Kidwinks Weight Loss Group

In my weekly email (Chicago Family Activities Guide for September 13 - 19, 2010) to kidwinks subscribers, I invited any and all to join me in a quest to lose some weight and get back to a healthy lifestyle. So far, four brave souls have signed on! So here begins our public bid to shed those extra pounds and begin (or resume) a healthy lifestyle. Here's our group and what I know about them:

1. Me (Jean Lemke): I live in Park Ridge and would like to lose about 30 lbs., which would put me back at my wedding weight. My 16 year anniversary is this Thursday. I am determined it will NOT take me as long to take it off as it has to put it on!!
2. Shannon: Shannon lives in Des Plaines and is all for the weight loss posting - she thinks it will be a great support.
3. Susan: Susan lives in Evanston and wrote "I too have made the pledge and started taking the plunge to a healthier lifestyle and a weight I would feel good about." She's got a range of numbers she'd be comfortable with.
4. Genie: Genie lives in Oswego and thinks it will be helpful for us to encourage each other.
5. Mary: Mary says she has a little to lose around the tummy and hips and thinks this might be a good way to truly get back to a healthier routine.

My thoughts are to use this blog as our communication vehicle to comment and support each other. I'll write a bit here about my struggles, what I've tried, what worked and didn't, etc. I'd love to hear the same from each of you - you can comment on this post to let us all know. If anyone wants to be a guest blogger and write a post, please let me know. It's fun that we're all from different suburbs (Mary, please let us know where you live) and can come together virtually to support each other. I think each week we should do a weigh in and post our progress. No need to publish your weight unless you want to (I know I certainly don't want that number floating around -- yikes!). I think this should be on the honor system. Weigh yourselves today and that is your starting point. Each week (how about every Friday - this will be a short week) we will weigh ourselves and report the results to the group through this blog. Periodically I'll share our progress in my kidwinks emails.

What do you think? Any other ideas? We can also share recipes, exercise tips, etc. if you'd like. I think it would be fun to post pictures, too. We could each take a photo in clothes that won't hide anything (like yoga pants or bicycle shorts) and post them, then periodically post new pics wearing the same clothes. It would be fun to put faces to all of your names, too.

Here's a little about me: I've battled with my weight all my life. As a baby and throughout childhood, I was always chubbier than my (fraternal) twin sister, who never had a weight issue. In my teen years and throughout adulthood, I yo yoed from being healthy and fit, to 30 lbs. or so overweight. In my late 20's I lost about 35 lbs. by religiously logging everything I ate, and keeping my calories to 1600 or less and fat grams to 20. It's a lot of bother at first, but after awhile you know the calorie counts of many foods by heart. I also exercised 1.5 hours a day (45 - 50 minutes aerobics, plus weight training, stretching and ab work) at least 5 days a week. That's a little harder to do now that I have my family to care for, but I should be able to do something everyday - 30 minutes at least!

After having my daughters later in life (I was 39 & 41), it was harder to lose the extra weight. Hip and back problems prevented me from exercising for almost 3 years after my second daughter's birth. A hip replacement (turns out I was born with hip dysplasia) finally solved that problem, but I never got back to the exercise regime. So I've got a lot of fat to lose and muscle to build.

I've tried the South Beach Diet, and can lose 10 lbs. in 2 weeks following their strict Phase I (no sugar, fruit or bad carbs - just lean meat, low sugar veggies, low fat cheeses, eggs and a few nuts). But it's hard to do when you're cooking for a family that is not following the plan.

So I'm going to go back to a food diary and calorie limit. I've been logging my intake for the past 3 days, and it's really eye-opening. The amount of calories that I've been eating is way way beyond the 1600 calorie plan I used to follow. It's amazing how fast they add up! I'm also drinking more water (trying for at least 8 glasses per day) and less Diet Coke. Now that the weather will be turning cooler, I'll start drinking more green tea too.

How about you? What are you doing to change your lifestyle? Share with us all.