Ready, Set, GO!

Okay Ladies, here we go. I am really excited to be starting this new challenge. I have participated in another very similar (almost identical) blog over the past couple of months and have really enjoyed the spirit of competition, and the support that the blog group provided. I hope you all enjoy participating as much as I have.

So, here is something I think make your life a little easier. One of the ways to earn points is by staying within your calorie range. I had no idea what my calorie range should be but my sister, Ann, told me about this website - www.thedailyplate.com where you can put in your height, weight, and age, and then you tell it if you want to lose, maintain, or gain (as if...but if you do...good for you - you're welcome here) weight. At the daily plate, you can also do your food journal. You just type in the food you ate, and it tells you how many calories it has. It also tracks how much sodium, fat grams, sugar, etc. and shows you on a little graph how you're doing each day. There's also a way to track how much water you've been drinking. I LOVE being able to see how I'm doing. Using this site acts as my food journal.

Over the past year, my husband has lost about 45 lbs. There are just a couple of things he has done, that I can share and hopefully that will help you.
1. Eat breakfast - and eat it right when you wake up.
2. Eat a fruit or vegetable with every meal. It should be about the size of your fist. He always takes a small portion of the main dish on his plate and then a huge portion of veggies/fruit. If he is still hungry when his plate is empty, he will have more veggies/fruit. He rarely has 2nds of the main dish.
3. Keep a food journal. He didn't count calories, but he has a little tiny composition book where he writes down EVERYTHING he eats. He keeps it in his pocket all the time. I'm not joking, either - if he eats 1 m&m, it goes in the book.
4. Exercise...obvious. Needs no explanation.

I'm hoping that all of us will use this blog as a place to post tips, recipes, successes and even failures. It's the best way to support each other as we go. I am certainly not an expert on anything (but what NOT to do), but I have tried doing this and it has worked for me. It's a slow process and it's hard work. I always joke with my husband that it's going to take me 42 years to lose all the weight I have to lose...if it does, so be it! I'm just committing to getting on the right track and staying on it.

Good luck to everyone this week!