Weight-Loss Contest idea - need your feedback...

Weight-Loss
missblonde4878

missblonde4878

New member
So, I don't know if any of you out there are in the same boat as I am - but I thought I'd put it out there and find out just that!

I started my weight loss journey in November 2007 - and was very successful with it - by March 2008, I had lost 23 lbs. Very exciting for me. I made healthy choices when I ate, counted calories, exercised 5-6 days/week and drank all my water. It was pretty easy to stick to because I was unemployed - and didn't have anything else to do...lol.

So, I started a new job on March 10th, and since then, my weight loss efforts have been non-existent. I haven't exercised, haven't watched what I ate, definitely haven't been drinking my water. I know that this is my own fault - and I am the only one who can kick my ass back in gear. Every day I said I'm gonna get back on track, but the end of the day comes, and I don't. BUT - I think I need some help. Some type of accountability partner.

I've tried getting my boyfriend to hop on the bandwagon - but that's pretty much a no go. So, anyways...

I've thought of starting a contest - one that would help anyone else who has "gotten off track" and wants a "partner" to be held accountable by.

I'm just throwing this out there - I'm not going to put all of the details out there yet because I just want to get an idea if its even worth doing.

So, let me know! :waving:
 
I love contests, teams are fun. I do not have any idea's right now, but I will for sure participate in a contest. Meanwhile I will try and come up with some ideas to help! :D
 
Hey Missblonde!

I can completely relate to how hard it is trying to lose weight on top working but your contest sounds like a really good idea, I'd definitely want to join! What did you have in mind?

x take care x
 
MEEE TO!!! I wanna JOIN!!! And I get YA, at first MY boyfriend either WOULD not JUMP on the wagon, and when HE saw all the LBS flying off of me, HE not ONLY jumped ON, but HE TOOK over DRIVING!!!! And I'm doing GREAT with the FRIENDLY competition!!! THE MORE the MERRIER!!!:seeya:
 
Count me in. I have failed in so many weight loss attempts in the past twentysomething years that even when things are going well - I feel just a lapse in concentration away from falling off track.
 
Awesome - I was hoping you would join. Have you seen any posts from Wulsk? I haven't seen any since Kimberly's last contest. :(
 
I am really worried about Yu and do hope that she turns up soon. It doesnt matter if she has put on a bit of weight - it is not like anyone here would judge - we only want to support each other.

The last post that she made on the forum was in the Exercise Bunnies challenge thread on 18th April. Earlier that same night she had posted in the Red ladies challenge thread.

The day before she spoke in that same thread of having bloated 6.2 pounds during that week - the next day she spoke of having lost 2 of those 6.2 pounds and she edited her scoresheet to show the 4.2 pound gain.

This is not the only example on the forum of highly successful people with their weightloss having a struggle with maintenance. The Krinse (V) is struggling too!

thekrinse said:
Start weight March 7th: 137.3
March 14th: 133.6 (-3.7 lbs)
March 21st: 131.5 (-2.1 lbs)
March 28th: 129.2 (-2.3 lbs)
April 4th: 129.2 (same)
April 11: 133.9 (+4.7 TOM and not being home to stay w/ my program)
April 18th: 128.6 (-5.3 lbs.)
April 25th: 133.1 (+4.5 Boy has it been an up and down month, ughhhhhh)
May 2nd: 130.2 (-2.9 lbs.)
May 9th: 137.9 (+7.7 lbs. BIG OUCH lol, why do I do this to myself???? ughhhhh)
May 16th: 141.9 (+4 lbs. That M word still eludes me...Maintenance!!!)
May 23rd:
May 30th:
June 6th:
June 13th:
June 20th:
Click to expand...

I could name plenty of others that are currently really struggling that have lost a lot but are not at goal yet!

It is enough to scare the life out of me about the whole concept of maintenance. You would think after losing 150 pounds I would be thinking that it is plain sailing from here - but I have come to believe that the hardest part lies ahead.
 
I agree with you. I can't say that I know the exact feeling that you're having because I have never in fact gotten to my goal. But I've often thought of what it would be like to maintain it once I got there. Any time that I have lost a significant amount of weight in the past, it is very easy for me to just go back to my old ways and not watch. I mean, you spend some much time working so hard to lose it - and then all of a sudden, you're supposed to transition to "maintaining" - I wish it was easy! lol

I am also worried about Yu. I know that when I initially started this new job, I hung on the forum for the remainder of the last contest, and then after that was over...I just faded away. Let life get the best of me.

Maybe she's just taking a break. I hope so.
 
Omega said:
It is enough to scare the life out of me about the whole concept of maintenance.
Click to expand...

If it helps any, I think you'll have a relatively easy transition to maintenance. You're so consistent in your diet and exercise that the physical part will be fine, and I don't think the mental aspect will throw you too much, either.

Oh, and congrats on the latest milestone. I notice this morning that you're a hair away from a normal BMI, too!
 
If Yu popped into her diary and said "I'm really busy - finding maintenance hard but not gaining too much" we would miss her but not worry as much about her. The fact is that I have lost some weight before (maybe as much as 30 to 40 pounds) then stopped for one reason or another and put it all back on and often more besides. Generally I ended up heavier than I started. Things like that are soul destroying and being a yo-yo is not good for our health.

I can't say that I know the exact feeling that you're having because I have never in fact gotten to my goal.
Click to expand...
The fact is that I have not got to goal yet - but I have got so close that I could make it my goal. I will soon be in the realm of checking every few pounds whether I am happy where I am. It is confusing as I will need breast reduction surgery and possibly a tummy tuck to appear normal so I cannot go by my weight before I suddenly gained. I will have to go by things like whether I can get certain skirts that I have kept since I was young and my wedding ring on.

I have been worrying about maintenance for quite a while. I joined Weight Watchers last week so that they can sanity check my final bit of weight loss and support me through maintenance.


If it helps any, I think you'll have a relatively easy transition to maintenance. You're so consistent in your diet and exercise that the physical part will be fine, and I don't think the mental aspect will throw you too much, either.

Oh, and congrats on the latest milestone. I notice this morning that you're a hair away from a normal BMI, too!
Click to expand...

Thanks Phoebe - I am hitting some brilliant milestones at the minute. I do hope that you are right about maintenance for me. You have done really well since you got to that phase of your project.
 
Omega said:
You have done really well since you got to that phase of your project.
Click to expand...

*shrug* It's only been a month or two, and I've got *mumbledy* more years ahead of me. That's the mental aspect that throws me the most.

I was thinking this morning, and I realized that I'm not currently really doing anything different - I'm doing exactly the same things I did to successfully lose, but with a much higher calorie target. And I know that as long as I count calories and eat my protein and exercise, I'm not going to regain. So I'm looking forward to another awkward transition should I ever decide to give up any of those things.

One of the things that I think both of us have going for us, as I said, is consistency. We both eat pretty much the same foods, regardless of whether it's a weekday / weekend, don't go overboard on vacation / holidays, etc. There's a National Weight Control Registry study that says that makes us 1.5 times more likely to successfully maintain for a year than people who are stricter on weekdays and eat more on weekends.
 
Phoebe - you have done so well. Much better than many others.

The problem with having consistency as your strength is that it all goes up in the air when things have to change. Maintenance is going to be a major change for me.

I really think that this forum badly needs a whole section on maintenance. Challenges should sometimes be built with the concept that some people on the forum are looking to maintain. It should not be too hard for any points structure to allow that while the majority are looking to lose and giving points for a weightloss - if you announce yourself as a maintainance person up front and have your ticker sitting within 3 pounds of goal (to allow that you might be on a weight peak) - you can get your points for staying within 3 pounds of that goal in either direction. I am not at the stage where I need that yet - but know that I am not too far away from that situation.

I am getting quite bony and am not going to judge being at goal from weight really - but based on a number of factors based on how things fit. I want to be able to finally wear my wedding ring. I put on all my weight suddenly just about the time that we married and I only was able to wear my wedding ring for a few months. I never had it sized up because it is all pretty (patterned and inscribed) and to have it sized would ruin it. After 22 years it would be nice to finally be able to wear it.

The really funny thing is that I will probably have to count calories a lot more often when trying to maintain weight than I have done in losing it. I hate counting calories and end up sticking to a repetitive diet in order to remove that need.

It is one thing to have a repetitive diet for say 1.5 years. It is another thing to have a repetitive diet for the rest of your life. There are definitely a whole heap of treats that I have denied myself that I will want to reinstate at goal for over the long term (e.g. chocolate at Easter, Christmas, roast potatoes on a Sunday, cake on birthdays etc.) Nothing out of hand - but they are bound to add a greater variation to my daily calorie level.

For the most part - unlike most people, I am not desperately wanting to add more calories to my daily allowance. I would however like to reduce my stepcount a bit. Although I enjoy walking as a rule - it is fairly time consuming. It would also be nice to think that I could give it a miss if the weather was poor or if I wanted to spend time with Rod. At the minute I view it as a daily task that I must do. I would like to work towards the notion of having a weekly miles target - and the feeling that I was ok if I had walked say 30 miles that week. I could then narrow that target as I understood better how my body worked.

The National Weight Control Registry study sounds interesting. How did you find out about it?
 
Omega said:
if you announce yourself as a maintainance person up front and have your ticker sitting within 3 pounds of goal (to allow that you might be on a weight peak) - you can get your points for staying within 3 pounds of that goal in either direction.
Click to expand...

I would definitely be in favor of that. It seems like a lot of people use the challenges to stay on track, and staying on track is as important for maintenance as for losing.

Omega said:
The really funny thing is that I will probably have to count calories a lot more often when trying to maintain weight than I have done in losing it.
Click to expand...

Long-term, I bet you won't. In the short term, I think you will, because it does take a while to figure out what your maintenance calorie range is, and to get used to how much food it feels like. But if you've got some sort of feedback mechanism you pay attention to (either weighing regularly or going by how clothes fit or even how your wedding ring fits) to keep yourself from slowly drifting back up, and you stick to eating habits that work for you (for me, that means eating enough protein, drinking enough water, and avoiding mindlessly snarfing chocolate), I don't think you'll need to count calories.

Omega said:
There are definitely a whole heap of treats that I have denied myself that I will want to reinstate at goal for over the long term (e.g. chocolate at Easter, Christmas, roast potatoes on a Sunday, cake on birthdays etc.) Nothing out of hand - but they are bound to add a greater variation to my daily calorie level.
Click to expand...

Maybe not. If I'm paying attention (as opposed to mindlessly snarfing chocolate), eating a high-calorie treat early in the day means I'm less hungry later in the day. Doing an unusual amount of exercise early in the day means I'm hungrier later in the day. It's sort of self-balancing.

Omega said:
I would like to work towards the notion of having a weekly miles target - and the feeling that I was ok if I had walked say 30 miles that week. I could then narrow that target as I understood better how my body worked.
Click to expand...

I think you'll find that that plan will work for you. :)

Omega said:
The National Weight Control Registry study sounds interesting. How did you find out about it?
Click to expand...



My motivation for maintaining for the next year is to be eligible to join. :)
 
I have been dropping all sorts of subtle hints to Kimberly for a while now that there are quite a few people who are now at the maintenance stage that have a track record of enjoying the challenges. Kimberly has said that the next challenge she organises will accomodate people in maintenance mode.

I will certainly still be on the forum and needing to stay on track in maintenance. When I get there - if there are not any challenges that cater for that side of things I will propose them myself and see if there are any takers.

You are so right - if I once get into my wedding ring I can make sure it keeps on fitting. If it is getting too tight - that will be the time to take serious action.

In the past fortnight I have joined Weight Watchers - purely in order to gain any advantage in maintenance that their membership offers. Once you go into maintenance mode you get a lifelong free membership as long as you get weighed 5 times a year and are within 5 pounds either way of the goal weight. You also apparently get a book on maintenance. I fully expect my membership fees to be a bargain over the long term. If I keep on attending I can not ignore any gains. If I do gain and need to pay - it will hopefully be at a managable level. I already wear a WW pedometer which tells me how many points I earn with my walking. I now have their books on points so I can try and translate an indulgence into a walking requirement without having to go back to first principles.

That is fascinating about the weight control registry. Interestingly - they take address details with "country (if other than USA)". I would be interested in joining in myself if I get that far. Research like that can only benefit the people who follow. Obesity is a major global problem.
 
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