WE Go…. Another pound to come off.

Coach 9: Sara Kuehn

Well my poor sister-in-law got stuck with being Coach 9 when she didn't even know about my Healthy Weight Loss Journey.  Since I was heading to Cincinnati for the week to meet Charlie (my new nephew) and since I was staying with Geoff & Sara I decided she should help.  With no notice - Sara rocked it!  She cooked amazing food and encouraged me to go to the gym.  We also did a fair amount of walking as the weather was nice and Charlie enjoys strolling.  One day Sara & I even got to do Jillian Michael's Shred DVD while Charlie napped.  I think she appreciated me being there to watch Charlie while she ran to the gym and I appreciated her letting me go to the gym.

Sara is a beautiful woman from Michigan who enjoys cooking healthy & working out.  She married my baby brother Geoff and they now live in Cincinnati.  I hope she will continue to follow me down this path and send me some of her great (and easy) receipts.

Thanks Sara. 

Coach 8: Becky Utz

I met Becky after we both became Theta's at Miami.  I remember one night in January right after Rush, we were linked arm in arm, skipping form a house party to a bar, signing "Be Cool, Stay in School" and holding each other up as it was icy.  We may have actually fallen too but that is just a minor detail.  Becky has never stopped holding me up almost 20 years later.  Becky and I went on to live in the same house for 2 years in college and have kept close depite the many miles that have separated us since college.  Becky now lives in Salt Lake City UT with her BEAUTIFUL daugher (Carolyn) and awesome husband (Steve) so I don't get to see her often but she is always with me.

Becky was the first (of many) to volunteer to be my coach while I was in Italy for 2 weeks for work.  This was a huge challenge!  Becky emailed me almost every day while I was there.  And despite my bad habit of not emailing back she kept at it.  She reminded me why I was doing this challenge and asked me to stay strong.  But she also recognized that this was a one-time opporunity so she reminded me to have fun and enjoy some small indulgences.  I couldn't have gone to Italy and gained NO weight without her awesome emails.  Thanks Recky Becky!

I know I didn't officially lose a pound with Becky so I'll make her Coach again!  But not gaining anything in Italy is more important then 1 silly pound. 

Lost a whole Charlie.

I'm in Cincinnati this week and enjoying some time with my 8 week old nephew Charlie.  I was telling him yesterday that to date I have lost more than a Charlie.  Charlie is now weighing in around 12 pounds and I'm down 13+.  How crazy to think I carried around that extra weight every day.  And after 15 minutes of walking with Charlie he seems so heavy.

My goal to lose another Charlie by Christmas!  Yesterday was a great day.  My sister in law Sara made healthy meals and she let me work out for an hour.  I also let her workout for an hour so I think we both appreciate the extra hands around.

I'm Back!

What a crazy 3 weeks since I last emailed you.  I am ESTATIC to tell you that I’ve maintained my weight.  This was a huge accomplishment with overseas travel, long hours, and now jet lag.  I plan to post to my blog this weekend about how I think I accomplished this.

First I want to thank my official coach Becky Utz for all her emails.  I usually didn’t reply back because I was too busy or too tired but she kept sending them day after day.   And they reminded me to make better choices.  I also want to thank a few others who sent notes to remind me to make good choices but also to have fun:  Holly Masters, Sean Hyland, and Julie Chamberlain. 

I have been back in the states for a week but have been fighting Jet Lag.  When I flew back I went straight to Atlanta to babysit my niece & nephew for the weekend.  So to say the least it has taken me all week to get my energy back.  Today will be my first real workout in awhile – heading to Yoga with Jill in an hour.

Thank you everyone for your continued support.  I’m heading to Cincinnati Sunday to help my sister-in-law out for the week with my newest nephew – Charlie.  Sara has not been a part of any of this to date but she is being volunteered as my coach for next week.  We have started to talk about healthy eating/receipts and I need her to make sure I get exercise in every day (baby pushups & baby walks). 

Looking forward to making the scale go down again! 

Italy is the 20%

When I get back to the States I promise to spend more time writing about my 2 week work trip to Italy.  But what I wanted to share was some quote I read today.  I have been enjoying all the encouraging words from friends and websites to keep me in balance here.

It's not all or nothing

It's okay to make mistakes, and it's okay to indulge every once in a while. You don't have to give up all your favorite foods or exercise like crazy to lose weight. Instead, give yourself some room for choice and variety. Work toward changes you can keep up for the rest of your life instead of drastic changes you're likely to burn out on. It's a good way to avoid destructive all-or-nothing thinking.

The 80/20 Rule

If you stick to your plan 80% of the time, you'll succeed. You're not a failure because you had a rich dessert. If you make smart food and exercise choices most of the time, let go of the guilt about a few indulgences or slip-ups. Don't fall into a crippling shame spiral and lose sight of all the good work you’re doing. Instead, promise yourself you’ll get back on course.

Lots to SHare

I did a weigh in yesterday & today to confirm I am down another pound!  That is the GREAT NEWS…. Thank you Julie for calling daily and tracking my progress.  I was afraid to screw up when I knew you were looking out for me.

The Scary News:  On Sunday I leave for Milan, Italy.  I just learned today I will be going so I need to prepare for this journey.  I don’t know if I will be gone for 1 or 2 weeks.  But I need to stay on track (or at least not gain weight). 

The Opportunity News:  I have not picked a person for the next pound because this is going to be a BIG challenge.  Is anyone up for the challenge to motivate me to work out and eat relativity healthy on the road in Italy?  And I won’t have a scale so it will be a crap shoot to see what happens. 

I’ve added some posts to my blog… in particular I’ve signed up to Run a Half Marathon in Florida in February.  Everyone is invited to join in the weekend of Run & Sun.  I’ll call that Tempting News.

Ciao! 

Or is it Chow?

Coach 7: Julie Chamberlain

Since I'm losing more than 1 pound per Coach I decided to change the title of my posts to just list the Coach - not the pound.

Coach Julie is one of my hero's in life.  For those of you who have known Julie as long as I have (college) I'm sure you share in my sentiment.  For those that don't know Julie the synopsis is that Julie was in a tragic accident during college.  Her positive attitude, supporting friends and family and never give up attitude got her through.  She proved to me that life truly is what you make out of it and don't forget to live it fully.  Don't forget to tell people you love them and never ever give up.  If you aren't happy with something - don't whine & complain.  Just change it.  She is a ROCK STAR in my book and I try to live by these same traits.

Julie has also been doing her own Weight Loss Journey lately and has had huge success.  Not a big surprise to me.  But she is showing me by example how to tackle this journey.  I appreciate her positive attitude and encouragement. 

Lastly I wanted to let you know that Julie is a representative of Healthy Chocolate.  If you have a sweet tooth - this is for you.  There is a lot of research on the health benefits.  So reach out if you just want to learn more or if you want to try some.  I've very much enjoyed some of the treats they sell.    http://www.myxocai.com/dchealthychocolate/contact

Join Me for a Run & Sun in February

As a follow up to my post on Tuesday I have signed up to run the 2012 Publix Fort Lauderdale A1A Half Marathon - Sunday, February 19, 2012 (there is also a Full Marathon and 5k option).  Shannon is going to join me and EVERYONE is INVITED.  It is a run/walk event so no worry if it takes you a whole day to finish. 

Reasons to join us:

• Running a race in February will keep you active during the winter months.
• The course is saddled by beautiful beaches, lined with palm trees and over looking vibrant blue Atlantic waters.
• It is a fast course (this means it is flat)
• There are post-race parties at the starting and finish lines (on the beach) with beer.
• The massages and drinks we will enjoy after the race.
• Leaving cold Chicago (or enter city here) in February.

Let me know if you are interested!
http://www.a1amarathon.com/index.shtml

My First TRULY AWESOME Healthy Moment

I have lost 13.2 pounds and felt really good about that.  But tonight I FELT GREAT when I went out and ran 3.85 miles without stopping or walking!!!  And not only did I run it but I felt good doing it.  Don't get me wrong my legs were tired and my stomach cramping as I walked to cool down but OH MY GOD did it feel great to just run.  Over the past couple weeks I have tired to run but I end up doing a run/walk because running doesn't feel good.  

When I left my house tonight I had NO EXPECTATIONS.  I thought I'll go for a run / walk.  I had to get to 10k steps today (was only at 2k when I left).  So I started to jog and I just kept going.   I got passed a lot on the Lakeshore path but speed doesn't matter.  I grabbed some water at Diversey and made the turn.  I didn't know how far I had gone until I got home and put it into http://www.mapmyrun.com/ .  I couldn't be more excited right now. 

Many of you know I have done a lot of races but have never claimed to be a runner.  But I really like the Half Marathon because it is a challenging distance but not insane.  So I'm going to look for a half to train for this winter. Maybe somewhere fun for a race/ beach winter weekend - ANYONE INTERESTED? 

Some ideas...
January:  Vegas, Maui, Arizona, California  http://www.halfmarathons.net/race_calendar_jan.html
February: http://www.halfmarathons.net/race_calendar_feb.html

3 more pounds lost - and not to be found.

It is a Great Monday Morning – unfortunately I’ve had a tough morning work wise and it is going to be a long day!  I won’t let work dampen my good mood though.  I wanted to share the great news that Laura took me another 3 pound down my path.  Thank you Coach Laura! She lucked out with the n nice weather and some friendly reminders to enjoy the days of the weekend.  It wasn’t hard when I wanted to be outside so much.  We randomly drew another number and Coach #7 will be Julie Chamberlain!  Lets rock this week Julie….

The Updated Stats:

Start Date:   Aug 22

Current Date:  Oct 10

Committed Time to Date – 7 Weeks

Weight Loss – 13.2 pounds

Averaging 1.9lbs per week

Coach Pound 6: Laura Chubb

Laura & I met in Chicago about 8 years ago. We both bought condos at Grace Court (where I sill live) and both joined the Condo Board.  We commiserated a lot in the early years about the stupidity of condo owners, condo developers and other board members.  Our friendship grew because of our similar interests in an active lifestyle, a strong career and a good margarita (she introduced me to an awesome Chicago Mexican restaurant that is not on my daily health plan).  Unfortunately Laura moved to NYC a couple years ago when her husband was accepted to grad school at NYU. So she isn't around the corner to hang out with but I have had the chance to visit her in the Big Apple and she always reaches out when she is back in town.  I will continue to lean on Laura as I go through this process to remind me to stay active.  Thank you Laura for being a part of my journey. 

Trapeze

Today I went to a 2 hour Trapeze Flying class with friend (and future coach) Kim & her husband Josh.  I will not be quitting my job any time soon.  And I know my parents will be thrilled to learn that I'm not going to pursue flying as a sport.  I am NOT talented at Trapeze and though it was fun it wasn't really my thing.  Kim & Josh were much more acrobatic then I but we all had fun.  I wanted to share some pictures but also let you know what an amazing workout Trapeze is.  Just climbing up the ladder (I wish I had counted the steps) was a challenge to get to the platform.  And tonight I'm exhausted.  My arms are so tired.  Enjoy the pictures and take a chance and get out and fly if you get a chance.  http://chicago.trapezeschool.com/index.php

It is 7:30pm and I'm going to bed in the next hour!  What an exhausting day.....

Cinnamon

So the last couple of days I have been having Oatmeal for breakfast.  The problem with healthy oatmeal is it isn't very tasty.  So I have been sprinkling some cinnamon on it and then adding some berries.  The cinnamon has taken the Oatmeal from a taste of 1 to a taste of 7 (a creamy buttermilk biscuit being a 10).  So I wanted to make sure I wasn't sabotaging my diet by adding the cinnamon.  So I did some research and what did I find - that I am actually smart.  New lesson -Cinnamon has multiple health benefits.  So enjoy!

http://www.healthdiaries.com/eatthis/10-health-benefits-of-cinnamon.html

Studies have shown that just 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon per day can lower LDL cholesterol.  Several studies suggest that cinnamon may have a regulatory effect on blood sugar, making it especially beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes.

In some studies, cinnamon has shown an amazing ability to stop medication-resistant yeast infections.

In a study published by researchers at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Maryland, cinnamon reduced the proliferation of leukemia and lymphoma cancer cells.

It has an anti-clotting effect on the blood.

In a study at Copenhagen University, patients given half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder combined with one tablespoon of honey every morning before breakfast had significant relief in arthritis pain after one week and could walk without pain within one month.

When added to food, it inhibits bacterial growth and food spoilage, making it a natural food preservative.

One study found that smelling cinnamon boosts cognitive function and memory.

Researchers at Kansas State University found that cinnamon fights the E. coli bacteria in unpasteurized juices.

It is a great source of manganese, fiber, iron, and calcium.

Before taking cinnamon, make sure to see our Side Effects of Cinnamon article for side effects and contraindications.

Sharing my Lunch

For someone who isn't a fan of lettuce or dressing I have been eating a lot of salads.  I have been going to Whole Foods and making individual salads to take to work or eat at home.  Each salad is full of flavor! I also make my salad at the Salad Bar so I don't have to cut veggies (something I don't enjoy doing).  How many times do you buy tons of great veggies and never use them because you have to clean & cut?  Me = A LOT

Examples of ingredients (each salad is different):  Lettuce (Romaine/ Spinach/ Spring Mix), Avocado (always a must), Broccoli, Cauliflower, Celery, Peppers (Red/ Yellow/Orange/ Green), Carrots, Peas, Corn, Beans (Pinto/ Black), Squash, Cucumber, Cherry Tomato, Egg, Strawberries, Grilled Pineapple, Garlic, Sweet Potato, Pecans, Almonds, Chicken, Salmon...

And I never need dressing .... I just devoured a GREAT salad (I might go broke from doing it at the Whole Foods salad bar but at least nothing goes to waste and I'm losing weight).  Another lesson learned!  Convenience is worth the $ spent for me.

Picture - from a salad Holly made in Seattle which increased my above ingredients to including Pecans & Strawberries in more salads.

Coach Pound 5: Bridget

Bridget Mann Swan & I met in high school when we were both trying to figure out who we were. She was/is a top notch runner & I was a top notch ice skater. Neither of compete anymore in sports but our friendship is still important. We have been through a LOT together - good moments and bad. Some of the finer include Senior Year High School Spring Break plus vacations to NYC, Cancun, Florida, and Puerto Rico.  

I am so lucky to have Bridget live near me in Chicago. She has always been a motivator of mine to get out and workout or come in and enjoy a good meal and a glass of wine. She is a great example of how to balance many balls - family, job, health & friends. I appreciate her help in showing me how to keep everything moving when it feels like things are going to come crashing down! Thank you Bridget.

10 Pound Mark!!!!

I did it!  I have reached a weight loss of 10 pounds.  Now that is a huge accomplishment but my journey is still continuing.  Truthfully I don’t know where I will end up with weight loss but when I get there I will feel great and ready to maintain.   For now I will celebrate the 10pounds and continue to march forward with more pounds lose. 

Thank you Bridget for getting me to 10pounds.  Woo Hoo!!!!

Tonight I’m off to the Accenture St. Charles Training Center for the week… good news is they have lots of healthy food options.  Bad news is they have lots of unhealthy options.  More bad news is we train ALL day so any work out will have to be in the morning before training starts – oh and the day usually ends at the Q Center Pub.  I need to limit myself to 2 drinks a night!

Then Thursday night I’m off to Dallas for a quick training on Friday and back Saturday.  Since I am technically only down 0.9 from last week Bridget is still my coach.  And I won’t know until next Saturday/Sunday if I lost that full 1 pound.  So I’m asking everyone please send texts, emails, notes of encouragement to help me make the right decisions and get down over that 1 full pound and be on to Coach #6 NEXT WEEK!

Thanks.

Coach Pound 4: Holly M.

Holly Rowland Masters and I have been friends since my sophomore year of College (her freshman year). I don't remember the day we met but I do know she was a huge part of my college experience. Holly & I happened to be sorority sisters but that doesn't give justice to what a great friend she has always been. After college Holly & I both moved to Chicago. Over the years she has moved from Chicago to San Fran to Chicago to Seattle. No matter where she lives we have kept up our friendship. And always given me a fun place to visit! Today Holly is the mother to 2 beautiful and very funny little kiddos - Mikey & Maddy who I want to thank for keeping me active whenever I'm around.

Holly is a great role model for me to follow in this journey. One thing I really admire about Holly is her commitment to buying local produce. She is always cooking up an easy receipt but making it taste like a million bucks. I am thankful she has shared receipts with me and I promise to get in the kitchen more.

Thanks for always being there for me Holly.

Cheating

I’m super excited to let you know I’ve lost another 1.4 pounds!!!  Thanks Lee Ann.  Your morning text messages always gave me a reason to get up and MOVE.

Why I’m cheating (don’t worry it isn’t cheating on my healthy eating)… I’m heading to Seattle Thursday to see my dear friend Holly Rowland Masters for the  weekend.  Holly moved out there earlier this year from Chicago and I’m so excited to go see her and her family.  I’ve asked Holly to be my next coach.. so I’m cheating because I’m not randomly drawing my next coach.  So Lee Ann will coach me through today and then Holly will pick me up tomorrow and whoop my butt into shape when I’m out in Seattle (probably send me to the playground with her active & cute kids). 

I must admit I’m not great about updating the blog but I’ll try to get better.  As long as the weight is going that is what I’m more invested in…..http://helpingkristin.blogspot.com/

THANKS EVERYONE!!!!

A HUGE Accomplishment

So yesterday, day 18 of my journey, was the first day where I felt sore, un-energetic and hungry. I actually got up early and worked out before work (a 30 minute Core Cardio DVD) so that was great but it was during the workout that I felt sore. Then throughout the day I got more and more tired. So after work I ran an errand (the Container Store) prior to cooking a healthy dinner and settling in for a movie. Accomplishment #1 was cooking the Healthy Dinner. I really wanted to order out because I was tired but I knew that wasn't good for me so I decided to do a bison burger & asparagus on the grill. Halfway through the movie I was still on edge a bit so I decided to have a beer. I had 3 Bells Oberon's in the fridge. And I was so proud of myself because I had ONLY 1 last night. It tasted fabulous and it took the edge off. But I had the good sense to say all I needed was one. And I now have 2 to enjoy Saturday as Michigan kicks Notre Dame's butt in football!

I have come along way in this journey.... Cheers to a successful win on my part.

Coach Pound 3: Lee Ann

I met Lee Ann my freshman year of college - her sophomore year. We were both on the Miami Precision (Synchronized) Skating Team. During our years at college we went from acquaintances to best friends. I will never forget many, many hours spent in the Keg Room of King Library (the basement of our school library where there was no key but it felt like a party) talking about life and staring at the hot boys. And then there was all the times traveling the globe for skating (including an unforgettable trip to Rome). Since college Lee Ann and I have grown to become sisters. We inspire each other, make fun of each other, support one another and call bullshit when appropriate. I added her to my list of Coaches because she is always pushing me to be the best I can be.

Over the past two years Lee Ann & I discovered a place like Health Heaven on Earth. It is called Hilton Head Health (check it out: http://www.hhhealth.com/) and there we re-learned a lot of tricks to being healthy. I hope in this coaching session Lee Ann will remind me of those and how simple it can be to live a healthy lifestyle. At H3 I was also introduced to Yoga. I have finally found my inner Yogi in Chicago. I practice at Spring (http://www.springwellnesschicago.com/) and LOVE it. It brings calm to a hectic day but my instructor continuously kicks my butt.

Thanks for always being there for me Lee Ann. I know it won't end at 1 pound.

Pound 3 Coach Announcement (which is actually pound 7 because I've lost 6.2).

We DID it again!  Thanks Natasha… my Pound 2 coach helped me lose 2 pounds.  That loss came out of nowhere – must have been her awesome coaching.

So I had Natasha select a random number (twice) – and both those people have a busy week.  So then I did the Random Number Generator and I selected #17 who was / is Lee Ann Shoker.

So here we go Lee Ann, Pound 3 Coach. 

Coach Pound 2: Natasha

Natasha and I met at Miami University. And I don't quite know what year Natasha and I met but we did meet through our mutual friend Kara. Natasha is always a blast to go out for a drink with (not quite the healthy plan mindset). She is full of energy and life. After college Natasha and I became even closer as we really enjoyed hanging out. She came up to Chicago often and we both experienced NYC for the first time together on a weekend girls trip. We also saw each other in St. Louis for Kara's wedding and a girls trip to South Beach. More recently I have seen Natasha in Cincinnati with her growing family. Honestly Natasha isn't the healthiest person I know but I picked her to be part of this challenge because she is an honest person and she will make me work hard.

Natasha is expecting a little girl this October and has head a tough pregnancy. She met with a dietitian and passed along some GREAT tricks & tips to live by. Thanks Natasha for helping me in this journey.

Holiday Weekend Adventures

Well I was quite nervous going into the holiday weekend.... I didn't know what to expect. Before I talk a little about the weekend. I'll give you the great news. I lost more weight and in fact since I started with my Pound 2 Coach I lost an additional 2 pounds! So great success!!! Thanks Natasha. Stay tuned for the announcement of the Pound 3 Coach.

Going into the weekend I knew I had some plans lined up that were not in alignment with my get healthy plan. So I decided to take it day by day, hour by hour. That started out fantastic. Friday I worked out twice; An hour with my personal trainer doing strength training and an hour walk with a friend (Amy M). Then my Mom came into town and we moved boxes from her car into my place so that was comparable to another 20 minute strength & stair climbing workout. Because my Mom was in town just for the night I wanted to take her to dinner for driving all my things over to Chicago. My Pound 2 Coach told me I could have 2 glasses of wine if I didn't have the bread, appetizers or dessert. I asked my Mom if she minded going to Uncommon Ground (UG). UG is a local restaurant that we go to a lot and so sometimes I get tired of going there. But I choose it because I know they have great tasting and healthy salads. So I ate a very healthy meal and had my 2 glasses of wine. And when my mom enjoyed a glass of wine back at my house watching a Michigan State victory I enjoyed sparkling water in a wine glass. Note - this is my new favorite thing at night.

So Friday was a success. Now Saturday is another story. Saturday I was scheduled to go to a full day concert with my good friend Kristen Kelly. I knew I was going to drink more beer than I should on a healthy eating plan but I'd just consider it a partial cheat day. I thought if I could control the eating then I could forgive the drinking. Well this day got out of control. We were taking a bus to Alpine Valley (the venue about 90 minutes outside Chicago) and the bus broke down on the side of 90W. After an encounter with the Tow Truck, Flames in the engine and Police Officers we were pushed to a side road where we spent about 4 hours awaiting alternative transportation. We missed the majority of the concert (only really arriving for the headliner Pearl Jam) but worse I was quite drunk. To top it off I didn't eat much at all. That was not the intent of the day and I cannot really learn from this experience because how often do you get stuck on the side of the road in the rain for 4 hours with 13 other random strangers, cases of beer and complete Mayhem? What a day!

We got home about 3am on Sunday and my Sunday was a waste of a day. It was not a winner or a loser for my healthy plan because I was in bed all day hung-over. I did have unhealthy brunch plans that I had to cancel on because of my condition – but that really isn’t a good thing. URGH!

Monday was a free day (not healthy wise but with no plans) and I used it to get in a LOT of unpacking of the boxes my Mom brought me and a good run in. Oh and a trip to Whole Foods to buy some healthy groceries for the week. So Monday was a great day. I wasn't tempted to drink after my activities over the weekend either.

This morning the scale said I was down 2 pounds from my last weigh it. As I'm always a little skeptical about water weight I'll re-weight tomorrow for confirmation. And then we will go for Pound 3 Coach.

Moving On.

Well after 3 days I lost another 1.2 pounds. And I weighed myself 2 days in a row to ensure it wasn't a fluke. Great Results from Coach Amy (who I'm sure will enjoy carrying the title of #1 Coach). Thank you Amy!!!!

Here are some highlights:

• I received an amazing and detailed email the first day with great healthy receipts and tips.
• I was held accountable. If I made a plan to workout in the morning - I would get up and do it because I didn't want to tell Amy I didn't.
• I was held accountable. If I was going out to grab dinner & drinks with a friend I would say I'll have 2 drinks and 2 only. I had to report back to Amy so I only had 2.
• I got a lot of texts from Amy encouraging me to make smart choices and to be strong.
• I always knew I could count on Amy if I felt weak. Like last night when our power went out for a couple hours and I really wanted to open a bottle of wine.

As we go down this journey I know it is going to get harder. But I'm ready for the challenge. Amy picked a number which aligned with Natasha Campbell... Coach for Pound 2.

A great lesson learned - and some great coaching from Amy

On Monday I talked to a friend (Chris) who was in town from Philly & we decided to grab drinks on Tuesday after work. With that news I had to form a plan for Tuesday (Small Lesson - be prepared). My plan was to get up before work and do Yoga and then do a late afternoon workout prior to dinner. I added this extra workout session to compensate for the planned wine. IMPORTANT LESSON - To email / communicate this plan to my coach. Therefore I wouldn't skip the morning yoga because I knew she would ask me about it. And the next morning when I got up I was sore and tired from the day before but I did a 30 minute restorative yoga video and it was great. For my afternoon workout I went to the gym with a friend (another Amy) and we walked on the treadmill doing incline intervals for 50+ minutes.

At the office I asked Chris what he wanted for dinner and one suggestion was Twin Anchors. A GREAT rid joint in Chicago. But I said no - because wine was going to be my vice for the night. This inspiration came from a great email I got from Amy (my coach):

Are you and Chris eating, or just meeting for a drink? If eating, I
would remind yourself that the drinks are the splurge, so you should avoid
the bread basket, dessert tray, fried appetizers, etc. I think that is the
downfall of most people. When they eat out, they don’t pick the one thing
that’s important to them (drinks, in this case) and splurge on anything and
everything.

Chris & I decided on Sushi and we had a very healthy meal (mostly pieces with a raw appetizer, split 2 rolls, edamame, no rice). We split a bottle of wine. And I will tell you I was really tempted to have another drink. But again I told Amy that I would have 2 and I had to stick to that plan. And even better she texted during dinner to say she hoped I was having fun and encouraged me to make good decisions. Overall Tuesday was a HUGE success and I am so happy that I had Amy supporting me. On to the next day.

Coach Pound1: Amy W.

I want to post a little some about each person who is coaching me through a pound!

Pound 1: Amy
Amy & I met at Accenture and have known each other for a couple of years. We worked very closely on a deal in Vancouver for a couple of months. Amy traveled weekly from Dallas and I from Chicago. Some of our favorite moments on this project included Sushi dinners, a weekend trip up to Whistler, the Veggie Sandwich at the airport, getting assigned the Westin Workout rooms, and enjoying the other food & drinks available in Vancouver. But overall Amy & I just have fun hanging out (plus she is a great co-worker).

I knew Amy would good for this challenge because she herself is very healthy. Amy is often known to work out 2x a day which isn't always for me. But when we worked together she definitely always pushed me to get in a workout, even if it was short, after work and before dinner. She also is a prime example of moderation in enjoying the finer things but not too much.

I'm excited to have her share some of her secrets & encouragement to her healthy lifestyle. Thanks Amy!

Not Perfect

This morning the scale showed I lost a couple pounds this week - and I realize that this isn't going to be a perfect 1 pound 1 friend.... because of water weight it appears pounds may flucuate a bit. So I will have to be a bit flexible but I am still a believer on how this is going to work.

So right now I will draw my first friend and tomorrow I will weigh myself. They will coach me through 1 pound. I have listed friends 1-23 based on when they responded to the email (below). Using http://www.random.org/ here we go.... The lucky winner was #1. Amy Welborn


1 Amy Welborn
2 Kara Harmon
3 Holly Masters
4 Julie Chamberlain
5 Bridget Swan
6 Becky Utz
7 Kim Giannini
8 Leslie Wehrs
9 Andrea Gillum
10 Shannon Fitzgerald
11 Lauren McIver
12 Natasha Cambpell
13 Jayme
14 Laura Chubb
15 Emily Fadden
16 Erika Roberts
17 Jen Cole
18 Kristin Stobe
19 Cari Lyons
20 Erica Badke
21 Lee Ann Shoker
22 Emily Elloitt
23 Clare Schueren

Day 2 Email

Thank you everyone for the outpouring of support.  I will be drawing a name shortly!  This week I have successfully lost 0.6 pounds (and I was traveling to Kansas City).  So hopefully by Monday one of you will be my #1 draw to help me move forward.  I have heard from 19 of you and am excited to get started.  Today I have a facial – as a treat to my first pound.  A little premature but also an excuse to enjoy a Friday night without drinking.

The Email

Below is the email I sent out to start this journey - No Turning Back Now!

As some of my closest friends – and more appropriately those who I can be myself around and not be embarrassed or afraid to ask for help. I need help! As you may remember over a year ago I had my annual doctor’s visit and learned I had slightly high blood pressure & slightly high cholesterol. And I nipped that in the bud and got back into shape while participating in a run for the American Heart Association. In the last year I have let my weight creep back up through stupidity (travel, work, vacations, bars, etc.). So I plan to make my own dollar contribution to AHA in honor of my commitment to get healthy but I need help.

So here is my plan… that includes all of you!
Each of you represent one pound. That is all. When I start I will randomly pick one person who will coach me through one pound. After I lose that pound I will pick a new person (randomly) to coach me through the next pound. And so forth until I lose the weight (and regain the health).

I thought of some examples of coaching:
• Text messages, emails, phone calls to remind me to eat healthy during the day.
• Encouragement to only drink 1 glass of wine at night and not a bottle.
• Tell me a favorite exercise to do or class to take.
• Call me at 6am and make me get up and walk
• Send me a favorite healthy receipt.
• Join me – and lose a pound with me.
• Share a favorite exercise tip.
• Ask for my food journal each day.
• Ask me for my pedometer count to be greater than 10,000 a day.

The healthy way to lose weight is to lose 1 -2 pounds per week. So you would be committing only a little bit of time.

Think about it and let me know. I weighed myself Monday before departing for Kansas City and the first pound is for me. So I anticipate starting this crazy coaching adventure in a couple days. I will only include you when requested and if I draw your name and it is a BAD time then just say so and I’ll switch you out. I know you all have your own lives and I want to make this fun for both of us. I think it wil also be a great way to reconnect with some old friends for a couple days too!!!!

Love,
Kristin
Thanks Erica B for getting this idea spurred in my head today at Yoga!