Pound For Pound Challenge

I've decided to participate in The Biggest Loser's pound for pound challenge, and just wanted to mention it briefly in case (a) you noticed the widget on my sidebar and wondered what that was all about or (b) wanted to join me.

Basically, the challenge corresponds with this season of TBL (which begins Tuesday night, 1/6/09). If you go to the Pound For Pound Challenge website, you can pledge to lose a certain amount of weight between now and the end of this season (roughly May 5). For every pound of weight that is lost, TBL will be donating the equivalent monetary value of a pound of food to Feeding America. Really, it seems like a win win situation to me. I can help myself while simultaneously help others.

I went to the website the other day and pledged to lose 28 lbs between 1/6 and 5/5. I plan to track my progress here. If there are enough people interested in joining me, I was thinking about having a "Wednesday Weigh In" every week where we can note our progress - good and bad - in the comments section for the day and help encourage one another. If no one is interested, that's cool too. I'm in either way!

Of course I could stand to lose far more than 28 lbs, but I'm trying to be realistic about what I can do in five months. If I lose more, great! 28 lbs is my goal though, and I'll track my progress in a line above that PFP widget in my sidebar.

Diets, in general, do not work for me. I am the kind of person who wants nothing more than the thing she can not have. You can lock me in a room with all of the chocolate in the world, and I won't touch a bite. But take it all away, and I'll crave it like there's no tomorrow. Therefore, I have to set some guidelines for myself. Although they are subject to change, my thoughts are these:

I will:

• Increase my water intake to at least 128 oz per day (up from about 64 now. I know it seems like a lot, but with nursing it's really not).
• Do my very best to exercise at least three times per week. I am one of those sick individuals who actually enjoys following aerobics videos, so as long as my kids nap and my achilles tendonitis doesn't flare up, I should be golden.
• Stop eating by 7:30pm every night. This will likely be my biggest obstacle, and we tend to eat dinner around 9, after the kids are in bed, so we can have a little peace and quiet.
• Make healthier food selections.
• (And subsequently,) no longer order or stop for pizza three times per week.
• Eat a three meals per day.

I will not:

• Call this a diet.
• Eliminate any food from my list of options.
• Use words like "always" or "never" when it comes to my future food and/or exercise plans.
• Be ruled by a number on a little plastic machine.

So, there you have it. Would you like to join me? If so, leave a comment here. It's always easier with a friend (or twenty!). I will start the Wednesday Weigh in next week (1/14/09), either as a part of my Wednesday card post or in a post all its own if I don't have a card for that day.