So sheepishly we walk every Wednesday morning towards the enemy, the scale. For some reason we think that it will help to shed the gym shorts, which in all reality probably weight a couple of ounces. But this Wednesday it was the sweet sight of success. Down ten pounds since the start of the journey. Again, ten pounds off me is the equivalent of lobbing a couple of deck chairs off the Titanic. But it indeed was a victory, albeit small.

As you read our blogs we hope you don’t tire of hearing words of wisdom from successful people, but what a better place to find wisdom but from those who have reached their goals in life. Today we find encouragement from one of the truly decent guys who ever coached in the NFL.

When the Carolina Panthers first came to Charlotte, their first head coach was a guy named Dom Capers. He was a lawn and garden guy so we had a lot in common and sometimes talked after practice. The first major hurdle he faced was the fact that his first ever draft pick a quarterback was holding out and not participating in training camp. And that begged the question to the coach, “How bad does this bother you.”

He said not at all, and when he gave his reasoning we believed him. He said he only worried about the things that were in his control, and a hold out was way beyond anything he could control. A pretty simple thought yes, but it can apply to the battle we wage everyday.

We can’t control how other people treat us, but we can control how we treat ourselves.  We can control how much water we drink every day, and how much protein we take in and how often we hit the gym.  We can’t control when the sun comes up, but we can make time for exercise.

At one time or another we have all been guilty of spending a lot of time worrying about things that are out of our control.  And that negative energy can be placed elsewhere, and could one day result in the sweet sight of success on the scale.

Hope this finds you well and healthier then the day before. Did you enjoy the Olympics? I love the winter Olympics. It just amazes me the incredible things people can do on skis, snow boards and skates. I am also glad my favorite show is back on…The Biggest Loser! Did you know that there is also The Biggest Loser Show in Australia? I did not realize that Bob and Jillian are also there. What dedicated people.

Well, I have taken a leap of faith and am applying to be on the Biggest Loser Show. I am going to the Detroit open casting call March 13. For me the Biggest Loser is my hope and I want to have the opportunity to share that hope with others who are bound by their obesity like I am. See, I have never been thin…never ever…I do not know what it feels like or what I would look like thin. I have not been able to connect the eating, exercise and lifestyle to get it to work for me. I believe if I got the opportunity to be on the show I could connect it all together. Believe me I have tried…I have been on diets since I have been 8 years old…that is 34 years of my life! Do you know what happens to obese children? They become obese adults and tend to have their own obese children. It’s a vicious cycle to live in. It’s not my effort and yes I have a million excuses to go along with why I am fat.

It would be so cool to be drinking the Designer Whey Biggest Loser Protein Powder while on the show! I would be so geeked to do that! Whether I get on or not is not what matters. What matters is that I draw inspiration from the crowd of people who have just as much chance as me to be on the show. I heard in Chicago that 1000 people tried out. I think there should be Biggest Loser Shows in every town. This program brings miracles to desperate people seeking answers and hope. What’s sad is that our insurance companies will pay for us to have gastric bypass and not set up programs like the biggest loser ranch.

Oh it’s been a beautiful sunny week here is Michigan. So glad to say to my kids “Go out and play!” Opened up a few windows to let some fresh air in, felt so good. I have to admit to my friends who read this… I have not been to the gym in over 2 weeks! My excuse…I was in charge of our school carnival and was extremely busy. But now that the carnival is over, I got to get back to the gym! I have to figure a way to get some equipment at home so on the days I don’t have the time to go to the gym I could at least do a workout at home, I suppose I could do that anyway and should. One of the Biggest Loser winners, Bill Germanakos suggested like on the ranch get a doctor, therapist, nutritionist and trainers…just do it. Something to consider…putting together a team of people to help us. Of course my program must include Designer Whey. Designer Whey has supported my weight loss journey for a long time now and even though I have struggles with my weight all along they have always been there to suggest and give advice… Love these guys!

I need to keep going, get back on track, and figure this out. I am about to send my oldest off to college with my eating habits and my exercises habits and I am afraid for her. She is already 30 pounds overweight. We visited the campus…let me tell you these kids have the best food available from 7 am until midnight, 7 days a week. All the ice cream they want…huge portions…all the soda pop they want…all the desserts they want…I am scared for my daughter that she will follow my footsteps…
So my friends on March 13 I hope you send me a special thought as I wait for my turn to have the opportunity of a lifetime so that I can bring that hope back home to my daughter, family and friends.

Take Care,
Camille

As it turns out, swimming is much more than a way to cool off on a hot day.  It’s one of the best overall workouts there is.  It combines a great cardio workout with a strength workout built for toning up your arms, chest and legs, meaning that a short amount of time in the pool can add up to the equivalent of way more time in the gym.  And it can be very relaxing while you do it, making it even better.  Please allow me to break down what I’m doing in the pool.

I get in, and thankfully my pool is heated.  Now, I’m not here to lazily float around and just bask in the mid-morning or afternoon sun.  I’m here to work.  But it’s kind of like working at a really fun place, because I love to swim.  I plant my feet at one end of the pool, push off the wall and start the American Crawl from one end to the other, focusing on both my form and my kicking, my breathing, and my swimming path.  I really don’t want to run into the wall or Sergio half-way down the pool.  I go to the other end, and without touching my feet on the bottom I embrace the wall and turn around with a good kick-off, and I go back to the other side yet again.  I go back and forth without stopping for absolutely as long as I can, which isn’t very long because I’m still pretty out of shape and this is a rather intense workout.  When I absolutely can’t go any further, I stop at one end and catch my breath for a little while, then I start going on “one-way trips” where I only swim to the other side.  I do as many of those as I can also.  Every lap or half lap you do (a lap is considered down and back) is that much more work that you’re forcing your body to do, and it’s working out almost your entire body.  Keep going, and going, and going, until you can’t breathe anymore and your muscles ache because they haven’t been used like this is forever, and then do one more lap for good measure.  Then, if you’re lucky like me, you can get out of the pool and go directly into the hot tub and relax some more.

I’ve found that swimming with a friend, especially someone who is in much better shape than you, is most rewarding.  Why specifically someone who is in much better shape? Because that person can benefit from swimming some laps as well, but they have to go harder and farther than you to get that same benefit that you’re getting.  What I do with Sergio is he has to do DOUBLE the laps that I do.  So if I do 5 laps (which is, again, down and back) he has to do 10 laps.  If I’m feeling extra-energetic, and decide to do 6, or even 7 then he has to do 12 or 14 laps, respectively.  So if I push myself a little bit more, it pushes him a lot more, which is great motivation for me to go as long and as hard as I can, so that I can punish him a little bit.  And he loves it, because it’s helping him with his cardio and his toning as well.  We make a game out of it, by pushing each other to go further and further.  I also love to handicap him by making him do more difficult strokes, like the butterfly or the breast stroke, which will focus on different muscles as well.   And that’s something you can do also.  Go down using the crawl, go back using the breast stroke, go down again using the butterfly, go back using the back stroke, etc.  By mixing it up you’ll put the strength focus on different muscle groups, while still working out all of them in the general whole.  And at the end of your swim, when you’re gasping for air because you didn’t realize that swimming was this much of a workout, remember one thing: you’re still in a pool, working out, and enjoying the water and the sun.  Then go hit the hot tub with a bottle of Protein Water to rehydrate you, and bask in your glory of another successful workout.  Enjoy, and until next time, KEEP AT IT!

And then, there is my true Achilles’ heel, my weakness. The crystalline liquid that takes me so far away most every evening. My wine. I love big, heavy red wine. Sniffing, swirling, sipping, into heavenly bliss. But it’s gotta go. At least down to an occasional glass. Sad, but true.

There is no truth to the rumor that the last time I went to the beach a couple of marine biologists tried to push me back in the water, but I was about 15-20 pounds overweight. But one person did ask me if I actually knew where my gym was. So with boating season  just weeks away it’s time to get serious. With the help of Designer Whey products, and a really wonderful friend who has offered to help me, I plan to shed some pounds, get in shape, and feel better about myself.

There are many tips out there about how to stay fit if you have to travel. Many hotels have side deals with local gyms for discounted daily rates. That gets you out of the usually under-equipped, overcrowded hotel fitness center. It also helps me to stay in my own time zone and avoid the west coast late night hunger binge. That really means you’re feeding your body well after 8pm, only the clock says 5pm. And if you’re forced to eat out, and out of your normal time zone, almost any restaurant will let you order a slab of grilled chicken on a bed of greens. Just make sure the dressing is fat free.

So as we sit today, I’m 44 but feel like 55, 245, but feel like 255. Stay tuned and we’ll shed this baggage together!

I am constantly trying to come up with new things to keep my diet and exercise routines interesting so that I don’t get bored and get tempted to go a astray. I know most of you can relate to that! Being that it has been colder in most parts of the country and I been traveling a lot, I have started mixing my vanilla and chocolate protein in with my oatmeal a lot but I also wanted to share with you that I have also been putting it in with my coffee. I know some of you might be thinking GROSS! However I promise you for me it makes me feel as if I getting a vanilla latte or a mocha drink from a local coffee shop.

So I’m not sure if any of you know but I am training for the Boston marathon and as a result of this I have found that I am constantly hungry. Which as you can imagine for me is a little scary. I do however realize that my body is just telling me what it is that I need so I’m OK with it. One thing that I have noticed however, and if any of you are feeling the same way it might help, is that whenever I increase the ways that I add my protein into my diet it prevents me from experiencing as often. So get creative and share with me as well because Lord knows I can always use the help!

I have a lot of really fun things coming up this summer so I hope you will continue to follow my journey as I share my ah ha’s, struggles & triumps.

Till next time- Ali xo

Just got back from the gym, burned 812 calories. I had a friend ask me why I was not extremely sore for all I do. I said, “Well, after I work out I drink a bottle of Designer Whey Protein Water”. Generally when a person my size works out we are just about dying in pain the next day. Now, don’t get me wrong, I am achy but not sore. I contribute that to drinking the Protein Water and if I am out of the water I mix a 2GO pack in my water bottle. It really helps you recover.

The Biggest Loser show was a hoot this week! Some pretty thick tension on the ranch… ya think? I don’t know, I would do what ever I had to do to stay as long as possible on the ranch so GO RED! I really would not even care about the money. I would be more concerned with trying to get the most out of my time there so I could bring what I learned home to stay healthy. I get to the gym at least 5 days a week and at least 30 minutes up to 90 minutes each time. I really wished I had a home gym, then I could get in much more time when a moment was open like while dinner was cooking or after kids in bed or before they get up.

One of my faults is wanting to be too perfect. For example, I will draw up a schedule for eating, exercise, house work, my jobs etc. and when it does not go exactly the way I plan I give up. When the house is not perfectly clean (which is most of the time) I really get upset but because its not perfect I don’t do anything. I am typically an ‘all or nothing person’. So this time I am setting simple goals for my health.

A simple goal… eating enough calories at breakfast.

In Bob Harper’s book “Are you ready”, he says your breakfast calories should be between 400-600 calories. All meals should have protein, carbs and good fats. He also says to eat every four hours… have to work on that one!

My 17 year old daughter, Sue and I are really trying to get to the gym as often as possible. She has a goal. We bought her prom dress purposely a size too small. Her goal is to lose 15 pounds to fit in the dress. I as her mom have to encourage her and be a good example.

Take Care friends, remember to bring your Designer Whey Protein Water to the gym with you and when some one asks where you get it from…you say from the best protein makers in the world…Designer Whey!

Camille

Back from vacation and back to reality. We had a great time. It was cold in Florida; we wore our winter coats to the beach! We took a boat out to watch for dolphins. We were able to spot few dolphins and it was one of the warmest days we had. Kids swam with the dolphins on another adventure but it was only 58 degrees so they were just a bit little cold. My older two kids did indoor sky diving, lots of fun! One thing I noticed on vacation is I do not over eat; nor am I stressed. I feel like having my kids live out of a suit case and only a few toys. I don’t know why but my kids do not trash grandma’s trailer. My conclusion is a few things and that is at home they do not respect our home; they have too many clothes and way too many toys, too much TV and not enough fun. Now to bring the vacation behavior back in our home!

I finally got to watch the Biggest Loser show. I missed the first one because we were in Florida and did not have access to TV. But I did get to watch the 2nd show and am very excited for the new contestants. Their success is my hope. The difference between the contestants and me is they have a support system, they have the education, they have the equipment and the trainers. So I have to figure out how to have such a system.

I did join our local Fitness 19 and I can tell, physically, I am improving every time I go. It feels good to accomplish exercising. Sometimes I wish my family would step aside and make sure I get the time to go more often. It would be even better if I could have a treadmill at home but at this point we can’t afford it so at the gym it has to be. Fitness 19 is only $12.00 a month per person so it’s affordable. I am proud to say I was able to walk on the treadmill for 5 miles at an incline 4.0-4.5 and the rate of 3.0-3.5 and I burned over 1000 calories!

Today, Fox Reality had a Biggest Loser Marathon from Season 4 when Bill Germanakos won. I wonder what ever happened to Kim the trainer.

Some cool tips I wrote down…

If it had a mother it is protein.
All meals and snacks should have a combination of Carbs, Protein and Fat.
If your body is burning sugar it is not burning fat.
Anything is possible if you put in the work.

Remember to eat, move, then rest. I used to move, eat, then rest. I had it wrong. It’s all about moving forward and working toward our mark. For years I ate next to nothing and now have learned that is not the right way. You have to eat!

Oh! oh! oH! OH! I figured out a cookie recipe using Designer Whey Vanilla Protein Powder.

Designer Whey Chocolate Chip Cookies
Kid tested!
Makes about 3 dozen

½ cup butter (room temperature)
½ cup Sun Crystals (new stevia/cane mix) or splenda
2 tablespoon regular brown sugar or 1 tablespoon brown sugar splenda
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon real vanilla extract
1 ½ cups of Designer Whey Vanilla Protein Powder
½ teaspoon baking soda (you can add an extra ¼ teaspoon if you like puffy cookies)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon milk (2 tablespoons if you like thinner cookies)
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate mini-chips

Preheat oven to 375. In a medium mixing bowl, beat butter and sun crystals or slenda until well blended. Add the egg whites and vanilla; beat well. In a separate bowl mix the Designer Whey Powder, baking soda, salt, slowly add to the butter mix along with the milk until well blended. Stir in the mini chocolate chips. Drop by using a teaspoon onto an ungreased non-stick cookie sheet. Bake 7-8 minutes. Remove from pan right away onto a cooling rack, Cool completely. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Version

Add ½ cup peanut butter
Increase baking soda by ¼ teaspoon
Increase milk to 2 tablespoons
Omit the chocolate chips if you want
Smash down with a fork making criss-cross design

When you first take the cookies out of oven they have the consistency similar to cake but let sit over night out and they will be crispy. It is true you can replace flour with Designer Whey Vanilla Protein Powder in baking! Yey Whey!

Have a great week friends. Watch Biggest Loser Tuesdays!

Camille

So here’s my plan, and here are my goals:
1) I want to reduce my weight down to 175 pounds.  That’s a reduction of 87 pounds.  I know it’s possible, I just have to keep at it, no matter what happens.  This is really all I’m going for.  With the weight reduction will come more energy and a better lifestyle, being able to breathe easier, and fitting into the clothes I own and into newer styles of clothes (with the new trends towards skinny this and skinny that, it’s getting harder and harder to find decent clothes these days).
2) Get into well-enough shape to run a marathon.  I don’t want to run a marathon because I want to run a marathon, I just want to be in shape enough to BE ABLE to run a marathon.  That’s almost 3 hours (or much, much longer if I don’t run very fast) of constant running, and that would hurt.  But to be able to do it, that’s what I want.

–And this is what I’m looking at to help me:
1) Working out several times a week.  At least 3-4 times a week.  A mixture of running and other cardio workouts, weight-lifting, and basic core workouts like sit-ups and push-ups.  Nothing too fancy or over-the-top.  Just basic and focused.  It’s worked for me before, and it’s going to work again.
2) Watching what (and more importantly how much) I eat.  For the last several years I’ve been eating almost exclusively fast food.  And although it’s not too terrible to have a burger once in a while, it’s probably not a great idea to have 3 Ultimate Breakfast Sandwiches for breakfast, 2 Ultimate Bacon Cheeseburgers (with large fries and large soda) for lunch, and likewise for dinner everyday.  If I eat healthier, and smaller portions, and use Designer Whey proteins after a workout and in between meals to curb my appetite, then I’m destined to lose weight and then definitely keep it off.  On top of that, I do love to drink water, so by drinking a lot more water and Designer Whey Protein Water, I think that will help also.

So, this is where I’m sitting in my life.  I’m overweight and out of shape, and its difficult to tie my shoes.  Here’s to a new decade and a new me.  Hope to see you along the Whey.

I had to take a few days to absorb the Biggest Loser Finale.

I am just amazed.  Danny and losing as much as he did…over 200 pounds in 7 months! That’s about a pound a day. To accomplish that, you have to have total cooperation from your family and friends. I need that. I started a weight loss group just for those of us in the Grand Rapids area in Facebook. You can become my friend, just look me up, Camille Gibson. Designer Whey also has a fan page as well. Start a local group of your own. The Biggest Loser Show said many times how much having supports helps. Oh, did you hear Danny’s song? It’s only 99 cents and part of the proceeds goes to make a wish foundation. His new website is http://www.thedannycahill.com . I think Danny looks a lot like Mel Gibson. What do you think?

I felt bad for my girl Liz. She worked hard to be one of the final three. I think Amanda was picked because America chose her in the beginning. I am happy for her as well. I was amazed at all the at home players. I think the one I least recognized was Julio.wow! What a difference! Whey to go Rebecca! You did an awesome job! I can’t believe the next season is only a few weeks away in January.

I am proud of myself! I signed up for at Fitness 19 to work out Monday, Wednesday, Friday. My husband encouraged me and my daughter to just go and he made the time for us to do it. I have been walking 3 miles in one hour on the treadmill and my daughter did 3.2 on the elliptical in 45 minutes. I need this equipment in my home! Life Fitness is having a contest to win a home gym and I entered on Monday. Send to Life Fitness “pick Camille’s essay”  good vibes would ya? I love the Life Fitness treadmill. It told me what heart rate I needed to lose fat and it took my pulse then adjusted itself to keep my heart rate at the level it needed to be. Nice not to have to think, I just kept walking and the machine did all the figuring! What’s great is because my heart rate did not go too high I was able to keep my breath and finish the work out. That felt good to do. Now, I just have to keep doing it!!

I don’t know about you but Christmas is sneaking up on me. I am far from being ready. Our tree gets decorated on December 15th every year. That’s my oldest’s birthday and it’s now a 17 year tradition. Though her sisters would have like to decorate the tree when we got it this weekend. It was cute, we got our tree and it was soaking wet and full of snow so my youngest 2 suggested we blow dry the tree with a hair dryer. FUNNY!

Well Friends, I am trying… are you? Drink your whey… every day.

Camille

All four finished the 26.2 mile Marathon and the amazing people at Designer Whey are donating $40,000 to charities! (Hey, do I count as a charity? lol) Whey 2GO Designer Whey! I get choked up just thinking about the looks on the contestants’ faces when they crossed the finish line. My mind is so full of thoughts of joy and jealousy, hope and doubt, wanting to do something yet doing nothing; it’s just a whirl wind sometimes when you are dealing with being obese. Sometimes it’s hard to make any decisions because so many are to be made. But one thing I get is to not give up, keep going! My favorite saying in last nights show is, “Feel the fear, move threw it, then do it anyway”.

Danny touched my heart when he talked about his family and then his wife shared some of her fears as well. I sure had tears welled up in my eyes. I guess those fears is what stops a lot of us from trying. I know when Liz said that she had been giving so much of herself she had nothing to give to herself! I can relate. I am at the same point. I don’t want to wait until I am 50 to resolve my weight issues but…

Where do you begin?
How do you begin?
When you begin?
How do you keep going?

How do you claim your own victory in a world that demands so much from you? How do you say to your family…it’s my time now. When everyone has to be somewhere, do something, is having a melt down, how did our world get so involved in helping everyone but ourselves? It’s mind boggling. Our health insurance will pay $20,000-$30,000 for weight loss surgery, how about places like the Biggest Loser Ranch or Fitness Resort that obviously changes lives. People lose more weight and gain so much of them selves that no surgery would ever accomplish these results! HELLO! Insurance companies get you head out of your pocket! You complain about the health care cost of those of us who are obese and there is a solution, yet you do not jump on the wagon? What wrong with this picture? I could go into politics but I won’t. That is another story and would take way too much time to type out and you all know my typing skills are not the best in this blogging world or in any world, lol.

I loved seeing Designer Whey’s 2GO signs on all the mile markers! My kids got annoyed because every time I saw the mile marker I would say ”Hey, here is comes… watch now… Yeah! There is the Designer Whey sign!” Can’t help it, I think the 2GO packs should be at every workout place possible. I know when I go to work out I would buy a packet of 2GO for my water bottle. Most people bring their own water so I would think they would love to buy and mix their own drink. Hmmm… an idea to get it going. Have reps at gyms giving away a free packet of 2GO then have the 2GO packets available to buy at the gyms café or counter. Kind of like, in store sample sales people…hmmm. OK I get west Michigan! I have a box of 2GO packets in my car. You should too!

Well Friends, It’s probably the last nice day for a while in Michigan. The snow is coming…whaaaaaaaa! I want to be warm. I am going to take my dog on a nice walk before I have to pick up my kids from school.

Take care friends. Know I care about your well being. Do the right thing for your self today and do the right things for yourself tomorrow too. You are worth it. Claim your victory!

Camille

Ps…Get a box of 2GO packets in your car. You can order the 2GO packets and other great products from Designer Whey’s website.

Ps ps… Go LIZ!