CHALLENGE OVER!!!!

The Fitness Challenge is over!! Its been a crazy time at work!! This past weekend was the official end to the challenge. If you want to qualify for a prize, weigh and measure yourself with a witness and submit it or email me your food diary for the past week. The deadline for measurements is 6/13.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

GLOW IN THE PARK THIS FRIDAY!!!

I KNOW YOU MIGHT BE THINKING.....



BUT....

THIS FRIDAY IS THE GLOW IN THE PARK 5K. 

VERY FUN EVENT FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

WALK OR RUN ..... JUST GET MOVING!!!!

EMAIL ME IF YOU NEED THE PASSWORD!!! 

http://glowintheparkrun.com/cary2015/

Final Stretch

Hi Challengers,

We have 1 week left of the challenge. I hope that you have been more fit in the past 83 days than you would have been without this competititon. That is the only goal. Some people are disappointed with their weight loss but that was not the point! The point was to hopefully educate you about how what you are eating affects how you feel and look and then what choices you should be making when loading up the plate. Also, to give you some resources for fitness if you don't have time to go to the gym or if you can't afford a personal trainer. That was my goal in starting this competition, to educate. Because of this challenge, I ran/walked a 10K and bought a fitbit finally! I eat better now than I was a few months ago and I DEFINITELY drink more water.  What has this challenge done for you????

Please, please, please, Sign up for the glow walk/run. Details are in an earlier post. It will be a great way to end the challenge. It is June 5th and 8:45 pm.

25 Reasons You Aren't Losing Weight/ Reaching your Fitness Goals

I totally stole this from PopSugar.com. But I HAD to share because I know I'm guilty of some of these. Some of us are not getting the results we want even though we're doing EVERYTHING right. But are we?????

1. You Don't Drink Water
2. You Think Walking Your Dog Is Enough
3. You Overeat Healthy Foods
4. You Only Do Cardio
5. You Exercise With An Empty Stomach
6. Your Partner is Not Trying to Be Fit With You
7. You Leave Out Entire Food Groups
8. You Don't Sleep Enough
9. You Don't Get Enough Veggies
10. You Eat While Standing Up
11. You Wear Clothes That Are Too Big
12. You're On a Diet. Well, sort of....
13. You're Addicted to Condiments and Toppings
14. You Don't Eat Breakfast
15. You Don't Practice Portion Control
16. You Eat Without Thinking
17. You Don't Cut Your Food
18. You Still Drink Soda
19. You Don't Eat Enough
20. You Don't Leave Time For Fun- Too much stress
21. You Overindulge in Low-Fat Foods
22. You Don't Keep a Food Journal
23. You're Always Dining Out
24. You Never Indulge
25. You Eat the Wrong Post-Workout Snacks



www.popsugar.com/fitness/Reasons-You-Losing-Weight-24882317?slide=22

WOOHOOO.... Our group has lost 44.8 lbs so far!!!!!

And yes I love Jimmy Fallon :-)

I am soooo happy and excited for the group!! We have 8 more weeks to go!! It wouldn't be called a challenge if it was easy!! DON'T GIVE UP!!!. Awesome!!!

WEEKLY CHALLENGE #4

 Exchange 2 hours of indoor activity for 2 hours of outdoor activity.

Ok guys, this is a no brainer. However it might be the hardest thing to do.
We all say that we don't have time to exercise, don't have time to get to the gym.

But sit down and honestly look at your day. How many hours a day do you spend watching TV, texting, eating out, even snoozing.
For those with busy family lives:You might call it quality time but going out to Chili's or Olive Garden with the family or watching a movie while eating Papa Johns (THINGS I AM GUILTY OF), can easily be replaced with a long walk around the neighborhood after a home cooked meal or a family game of soccer in the yard.

For those of us still single :-): Make your exercise social. Instead of going out for cocktails and a movie with girlfriends, go for a hike at a local park. Or take a pole dancing class together!!! Make it fun, but whatever you do, make it physical.

Involving your family and friends in your physical fitness will make it more fun and make it less of a chore. It becomes a lifestyle.


So challengers... What's going to be your exchange this week??

When You Stop Drinking Soda???

FOUND THIS NEWS ARTICLE... FOR ALL MY DIE HARD SODA DRINKERS

Soda is an addiction — similar to tobacco, alcohol, or drugs, it feels good when you consume it, but it can wreak havoc on your body long-term. As more and more research investigates the ill effects of soda on the human body (and the environment), it may be time for you to give it up, or at least reduce the amount you intake on a daily or weekly basis.
The evidence speaks for itself: Your health will drastically improve once you begin replacing your daily Coke or Mountain Dew with water. Pretty much every organ will benefit from quitting soda, as explained below.

Heart

First and foremost, you’ll be taking better care of your heart the moment you put down the soda. A 2012 Harvard University study found that sugary drinks increased a person’s risk of chronic heart disease (CHD). Participants who drank the most soda were 20 percent more likely to have a heart attack, the researchers discovered. Another study, published in 2011, found that sugary beverages raises a person’s blood pressure, and it increases the more you drink. Even cutting back by one soda per day can decrease your blood pressure and improve your heart health.

Brain

Many people reach for a Diet Coke or a soft drink in the drowsy after-lunch hours at work, hoping to get a caffeine and sugar boost. It may help you focus temporarily, but in the long-term drinking a lot of soda can have a negative effect on your brain function and thinking processes. One study found that long-term consumption of sugar could lead to impaired learning, memory, and behavioral plasticity.
“We have investigated a potential mechanism by which a diet, similar in composition to the typical diet of most industrialized western societies rich in saturated fat and refined sugar (HFS), can influence brain structure and function via regulation of neurotrophins,” the authors of the study write. They found that animals placed on this high-sugar diet had reduced amounts of a chemical called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which in turn impacted their ability to learn and remember things.
Various other studies have also found a link between drinking a lot of soda and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease or other types of dementia; the link showed an increased amount of plaque deposits in mice that were given sugary sodas — signals of Alzheimer’s or other disorders.

Teeth

Soda destroys your teeth, so stepping away from this vice will lead you toward better oral health and a whiter smile. In some extreme cases, drinking a lot of soda can leave your mouth as corroded as that of a meth abuser, according to a 2013 study. In the study, researchers found that a woman who drank 2 liters of diet soda every day for three to five years had the same level of severe tooth erosion as that of a methamphetamine addict, as well as a crack cocaine addict. The citric acid in soda erodes tooth enamel, making it softer and more vulnerable to cavities and yellowing. Stepping away from soda and replacing it with water will protect and clean your teeth.

Bladder

Soda is a diuretic, essentially meaning that it will make you need to pee urgently and frequently. It has also been known to irritate your bladder and exacerbate bladder infections or urinary tract infections. Switching it out with drinking clear fluids, like water, unsweetened juices, or seltzer water, could instead help keep your body and bladder clean.

Bones

Abstaining from soda will also improve your bone health and decrease your risk of osteoporosis. In addition, the less soda you drink, the more you may turn to milk or other calcium-fortified drinks that will benefit your bones way more than soda ever would.

Kidney

Your kidney is also going to be in better shape once you kick the dirty sugar habit. Studies have shown that drinking a lot of soda can increase your risk of kidney disease and ultimately kidney failure. Diet sodas aren’t exempt from this damage, either: researchers from the Nurses’ Health Study found that women who drank a lot of diet soda every day had decreased liver function compared to women who didn’t drink soda. So stay away from it and your kidneys will thank you.

Reproductive Organs

In some cases, soda cans may contain bisphenol-A or BPA, which has been linked to an increased risk of cancer as well as impairment of endocrine function. Some studies have also shown that BPA is linked to premature puberty or infertility, essentially messing up a person’s reproductive organs.
According to the Breast Cancer Fund, BPA is one of the most common chemicals out there — exposed to us via food and drink containers to dental fillings. It’s a synthetic estrogen that impairs the hormonal system, increasing a person’s risk for breast cancer, prostate cancer, metabolic disorders, and even type 2 diabetes. Choose to lower your exposure to this chemical by not touching those soda cans and your risks will be lower.

Weight Loss

One of the easiest ways to lose weight is to cut soda from your diet. If you’re a rabid drinker (drinking it several times a day without fail, day and night), cutting down to one can a day could be a good start, at least until you’re eventually comfortable with cutting it out to once a week or leaving it behind completely.
According to Malia Frey, a weight loss expert writing on About Health, dropping a daily large Coca-Cola from McDonald’s completely (if you drink about one per day) would result in reducing your annual calorie intake by over 200,000 calories — or about 60 pounds — in one year. Replace that soda with water and overcome obesity.

Fight Diabetes, Other Chronic Disorders

As the obesity epidemic continues to surge in the U.S., Americans will continue to stubbornly order McDonald’s and their giant Coca-Colas, then proceed to sit on their couch for hours and watch TV — or sit in their office for hours. All of these factors lead to obesity, an increased risk of diabetes, and a higher chance of developing other chronic disorders like cancer or heart disease. Long-term consumption of large, sugary, fatty sodas will ultimately contribute to, and directly cause, diabetes. Lose the soda and lose the pounds.

Live Longer

Here’s one easy way to live longer: Drop the soda. A recent study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that people who drank a lot of soda had shorter telomeres in immune cells, meaning their risk of dying sooner was higher. Telomeres are protective DNA units that are situated at the ends of chromosomes, and the shorter they get, the more a person ages and is at risk for disease and death. So cutting out that good-for-nothing sugary drink from your life will seemingly only offer you good things, by lengthening your telomeres as well as your life span, and improve your overall health.

Source:http://www.medicaldaily.com/bye-bye-sugary-drinks-what-happens-your-body-when-you-stop-drinking-soda-326034