The 2011 #NoFatChristmas Challenge!
Everyone has been there. I have. You have. They have. Yeah. Like I said. EVERYBODY. Let me set the stage...
It's Christmas morning. You open presents. You eat. You spend time with your family. All is well. You tuck the kids/dogs/cats/other species of critters into their bed(s), and sit down with your laptop to relax. THEN IT HAPPENS...
You open up the photos you took throughout the holiday on your shiny new digitial camera - but something is amiss! Surely there is something wrong with the lens! There must be! In every photo, you look 20 pounds heavier than you thought you were! WTF?!??!
Then you realize what happened. The weather started getting colder, the desserts more delicious, and somewhere between the turkey on Thanksgiving and the cookies on Christmas morning, you fell of the fitness wagon! AGAIN! Damn it!
I know this because it has happened to me. Not once, not twice, hell, not even thrice - but for YEARS I shuddered each and every time I looked at a Christmas photo. NEVER AGAIN.
So here is the plan. We are going to join forces this season and help each other through what is easily the toughest time of year to either get into or stay into shape.
The Rules
Starting December 1st, you must:
- Take an initial weight and waist measurement
- Keep track of all calories consumed and/or burnt each and every day
- Workout for at least 7 hours a week
- Check in with the challenge by posting these activities to the #NoFatChristmas hashtag
- Help all others who rock the #NoFatChristmas tag to stay on task - we are a team!
I know what you are thinking! What do I win if I lose the most pounds or inches! Drum roll please..... NOTHING! There are no winners and losers here. And actually - you get something MUCH BETTER than nothing. You get to wake up Christmas morning knowing that you gave yourself the BEST gift you could have - a healthier you! Those who complete the challenge will also be immortalized on this website with a sweet digital plaque designed by your's truly! :)
So who is with me? Comment on this post to officially throw your hat in the ring. Do it for yourself. Do it for your family. Do it so we can all have a #NoFatChristmas together! :)
Couples Workout… DO IT!
I have said it before, and I will say it again. I LOVE WORKING OUT WITH MY WIFE!
We hit the gym today and it felt great! Did some circuit training and then some cardio. Farewell 400 calories! 
I feel like I push myself harder. I feel like I sweat more. I even feel better post-workout. I don't know if its because it feels good to know we are both doing what we can to stay as healthy as possible, or what - and I don't care. If you haven't tried working out with your significant other - DO IT!
Unexpected Motivation
Sometimes motivation can come from where you least expect it.
Take yesterday for instance. I happened to pop onto Twitter and see that someone had posted that they were going to challenge themselves by doing 100 crunches each day for the next 7 days. I don't know what possessed me, but I quickly replied "I'm in!" and began asking others if they were interested. If you have been reading my posts lately, you know that I have been dragging ass lately - and perhaps this was just what the doctor ordered.
I must take a second and apologize at this point, because I didn't mean to turn someone's personal challenge into a group event. However, I do believe their is strength in numbers. Thanks for being a good sport and letting us tag along!
Now it's day 2, and the one has become six. One person inspired SIX people to get up off their asses and work just a little harder to reach their personal goals, whatever those may be. That is amazing. It's the power of social media. It's the power of our new found era of digital friendships that can be as real as the ones we had with out childhood friends - mostly because we can easily find others that share our same goals, our same dreams.
I may only have 270 or so followers, but go ahead, ask me about any one of them. I can probably tell you their goals, their ambitions, their faults, and perhaps even what their favorite healthy snack is. I know because I reach out and try to help when I can. I care. I care because no one cared when I was struggling. I care because few others will. I care because I feel everyone should.
We are all in this together. There is a strength we can all hold onto when we work together and help each other. Let's keep pushing everyone. Do it for yourself. Do it for each other.
So Far, So Good…
Well it's been almost a week since I started trying to get back on track, and so far, so good.
I haven't worked my way back to my workout routine yet, however, I did manage to run a 30 min 5k on both Saturday and Sunday, and my calories and food intake are finally starting to shape up...
It can be hard due to client lunches and work events to eat healthy, but I have managed. For example, today I was invited by a client to grab some Mexican food. Instead of ordering a greasy fried WHATEVER, I got a chicken taco salad, no sour cream - and I didn't eat the shell. I even skipped the chips they brought to the table. Now THAT'S a challenge!
It's getting easier to stay on track again, so I think I can say that I worked through my little "fall off the wagon" and am now ready to get back into routine.
I know I say this frequently, but THANK YOU to all who helped motivate me and get through all this. I was feeling pretty down, and my Fitness Friends helped to pick me back up again.
Thanks for being there for ME. Now it's time I get back out there and start motivating others again!
Let’s Try This Again
Time. Time is not our friend. Time dictates how long we work every day. Time dictates how long we play every day. More importantly for me lately, time dictates how much time I have to work out.
Yes it's an excuse, but it's a good one. And I'm going to keep telling myself that until I get up off my ass tonight and do something about it.
To help with my lack of time, I decided to entirely dictate this post to Siri and see how that goes.
Perhaps if I can just get my thoughts out without having to type them, I'll be a little further ahead.
I'll be posting more tonight, as I have a Christmas challenge for everyone that I'm sure you'll all just love!
As always, thanks for the support!
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