The Shrinking Sisters

Here we are deep into the challenge and for some reason I am doing horribly. I don't know if it's the cold weather(It's -4 here right now with a windchill of -20) or what my problem is. I am hoping to get back on track and really kick it in the but!!! If anyone has any advice for me, please let me know!! I need the help!!

 

Heather

Here it is, my very first blog!! I wanted to say hello to everyone who is doing this wonderful change in their life. I am starting to progress with the challenge. I am doing pretty well with my eating habits now and with the exercises I am incorporating into my daily routine I think I am off to a good start.

 

I want to take this opportunity to say CONGRATULATIONS to my sister and "partner" Heidi. She has done an amazing job not only with starting this challenge, but since she started her program to lose weight in December. I am very proud of her and glad to call her my best friend as well as my sister.

 

I really want to keep on track with the program as well as she is. I think it's important for me to get into a healthy eating style, not only for myself, but for my family. I want to be able to be around for my kids  to see them grow and have families of their own. With being "pre-diabetic" I have to take control now of my life and my kids life. My kids are "doomed" persay, as diabetes runs on both sides of our families. I feel that by me making changes now, my kids will have the knowledge of healthy eating habits at a young age and hopefully will steer clear of diabetes.

 

GOOD LUCK to everyone in the challenge! Lets make America proud and slimmer!!

 

Heather

So, here we are, another week gone by in the Million Pound Match-up. I am happy to report that things are going well for me. I actually started to lose weight before the holidays and in the past four weeks, I have managed to lose 20 pounds and still eat food!! I have more energy, feel better in general and am never hungry. I rarely have cravings either but every time I see a commercial on TV for Olive Garden, I instantly want Italian!! I miss pizza and pasta. I miss breadsticks and chocolate lasagna (actually, I'm not sure if they still have that at the OG, it's been awhile since I've been there). So overall, I'm very happy with my progress and getting closer to my goal of losing 168 pounds. At a rate of five pounds a week, I could be there as soon as the end of August. Of course, right AFTER swimsuit season - LOL!! But I am not putting that much of a time crunch on myself. The main point is getting the weight off in a healthy way and keeping it off FOREVER!!

One thing I really need to work on is fitness. I have no excuses. Well, actually I can come up with a million excuses but none of them are legitimate for me not getting into some kind of fitness routine. I am lazy - that's all there is to it. I have time, I even have DVDs, exercise equipment and a gym membership and not one of those things is being utilized. It is proving to be my "road block" of sorts. I have finally trained myself to eat better and pass up the sweets, carbs and salty things but I just can't convince myself to get moving!

For all who are losing weight, I want to urge you to look into the health benefits of taking fish oils. They are really good for you - even if you aren't losing weight. My skin is not as dry this winter. My hair and fingernails are much stronger and I am told that the fish oils will help my skin to shrink with me. They are supposed to help the elasticity in the skin. Please check it out and if you do decide to take them, make sure you buy a good brand because the cheaper pills can give you some very icky tastes in your mouth!!

As for my partner, well we are trying to work out a technical glitch so that she will be able to update the blog with her thoughts too. She is doing well and is much better at the exercise part and not as good with food. Looks like we'll make a great team!!

There are so many things that can motivate us in our attempt to lose weight and become healthy. Not only the obvious motivators like health and longer life but smaller things like not letting someone down or trying to fit into that bridesmaids dress in a few months and looking hot while doing it

 

Just tonight Heather told me that she was having a hard time yesterday. She was in a "munchie" mood and wanted to eat whatever she could find in the house. Then she thought about the million pound challenge and that not only was she letting herself down by her over-eating but she was letting me down to as her partner in this challenge. Now we both know this won't be easy and we will both have our "days" but knowing that we are in it together somehow makes it easier and also pushes to do even better than we would if we were only doing this for ourselves.

 

My motivation is a wedding I will be in on March 29th of this year. My little cousin is getting married and I am a bridesmaid. Of course my cousin is about 5'4 and a size 2 so when she picked the bridesmaids dresses she probably didn't even think about the fact that a few of her attendents are a bit bigger than she is. In my case, a LOT bigger. So to my dismay, she chose a sleeveless dress  The dress is very pretty and at least she chose black! So, I am now determined to make the most of it and look as good as I possibly can in that dress. The long time love of my life - the one that never quite happened will be at this wedding. I have long since realized that I deserve better than him but it sure would be nice to see his jaw drop when I walk down the aisle. So, I actually started my weightloss journey back in July and today I am down 42 pounds since then! I have recently begun to lose more weight at a bit quicker pace because of the new program I am on. So in the past three and a half weeks alone, I have lost 17 pounds! Things are looking good and that dress that I ordered just a month ago is already a little too big and will need to be taken in!

 

So, I guess I just want to say that motivation is the key. There are many things that motivate us but the more things we have in life to motivate us (family, friends, health, weddings) the more likely we are to really stick with this and make our dreams come true. This journey will be a life long journey and I am lucky enough to be able to share this journey the rest of my life with my sister and best friend. We know it won't be easy. We know we will sometimes stumble but we also know the other will always be there to help us back on our feet.

 

Good luck in this journey friends, may you find the support and motivation to keep you going the rest of your life!

 

 

My name is Heidi and I am 30 years old and I live in Fridley, MN. My sister Heather is 37 and lives in Zimmerman, MN. We are both determined to lose weight to become healthy once and for all. We have teamed up to join the Biggest Loser Million Pound Challenge. We are already a team and support each other through everything but now we can show our support to others. I have been overweight my whole life and have a lot to lose. I am going to lose 170 pounds. Heather is the mother of two beautiful children and has some residual "baby weight" to shed. Her goal is to lose 40 pounds. Our dad died ten years ago due to complications of diabetes. Heather and I are both considered “pre-diabetics” and we need to take control of our lives NOW. When we reach our goals, we will have lost a total of 210 pounds as a team and we know we will have made our dad proud! We are both ready to make a life long change and will count on each other to succeed. We would like to win the Biggest Loser Million Pound Challenge because we want to be an inspiration to other people just as the Biggest Loser has been for us!!