Eat lots of FRUIT...the right way!!!

We all think eating fruits means just buying fruits, cutting it and just popping it into our mouths. It's not as easy as you think. It's important to know how and when to eat.

What is the correct way of eating fruits?

* FRUITS SHOULD BE EATEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH. IT MEANS NOT EATING FRUITS AFTER YOUR MEALS!

If you eat fruit on an empty stomach it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities.

The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil....

So please eat your fruits on an empty stomach or before your meals! You have heard people complaining - every time I eat watermelon I burp, when I eat a banana I feel like running to the toilet etc - actually all this will not arise if you eat the fruit on an empty stomach. The fruit mixes with the putrefying other food and produces gas and hence you will bloat!

Graying hair, balding, nervous outburst, and dark circles under the eyes all these will NOT happen if you take fruits on an empty stomach.

When you need to drink fruit juice - drink only fresh fruit juice, NOT from the cans. Don't even drink juice that has been heated up. Don't eat cooked fruits because you don't get the nutrients at all. You only get to taste. Cooking destroys all the vitamins.

But eating a whole fruit is better than drinking the juice. If you should drink the juice, drink it mouthful by mouthful slowly, because you must let it mix with your saliva before swallowing it. You can go on a 3-day fruit fast to cleanse your body. Just eat fruits and drink fruit juice throughout the 3 days and you will be surprised when your friends tell you how radiant you look!

KIWI:Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamin E & fiber. Its vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

APPLE:An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.

STRAWBERRY:Protective Fruit. Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protect the body from cancer-causing, blood vessel-clogging free radicals.

ORANGE :Sweetest medicine. Taking 2-4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessens the risk of colon cancer.

WATERMELON:Coolest thirst quencher.. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene - the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are vitamin C & Potassium.

GUAVA & PAPAYA:Top awards for vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes.

Drinking Cold water after a meal = Cancer! Can u believe this?? For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this 'sludge' reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.

PAY UP PEOPLE!!!!

The following is the list of all participants and whether they have paid or not!

Alejandra - PAID
Arturo - PAID
Cathy - PAID
Cecy - PAID
Cristina - PAID
Elena -PAID
Elvia - PAID
Eustaquio - PAID
Francisco
Gaby - PAID
Hortencia
Jeannie - PAID
Leslie
Leticia - PAID
Lola - PAID
Manfred - PAID
Marc - PAID
Mario Jr. - PAID
Monica
Nancy - PAID
P.J. -PAID
Silvia - PAID
Sira - PAID
Tarcisio

Almost Mid-Point

We are going into our 10th week weigh-in on the 22nd of March!

For those of you that have been sending in your weekly weigh in, I applaud you!! Great job.

For those of you that have failed to do so, please understand the importance of this information. By us posting the weekly results in an efficient manner, it encourages you to do better the following weeks.

So on that note, instead of crying over spilled milk or in our case weigh not lost, let's get back on track and lose those pounds.

In 10 weeks you can still meet your goal. This still gives you time to lose those 10 or 15 lbs you wanted to lose when you started this challenge.

Please ---->

EMAIL, PHONE, TEXT, BBM ME YOUR ACTUAL WEIGHT THIS MONDAY!

I am going to post the mid-point weight loss and want everyone to be included!!!

Also, for those of you that have not paid, my mother is going to Pasadena today (SUNDAY)or you can call me to find out the other person of contact to pay your fee!

THANK YOU!!!!

Que nos pasa?

Que nos pasa????

Come on everyone we all started this challenge with lots of enthusiasm and
hopes, lets go back and remember what was our motivation to lose weight,
what was our goal. We have to stay focused. If we don’t do it now, most likely
we’ll never do it. Each of us NEEDs to think we can win first place, that
would be the only way we’ll put extra afford on this.
The best way to succeed is, to stay focused and set up goals. Long-term
goals! But in order to reach those long-term goals we have to set short
term goals.

For example: if I want to lose 30lb by the end of this challenge, I have to
divide those 30lb into the weeks we have left, so we still have 15 weeks,
now I need to lose 2lb per week. Come on I know its hard. Trust me I
KNOW!!!! We can all do it together.

Remember, YOU!!! Yes you who is reading this posting, you can win this
challenge, there’s still time, but you have to start now. DELETE from your
diet every thing that contains SUGAR and FLOUR; that is VENOM!!!!!! Your
body does not need that and include lots of vegetables with your meals.

In order for this to continue to be a CHALLENGE we should all try to be the
BIGEST LOSERS!!!!


-Silvia G

The Big Small Challenge

We hear lots of talk about losing weight and how to lose the most and how to lose it the fastest. But what about those that have to lose a little? There are a few on our challenge that have probably 10 or 15 pounds to lose and are finding it difficult to lose those few pounds.

For those of you all I can say is: Stick with it. You must have a weight loss program aimed at your specific goal. You will have to eat right and utilize your work out sessions to aim your weight loss to the specific area you are carrying your weight.

I will do more research over the weekend to find exercises that target weight loss in specific parts of the body. To help you tone!

Bottom line is don't despair and remember you have 20 weeks to lose those 10 to 15 pounds, so half a pound a week is perfect!

Seeing a Pattern

A lot of us are losing that first excitement of the challenge. I can tell by the many, many ZEROs on the list of weigh ins. (myself included)

BUT, let's not lose the momentum. I can see that most of you that are losing weight are members of a family that are losing weight together and not doing it alone. We are after all human and tend to lose interest quickly unless that constant stimulation is there.

The end of February is coming up and the money will have to be submitted. I am thinking we will all see each other for Tania's quinceanera so why not take your money then and pay up! This will hopefully stimulate us to pursue that awesome JACKPOT!

If anybody wants to post any difficulties they are having or any great ideas to help us, please email myself or Gaby and we will be glad to post your stories!

Congratulations to all of the Biggest Losers so far....Elena, Gaby, Eustaquio and Marc! But Elvia, Lola and Silvia are trailing behind real close. The rest of us...come on let's do this!

Weigh In #5

Alejandra -0.4
Arturo 0
Cathy 0
Cecy 0
Cristina 0
Elena -5.2
Elvia -0.6
Eustaquio +1
Francisco +2
Gaby 0
Hortencia
Jeannie +.5
Leslie
Leticia +1
Lola 0
Manfred
Marc 0
Mario -2
Monica -1.2
Nancy -0.5
PJ
Silvia -3.4
Sira 0
Tarcisio 0

Weigh In #4

Alejandra -1.4
Arturo 0
Cathy 0
Cecy 0
Cristina 0
Elena -2.8
Elvia -2.8
Eustaquio -3.7
Francisco -2
Gaby -0.7
Hortencia
Jeannie -1
Leslie
Leticia -2
Lola 0
Manfred
Marc -2.5
Mario -1.4
Monica -3.5
Nancy -1
PJ
Silvia -0.2
Sira 0
Tarcisio 0

Weigh In for Week #3

Alejandra -0.2
Arturo 0
Cathy
Cecy -2.6
Cristina -2.0
Daniel -2.0
Elena -2.0
Elvia -4.2
Eustaquio -0.1
Francisco 0
Gaby -0.7
Hortencia
Jeannie -1.6
Leslie -0.5
Leticia -3.0
Lola -4.0
Manfred -0.4
Marc -5.3
Mariela
Mario -2.4
Monica -2.6
Nancy -0.5
P.J. -0.9
Silvia -2.0
Sira 0
Tarcisio -2.0

If there is no number by your name, I didn't receive your weight this week. If there is a zero, it means no change from last week.

Everybody is doing great. Keep it up. Hopefully Marc will share his secrets on his weight loss this week.

We will be posting the information regarding the paypal account to pay the entry fee. The last day to pay is February 28th. If you have the money and want to pay Danny, please contact him and make arrangements.

Keep it up!

You are the biggest loser...of the week.

First off, a huge CONGRATS to everyone! Like Tia Silvia said below - together we lost over 50lbs! That is amazing! We are all going to look mighty fine come summer.

Now, I know you all are wondering, "How the heck did Gaby lose 6 pounds???" And the real answer is - I have no idea. You see I am in shock too. I've done weight watchers and even then I didn't lose this much at once. But I guess this is my body's way of telling me it's ready for this challenge.

After a lot of reflection, I think the biggest reason I lost weight was because week 1 has been sort of a "detox" week. I completely changed my eating/drinking habits. I had fallen into the group of not drinking water (maybe 2 cups a day), having a daily soda (sometimes more) and eating whatever without thinking twice. Now I wasn't exactly gaining serious weight, but that's because I wasn't going crazy. My portion size has not grown much. Nonetheless, this wasn't helping. I had gained 6lbs over the holidays and I knew I had to make changes.

Change #1 - WATER! I force myself to have at least 8 cups of water per day. Ideally, we should be drinking 1 liter for every 50lbs of weight we carry (easiest formula to remember). So I should be drinking at least 3 liters per day. Technically, I should be drinking 12 cups...at least. But I'm working towards that "water goal." I know that drinking more water helped me drop pounds and I am certain a lot of it was "water weight." Which is fine with me. Like I said, I'm detoxing to be at a weight that is healthy for me.

Change #2 - SNACKS! I snack all the time now. It's the only way to make it thru the day without my tripas twisting inside of me. With snacking I notice I am more eating 5 small meals rather than 3 larger meals and 2 snacks. This works for me. I'm never hungry. And let's face it, who wants to be hungry? It makes you miserable. And the days I'm too busy to get my snack I am a mess! I'm starving and cranky. I need snacks! Some (still trying to find more) of my favorite snacks are (I group some of these to make it more of a small meal sometimes):

• Raw almonds (20), dry cranberries, dry cherries
• Whole wheat pretzel sticks from Trader Joe's (10)
  
• Light String Cheese (mozzarella & cheddar)
• yogurt (with your favorite topping - I just fell in love with TJs Organic Vanilla Bean lowfat yogurt topped with plain Special K - SO GOOD!)
• Fruit - bananas are great! Oranges, apples....you name it. I usually pair a fruit with one of the above.
• Protein - doesn't matter what - a shake (I don't do - I don't have protein powder), a bar (but only half! Bars are packed full of other crap you don't need unless you're about to work out), a slice of turkey rolled around your string cheese, peanut butter with apples or celery. Protein makes & keeps you feeling full!

Comment with your favorite snacks!


Change #3 - PORTION SIZE! I literally use my fist as reference now. Whatever goes on my plate must be the size of my fist (unless it's veggies). Now it hasn't always been. Like that portion of whole wheat penne the other day was about 2 fists. But hey I was hungry and it had been a extremely low calorie day. No bueno. BUT also not an excuse! I should have ate more during the day so that I wouldn't be starving come dinner. Snacking guys - it's that important. That day I had a late lunch and therefore missed my snack. This also caused me to eat dinner earlier and be starving before bed. Again - no bueno. I ended up having a banana that night, which is ok sometimes. Last - if you have trouble convincing yourself that that fist of yours is big enough, then serve yourself on a small plate (not the large dinner plate, but the so-called salad plate).

Change #4 - DO NOT EAT 3 HOURS BEFORE BEDTIME! Just don't. If you have eaten enough calories throughout the day, then you won't be hungry. You'll want something, but you won't be hungry. And the cafesito we all love at night, drink it straight after dinner so you don't tempt yourself later with craving for bread and cookies. My mom & I brew coffee straight after dinner and this has been great. It's our dessert. If I haven't reached my calories for the day I'll have a galleta maria with my coffee. Only 10 calories! But I said "a" galleta...just 1 (ok maybe 2)!

Change #5 - EAT CLEAN! No junk. Nothing processed. (I know...I know...the cookie) Lunch and dinner always consist of a veggies (steamed, boiled, or salad form), protien and starch. Starch in the form of brown rice or quinoa or oven roasted potatoes (the small ones not the giant ones you can "load"). Learn about quinoa and make it your friend (cooks just like rice). It's the new rice (not really, but Andy likes it). When protein is low I have a healthy serving a frijoles de la hoya. Not refried people. No one around to start your beans at 3pm? Then Sunvista is your friend. Canned whole beans. They taste just like moms (almost). Oh - and frijoleros, don't go crazy with the beans. Beans are packed with protein and nutrients and you don't want to go overboard. It is very possible to over eat and have your beans to thank for that. Make sure you're eating fish at least once a week (preferably wild salmon). Also - try my new favorite salad dressing. Trust - you'll LOVE it and you don't have to measure anything out. Drizzle your salad with EVOO (about 1tbsp), squeeze lemon juice on top, season with Sea salt (important....not table salt - toss that crap) and cracked pepper. So good! You'll never miss those fatty dressings again.

And not to knock down all the other super helpful posts by our non-challenge family members, but remember - I'm right there with you. This is all obviously working! And detoxing has been painful for me too. I had headaches and felt dizzy over the weekend, but it was my body reacting. I feel great this week (aside from coughing). I'm even sleeping better!

Good luck this weekend everyone! Let's make Monday's weigh in another great one!


*****NOTE: Notice no mention of exercise. I haven't been. I started and then got sick. Still hacking a lung today. Hoping to start the "fitness" aspect of this challenge in week 3.

Disclaimer
REMEMBER - We are all different. The same things don't work for everyone. But you can't go wrong with my tips. Change things up. Our bodies get use to repetition. And this is just me sharing about what I'm doing. Not preaching here and asking you to do what I do.

Weight Lost So Far, 2nd Weigh In

Alejandra -1.5
Arturo
Cathy 0
Cecy -1.29
Cristina -3
Daniel -2
Elena -5.5
Elvia -2
Eustaquio -0.60
Francisco -1.59
Gaby -6.30
Hortencia -5.80
Jeannie -2.09
Leslie
Leticia -3.5
Lola -5.30
Manfred -3.40
Marc 0
Mariela
Mario Jr. -3.89
Monica -1.60
Nancy -2.59
P.J.
Silvia -5.70
Sira -4
Tarcisio +0.90

Don't Let the Weather Rain on Your Fitness Parade

As I can imagine most of you used our rainy weather as an excuse not to exercise today. The weather should NEVER excuse laziness. Rain or shine, consistency in your workouts is always a must to achieve weight loss or any fitness goal. Our cousin Mario jr made it to the Rose Bowl on this rainy day, taking down 2 laps around the bowl. Mad props to the cuz. Now, on to other stuff. Please goggle or log on to Mapmyrun.com and get your Maximum Heart Rate and BMI. Both are crucial to achieving success. Your Max HR tells you how far you should be pushing yourself during your exercise. Your BMI will pretty much tell you how fat (or fit) you are. Your MAx Heart Rate is helpful in maintaining a fitness level during your workouts (it pushes you to work harder). I urge every single one of you to buy a heart rate monitor. That's a must people. They'll run you anywhere from $30 (Costco) to up in the hundreds. I encourage you to know your body and what the CDC says you should be doing and tolerating based on your age, height, and weight. All these tools could be found by googling BMI and Maximum Heart Rate.

Always remember that treadmills (and all other machines) lie to yo' face! The calorie count on those things are super duper exaggerated and should never be taken for face value. Most machines over estimate by 30% or way more. This is why a heart monitor is useful. Always remember that running 1mile at race pace of a 10min mile burns as little as 100 calories. Yes, this sucks but it's the sad truth. My treadmill always tells me I'm burning 200 calories per mile. Bullshit! But I always pretend it's true because it keeps me going. Yesterday it told me I had burned a total of 1,104 calories on my 8mile run. No way!

If you can read a book or magazine while on the treadmill you are NOT working out hard enough. If you can carry a conversation while you jog/run you are NOT pushing yourself. Leave the readings for bedtime and the conversations for "witty-witty" times. One should always concentrate on their breathing and body (aches, pains, form). Music is a great way to pump up your fitness with your jams. Oh, and TV is also not the best thing you can be doing while running. Ahem, I pulled a neck muscle once.

After a Heavy workout make sure you eat a 100-150 calorie snack within 30mins of your workout. "Heavy" would be considered 60min or longer of heart pounding, sweatin' to the jams, my toes ache or they would be aching if i felt them and I almost feel like throwing up exercise. Your muscles need to refuel. Working out less? DRINK WATER! Don't go messin' up your workout. Get rid of your sports drinks. Most of them are packed with sugar. Always remember that 4grams of that sweet stuff called sugar is equal to one small packet of sugar. Most sports drinks are 2servings and have way too much sugar. On a side note, your cereal should have 5g of sugar or less per serving.

Too much salt bloats you and dehydrates you making you super lazy to work out. One cup of Joe before your workout is recommended. Green Tea is your best friend and ups your metabolism and keeps you healthy in general. Use natural honey to sweeten it.

Okay, well now that you guys are one IQ smarter, lace up those tennis and get your butt moving. Rain or shine, fatness doesn't care and your life isn't going to wait till it's a perfect sunny day.

-Adeedodoo

Recipe Success

So i decide to try an invention with the barley i had in my pantry... I came up with Barley & Black Bean soup with added veggies! And to be honest it was really good not to mention healthy! I would say it makes approximately 4 servings! BTW: Natalie liked it, so great for kids!

Here's the recipe: (i used a 3Qt pot)
2 carrots (sliced into half moons)
2 potatoes ( sliced same size)
2 celery stalks ( sliced 1/4 - 1/2 onion ( cut pretty large)
1 garlic clove (left whole)
3/4 - 1 cup barley pearls (rinsed)
1 can whole black beans ( drained & rinsed)
2 (14oz.) cans of low-sodium chicken broth/ stock
and water add to fill up pot up to 3/4's the way up!
1 bay leave
pinch cumin
pinch dry thyme
1 table s. chicken bouillon ( caldo de pollo)
pepper ( and salt to taste)

Saute in grape seed oil in this order: onion, celery for 1 min. , add in carrots and potato about 5mins. Add chicken stock and water 3/4 the way up, bouillon, fresh ground pepper, bay leave, cumin, and thyme stir Add barley, bring to a simmer & cover for 45 mins... and in the last 10 minutes add black beans.. and Enjoy! Pretty easy i did it!
(keep in mind any of these veggies can be substitute)
xOxo - Nancy

A Little Tip In....Fast Food

Let's face it! Sometimes you just don't wanna cook or are to lazy to make lunch.

So what do you do?
You hit the fast food drive thru.

During this challenge you will come by a lot of temptations and Fast Food will be one of them. But don't worry, if your car happens to magically wonder into one of these temptation hot spots here a little help on what to order so u dont end up saying "Wish I didnt" or "Shouldn't have ate that"

Lets start with...

Jack in the Box:

• Chicken Fajita Pita and Side Salad with Fire Roasted Salsa (335 Calories, 12g Fat)
• Asian Grilled Chicken Salad with Roasted silvered Almonds and Low Fat Balsamic Dressing (310 Cals, 12.5g Fat)
• Hamburger Deluxe w/ Ketchup and Mustard, Hold the Mayo-Onion Sauce (280 Cals, 11g Fat)

McDonald's:
{No Soda, Get Ice Tea and Side Salad}

• Quater Pounder without cheese (410 cals, 19g)
• 6 Piece Chicken McNuggets (280 cals, 17g)
• Asian Salad with Grilled Chicken w/ Newman's own Low-fat Sesame Ginger Dressing (180 Cals, 12.5g Fat)

Burger King:

• Whopper Jr. without Mayo and Garden Salad (365 cals, 12g)
• Tender Grilled Chicken w/ Garden Salad and Light Italian dressing (36o cals, 20g fat)

Carl's jr:

• Charbroiled BBQ Chicken Sandwich (360 Cals, 4.5g Fat)
• Famous Star (600 Cals, 34g Fats)
  

In-N-out:

• Double-Double Hamburger Protein Style with Grilled Onions, Tomatoes, Mustard, and Ketchup (350 cals, 22g Fat)
• Cheeseburger (480 cals, 27g fat)
• 160z Arnold Palmer...Half lemonade, Half Iced Tea (90 cals, 0g Fat)

*Note: NEVER GET SODA WITH YOU MEAL.....EVER!!

I highly recommend you pick up "Eat this not that" great books with lots of info!

Next Time on "A Little Tip In..."
If you find yourself in front of a Vending Machine dont fear. I show you what snack you should get.

This has been A little Tip In.....with Rob

So how does Adeedodoo keep under 113lbs? 115lbs on a bad week.

Well, besides genetics (Juan V is a slender man) here is my secret:

Every Sunday I prepare lentils and an additional dish. My favorite one so far has been cooking lean turkey, smothered in taco bell seasoning (small packet seasoning you can get for about 99cents) with whole-wheat pasta. I call it Adedodoo’s Helper.

I pack my lunch the night before. I always include the following and I ALWAYS PACK MY LUNCH NO MATTER HOW FREAKIN TIRED I AM:

9:00am : Oatmeal with non-fat milk, 1 banana, and 1 packet of Splenda. RELIGIOUSLY!!!

All morning long COFFEE!!! 6 cups and 3 cups of hot tea J

My oatmeal I pack to-go since I don’t have time to eat in the morning. My car has so many milk stains it ain’t even funny.

10:30 am: Raisins and dried cranberries

12noon: Lentils (RELIGIOUSLY), Adedodoo’s Helper, and maybe a tostada or homemade salad with my mom’s veggie shake

2:00pm: A peach or more raisins and cranberries with chile! Try it before you knock it.

4:00pm: Handful of nuts or chopped up fruit

6:00pm: A fuji apple (they’re the BEST) and a string cheese. RELIGIOUSLY

7:30pm: Nothing. Maybe a small, super small plate of something (like a fist full)

8:30pm: CEREAL 110 calories or less with 5gm of sugar or less (RELIGIOUSLY)

Tons of water. I limited my water from 3 litters to 1.5 liters. I heard I could drown from so much water. Not only that but too much water severely depletes your sodium levels.

NO PACKAGED FOODS, NO CHIPS, NO COLAS, NO JUNK FOOD, NO COOKIES, NO NADA Monday-Friday. Get that? You have to stick to it. Saturday and Sundays are free days ONLY when you have reached a desired weight. If not, KEEP TO IT!

If I get tempted M-F I will only taste. Or if I can’t control my craving of hot cheetos I buy a small bag, eat a few and soak the rest with water. True story!

Exercise: T, W, F, S, Su is cardio. I strive for 6 miles. I do lots of crunches. Mondays and Thursdays are my days off.

SLEEP is really important!! People who typically get less than 8hrs of sleep are overweight! I turn everything off (even if I am not sleepy) by 9pm to wake up at 5am for my morning runs.

Now, C’mon bitches. You guys can do this. Focus on your goal. Focus on being healthy and not just winning the price. Positive self-talk is super useful during hard times.

Buy health magazines!  They are my motivators to continue going. Women over 40, buy Prevention Magazine.

Your weight loss guest correspondent,

-       Adeedodoo 

Contract

The following is the contract signed by most of you, yesterday, January 11th, 2010. For those of you that have not signed it, I will be forwarding your copy as soon as possible.

I, the undersigned, do hereby consent and agree that the GFam Fitness Challenge 2010 and its agents have the right to take weight information and/or other identifying personal information of me beginning on January 9, 2010 and ending on June 1st and to use these in any and all media, now or hereafter known, and exclusively for the purpose of GFam Fitness Challenge 2010. I further consent that my name and identity may be revealed therein or by descriptive text or commentary.

I do hereby release to GFam Fitness Challenge 2010 and its agents all rights to exhibit this work in print and electronic form publicly or privately.

I understand that there will be no financial or other remuneration for recording me, either for initial or subsequent transmission or playback.

I also understand that GFam Fitness Challenge 2010 is not responsible for any expense or liability incurred as a result of my participation in this challenge, including medical expenses due to any sickness or injury incurred as a result.

I understand the $40 entry fee will be kept by an agent of the GFam Fitness Challenge 2010 as part of the end prize for the announced winners. I understand the $40 entry fee is non-refundable once the decision to enter the challenge has been made. Full payment is due by February 28th. If not paid in full by this date, you and any payments made will be forfeited.

I also understand the GFam Fitness Challenge 2010 and its agents will make the final determination of the winner (based on pre-set qualifications). Any complaints and/or grievances regarding the decision must be submitted in writing within 10 minutes of the announcement of the winners. The winners will be given the cash prize after the public announcement has been made.

I represent that I am at least 16 years of age, have read and understand the foregoing statement, and am competent to execute this agreement.

*without the aid of dietary supplements.

Scale Error

For those of you that weighed in at the Vega residence, I had to adjust your initial weight by adding .6 ounces to your weight. The scale was slightly off. Please adjust your charts accordingly. Thanks

Final Count

Final participant list and initial weights!

Cecy 210.1
Tarcisio 169.1
*Cristina 190.0
Jessica 129.2
Alejandra 136.7
Silvia 207.9
Lola 211.3
Monica 228.3
*Elena 250.0
Manfred 177.8
Hortencia 186.8
*Cathy 161.0
Eustaquio 205.8
Leticia 143.5
Francisco 201.6
Mario 227.7
Arturo 242.0
PJ 167.6
*Elvia 198.4
Nancy 137.1
Gaby 163.0
Sira 148.8
Jeannie 210.1
Mariela 124.6

Leslie 156

Marc 225.8

* participants that do not have a signed contract. I will be forwarding one to you this week.

All entry fees have to be paid by February 28th. Danny will be giving us the information regarding the paypal account to pay your fee.

Because of the awesome turnout, it has been decided that the jackpot ($960)will be divided into three prizes:

1st prize will get 60% ($576.00)
2nd prize will get 30% ($288.00)
3rd prize will get 10% ($96.00)

Watch out for updates on here. Adriana has agreed to give us tips and ideas on HEALTHY weight loss. Any questions or concerns please leave a comment and it will be addressed in 24 hours.

Okay, on your mark...get set...GO!

WE HAVE BEGUN!

Pot Is Getting Full!

So far with the number of people joining the challenge there is a possible pot of $640.00 US dollars. If that is not a motivator to join, then I don't know what is. =)

Start Day is....

...the 11th of January.

Danny the Host of GFam Fitness Challenge

Danny has volunteered to be the mediator of the challenge!

Yay, Danny! Thanks a bunch.

He has agreed to receive our weekly weight for him to track. He will also be in charge of the $40 fee. Payments will be accepted, sorry cash only! The $40 must be paid by May 24th. This is the last Monday before the 1st of June.

When you email Danny (at dan.g46@gmail.com) you will have to give him the following information:

Name, Date and your current weight.
Also include any information regarding fees that you need him to know.

The challenge will end on May 30th and the winner will be announced on June 1st.

We will have to plan on getting together on May 30th to do all the final weigh ins. That is a Sunday.

Formula For Pounds Lost!

There has been questions raised as to how this works, so here the math

Divide the weight loss by the starting weight and multiply the answer by 100.

Ex: Starting weight = 200, pounds lost = 30/200 = .15 .15x100 = 15%

Ex: Starting weight = 130, pounds lost = 5/130 = .04 .04x100 = 4%

So the winner is the 200 lb person!

Mediator

We will also be looking for a member of the family who will not be joining in the challenge to mediate/host.

I was going to volunteer, but as I am going to be participating I don't think it is fair for me to handle it. Anybody can volunteer. Preferably an adult, sorry kids.

This person will be in charge of the entry fees and the weigh in information.

Who's In So Far

Me, Cecy
Elvia
Cathy
Mario
Jessica
Nancy
Jeannie
Cristina
Robertito
GeeFunk
Sira
Mariela
Efren
Silvia
Jessica
Alejandra
Arturo
Elena
Monica
Lola
Tarcisio
Leslie
Marc
Francisco
Leticia
Eustaquio

We will have to invite others not on Twitter.

The challenge will have to begin on January 11 for the 20 weeks to be complete. The entry fee will be $40.

For it to be fair we will have to be weighed in, either all together or at least one other participant has to be a witness. Specific body measurements can be kept by each participant for their own informational purposes, but will not be disclosed. Only the weight will be disclosed.

For those of us that are scared to show our weight, (ME), I say, let's do it anyway. More motivation to see that number go down...

Okay, I am excited now. Hopefully all of you will be too!

Cecy

Let It Begin

AS we enter 2010 let us encourage each other to live a healthier lifestyle. We will create a challenge to monitor the challenges and achievements of each participant. This blog will be updated on a weekly basis. The list of participants will be created at the next family event.

We can do this! Rock on!