Today was the 8th weigh-in for my "losers". We have 4 weeks to go and I just cannot express my complete admiration for the people in the group that are working so incredibly hard! I couldn't even tell you what number challenge this is for me. I've been running the challenges since 2009. I've had people hit unbelievable milestones (40lbs, 60lbs, 100lbs and even 150lbs LOST) It has been an absolute joy participating in their journeys! Today's weigh in was certainly not a disappointment. I actually got teary-eyed when a woman texted me that she hit her 40 lbs lost this morning. I spent 20 minutes on the phone with another woman discussing her nutrition and helping her break a serious plateau. Weight loss is not easy; if it were well...then no one would need to lose weight. I love that the challenges offer a safe place for people to check-in, be accountable and push themselves to their max. Of course, not everyone is in it to win it, some find that the challenges actually don't motivate them at all, but for some...it's exactly what the doctor ordered!
Speaking of doctors, I am thrilled to say that many of my challengers have reported being taken off certain medications (specifically for high blood pressure, cholesterol, hyper-tension, etc) Others have found themselves flirting with diabetes, MANY have seen themselves go from the obese range, to overweight, to finally at normal- that's definitely something to celebrate!
The friendships that have been made through the challenges are incredible too! People have connected that would have never met before and have become the best of friends; I love that! Birds of a feather... and what better flock than positive, motivated, hard-working people who just want to get healthy and be fit!? Win-win if you ask me.
I know I'm constantly saying, "I don't know if I'll do another one after this", the truth is, its a lot of work. However, it really keeps me going too. Even when I have my slumps, it's damn near impossible to stay down when you're trying to encourage, motivate and inspire others to get up and go. I'm not a hypocrite :o)
I'm hoping to use the blog more to share exercises, nutritional tips and daily encouragements! I know my "losers" call me out when I don't keep up the chatter on our private Facebook page. LOL! So here's to 4 more weeks of hard-core competition, ok, maybe not hard-core...friendly feuding. I always look forward to the end because sometimes someone really sneaks in there and steals the challenge and we're blown away. In all reality though, even if someone doesn't win the cash pot, but they got close, chances are they are 20-30lbs lighter than they were 12 weeks ago and that in itself is definitely a victory!
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