Join me in the Pound for Pound Challenge

Help feed the hungry by just continuing to do what I’m already doing? Count me in.

I was a pretty easy sell for former Flint Journal co-worker Tim Curry, who is now the development coordinator at the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.

He contacted me last week to tell me about the Pound for Pound Challenge, a collaborative effort among NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” and its major sponsors to help Feeding America deliver millions of pounds of groceries to local food banks across the country.

Participation is simple. You go to the Web site (linked above) and answer like five questions, one of which is how many pounds you pledge to lose.

The maximum pledge is 50 pounds, so that’s what I pledged. The program uses an honor system, Tim says.

For each pound you pledge, 14 cents will be donated to Feeding America, who then will send the money to your local food bank. Each pound pledged equates to a pound of food for the hungry, the Web site says.

Because of the ZIP Code I entered, my pledges will go to the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan, which distributes 20 million pounds of food to the hungry in 22 eastern Michigan counties, Tim said.

The help is most welcome.

“Unfortunately, the Food Bank is forced to expand because of necessity, so all monies that come in now are more important now than ever before,” he said.

Remember, though, it’s a nationwide program. You can help out in your community by simply entering your ZIP Code.

So, that’s that. Go to the Web site and pledge to lose some weight by answering a few questions.

It couldn’t be easier.

Get healthier and help the hungry. It’s a win-win.

I am cutting down my blogging to Monday through Friday, so this is my last one for the week. Check back Monday to see how weigh-in went. And, as always, I thank you for reading.

Join me in the Pound for Pound Challenge

Help feed the hungry by just continuing to do what I’m already doing? Count me in.

I was a pretty easy sell for former Flint Journal co-worker Tim Curry, who is now the development coordinator at the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan.

He contacted me last week to tell me about the Pound for Pound Challenge, a collaborative effort among NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” and its major sponsors to help Feeding America deliver millions of pounds of groceries to local food banks across the country.

Participation is simple. You go to the Web site (linked above) and answer like five questions, one of which is how many pounds you pledge to lose.

The maximum pledge is 50 pounds, so that’s what I pledged. The program uses an honor system, Tim says.

For each pound you pledge, 14 cents will be donated to Feeding America, who then will send the money to your local food bank. Each pound pledged equates to a pound of food for the hungry, the Web site says.

Because of the ZIP Code I entered, my pledges will go to the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan, which distributes 20 million pounds of food to the hungry in 22 eastern Michigan counties, Tim said.

The help is most welcome.

“Unfortunately, the Food Bank is forced to expand because of necessity, so all monies that come in now are more important now than ever before,” he said.

Remember, though, it’s a nationwide program. You can help out in your community by simply entering your ZIP Code.

So, that’s that. Go to the Web site and pledge to lose some weight by answering a few questions.

It couldn’t be easier.

Get healthier and help the hungry. It’s a win-win.

I am cutting down my blogging to Monday through Friday, so this is my last one for the week. Check back Monday to see how weigh-in went. And, as always, I thank you for reading.

Spare some change?

“To get something you’ve never had, you must do something you’ve never done.”

We’ve heard that so many times now that it almost sounds cliché, but have you ever really thought about it?

You have to change your norm. And change is damn hard. Change is scary. Change is unpredictable.

Change is inconvenient.

For me, change means the potential for failure, something I admittedly don’t deal with very well.

Back in college, my advisor asked if I thought I was a perfectionist. I chuckled and told her she should see my apartment.

Being a perfectionist had nothing to do with tidiness, she told me. Then she handed me a few pages to read about perfectionism.

I was floored. Everything on those pages described me perfectly (no pun intended).

Since then, I at least recognize why I behave the way I do, being a perfectionist, but I’m certainly not “cured.”

Perfectionism can be paralyzing.

In one of my first blogs, I mentioned that I had reserved this blog name a full year before I got up the courage to start trying to lose weight and write about it.

I didn’t want to do it until I thought I could do it right.

Sometimes perfectionism can be a good thing (it certainly always has helped me in my jobs), but often it is horrible.

I’ll be completely honest with you: I am terrified I’m not going to lose all the weight I need to lose.

Failure terrifies me.

Sure, Logical Misty chimes into my head and says that any weight loss is an improvement, that I’m getting healthier no matter how long it takes me, blah, blah, blah.

I try to breathe deeply and tell myself neat little quotes like “All experts started out as beginners,” “one step at a time,” etc.

But I’m all about honesty on this blog, and I hope that my honesty with my battles not only against my weight but against perfectionism can help those of you reading.

Now, not everyone who gives up trying to lose weight, quit smoking, whatever after a few days is a perfectionist. Sometimes, it’s just because change is hard.

I literally Googled “why is change so hard?” and this article popped up.

It talks about mindset, group support, procrastination, unrealistic goals and (eek!) baby steps.

Baby steps. The perfectionist’s nightmare. We tend to be all-or-nothing folks.

Sigh. Being trapped in my head is exhausting most days.

I have issues.

Ah well, I’m not perfect. Just a perfectionist.

Think perfectionism is holding you back? Check out this article for info.

Spare some change?

“To get something you’ve never had, you must do something you’ve never done.”

We’ve heard that so many times now that it almost sounds cliché, but have you ever really thought about it?

You have to change your norm. And change is damn hard. Change is scary. Change is unpredictable.

Change is inconvenient.

For me, change means the potential for failure, something I admittedly don’t deal with very well.

Back in college, my advisor asked if I thought I was a perfectionist. I chuckled and told her she should see my apartment.

Being a perfectionist had nothing to do with tidiness, she told me. Then she handed me a few pages to read about perfectionism.

I was floored. Everything on those pages described me perfectly (no pun intended).

Since then, I at least recognize why I behave the way I do, being a perfectionist, but I’m certainly not “cured.”

Perfectionism can be paralyzing.

In one of my first blogs, I mentioned that I had reserved this blog name a full year before I got up the courage to start trying to lose weight and write about it.

I didn’t want to do it until I thought I could do it right.

Sometimes perfectionism can be a good thing (it certainly always has helped me in my jobs), but often it is horrible.

I’ll be completely honest with you: I am terrified I’m not going to lose all the weight I need to lose.

Failure terrifies me.

Sure, Logical Misty chimes into my head and says that any weight loss is an improvement, that I’m getting healthier no matter how long it takes me, blah, blah, blah.

I try to breathe deeply and tell myself neat little quotes like “All experts started out as beginners,” “one step at a time,” etc.

But I’m all about honesty on this blog, and I hope that my honesty with my battles not only against my weight but against perfectionism can help those of you reading.

Now, not everyone who gives up trying to lose weight, quit smoking, whatever after a few days is a perfectionist. Sometimes, it’s just because change is hard.

I literally Googled “why is change so hard?” and this article popped up.

It talks about mindset, group support, procrastination, unrealistic goals and (eek!) baby steps.

Baby steps. The perfectionist’s nightmare. We tend to be all-or-nothing folks.

Sigh. Being trapped in my head is exhausting most days.

I have issues.

Ah well, I’m not perfect. Just a perfectionist.

Think perfectionism is holding you back? Check out this article for info.

A picture’s worth a thousand pounds

Well, that photo pretty much says it all, eh?

You wonder what gets me out of bed and onto the treadmill each morning? What helps me drag myself to exercise class at night?

It’s her.

It’s knowing that deep inside me lives this beautiful, happy, healthy woman.

She’s the me my family deserves.

She’s the me I deserve.

And with each step, I’m closer to finding her again.

A picture’s worth a thousand pounds

Well, that photo pretty much says it all, eh?

You wonder what gets me out of bed and onto the treadmill each morning? What helps me drag myself to exercise class at night?

It’s her.

It’s knowing that deep inside me lives this beautiful, happy, healthy woman.

She’s the me my family deserves.

She’s the me I deserve.

And with each step, I’m closer to finding her again.

No need to give up fast food

In my Hungry Girl newsletter yesterday, I saw where a recent study showed that women need at least an hour of exercise a day just to MAINTAIN their current weight.

Whaaa?

I didn’t have time to read much more than the summary of the study, but it did say it didn’t take into account any diet modifications.

Just goes to show that we can drag ourselves to as many exercise classes or onto the treadmill as much as we want, but if we don’t also cut our calories, we’re pretty much doing it for nada.

One way I’ve cut calories is by making smarter choices at the drive-through. (Remember Taco Bell?)

I still eat fast food for lunch sometimes because that’s reality.

And truth is, there are healthful choices … you just have to make them.

My latest favorite fast-food meal is from Wendy’s.

Used to, I’d get the Double with Cheese meal with large fries. That’s 1,290 calories.

These days, I like the Grilled Chicken Go Wrap (ask for no sauce) with a small chili.

Total calories for that meal: 400.

It’s very filling, which is important, and it’s downright tasty.

Mmm. I know what I’m having for lunch today …