The Family That Cooks Together...Wins!

Today was the Healthy Challenge Cook off Event at L'Academie de Cuisine and boy was it fun!
We were on the road traveling the Beltway at 7:30AM headed to cook our green bums off, and that we did! This was the last major challenge and we are neck and neck with the other teams heading into the final two weeks of the challenge. So as you can imagine, we needed and wanted this win. Given the fact that we had never actually cooked the three courses we selected (except for my entire afternoon of flan experiments to make the dessert more healthy while not compromising the flavor), we would have to really pull on our team spirit and the expert coaching from our L'Academie de Cuisine Chef, the marvelous Sandy! In the end it was another wonderful day in the life of the Green Team, who not only gets points added to our team finale totals, but won an outfit for the finale fashion show from Macy's AND French Cooking Classes from a distinguished top L'Academie de Cuisine Chef! HOW COOL IS THAT! So before I sign off to go for a run, I wanted to share the message I sent to my team mates with my thoughts for the day, and the days to ahead!


Thought for today:
Remember: The mightiest oak was once a little nut that held its ground.
~Excerpt taken from Gods Little Instruction Book Vol I,II,III

Alright Green! Way to Go!
Today we proved that pulling together and supporting each other, with the end in mind, was what really made the difference. The teamwork we displayed was beyond phenomenal. It was awesome the way we were able to successfully communicate with each other and prepare and send out a healthy meal fit for a King (or top chef)! When you looked around our station, things were happening like clockwork. We made it look like we had done it before and it was just another walk in the park.

The laughter, the fun, and even the few tense moments showed that every joint supported each other and supplied the need!

I know I say it all the time, but I am so proud to be part of this group! I've learned so much about myself and who I can be, each time we are put to the test.

Thank you for letting our love for each other spill over onto the other teams and the family and friends that came out to cheer us on. You made my friend Robin and Chancey (the student from my school who wants to be the head Chef for the President when he grows up) feel super special!

We are in the home stretch. Let's stay focused on our goal all the way to the finish line. Don't be afraid of the pressure. Remember that pressure is what turns a lump of coal into a diamond! We can do this, we are doing this, we WILL do this!

See you guys on Monday!
Smooches,
C

Fast Forward to the Finish

The ticker is ticking away, with only 24 days left until the grand finale we have kicked things into high gear. At this point for the next three weeks we will be spending more time together as a team than as individuals. I bet our families will be wondering when they are going to be able to get some of our time - I guess that's the price to pay for being famous (ha ha). Just as the team was notified that we are scheduled to attend our private session with the Chef at L'Academie de Cuisine on Saturday to prepare for our upcoming cooking challenge next weekend, the phone rings again to say that our session at the Spa has been set up for the day after. Whew! This Challenge is awesome, but I'm beginning to think that we are going to need to buckle our seat belts because we are kicking it into high gear. With only 24 days left, we have to fit in our M-W-F sessions at Fitness 4 Less, our Tuesday weigh ins with Dimensions, a final health screening and blood work, the cookoff challenge, the makeover sessions and possibly a session with the dentists? All that AND while trying to fit in our day to day regular lives. Lya is in the process packing up her house and moving in addition to just starting a new job, Oteal just started a new PT work assignment joined a professional speakers group and has to captain our ship, I have my daughter's graduation on Sunday, year end activities for both of my school's, and preparing for my last day of employment after 8 yrs on June 25th, not to mention trying to find another job so that the rent can be paid in July! Whew again!! And I didn't even factor planning a graduation and 18th birthday celebration for Harmony as well. Yikes! Calgon take me away!! I haven't even asked Norm or Charlene what they have going on, but Norm is always on the move with Tee Times and the ushering the Nationals home games, and Charlene's work schedule is crazy! Most days she has to get up at 4AM! And even with all of that, we are so excited about all that we have accomplished and all that still remains for the big "Finale" day! Stay tuned...the BEST IS YET TO COME! Trust me! You all are going to be amazed at what can be accomplished with the right mindset, determination, and awesome sponsors! Who knows, you could be next!

Putting our best foot forward!

Yesterday was Memorial Day, a day to honor and recognize those who have fought and defended our country with their lives. For the members of the Green team, it was a day to make lasting memories and to see how all our hard work is paying off. Yesterday was the Jeremy's Run 5K RACE DAY! We arrived well prepared thanks to our wonderful sponsors (Drink More Water, Potomac River Running, Medifast, and Fitness 4 Less) and ready to rock and roll. Our goal as a team was to have everyone finish the event. I am proud to report that not only did we all finish the event, we all crossed the finish line in under and hour! 41:05, 41:46, 41:49, 54:44, 55:01
How awesome is that for first timers! Having all set our personal bests for the day, it is a joy to look back and know that we are well on our way to a lifetime of wonderful healthy and happy memories! GO GREEN!!

All for One and One for All!

It's hard to believe that we are entering our seventh week in the challenge. At his point we have discovered that no matter what, we will not let anyone give up. We have all come so far, in such a short amount of time. At this point though, I am beginning to see the clouds accumulate and our fire burn a little less brightly. Now this is not because we do not want this, we certainly do. I think at this point our bodies are fighting us every way it can! For some of us, the food is getting to the point of sickness and boredom. For others, energy and motivation are the culprits. Whatever the case, now is not the time to give up.  I really started to see this the other day when one of our team members said she just wasn't "into it." Lately she has been tired and lacked motivation. After her little pity party, I proceeded to turn the speed of her treadmill up! Like I said so many times before, FAILURE IS NOT AN OPTION!

To me this is a great place to be. It is the place that you have to dig really deep and determine the true motivation of your heart. It's the place where the rubber meets the road and only the strong survive. This is my place! The place that I am oh so familiar with. I am a master at being put in difficult situations and circumstances that would have otherwise caused me to throw in the towel, only to come out better than when I went in! I finally see that in myself now!

So for me, this is exciting. The moment that I get to see if I can be what I hope to be for the rest of my life. I know I have 30 days to wait for the results of my Personal Fitness Training Certification Test, but this is so much more than a piece of paper. This is real life, and not just any life, this is the lives of the one's I've become so close too. I can't let them give up, I can't let them fail. So I am bringing out the big guns! It's time to move beyond being in a "challenge" and trying to win. This is the point we all have to have a heart to heart and come up with our own personal strategies. It's one thing to want to lose weight, but in reality the major goal for anyone should be to change their lifestyle for good, because if you can't accomplish that now this will just be another 12 weeks and a few pounds away from getting right back on the out of control roller coaster you call your life. The reason most of us do the yo yo thing is we go all out for whatever reason and never get to the root of the problem and the behaviors that are causing them. For me, I know I am a stress eater. I know that when I am depressed, I will eat and go right to bed (or sometimes not even get out of bed at all). When I'm not sure how I am going to pay the rent or tuition or keep the lights on, what do I do? Yup, shut down from the inside and then not even realize the things I think are comforting me, are only making matters worse. You get the picture, right. Now for me over the years this has caused me to go up and down with my weight. Its my version of an eating disorder. I guess it would similar to binge eating, or having a drinking problem or something like that. Since I know my triggers, I have to learn to have a contingency plan in place for the moments when I am faced with the things that cause me to react. And this plan is one that will be with me for the rest of my life. Not just for the times when I am trying to loose weight or get a new job or whatever else is going on.

The same thing holds true for my friends! We as a team need to discuss life beyond the Challenge. What are their life goals and what are the behaviors from the past that can effect their success in the Challenge and beyond?  What will happen when Marie, and Medifast, and Drink More Water are long gone? Does life stop when the Challenge stops? So that means we still have work to do...I still have work to do, with and for them! Think about it, I know you are reading this because we asked you to be a follower and support us. But in reality, what are your struggles? What sends you over the edge? Is your body as healthy and as strong as you want it to be? Do you sit and wonder how you go to this place? Did you say, "wow, if I had the been part of that Challenge THEN..." What is your state of mind right now? What stresses do you have that are effecting your every move? Have you made excuse after excuse to let your dreams and aspirations pass you by? What about your job, your family, your friendships, your marriage? Are you happy? Are they healthy relationships or are they toxic? We all have our "things" or "demons" that haunt us. The question is what are you going to do about them? Let me take that back, its not what are you doing to do, it's when are you planning on getting unstuck? When are you going to get some guts and let nothing or no one stand in the way of accomplishing your next goal?

I'm there, I've found my "happy place" and its so liberating! I've been where you are, and I stayed there so long I began to think that was who I was. Then earlier this year I said enough is enough, I can't take this anymore! Our church was doing the beginning of the year 21 day fast. That is my time to regroup and see what the year ahead will hold in store for me. This year was different though. It wasn't about giving up the food as much as it was about giving up the things that would prevent me from being free! I took that time to shut myself off from the world and everyone that consumed my time. I was completely quiet! Learning to quiet my spirit and my soul was one of the best things I could have ever done. In my quiet time, I had a chance to listen to my heart and make the hard decisions and choices. I did this for the entire 21 days! When it was all over I learned I had to stop allowing others to determine my happiness and success. My financial situation didn't change, my job situation was still a mess, and my health was still deteriorating, yet I had this sense of peace and assurance that everything was about to change and it was finally going to be alright. I decided I had to clean out the closet and bag up negative friends, family habits, behaviors, mindsets, and even my man and donate them to another cause! Since then, life seems to be all that I've imagined it could be. I am not talking about the material things either. I think I'm relating to the person in the Bible who said he was "content in the whatever state he was in."  What a great place to be! I found that peace, comfort and confidence in living life with purpose and on purpose!

So my thought for you today, stop making excuses and making it about everything else! Start to looking within. Start to think long and hard about what it is you've always wanted to do. How you've always wanted to look and feel. Where you planned to be and how you got off course. Now take a deep breath and get those garbage bags ready! That right, GARBAGE bags! Because how many of us go back to the trash to pick something out to keep it? If you said me, that's gross! Trash not meant to be taken back. Its meant to be taken to a dump and left there to deteriorate and disintegrate! That's what you have to do to make the next phase of your life work. But be honest, brave and specific! Don't just do it to do it, that won't work. You will only replace one piece of junk with another.

And know this, you are NOT in this alone! Like my team, you have those around you who are there to lift you up and set you back on course. Those who want the best for you even when it seems hard and you feel like giving up. The ones that will ride or die with you! The FEW that will hold your hand and PULL you along kicking and screaming, because they do actually know what is best for you! Thanks RCR!

Green team and Challenge participants. We are in this together for the long hall, Challenge and beyond! We will leave no man stranded! Its All for One and One for All!!!

The Bathroom Scale.....My Fair-Weather Friend

Every morning before I get out of bed, I complete a pre weigh-in body check. I assess if I’m holding excess water by clasping my hands together, I evaluate the altitude of my abdomen and I squeeze the fat on my outer thighs to see if any of it has melted away overnight.

This ritual is usually an accurate predictor of what the scale will say. But since I have been participating in the Healthy Challenge, my morning body assessment and the scale do not always report the same findings. This morning I woke up feeling great. I had a great workout last night, stayed 100% on my Medifast plan yesterday and definitely had less fat to evaluate. I was certain that I had lost a couple of pounds.

When I stepped on the scale, I had not lost an ounce! NOT ONE OUNCE. I was so disappointed I wanted to go to McDonalds and eat two Sausage McMuffins. I FELT thinner, and dang it I LOOKED thinner! People tell you that muscle weighs more than fat and your body’s water composition fluctuates and so on, but that is no comfort when I have allowed the numbers on the scale to dictate my daily mood for the past 30 years. To add to the scale-induced psychoses, I am weighed once a week in front of my teammates and the weight of the week is then printed in the paper. So, does the number on the scale have an unhealthy effect on my quality of life?

Yes it does, but starting today I am changing that. When my scale “cooperates” with me, I feel energetic, motivated and ready to conquer the world. When my scale does not properly reward me for all of my hard work, I want to get back into bed and plan a binge. This is going to stop. I will no longer defend every ounce of water weight to myself, my team or to all of Prince George’s County. I am thinner, evidenced by a reduction in dress size, and I am stronger and have more energy. This competition is measuring my success in pounds, but I will institute new measurements to preserve some of my sanity along with muscle mass.

I want my team to win, but after the competition is over, I want to have won new peace of mind and a new reliance on health in place of the scale. Having my weight printed in the paper took away some of the power of the actual numbers, but my private dependence on the scale still crippled me.

So, I should just throw the scale away! Maybe, but I’m keeping it. I still need the scale for motivation on the days that we are “friends.” On the other days, I will rely on a consensus from my blood pressure, my clothes and from the woman in the mirror, before I allow the number on the scale to exert any power over my day.

Why ME? Goes to Pick ME!

It's Saturday night and the sky was getting darker and darker. Hopefully the storm would hold off until the Team Challenge at the Washington Freedom Soccer game was over! Our drive from PG Co. to the stadium was like a mini vacation - from hell. Traffic was horrible and it took us all nearly 2 hours to get there! That in itself was stressful, since we were warned if we were late we would get points taken off. So we were all calling each other on the phone on the way up seeing what exits we had passed. It was crazy, but we all arrived safe and sound.  If they do this again next year, maybe they will consider having some of the events in PG County. We have plenty here for people to enjoy, a professional football stadium, minor league baseball teams, a huge sports and learning complex, major universities, and the brand new attraction, the National Harbor - all in PG Co.!

I'm sorry, back to the story. We were given the object of our challenge a day or so before the event. Instead of all of us having to kick balls into the goal against their mascot, like I thought we were going to do, we had to complete this obstacle course with 5 stations. One for each of the team members. One had to throw the ball in (which I gladly volunteered for!) One had to kick the ball fifteen feet to the next team member, who then had to dribble the ball with their feet through a set of cones, the next person had to kick it into a small goal net, and the final person had be the one to kick it into the goalpost to score the winning point! 

Now for most of you that sounds like a ton of fun I'm sure. But for me, hardly! First is was freezing outside, the wind was blowing like we were in Kansas waiting for Dorothy and Toto to appear, and to make matters worse, "I"  that's right,  "I" was chosen to be the one to kick the ball into the final post to score the points for the team! No pressure there huh! Whatever! I reminded them how I was always the last one to be chosen for a team in gym class. Well sometimes I got selected before the nerd, but most of the time the fat girl got selected last. Why did everything have to hinge on me? I swear God is trying to rip me out of my comfort zone and throw me to the lions! I had no choice. I decided to be a trooper and got all the love, support and "you can do its" from my family and trotted out onto the field like I knew what I was doing.

Norm flung the ball in like a pro, Lya's swift kick had the ball to Charlene in seconds, Charlene bobbed and weaved through the cones so fast it was hard to believe she had never kicked a ball before, then our Coach, Oteal took it straight to the pug! It all happened in a matter of seconds and we were the first to get the ball down on that end. We had a chance to make it all happen. The pressure to perform was now on me (oh joy). I wasn't told that I could kick the ball from a position closer to the goal post, so I took one giant step and had at it.  As the ball creeped to the Mascot, it was like it was in slow motion. My 3yr old grand baby (oops, sorry, my son's daughter! I'm to young and too fly to be a grandma-you'll get that on the way home) could have done better. So into the Mascots hands it went and back it came. Thankfully he shouted, "move closer and kick" When I heard that I felt more confident and in it went! The night ended with us coming in second for the soccer challenge and second overall for the team challenge, having missed the point spread by .5.  Not so bad for a girl a former "fat girl" who was always picked last. Look at me now! Let's do it again! Pick me...pick me...pick me!

So the moral of this long post is, once again we are all being taken out of our comfort zone and we are becoming better for it. The bad memories the may have haunted us in the past are not who we are today, and are certainly not who we are becoming! It's getting easier day by day to look in the mirror and like what is staring back at me. Soon, I won't even remember who the other person was.  GREAT JOB TEAM! GO GREEN!

There is no "I" in Team! Recovering from my meltdown!

Tuesdays are always hard for me. The battery in my scale has been broken since the Challenge began and I refused to replace it, at least until last night! So in we go, we all have been doing a great job sticking to the plan and getting out workouts in so this should be a no brainer right? WRONG! How about last night, after I was all excited about hearing the word that Potomac River Running was able to secure Heart Rate Monitors for everyone valued at $180, I go to the weigh in with the gang all gung ho waiting to hear that I hit the 15 lb mark. NOT SO! Yup, that's what I said NOT SO! And to make matters worse, I go through the same weigh in ritual that I do every week, only this time our wonderful and beautiful Gazette reporter/photographer, Anath,  is there to report on our progress and I have NONE to report! When I got on the scale and saw the number I was excited, at first...but then I realized I was thinking about the numbers that are reported in the paper (which is are actually a week behind). In actuality, I had gained 2oz since our last weigh in (which to me felt like a million), while everyone else on the team had reduced between .4oz-6.5lbs! What the heck! I felt like I let the entire team and myself down! Funny part was I could believe how upset I was.

If you would have told me that I gained 2oz two months ago it wouldn't have even phased me. Oh what a difference a few weeks and accountability to others makes. The fact that I had kicked up my workout routine to 6 days that week and added a rigorous resistance training schedule 3 times made 2oz hit me like a brick. So I pouted, emailed my team apologizing, treated my family horribly (even though my daughter kept telling me I looked great) and finally went to bed feeling like a loser, but in the other sense of the word. 

It wasn't until this morning that I realized just how wonderful being part of this amazing team is! I got up to encouraging messages and support. I realized at that moment that it there is no "I" in team. They all made me feel like it didn't even matter. Even Laura, our Medifast Coach, sent a humours but serious message to get me right back on track mentally and emotionally and keep me moving forward.

They are right, we are in this together, as a TEAM! The Green Team, 5 member lean machines!

So what have I learned in all of this? Just because I have spent the majority of my life going it alone and having to do things for myself with little or no support, I am not in this one alone! I'm learning to love and appreciate others being there for me and welcoming it when it happens. For once, someone cares enough to have my best interest at heart and wants me to feel good on the inside more so than for how I look on the outside. I've learned that what you think people are perceiving about you is probably far from being accurate. In fact, when you allow yourself the opportunity to let someone into the places that you've guarded for so long to protect yourself from the all so familiar hurt and pain, you open yourself up to beginning to heal and experience a sense of liberating freedom.

Thankfully is doesn't just have to be about me and what I can and cannot do. I'm at a better place than I was four weeks ago because I have the encouragement and support of others. 

How motivating it is! This morning I drove into work with a smile on my face, ready to take on whatever the day would bring. And guess what? When I got into the office the first words I heard were, "Oh my goodness, you look great! You are getting sooo skinny. You are going to have to give me your secret." All I could say was thank you and think to myself, wait till I tell my team!

Whew! What a Week!

Wow, what a week! Personally, my week was filled to the brim. In fact, I found myself in tears on more than one occasion feeling totally overwhelmed. This was the week to make the college decision for my daughter. We waited until the 11th hour factoring in all we could and praying and trusting that the decision we made was going to be the right one. As a struggling single parent, this was probably one of the more difficult things I've had to do, knowing that we would have to once again step out in faith for the deposit and then pray all the money we need comes in so she can actually attend the school she selected. When it was all said and done, at 11:00PM on Thursday night, the decision to attend Shenandoah University was made, AND the deposit was sent! Prayerfully everything else will come together, it somehow always does. I'll keep you posted.

For all the single parents out there who are struggling to make ends meet to ensure their children have opportunities for a better life. Let me take a moment to encourage you. IT IS ALL WORTH IT! I am so proud of my babygirl! She had schools calling her day and night, sending personal notes and letters, increasing her award packages...it was unbelievable! And when she spoke with department heads, she did it with such grace and maturity! I am so honored to have her as my daughter and look forward to all that life will offer her in the days and years ahead. 

Besides all the stuff going on at home, this week was a Challenge week for sure! In addition to the workouts and weigh-in, we made our way to Potomac River Running (PRR) to get our fabulous NEW running shoes! That took us out of the house FIVE days this week (M-F). Norm said we got to see him more than his wife did this week. Sorry Ms. Norm! Thanks for sharing him!

But in the end it was all worth it! Our weigh in brought more cheers, smiles and high fives, and the workouts...Whew! At one point during our spinning session I tried to convince the team to peddle faster, hoping our bikes would dismount and we would sail our way to the McDonald's for a Shake! That of course didn't happen (thankfully).

And then there was the trek to the mall to get the Prom Shoes and the Cinnabuns...are you starting to see a theme here? So instead of me burying my face in what was sure to be a sweet treat, I thought about my team and how hard we are working and decided watch my son's daughter (I'm too young and too fly to be a Grandma -you'll get that on the way home) enjoy her treat.  Instead, I we ate a healthy lunch at one of my favorite places, The Wild Onion, an all natural and organic hip new spot in Hyattsville, and then I made my way back to the gym to burn off my cravings! See you do have the power to change if you really want too. Give it a try!

Free is Always Good!

Everyone loves getting a good deal, but we all know getting something for FREE is even better.  Check out last year's Gazette Healthy Challenge Winners blog! She is doing a 5 days of Giveaways! Today is only day two! I really want the sports bra, but hey, why not share this wonderful blog with everyone! It's a picture of our blog to come! Check it out! In your comment tell Jen you saw this message on the Green Team's Blog! Gazette Healthy Challenge 2010 - Prince George's County Is Here to WIN!!! GO GREEN! http://settingufree.blogspot.com/

The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow

The thought of the Monday morning grind is hard enough, then you add in rain and overcast skies. Yuk! Thank God for the support of the team. This morning a few emails were sent out and calls were made with our usual check in. It is so awesome to know that we can celebrate our successes, get excited, and when a member is down, encourage each other.

Like the weather, life sometimes becomes cloudy and rainy, but thankfully the sun does eventually shine. So today, I sit in a Panera with a wonderful friend talking about our dreams and ambitions. Our conversations bring the ray of sunshine that I need to get me through the rest of my day. It excites me to know that each day I'm alive I have brand new opportunities to be the best me I can be. The only difference is this time, so many are watching and waiting to see just what that means.

I had someone come up to me today and tell me how proud they were of us, and said, "You know we are counting on you guys (Prince George's Green Team) to represent and win this thing!" That was the coolest thing ever! It was certainly much better than the weirdo who recognized me in at the bus stop and gave me a play by play of the recent article. He asked me if I was married...I lied...and he put me on blast. Darn! Why did the bus have to be late on this particular day??

Anyway, today is filled with endless possibilities. new opportunities, and new goals to reach, despite the dreary weather.  So I'll suck it up, put my wonderful green shirt on and head to the gym! Weigh in tomorrow!!

Are we there yet?

Have you even gone on a trip with a young child who insists on asking the question, "Are we there yet?" over and over again? Well let me tell you, tonight was our first "real" workout, and although I didn't say it out loud, all I kept thinking was, "Is it over yet?" Now don't get me wrong, I have always been the person who loves to work out. Like I mentioned, my dream is to one day be lean and fit and training others. My problem all these years is I can never seem to balance all that life has tossed me and do take care of me on a consistent basis. So I go hard and heavy when I get that small window of time and then the window and door slams shut and we are back to 24/7 everyone else’s needs and wants take priority over mine. That's why I'm so happy to be a part of this challenge. As Cliff says, I get to say, “I have to do it! It's in the contract, sorry!" and its like the "Get out of Jail Card Free" it just happens! Man that's good.


But we all know our limitations or our areas of weakness. Mine, those dag on squats! That's why my bottom half count anchor a small yacht and my top can snap off with a strong wind. I can do crunches for days and even get in a FEW girly push-ups, but make this gal sit back into a squat of any form and I my insides are screaming, "Are we there yet?" like a little baby. Ok, I did scream at least once during the workout, but come on...and that takes me back to the last post. Can someone please tell me when the heck is Marie going to learn to count? Dog gone it, she's a business owner! I'm sure she'd be able to tell if $1 was missing from the cash register! Can we just get the basic 1-10 down please? I'm sure any one of us would volunteer to help you if you need it, really! We are onto you Marie.

All kidding aside, our first real workout ROCKED! Everyone did so well. Anath, our sleek goddess-like (I'm not kidding, she is really breathtaking) reporter joined us in our boot camp like workout. Breaking a sweat and rosy cheeked herself, at one point I believe I heard her mumble a profanity, or maybe that was me doing those darn SQUATS!

So if the saying no pain no gain is correct, we are well on our way to our outward transformation. Which is one of the main reasons we wanted to do this in the first place. What I really appreciated was how after just our evaluation, Marie has already begun to custom fit our workout. She took time with each of us to make corrections, encourage us, educate us, and yes, PUSH us beyond what we thought we could do. In the end, we were all sweaty and high fiving each other, proud of all we accomplished together. What a team! I love you guys!

I wish you all could have been there to see us...oh that's right our beautiful reporter took pictures. Not before pictures, when our hair and makeup was all in place and people like Oteal had on her dangly beaded green earrings and high gloss berry lipstick, even though through all the torture those babies never came off. Nooooo, that would be too much like heaven. I'm sure every shot she took will be God's way of keeping us humble. Anath, did I mention you are "Goddess-like and breathtaking?" So if the film just happens to get lost we won’t be that mad at you. It happens to the best of us. We understand.

So with that hurdle behind us, we forge forward. No turning back. 100% committed. Everybody now:
"Gazette Healthy Challenge 2010, Prince George's County is here to win!

That was an Orientation??? Good Lord!

We had our gym orientation last night and the staff of fitness for less treated us like royalty! Marie, co-owner and Personal Trainer of our awesome sponsor Fitness4Less, was in her green and ready to go!
We filed in with smiling faces, taking in the beauty of the newly remodeled facility. Gathering in the lounge area on shiny hardwood floors lined with ceramic tiles, the team sat at cozy glass top tables just opposite the granite top smoothie bar. It had a feeling of being at a DC cafe', except there were people intensely working up a sweat on state of the art equipment all around us. Behind us was a leather sofa and a flat screen TV mounted on the wall and bookshelves with pictures of their success stories, minus ours of course, but that's on its way soon right Marie! If you haven't been there before, go check it out! For a mere $9.99 a month for 24hr access, they don't leave you with any excuse to not get in shape. They live up to the Fitness4Less name!

Marie was very detailed and thorough during our "easy" fitness evaluation, assessing EVERY aspect of our fitness level-whew! For some reason she gets stuck at the #10 and forgets how to count backwards to zero. I was hearing, "10 more, here we go...10, 10, 10, 10..." in my sleep last night. I think I actually broke a sweat rolling over. We're going to have to work on that. But in the end Norm, in true baseball style knocked it out the box, Charlene was in the ZONE walking at warp speed, Lya was able to sweat and maintain her beautiful smile-the ENTIRE time, and Oteal quickly mastered the art of sweating and STILL looking gorgeous! Me...I wore the wrong bra - Nuff said!

The Gazette reporters and photographers will be there on Friday for our first "real" workout, oh my! It looks so much easier when you are sitting on the couch watching it on TV. I wonder if someone can jump in every few minutes and yell, CUT!! MAKEUP! Let's just say I'm not sure I'll be sending copies of THAT issue to my friends and family!

Adventures of a Green Blogger - Note to self...check the weather before you leave the house, get on the right bus, make sure your bags are waterproof. Uh!

GREEN means GO!!!

The momentum was high as we greeted each other at the Gazette 2010 Healthy Challenge kickoff event. It was held at the Besthesda Double Tree Hotel, oddly a place that I have never been before. I can't wait to enjoy a lovely dinner in their posh restaurant! We arrived to a room full of team colored balloons, tables full of wonderful Medifast samples, a delicious (and nutritious) healthy spread, and bottles of much needed "Drink More Water " lining almost every table! It was also incredible to see all the family and friends that showed up in their spirit wear colors to cheer their teams on. I was so thrilled to see my best friend and sister, Robin, my personal cheerleader Barbara, and most importantly my beautiful daughter, Harmony, standing there waving at me when they asked us to say a little something about ourselves. She is such and inspiration and motivation for me. I always tell her when I grow up I wanna be just like her!

Looking at her caused me to choke up a bit because I know just how far we've come as a family to even get to this point. Being a single parent is certainly not easy, but knowing that she will soon be off to college to pursue her dreams and is becoming the awesome woman she was created to be always brings tears to my eyes. What a blessing!

Ok, sorry I got caught up in the moment again back to the point. Cliff, from the Gazette, made sure the evening was full of surprises. We had visits from County officials, representatives from all of our wonderful sponsors, and flashing cameras everywhere you turned. It was like being at a Hollywood premier! And just like the premiers, everyone of the 15 contestants when home with something!

We were given $100 gift certificate to Potomac River Running to use toward the purchase of new running shoes (OMG!- I can't tell you how much money I spent on running shoes training for my first Marine Corp Marathon), free hypnosis services, news that we would be getting water from our sponsor Drink More Water delivered to our home for the duration of the program, a blender from our friends at Medifast, and we laid eyes on our rock solid trainers Marie and DJ, owners of Fitness 4 Less, which will soon become our home away from home. I call the incline bench for my naps! Kidding, no napping in training, I know!

The night was amazing! This whole program is amazing! I still can't believe what a gift the 15 of us have been given! The best part was everyone was informed of the total amount of weight reduction as a team and as individuals! It was UNBELIEVABLE (if you haven't already, PLEASE start picking up those papers at the end of your driveway each week or log onto the website http://www.gazettehealthychallenge.net/ and read our success stories!)

I'll leave you with this last word...If I didn't think it was possible when I was selected, I certainly believe it now, the proof is in the pudding (Medifast Choc of course). Within a matter of a few short days I have added 4 new people to my family (love you Norm, Oteal, Lya, Charlene). I have round the clock information, instructions, support and guidance that is putting me on a path to making this the last time I ever have to worry about what is looking back at me in the mirror.

So the GREEN team is off and running, spirits high, energized and determined to make Prince George's County proud! Watch out y'all...Gazette Healthy Challenge 2010, the Prince George's Team is here to WIN!

Let the Journey Begin

It's hard to believe we are at this place. The place where so many of us have been before. You know, the one where you get up in the morning and rush through your bathroom ritual hoping not to get a glance of yourself in the mirror. Who's idea was it to put a mirror in the bathroom anyway? Its bad enough it is first thing in the morning and my hair looks like Kramer from Seinfeld (no offense if you are reading this blog Kramer, you work that look!) And how about that full length mirror, that had to be created by a skinny vain supermodel! Who else would want to look at the total package, especially when you have to back up, then back up again just to see your entire body. If you are like me you'll try ANYTHING just to get the weight off and feel better about yourself. But what is there left to do????



Enter a challenge you say? Well that's exactly what we did! The five of us, along with countless other people who read the Gazette, decided enough was enough. We took the plunge and entered The 2010 Gazette Healthy Challenge Weight Loss Competition? (http://www.gazettehealthychallenge.net/)



After submitting an essay, along with our "why" story (and that dreaded picture), the journey to our transformation begins. After a series of interviews with a wonderful selection committee, made up of various Healthy Challenge sponsors and last year's incredible winner Jen Green, we were asked to come for a final interview where a decision would be made as to whether or not you would be selected as a member of one of the three competing teams.



I know for me, the week before the final interview was torture! I was so nervous and worried. I only told a few people, just in case I wasn't selected. I knew I would burst into tears, embarrass myself, and probably fall to the ground fists raised screaming WWWHHHYYYY????? and one of my true friends would have to come to the rescue and smack me across the face and tell me to suck it up and pull myself together. You know exactly who you are too. Fortunately for me, and the other members the GREEN TEAM, that didn't have to happen. Don't worry, I am certain that over the course of the Challenge's 12 weeks, I will have my share of embarrassing moments for you to read about.



Until then, "Let the Journey Begin"! We welcome you to follow our stories over the next 12 weeks. Stay tuned...Watch out mirror, here we come!! The GREEN TEAM is ready to make it happen!