Health Challenge Event - Week 1

Thanks for joining GivingNSharing's first annual Health Challenge Event.  Honestly, this is my way to kick start my own weight loss program and I'm holding myself accountable to you.  I've received the Walk, Eat and Lose program from WalkAtHome.com and will be using that program.  Don't want to add another set of DVD's to your stash of Exercise videos - at least until you know you like the program?  You might want to look at WalkAtHome.com's Walk Club. 

WALK AT HOME is designed to help you become walking-fit in the comfort of your own home. Walk at Home is fitness fun for everyone and every age. There’s nothing complicated to learn and you don’t need fancy equipment.


If you can walk, you can do this!

Introducing the Walk Club!

• Changes your fitness level and improves your health.
• Challenges to keep you motivated all year long!
• Not only do you get Exclusive streaming workouts, meal plans, fitness calendars and more but you get the support of one of the best communities you can find on the internet! You also get a 15% discount on all products in the store.

Email me for a complete explanation of what you get with the Walk Club - they are in the process of revamping that page and it's not available.  I have it in a handy write up that you can print and post.

Take it from Our Walkers:
I joined the Walk club in Nov 05 after discovering Leslie's videos. It is the best decision I have ever made. I truly found my second family. The wonderful women and men are here to cheer each other on and they are there to lift you up when you fall. We even have Walk Challenge teams! It doesn't matter if you are just starting out or are a veteran walker. Leslie says we are here for each other. The Walk Club has helped me lose 117.3 pounds, and it gave me the courage to change my lifestyle one day at a time. I am a whole new person, and I thank God that he led me to Leslie's videos and her Walk Club. ~ from Mandi

There is a charge for this program - $29.99 - for the WHOLE YEAR!  That's $2.50 a month!  How many of you can join a gym for $2.50 a month?  You get streaming videos so you can walk in your living room, bedroom, study or even at the office if they'll let you do them there. 

You don't have to get out in bad weather (it's been -30 this week - bitterly freezing cold), you can call your friends over or take turns at each other's houses each week and exercise together.  You could even have a luncheon afterwards and keep each other accountable by keeping track of your weight, inches lost - whatever will help you improve your health.

There are TRY IT Videos if you'd like to see a class online before you BUY IT.  These are FREE.                  http://www.walkathome.com/try-walk-at-home/

This would also be a great opportunity if you are ready to go to the next level of exercise and are ready to try the Express or Advanced levels of WalkingAtHome.

I would be interested in hearing if anyone has used this program for losing weight.  Please leave your comments below and if you do join let us know so we can form a group or something to help each other.  Remember, I set up a group online at:  PeerTrainer.com - sign up (it's FREE) and look for the group: Health Challenge Event

Buddy Up & Slim Down

with WalkAtHome.com

Improv(e) your Butt Challenge

Do we have any Quilters, sewers, crafters, designers, jewelers, etc......?  Here's a FUN way to motivate yourself to lose weight, improve your nutrition, exercise more - whatever YOU're goals are:




Jacquie over at Tall Grass Prairie Studio (here) and Katie at Sew Katie Did (here) challenged each other last year to take a break from sewing & quilting and get some exercise every once in a while and they came up with a plan to motivate themselves using something they LOVE as a reward.  I'm going to post their plan, and if you think it will help motivate you, go for it.  I'll add the link to sign up for the plan at the end - let me know if you're going to give it a try.  I just might - I love to sew & quilt!


Quilter's Butt and an Improv(e) Challenge


Alas, those of us who sit in front of sewing machines (and computers) for long periods of time are prone to that only whispered about in coffee shops syndrome known as the dreaded Quilter's Butt. There are similar maladies for other artist and crafter types who spend long hours doing anything but exercising and avoiding and making seriously legitimate excuses for not hopping on the treadmill, jumping on a bike or hitting the pool.

My friend Katie and I met on the internet and we initially connected trying to motivate each other to exercise. We know that exercise and healthy living will allow us to be more productive quilters and in the end isn't that what it's all about? We want to quilt longer and harder, so we need to be in shape.

When Katie was visiting Kansas last month she suggested I join this government site that tracks your exercise. It's a virtual transcontinental trip across the United States. She suggested that we become partners to motivate each other. I was all over that. I need all the help I can get!

Are you like that? You want to, you know you should, but you can't seem to get your quilter butt out of that chair? We thought it would be great if we could form a team and get a whole bunch of quilters to join with us. So, Team 'Quilter Butts' was formed and the 'Improv(E) Your Butt Challenge' was born.

HERE'S HOW IT WORKS. To join in, you need to head to the site and sign up as a participant. It's all confidential too! You'll be able to set an individual exercise goal. When you sign up you'll get an ID number. To join Team Quilter Butts and the challenge, email me your id number and whatever you want me to put in the sidebar of my blog. (your first name, an alias and a link if you'd like.) Katie and I will add you to the team. My email is jgeringirre (at) yahoo (dot) com.

You can decide what activity you want to qualify as your exercise. The options on the site are biking, running, and run/walk, but Katie is counting her water aerobics and I'm counting my swimming. You can figure out how to convert your activity into miles. You can enter your exercise daily or whenever you have a minute or two. You'll be able to track your own miles as well as the team's. It's all on the honor system so you're on your own. Do you think that together we can make it all the way across America? We do!!

So, how does quilting fit into this challenge? Both Katie and I love to improvise, so this is an IMPROV challenge too. For every mile you log, you get one piece of fabric. My weekly goal is 15 miles. So, if I achieve my goal, at the end of the week, I get 15 pieces of fabric that I can sew together in some improvisational way. You can use scraps, or you can cut new fabric. You can add a piece one mile at a time or you can collect them on your design wall and then sew them together at the end. If you want to make a potholder from your first 15 pieces, go for it. It's up to you. Improvise!! We're going to try to keep the challenge going for at least 6 months...let's see... 4 weeks a month, 15 miles each week x 6 months...that's 360 pieces of fabric. Imagine what I or you could make from that!

I'm pretty sure I'm making a quilt. I haven't decided what colors or if I want to use scraps or cut new fabric, but I have time to decide. I'm only 5 miles into my trip across the US. I have a LONG way to go.

Let's report our weekly fitness and improv progress on Fridays. Fitness Friday has a nice ring to it, don't you think? Feel free to post photos of your quilty goodness in the Project Improv flickr group. We'll be cruising the group to look for in progress and finished work to highlight on our blogs. Be sure to let us know this is your 'Quilter's Butt' Challenge piece!

We're working on some fun motivation for all of us along the way. If you'd like to contribute to the cause, feel free to contact Katie or I.

Here's the code so you can add the button to your blog.

Enter HERE to sign up - then follow the directions in this post - or you can read the original post on Tall Grass Studio

Tools you may find helpful

Health Challenge Event - starts 1/15/11 - 

click here to sign up for the event.

Use the links below for additional information for health and wellness.

Curves Website:

Click on a link below for specific resource pages as referenced in the book Curves:

•	Download Blank Daily Meal Planner Pages
•	Download Blank Metabolic Tune-up Tracking Charts
•	Download Blank Weekly Progress Report

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