Operation Weight Loss - Week 1

Week 1
Originally uploaded by rj_ross.rm

*Giveaway Closed* Congratulation to Naomi!

After one week of implementing the Jenny Craig - food, mind and body approach to healthy living I have lost 8.2 pounds! In addition to the portion controlled Jenny meals and my additional produce and milk additions I of course exercised. One of the most welcome surprises was the Jenny Craig lemon cake. Oh my gosh, I can't even begin to explain to you how delicious it is and having that treat on the menu is such a bonus. It just goes to show you that eating healthy does not mean having to give up life's sweet pleasures. And actually, I have to say that I have enjoyed most of the food on my plan. I think my least favorite thing has been the anytime bar but over time I have actually started to be okay with the taste. This week I am alternating with multi-vitamins and the addition of a milk instead of the bars. I love that flexibility. Another thing that I plan on doing is integrating my own breakfast next week. Although this is not suggested for everyone, I am pretty sure that I will be able to manage.

EA SPORTS Active More Workouts is simply amazing. Without More Workouts I know I would not be as successful with my weight loss. I love the scenery - although I don't have plans on going to a tropic island anytime soon, the vivid graphics on More Workouts inspire me and are visually pleasing. I really like the variety of activities, like the obstacle course, the outrun - where you have to sprint to pass other runners, combo boxing (my favorite), squash, and waterskiing. And this is just a sample of the activities that I do with More Workouts. I have been so happy with my progess so far and wanted to celebrate my weight loss with you - so at the end of this post there is something special......

But right now, I am posting the dreaded "before" picture. Although I didn't take one last week, every week from now on I will be posting my photo. I am also keeping the photos on flickr, this time next year I want to be able to see my accomplishments. Posting my photo here and on flickr is all about accountability. I find that I am more successful when I am accountable not only to myself but others. And for me that means having a community (or communities) around me for support. Here are some of the communities that have helped me and if you are on a journey to healthy living perhaps they can help you too.

Community and cheerleaders
I find that I am much better at weight loss and healthy living when people know that I am working on improving my life. Like - a lot of people. I wasn't always this way, I used to just go to the gym, workout and be surprised when I received a compliment about my physique. That is not happening at the moment. I don't think in my current state I will get many compliments on my body but I am working on it.

In the meantime, since I don't go to the gym I have to reach out to the community that I have and find new ones. This has been fairly simple because I went to the largest community I could think of to talk about my weight loss journey - twitter. I chat on twitter about the steps I log on my pedometer and my victories - as well as defeat. I find that having a community around me encourages, motivates and inspires me to do better.

Here are a few sources for community and inspiration that I tap into:

Jenny Craig - although I am only in week two of the program it has been outstanding. The first week I met Roz, the manager of the center. After my initial consultation she called me - the day before Thanksgiving to talk to me about my plan for the holiday and ask how the program was working for me. On Saturday I also received a card in the mail, the front said Congratulations! and inside I found a handwritten note from Roz congratulating me on taking the steps to change my life. And I also received a reminder call about my appointment on Monday. When I weighed in everyone was impressed with my weight loss and they all congratulated me. The environment at Jenny Craig is so warm and supporting - even if this was my only community I know I'd be okay. I also utilize the online JC community, the forums, meal tracker and diary entries are very helpful for me.

EA SPORTS Active More Workouts Challengers - The other 11 men and women on the challenge are both a source for inspiration and motivation for me. We check in with each other on twitter and facebook as well as chronicle our experiences on the main EA SPORTS Active website. They help me stay on my toes and I can't wait to meet everyone in January to see how we've all progressed during the Challenge. There is also a forum on the website where anyone participating in the Challenge can discuss their experiences.


Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans - These ladies write about their weight lost and fitness journey on a daily basis and once a week on Wednesday have a check-in. For six week intervals they have challenges that you can participate in. It is a wonderful community of women (and 1 man). I met Christy on my recent trip to Cali, she is also a EA SPORTS Active More Workouts 6 Week Challenger.

Bookieboo- My friend Leah has this community of people interested in a fit and healthy lifestyle. And recently she started Mamavation to support a Moms trying to get fit and healthy. I enjoy watching and cheering on the progress of the Mamavation moms and Leah is certainly one of my biggest cheerleaders on twitter.

Los Angelista- My friend Liz aka Los Angelista, is holding a Holiday Fitness Challenge on her blog. She is challenging everyone to workout at least 30 minutes a day, keep a food journal and weigh in weekly.

Tweightloss 2010 - Another friend, Audrey McClellan started this twitter support group 18 months ago and last year her husband lost a whopping 80 pounds! I don't have all the details about how this works but if you send an email to her husband @formerlyfatmatt at tweightloss@gmail.com. I am pretty sure I am joining up with this too.


I am not suggesting that you join all of theses communities but I do recommend finding a community that works for you. I think that talking to others that understand the challenges of healthy living and support your lifestyle change is extremely important for success.

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This is probably the longest post in history but I've saved the best for last. To help celebrate my weight loss the kind folks at EA SPORTS Active are sponsoring a giveaway of EA SPORTS Active More Workouts!

If you win we can become accountability partners too! All you have to do is leave a comment that explains what you are doing over the holiday season to ensure that pounds don't creep up. *Mandatory entry*

And of course there are Extra Entries:

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Tweet the giveaway. To make it easy you can use this text: Enter to win #EASactive More Workouts on Cutiebootycakes Blog @reneejross ://bit.ly/92aDCu Pls R/T

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Good Luck! This giveaway is open until 9:00 PM on Friday, December 11, 2009. One winner will be chosen by random. Winners will be notified by email (please be sure to include your email address if it is not in your profile) and have 48 hours to respond. Otherwise, an alternate winner will be chosen.

Disclosure - I received a copy of EA SPORTS Active More Workouts to participate in the 6 week challenge and I am also receiving a discount on Jenny Craig. This however in no way influences my opinions.