The Best Weight Loss Blogs

Crabby McSlacker at Cranky Fitness compiled a great list of the best weight loss blogs of 2012 and I'm not surprised to see many of my favorite blogs on the list and excited to check out a bunch of new-to-me ones. If you are looking for some fresh blogs or wondering if you made the list, you can check it out here.

Did you make the list? Were you surprised to see certain blogs there (I was)? Who is your favorite fitness/weight loss blogger? Do tell - inquiring minds want to know.

Boston Bloggers Meet in the Flesh

It's been almost three weeks that I've been trying to find a spare minute to sit and write a post about my very first blogger meet up. I was determined to do something other than work, cook, clean and sleep so I accepted an invitation to meet up with some amazing Boston Bloggers. I'm no longer anonymous, at least not to the six beautiful women I got to break bread with at Eastern Standard in Kenmore Square. If you want to hear all about the night and see a picture of all of us (including me!) head over to one of their blogs because they wrote about the night better than I ever could.

I was so inspired by this group of beautiful young women who seem to do it all so effortlessly and find the time to blog about it too. Erin of Creative Soul in Motion who made it all possible; Alli of Alli Learns Life; sisters Sarah of Sarah’s Modern Bites and Samantha of Samantha in Training; Sara of Run Around Sara and Maddie of BFF: Better Food and Fitness.

They told stories of their 5Ks, 10Ks, marathons, half marathons, triathlons and other feats of fitness while I'm still struggling to find a way to work 40+ hours and get to the gym on a regular basis. I did get up the next morning and complete another day of the C25K program. If I'm lucky I will complete this 9 week program in under 2 years.

I was a little nervous and insecure about meeting up with people I had never met before but it didn't take long for me to feel like I was hanging out with a bunch of old friends. It's funny how you can feel so comfortable with people you've never met. There wasn't an awkward minute the whole night. The conversation flowed and we talked about everything from food, wine, and fitness (especially running) to blogging, life and love.

I had a blast and I can't wait to meet up with them again. Cheers!

Three Years Ago Today ...

Three years ago today I started this blog hoping it would help me work through my issues with food. I needed to figure out why I stuffed myself until I felt sick and then ate some more while simultaneously thinking about how I needed to lose weight. I wanted to document my final journey down the scale because this was it. I wasn't messing around anymore. I was determined to do it right this time. I was sick and tired of stuffing food down my throat to prevent my emotions from bubbling up and out. I was sick and tired of the reflection I saw in the mirror, I was sick and tired of not fitting into any of my clothes. I was sick and tired of my boyfriend asking me when I was going to get on a serious program. I was sick and tired of it all.


Back then I was inspired watching PastaQueen and DietGirl transform themselves right before my eyes and I wanted to be just like them. I didn't expect a book deal but I desperately wanted those "after" pictures showing how I finally made it. I didn't even have as much to lose as they had but I couldn't seem to find that switch I needed to flick to make any lasting progress.


This was the place that was going to encourage and inspire me to lose the weight I'd been able to lose before but always managed to gain back. I had recently turned 40 and didn't want to waste another decade of my life being fat. I didn't have the nerve to record my weight at the time but I know I had gotten to a new high of 220 pounds.


I was stressed out and miserable at work and couldn't find any strength to make lasting changes. I was too tired to get up early and workout. After being abused all day at work I didn't have the energy to go to the gym, I just wanted to go home and unwind. I binged on bag after bag of chocolate covered pretzels regularly. I would get 3 or 4 bite size chocolates almost every day after lunch to give me strength to get through the afternoon, along with all the coffee and tea. I gave into the temptation of the free pastries, bagels, cookies and other crap that was regularly in the office and then indulged on the weekend because, dammit, I deserved it after the stressful week I had.


Unfortunately just starting this blog didn't make weight loss magic happen. I continued down the same path I had been on for years. I'd lose 2 or 3 pounds and then gain 5 back, get depressed, get stressed and eat more junk. It was a vicious cycle. Two years later I was still blogging but I hadn't made any progress in losing weight.


In January 2008 I worked up the nerve to divulge my weight, an even higher all time high of 226 pounds. I was so miserable and stressed out at my job and couldn't stop myself from binging and eating way more than any human needs to eat. By the time I got laid off in November 2009, I had binged and lazed my way all the way up to 242 pounds.


Losing my job after 11+ years was scary and depressing but it was the best thing that could have happened. It wasn't until I got laid off in November 2009 that I really started losing weight. I had time to go to the gym, go food shopping and cook healthy dinners regularly. I was waking up happy instead of sick to my stomach about having to go into the hell hole where I worked and getting abused every single day. I started to remember who I used to be before getting beat down by stress. I felt like I got my life back.


As of last Friday I've lost just over 40 pounds and I'm on the threshold of breaking through to the 100s any day now. That works out to an average of 13 1/2 pounds A YEAR which sounds a bit pathetic since I had anticipated being able to lose all the weight I needed to lose in one year, maybe a year and a half tops. Hell, I lost 60+ pounds at least twice before and each time it didn't take longer than six months. Why is it taking so long this time?


I feel like a completely different person than the one that started this blog. I feel blessed to have had this time off to get myself together and I'm trying to figure out how I'm going to continue to keep up the pace when I have to go back to the daily grind. Will I be able to continue what I've been doing when I have to fit 40 hours of work into the equation? Will I be able to deal with the stress without using food to help me cope? I certainly hope so.


For now I'm just going to continue the Tippy Toe weight loss plan as I've been doing the last nine months or so. It's not sensational drastic Biggest Loser-type weight loss but it's working so I'm not messing with it. Maybe I needed to lose it slowly so I can learn how to keep it off permanently.

Three years later I'm not at my goal but I'm making progress and still fighting the good fight. I'll get to that ultimate goal someday and I hope you're all here to go to the big dance with me. In the meantime, there will be a small onederland dance very soon to tide you over 'til the big one. I was hoping it would happen today but I had some delicious fresh homemade salsa from Biz to test out and tortilla chips were the easiest and fastest way to polish off a jar.


I absolutely love and adore all the friends I've made here, the support I get when I'm down, the encouragement to keep trying, the advice on how to do it healthily, and especially the ass kickin' you've given me when I needed it these past three years. I truly appreciate each and every comment you've taken the time to write. It's nice to know I'm not in this alone in this battle.


Some of you have already come back from the front lines and have gone back into civilian fat-free life and some of you, like me, are still fighting the war one battle at a time. No matter where you are on this journey I think it's time we realized that we can't change the past and just need to learn from our mistakes and move on. I'm hoping to get to my goal by my 4th Blogiversary. Wish me luck.


Thank you for being a big part of my journey. You are the BEST!

Quick Fixes, Magic Pills and Excuses ....

It's too hot to think around here so if you've been sitting there at the computer looking, JUST LOOKING, for some sort of motivation, head over to Anonymous Fat Girl's site and read this post. That's right Bobbie, there are no quick fixes, magic pills or excuses.

I had been feeling a bit discouraged lately by my snail's pace weight loss, especially when people like Jewlia Goulia hit 100 pounds lost in under seven months (Congrats Jewlia ;), and then a little light went off when I read AFG's post and realize I'm still a work in progress, but I am doing this. I have lost 34.8 lbs. off of my body and sustained a healthy lifestyle for over eight months. No quick fixes and no excuses. Even Jewlia agrees that there are no magic pills, no fad diets, no reality shows, just simply eating well and moving!

It's not a competition to see how fast we can lose weight but how we learn to live and love a healthy lifestyle. You know, live and learn.

99 Minutes!!!

I did it!

Tony the Anti-Jared and Jen the Prior Fat Girl's 4/20 Challenge is today and I'm proud to tell you I did it!!

I'm a big fan of both their blogs and look forward to every single post. I love that they both tell it like it is. They are inspiring and motivating but they don't sugarcoat what it takes to be successful in this weight loss game. They are proof that if you work hard you can get the results you want just like they did.

I remember Jen and Tony's last challenge but I don't think I would have lasted 10 minutes on the elliptical back then. I committed to do 60 minutes on the elliptical but now that I've been going to the gym regularly, sixty minutes isn't such a big challenge anymore. Sixty minutes is my regular workout now, or at least it was before I wrenched my back a few weeks ago.

This is the t-shirt I wore at the gym today.

I signed up to do at least 60 minutes but if I felt good enough I was going to push it for the full 99 minutes. I figured "no pressure" was a good motto to have. I didn't want to re-injure my back so I was just going to wait and see how I felt. I was still feeling pretty good after 60 minutes so I decided to stick it out for the full 99 minutes that Jen and Tony were going to be on the StairMaster. My thighs would have been screaming if I tried to do 99 minutes on the StairMaster but I'm proud I was able to stay on the elliptical for that long. My thighs were screaming a bit and felt like jello when I got off but it felt good.

The whole time I was on that machine I was thinking about what an inspiration Jen and Tony are to me. They are the real deal. Jen still struggles with the candy dish at the office just like I did every single one of those 40 hours a week I was trapped in the office and Tony gets up at an ungodly hour so he can make time for the gym. They've celebrated the joys of birth and the crushing loss of death and through it all they are still fighting the good fat fight through all of life's ups and downs. They are weight loss blogger rock stars.

I really wanted to get a picture of the machine showing 99 minutes but the machines at my gym are set at a 60 minute max with a 10 minute cool down so I had to do 70 minutes and then continue on for another 29.02 for a total of 99.02 minutes!!! I did it at a lower fat burning intensity instead of the high cardio because I reasoned if I was going to go the distance it would probably be a good idea to slow it down a little.

*Do the math. It adds up to 99:02 minutes, 814 calories and 5.87 miles. Not too shabby, huh?

Everyone is always looking for motivation to get off their ass and lose the fat they've been dragging around but it's not about motivation, it's about accepting that there is no magic to weight loss. Anyone can do it. They are everywhere. You've seen them around. They've been on tv, they've written books, they've let us into their lives through their blogs. There are so many good examples - Sean Anderson at Daily Diary of a Winning Loser, Diane at Fit to the Finish, Lori at Finding Radiance, Cammy at the Tippy Toe Diet, Jennette, the one and only PastaQueen, Shauna, the Amazing DietGirl, they all did it and so can you and I.

They aren't keeping a big secret from the rest of us. They've showed us how they did it and have been telling us how to do it for years. It's not magic, they just did what it takes. It's not all about a diet of rabbit food and denial, it's about living a healthy lifestyle. Eat healthy foods, enjoy not so healthy foods in moderation and get out and move your ass, it's no big secret. Stop watching so much tv and take a hike, take the stairs instead of the elevator, just keep moving. We all know that right? The question is "how bad do you want it?" Do you want to do what it takes or eat that cake? Do you want to watch tv all night or work up a sweat? It's a choice.

After 99 minutes on the elliptical machine I was a total sweaty mess. If you don't believe me, keep an eye on Jen's blog where she's threatening to post all the sweaty pictures of everyone who participated. There's still time to join the challenge. Get out and do 60 or 99 minutes. Make the choice to get out and get healthy.

I celebrated 4/20 this year by getting high on endorphins and spreading Bob Marley's message of peace, love and all that other other good stuff.

Love the life you live,

Live the life you love.

- Bob Marley

Celebrate 4/20 today by getting high on endorphins! Peace out.

P.S.

I'm sad to say I may have lost a few followers by admitting I enjoy smoking the peace pipe on occasion. I'm sorry if I offended anyone but I'm not going to lie about who I am. After my last post I did learn that 4/20 is the Evil Adolf's birthday so maybe they thought I was celebrating his birthday and they were offended by that or maybe I just bore them, who knows. Anyway, just to clarify, I was not celebrating the birth of one of the most evil men in history, I was referring to the 4/20 stoner holiday.

Celebrating 4/20

I'm going to celebrate 4/20 by getting high (on endorphins). I'm not ashamed to admit in past years I've celebrated 4/20 with a big fat Bob Marley Memorial *gasp* *I hope you're not too shocked or offended*. I know it's not healthy but everyone needs a vice, right? Anyway ... this year I'm going to celebrate the 4/20 holiday by getting high on endorphins with two of the most inspiring weight loss bloggers.

The no-nonsense, straight talking, weight loss rock star, Tony, the Anti-Jared has challenged Jen, the amazing original Prior Fat Girl to a 99 minute StairMaster challenge on 4/20 and they have invited us all to join them in getting good and sweaty. I remember being inspired by their last challenge and I'm sure this one will be just as good except, sadly, we won't have Jen's Mom to cheer us along this time. I know she'll be there in spirit encouraging Jen and everyone else. I can hear her saying "it's on like Donkey Kong" now.

Not only has Tony challenged Jen to 99 minutes on the StairMaster (imagine the thigh burn) but he also raised the stakes up a notch. They both have to get at least 200 people to commit to working out for over 60 minutes on April 20th. Any workout will do. You can walk, jog, wog, run, do a home video, play on your Wii, do jumping jacks, swim, bike, hit the gym, rake leaves, dance, have sex, whatever you feel like doing that gets your heart rate up and makes you good and sweaty. I'm sure Jen would love to see your glowing, post workout, sweaty pictures too.

RSVP at Tony's or Jen's blog and make the commitment to get high on 4/20. If I make it for the full 99 minutes I may still celebrate the ol' traditional way. Bob would want it that way, Mon. Get in the circle, join the challenge and get high on those endorphins. Ya Mon. Peace out.

Get Moving

Just in case you haven't already read the most recent post over at *Bitch Cakes*about how exercising and being active changed her life, I wanted to tell you to get moving and go read it here.

Excellent post, huh? I especially love these words:

"...people may assume it's the weight loss that has changed my life, I give the activity far more credit for the new person I have become. My changes are less about "the number on the scale" or the size of my clothes, they are about how *I* changed - from the inside out. I finally feel GREAT. I finally realize that I'm pretty awesome. I am finally HAPPY. And that's all because of exercise...You'll see results when you see results...life is forever...being healthy should be your focus forever. So who cares how long it takes?"

Brilliant, right?

Of course I'd like to be thin and healthy right now (actually yesterday, no, twenty years ago) but I'm learning to just trust the process and not be so hung up on the numbers on the scale. One day it may be up and the next day it may be down but the trick is to be consistent with the exercise and healthy eating.

Could this be the missing link I've been looking for? I'm doing my best to keep my focus on being active and eating healthy. It's time I stop agonizing over how slow and how much weight I need to lose and trust the process. It WILL happen.

It's not a race, it's life. Live it to the fullest and get moving.

Happy Birthday to the Queen!

Happy Birthday to the Snarkiest Queen of the PRB (People’s Republic of Blogistan). I hope it rained cupcakes in Florida today.

Head over to here to wish Queen Hilly a very happy 29th(?) BIRTHDAY!

Happy Birthday Cupcake Kisses ...

Party Pooper

You can just call me the Party Pooper, although it wasn't entirely my fault. I was so excited to meet the crazy, witty, wonderful ladies of Aiming Low tonight but my boss had other plans for my night. I ended up getting home really late from work and thought about rushing over to the Sheraton for the last hour of the party but decided to just stay home.

I cried into a big tall glass of pear vodka and raspberry crystal light and had a little pity party for myself. I hope the Aiming Low crew comes back to Boston someday soon so I can show them where to get the best clam chowdah. I'm sure the party at the Sheraton rocked and I'm so sorry I missed it.

If I get my pink slip tomorrow I'll meet you in NYC.

Party in Boston!

Who doesn't like to party on a Monday night?

I can't pass up the opportunity to let my hair down and have a few cocktails with some amazing women. If you are in the Boston area and want to meet the amazing Aiming Low ladies and other fabulous bloggers, head over to Aiming Low and RSVP for the PARTY. I'm sure it will be a blast. I just hope I don't get too star struck by all the rock star bloggers who attend.

If you can't make it to Boston, they will be bringing the party to NYC on Wednesday the 28th.

Time to PARTY!!! Hope to see you there.

Hear Me Roar

If you are not one of Jack Sh*t's 307 followers you don't know what you're missing. Jack usually posts lighthearted crazy lists, rhyming posts and fart jokes but when he comes up with something serious it just blows me away.

His post today was brilliant. You can read it all here. What really made me think was when Jack asked:

"Am I really doing all I can to succeed?

If you can honestly say “yes,” then God bless you, but I suspect that you’re in the minority if that’s truly the case...you’ve got to get serious about this if you want to find the success you claim you want. You need to shift it into high gear, and start getting it done, and I mean like, today. You can half-ass it for as long as you want, but the real results aren’t going to happen for you until you knuckle down. Until you get serious.

There is a lion in my heart, and he’s roaring at the fat that I’ve saddled myself with by being stupid and lazy. Roaring at the complacency that allowed me to put my own health and future in jeopardy. He’s roaring at me every day, filling my spirit with grit and reminding me that this is my day, this is my time. He’s pushing me to run wild and pounce on this chance, this opportunity to reclaim my life. This journey is not for the weak or the meek; it is for the strong-willed and the lion-hearted.

It’s time for you to roar."

WOW! What a powerful post, huh? My roar sounds like a meow but I'm working on it. I will ROOOAAAARRRR!

Time for me to get my Sh*t together. Thanks Jack!

Inspiration

Most blogs I read are written by women. I'm pretty sure we outnumber the male bloggers out there especially on the topic of weight loss. Women are much more likely to struggle with their weight and more likely to look for inspiration out in the blogsphere.

We all know how frustrating it is to see a man decide to lose weight so they cut out a couple of beers and cut back on a few burgers and miraculously lose 20 pounds in a week or so. Why can't it be that easy for woman? Well, apparently it isn't that easy for all men, especially if they are over 400 pounds and can only handle 48 seconds on the treadmill.

If you have a long way to get to your goal or are just looking for a little extra push to get you to work out today, check out The Anti-Jared's video blog about his first trip to the gym. This guy has completely changed his life and is an inspiration to anyone who thinks they can't work out. We all have to start somewhere, right?

and the winner is ....

Can you believe it? I got my very first blogging award! I can't deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me *tearing up ala Sally Field accepting her Oscar.*

A very lovely lass over at My 3 Month Challenge(s) gave me the Super Blogger Award (!!!!). I'm always surprised (and honored) when amazing people from all over the world (hello Japan) actually come to my little corner of the Internet to say hello, offer great advice, acknowledge I'm not the only one out here struggling, motivate me and offer encouragement. Whether they randomly stumble over here, are bored to tears and have nothing better to do, are struggling with their weight, just starting out on a program to live a healthier life, or have it all figured out and want to help, I feel blessed to have you all in my life.

I am so thankful to get such great support, love, and laughs from every single one of you and I get a kick out of being able to peek into your lives and get inspired by your triumphs, celebrate your losses, learn from your mistakes, laugh with you (never at you), cry with you or be there to offer my shoulder to cry on.

Now, this is the hard part ... I'm supposed to pass this award along to 5 Supper Bloggers. How am I supposed to narrow it down to just 5? It is almost impossible to narrow it down to just 5, there are just too many to choose from and a few I thought of already received this prestigious award. Of course, there are the superstar bloggers like Hilly, Britt, MizFit, Cranky Fitness, etc. and famous blogging authors such as Pasta Queen and Diet Girl but they already get tons of love (and book deals) so I thought I would give the award to some bloggers who may be new to you, may be struggling or just because I love them. Even though I could only give the award to 5 bloggers I encourage you to check out my blog roll and all the blogs I'm following so you can meet some amazing new people and maybe make some new blog friends.

It wasn't easy but I narrowed my list down to the following Super Bloggers (in random order):

Finding Melanie

Morgan Gets Thin

Setting Her Free

A New Decade

Scale Ho

Ok, here's what you Super Bloggers have to do now (it's the price you have to pay for fame):

1. Tape the banner on your blog somewhere


2. Pass the Super Blogger Award along to 5 fellow Super Bloggers


3. Be sure leave the winners a comment on their blog so they know they've won a Super Blogger Award and know how special you think they are


4. Link back to the Super Blogger who gave it to you.

I guess it's time to get off the podium, get my head out of the clouds and my a$$ on the treadmill so I can someday join the ranks of the weight loss success stories.

Thanks to all of you for visiting and thanks again to My 3 Month Challenge(s) for giving me this Super Blogger award.

No Longer Incognito

So many bloggers out there are an open book for all the world to see, they don't hold anything back. We make blog friends and feel we know them intimately but I wonder if we would be friends in real life just because we enjoy reading their life story. I feel like I know some of my blog friends even better than my real world friends because they share all these details that you don't normally talk about face to face even with your closest friends and family.

We know where they live, what they eat, how often they work out, what their cycle is, how often they get it or don't get it, who their friends are, who they're mad at, and all the little details of their lives. We get to see photos of them and all the people in their lives because they choose to share that information with all of us out in the world wide web. They spill their guts, talk openly about their relationships, kids, work, up and downs and everything in between and I admire them for it and love reading the story of their lives. They strip down for us and show their true selves or the selves they want us to see. Maybe it is a form of voyeurism in some way and we get a thrill looking into their world.

I started this blog with the intention of keeping it anonymous. I mistakenly thought with all the blogs out there it would be nearly impossible for someone I know in real life to find it but I've been outed and forced out of the blog closet. I'm not really sure where to go from here. I liked the idea of being able to talk about my feelings and work through my issues with my weight without being embarrassed or censored because of who might be reading.

If you blog anonymously, would you change what you write because you know certain people are reading? If you are an open book, do you censer what you say in any way because you don't want to offend anyone or be embarrassed about your thoughts?

It is very bright out here in the open but I don't think it is possible to get back in that closet and lock the door.