Q: Tell us what your current eating plan looks like. Did you look at several diets (i.e. Atkins, Weight Watchers, South Beach, etc)? If so, how did you decide which one to go with?

A: There isn’t a diet I haven’t tried or a plan that I haven’t been on, but because I have decided to make a total lifestyle transformation I knew it was vital to start with my diet and focus of the quality of the foods I was using to fuel my body.  Right now I am sticking to a diet of 1200-1400 calories a day. I created a meal plan document that I print out and write in each meal and snack by day for the week using the meal/snack blueprint provided in The Biggest Loser Fitness Program book. It breaks down your meals into the following segments: Breakfast, Snack, Lunch, Snack, Dinner and 200 calories for additional foods, healthy fats and condiments. They tell you what different types of proteins, whole grains and fruits and veggies you need to eat with each meal and snack. It’s super helpful and because it’s a generic structure I can pick foods from those food groups and tailor my meals to the healthy kind of foods I love to eat!

Q: Everyone has days when they just want to blow off going to the gym or swing by their favorite fast food joint. How do you stay motivated to stay on track?

A: 2 HUGE motivators would be music and the support from my fans on Facebook and Twitter! I think there is really something to be said about accountability and having a support system around you. In addition to the outpouring of comments on my fan page and Twitter, if I have a moment of weakness, I can ask my fans for support at that very moment and they are right there to cheer me on and it pushes me to get through that tough time. For example, one night a few weeks ago it was after 10pm and my gym was closing at 11. I was so tired, so I posted a quick impromptu video on my fan page and instantly I got comments and messages reminding me of how much I was inspiring other to keep on going and that I need to do the same and get my butt downstairs to the gym! LOL! Another key motivator for me is definitely music. I’ve been singing since I was a little kid. And I literally incorporate it into almost every aspect of my life! Most importantly, I have always used music in the gym to push me and drive my workouts. So back in 2006, I decided to take the same club hit “Don’t Stop Movin’” that motivated me to lose over 80lbs, went into the studio to reproduce, record and release the single on iTunes in addition to performing it at health and wellness events in hopes to motivate others to believe in themselves that they can achieve great things if they put their mind to it and stay focused.

Q: Tell us about the ups and downs you’ve experienced with your weight since childhood.

A: As a little kid I always chubby and you could definitely tell I had a weight problem. In 4th grade, I weighed 144 pounds and was obviously the biggest kid in my class. I’ve always gone through life being heavy and most of the time dieting and exercising to try to lose the weight. I can’t even imagine the amount of weight I have lost and gained in my lifetime, and through it all what I have come to realize is that even with all the hard work and going up and down on the scale, I have absolutely no idea what it’s like to be at a healthy weight for my age and height.

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Q: Did your weight loss journey start when you decided to audition for The Biggest Loser, or were you trying to lose weight before the audition?

A: I’ve been on a weight loss roller coaster since I was in 5th grade, way before Biggest Loser even existed. I’ve tried every diet or plan imaginable! And now in hindsight, I realized it’s not the plan you follow, or the diet you are on, it’s all in your head. You have to want the change and see the change in your mind in order to get there in your body. And before Biggest Loser, I had spent years trying to do anything possible to lose the weight that has followed me my entire life. It’s been a dream of mine to be known as a beautiful person on the inside and out, instead of being know as a beautiful person on the inside with such a pretty face as I’ve been told my entire life!

Q: How did auditioning for The Biggest Loser change your life?

A: First of all, let me say I had no idea that going out for the Biggest Loser would have literally changed my life without even being cast for Season 10! Throughout the entire process I had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful people and from all walks of life. From Season 10 hopefuls, past contestants and the wonderful people that make the show possible, each one of them has really touched my life in one way or another. It really was after being connected with all these people and hearing their stories and having their support that it made a light bulb go off in my head! I realized that we all have similar struggles and things in life to overcome, and that it all comes down to one simple thought, “What’s most secret is most common.” While obesity may be a global epidemic, before that light bulb had gone off in my head, I always felt very much alone in my struggles to lose weight and overcome them so I could live the healthy and vibrant life that I have always wanted to live! Inspired, I am now so determined and super motivated to use myself as an example and take control of my life to put it out there for people to realize that they aren’t in this alone, and that they have support and people all around them that will help them if they just ask for it!

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1,350 Calories. 90 grams of fat, 40 of which are saturated and 3.5 of which are trans.  2,780 mg of sodium.  That’s what’s in my go-to burger at Wendy’s, the 3/4 lb Baconator.  Add the large fries, large Coke along with it, and I’m looking at probably over 2,000 calories in all.  For 1 meal.  That costs me around $10.00.  What am I thinking? Well, specifically the fact that I don’t like to make food, especially complex meals like lasagna or meatloaf (both of which I love) because I’m a terrible cook and I’m lazy in general.  But what about thawing out some burgers and firing up the grill and making my own? Well, that requires at least some planning in advance, which as a bachelor I tend to not do very well (you can ask my BFF Jessi, she’ll tell you all about it).  So instead I walk over to Wendy’s every couple of days or so, and guiltily order up a serving of heart attack with a side of obesity.  Let’s be honest people, I’m about 75 pounds overweight right now, and I personally keep the fast food industry afloat.  That’s not good.  So, I’ve stopped.  At first I said I just wasn’t going to eat beef for a while.  Well….that didn’t work because my roommate kept firing up the grill and grilling burgers.  Which was great, because he’s a way better cook/grill person than me, and his burgers taste way better than mine.  So the whole “no beef” thing didn’t pan out.  Then I said, “I’ll just eat less fast food.”  Well, when one of your meals is over 2,000 Calories then less is still not enough, especially when you want to lose weight.  So for the last couple days I’ve eaten no fast food, and less in general, and my weight loss has picked up again.  So hurray for me!

Furthermore, the whole fast food thing is expensive. Over the past month or so, I’ve spent over $382 at fast food places.  That’s disgusting! That’s almost 2 months worth of food at the grocery store for my whole apartment, which has 4 people in it! What am I thinking?!? Well, it ends today.  I’m back on my no-fast-food diet in an effort to save money and lose weight.  I’ve also stumbled upon an article that says that fast food can actually become addictive, decreasing dopamine receptors or something, so that’s probably not good either.  Regardless, the amount of science and nutritional information and financial information is all overwelmingly against fast food, and my only justification is laziness.  Well, laziness never got anyone anywhere in this life, so I’m going to stop.  Time for me to turn the page over and start a new chapter in my life.  I mean, I just turned 28, what better time?  See you all later when I rant and rave some more about how I suck at dieting.

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My name is Callie, I’m 23, and I am fluffy.

I wasn’t always fluffy. In fact, I used to be pretty skinny! I played basketball (or tried to, at least- I definitely wasn’t very good) and jogged almost every day. Then I got lazy. I noticed a very gradual increase in my weight over the years – it was never more than ten pounds a year, so I just didn’t care enough to do anything about it. Then, about a year and a half ago, I went through a very painful divorce. Some people stop eating when something traumatic happens; I do the opposite. I live in the kitchen! Food becomes my source of comfort… ohhh and I definitely comforted myself! I got all the way up to 180 pounds – definitely the heaviest I have ever been.

About a month ago, I realized how unhealthy my lifestyle is. My clothes are all tight because I’m too proud to go up to the next size in the store. Sometimes I’ll put on an outfit to go somewhere and just decide not to go because I look too fat. Yikes.

So I decided to do something about it. I’m tired of being the big girl when I’m out with friends. I want to feel confident. That doesn’t mean being rail-thin… it means looking healthy and fit.

I started a new job recently which allows me access to a free gym and personal trainer here at work, so I grudgingly decided to take advantage of that. I started working out a few weeks ago and noticed that I wasn’t gaining weight anymore – but I wasn’t losing, either. That’s when I realized that I needed to change my horrible eating habits. I was going out to eat 3-5 nights a week and ordering whatever was cheap… hello, $0.89 beefy 5-layer burrito from Taco Bell! Not so good.

So now I am on a quest to get healthy and fit! I am ready to feel confident about myself and feel great about my health. I have lost ten pounds so far and am completely motivated to lose the other 40 that need to hit the road!

As the weeks progress, I’m going to post tips that I’ve found helpful, keep track of my progress, post fun recipes, etc. I hope you’ll join me on my mission to get healthy!!

Callie

Follow Callie’s weight loss success: calliegetsskinny.blogspot.com

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Travelling the country speaking to people about regaining control of their lives through controlling the only thing we have control over is what has become my mission. I realized through my experience that I can create anything I want in my life by taking the little steps that in turn make the big difference. The best way I am able to judge my progress and stay in the moment is by staying on top of my diet and exercise, which allows me the energy to stay active and feel GREAT about myself. I may not be able to control many things in life but myself I can control.

Travelling adds lots of unexpected turns in the road that I don’t always plan for and the key is to have a plan. Some of the ways that I stay prepared for the unexpected is make sure that I always have my go to items in my carry on baggage. You never know when weather is going to come in play and change the course of your day. I travel with a jump rope, workout clothes, my laptop, lots of snacks, and my Protein 2Go packs. The jump rope allows me to have an opportunity to do cardio wherever I might be as well as jumping jacks, step ups, mountain climbers, and burp-pees. I love having my laptop so that I can pull up a workout no matter where I am through many online services like exercisetv.com.

If my travel plans go as expected then that is a bonus and I always stay in hotels with a gym. Most hotels these days have gyms so check them out ahead of time, to inspect what you expect…not all hotel gyms are created equally . Make sure you pack enough 2Go packs so that you are able to get your protein needs met before and after workouts.

My snacks allow me to have the fuel I need regardless of my options. When I leave home I always have popcorn, chicken breast, hard boiled eggs (which I always warn the person sitting on the airplane next to me about), fruit, almonds, and my 2Go Packs. As soon as I pass through security I go immediately and buy bottled water for the flight.  

Ali "On The Road"; GNC Show, June 2010

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Driving through the back roads of southeast Michigan, I get a warm feeling from Sheila, the Australian voice on my GPS device. The goal is to get to work on time and Sheila is providing the guidance.

If you would have told me ten years ago that a little screen on your dash board would have the technology to guide you any where, I would have said you were crazy. But also if you told me ten years ago that I would be in better shape at 44 than I was at 34, I also would have suggested the padded room in the funny farm.

But thanks to goals and guidance I weigh ten pounds less, can lift more weight, and can run much farther. No matter how modest the goal, I have always gotten better results if I was shooting for a target weight, distance, or number of pounds lifted. Without that goal, it’s easy to stop at an arbitrary point.

Same can be said of the guidance of a trainer.  A certified trainer has the kind of ideas and encouragement that makes them well worth the time and money. I would be the first to stop after eight reps. But having the trainer standing there I found myself going for ten, and sometimes beyond.

I also fell into the “routine” trap. Only training certain muscle groups with certain exercises. That put me into a rut and not only was I wasting time but a trip to the gym was becoming very boring. The first trainer I ever worked with showed me a variety of movements that kept the workouts fresh and fun.

So today I’m going to set a modest goal, five pounds off by the fourth of July. And first thing Monday I will consult with my trainer for the guidance, and with the help of Designer Whey, make sure I get the right amount of protein.

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A few months back one of my employees at Elite Fitness made a derogatory comment about a certain part of my anatomy. And quite frankly, he was the last person who should be talking about where a “mature” male gains weight.

So I said “put your money where your mouth, or excess weight is!” And the bet was on. We both set weight and bench press goals, but had to decide what the wager was going to be and didn’t want to make it anything monetary or material. Embarrassment was much better.

We decided that whoever lost the bet would put on an inflatable muscleman suit and stand out in front of the gym for one hour in rush hour traffic. And then, it was game on.

After six weeks of regular workouts, and high protein low fat diets, we both made our weight goals. Designer Whey products before and after all workouts clearly made the major difference for me.  I lost fifteen pounds and felt really great.

Now it was time to hit the bench press. Although I had a career best bench, I only made eighty percent of my goal, and my competition made eighty three percent of his goal.  So, I lose. Next week I’ll be out front waving to cars in the suit.

Why, you may ask, is this good.  Well, to start, I have been able to move two notches smaller on my belt. I’m trying on clothes that actually fit, and I can run farther and faster than I have been able to in years.

As we head into Memorial Day Weekend, I am ready to go for a few days of Turkey Burgers, Lobster Bisque, and a little French wine.  And there will be just a little less guilt about the whole thing.  If you start one of these holiday weekends ahead of the game, you can have a little more “guilt free” fun on vacation.

Just remember, have your fun this Memorial Day weekend. Don’t go too far. And be ready to get back at it Tuesday. And it can be a vacation from reality that won’t put you too far behind on your personal fight against the fat! Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

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Some time has passed since I finished my diet with remarkable success. What has happened since then? Well my weight loss has certainly slowed, and I’m sure a lot of that is due to the fact that I now eat fast food when I please (which still isn’t very often, but more often then never), and drink soda, and for a short while there I was drinking alcohol again, which is fine, except that alcohol contains a lot of empty calories that I really don’t need in my diet. However, an interesting thing happened during my diet. I learned that it’s possible to have fun without alcohol. So, because of that realization, and the fact that alcohol is a primary suspect in making me fat, I am no longer going to drink. It’s time once and for all to focus much, much more on my health, and that is one of the best ways to do it. But it’s not the only thing I need to do.

So basically, although I’m still wanting to lose weight, I haven’t been putting in the work to do so. I’ve been hoping that it would just magically happen because it was looking so easy before when I was on my diet. Nothing comes easy, and nothing is given to you. If you want to lose weight, you have to make it a serious priority, something that I had forgotten. Re-evaluate how important losing those pounds is to you, and if you still want to lose weight then push it up the hierarchy and make sure you dedicate some time as often as possible. Things like an hour-long walk can really help out, though not nearly as much as a half-hour long run. The harder you work, the bigger the benefits will be, and the more weight you’ll lose. But if you won’t put in the work, then you won’t receive the results.

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Before I go into some of the responses that I received and the playlist that they have submitted, I would like to try and offer up a debate regarding the playlist (of any sort) and the work out. Is it beneficial to listen to a playlist or does it serve as more of a distraction? Is it fueling your fire or draining your efficiency? Does the playlist keep you focused or does it create yet another distraction for you? I only ask these questions because I myself constantly face these crossroad like conundrums.   And for the most part it really comes down to inconsequential factors for me, such as time I want to physically spend at the gym, the mood I am in, the muscle/muscles I am trying to target on that given day, the type of day I have had, the means by which I am getting to the gym and the amount of people at the gym, just to name a few.

                Most days I will take my iPod to the gym with me, but it is about a 50/50 crap shoot to whether or not I will actually put in the head phones and use it and it really has to do with running down the list above. If I get to the gym on a day where I am doing chest or back, I will most likely use a playlist, for three main reasons. One, those are usually Mondays and Tuesdays so I typically just need that extra “umf” to power me through my workouts – and believe me the playlists that I made for both days are more than enough to get the blood going. Two, I know that I will easily eat up an hour at the gym for either of these days, so I budget my work day and week out so that I take an hour lunch on both days and stay that extra ½ hour  (assuming I work an eight hour day which doesn’t really ever happen –usually 9-11hrs). So with that being said I have the luxury of listening to music while I work out because I can get caught up in a song and space out for a couple minutes here and there and it’s no big deal, because I have already allotted that time for my workout. But on bicep and tricep days I can usually crank out a 35 minute full workout and typically don’t listen to music if I am trying to get my workout in during lunch, because often times music distracts me because I love it and find myself more attuned to the songs I am listening to than to my workouts themselves. Three, my mood is always a factor. If I am in one of those, I can’t live without the new music I just got, then it doesn’t matter about anything else, I will definitely listen to my playlist. But if I have spent most of the day listening to music while I crunch numbers at my desk all day, I will take a break from it while I am at the gym and just enjoy the cluttered silence of my thoughts while I find some solace within my workout. And typically on Mondays and Tuesdays I have days of reporting that require my utmost attention, so I usually won’t be listening to music while I process them so I will plug in the phones at the gym and drown out the world for an hour while I work out. Another factor that comes into play is the mode in which I travel to the gym. Usually it is by car, but about once a week I will run to the gym and anytime I run I have to listen to music because it distracts me from all the elements that want to work against me when I run.  Then when I arrive at the gym I typically just leave them in and go about my work out.

                As you can see I have created this complicated mental equation for using or not listening or listening to music while I work out. I was just really curious if most people preferred to listen to music while exercising or preferred to just go without. I ask this question not only based on my own antics but also on those of others I see at the gym. I see about 20 of the same people at the gym every time I go at lunch, of those people I see about three who always have headphones in about four that never have headphones in and the rest have them some days and some days they don’t.   So as usual this peaked my curiosity. I am sitting here talking about how music distracts me but as I am writing this I can see that I am often distracted by the practice of others – sheesh I got to get it together here.  Like I have said my mind is constantly going it is what space mountain would like if you turned the lights on. Anyways please, if you have any opinions on this one let me know, because I am genuinely curious.

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Hey Friends,

It’s hot in Michigan, we are filling our pool up, we bought a fire pit thing for our back yard….all is good.

My weight stayed the same this week but I m ok with that cuz my pants are not so tight. I was at the tightest stage for my jeans almost having it get another size up but now I am just at the tight stage…next will be the perfect fit, the loose then will have to buy a smaller size..whoohooo!

I am feeling good and excited to start a 12 week challenge in my group at fast track to fat loss site. I am excited Kim Lyons one of the pass Biggest Loser runs this site. I joined and loving the meal planners, challenges, exercise planner and meeting lots of new friends…awwww don’t fret Designer Whey friends are still my favs! Coolest of all…I could win a trip to Loreto Mexico on the Fast Track Vacation Home! FREE! I have to get the most votes and be the most improved in the 12 week challenge… what an incentive! So I expect my Designer Whey followers to vote for me when the time comes to vote. Deal?

So who you going to vote for to be one of the 3 finalist on the Biggest Loser? I feel for Darris…I have the same problem…I do excellent all day right on target but as soon as the sun goes down the wolf fangs come out and it is very difficult to control myself. Not sure why that is, something I have to work on. Then Koli he really deserves it he did not mess up and did an amazing job at home. I am torn on who to choose. Final show is Tuesday be sure to watch! I am excited to see all the players and how they did.

Well I am off to mow the lawn in 85 degree weather…that should muster up some sweat! My last weigh in is Wednesday for the 8 week challenge I am in right now so we shall see the fruits of my labor and I will blog about it right after cuz I know you all are there with me.

I love my Designer Whey!

Have a great one.

Camille

Ps I love these 90 calorie buns! Put a hunk of chicken along with some fruit on the side then a glass of ice water with a 2GO pack in it… there ya go a complete meal. Be sure to sit outside and enjoy your meal.

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This is the final thought of helpful tips and methods on “defeating the Itis” pertaining to the daily fitness routines that many go through.

Well once again I am coming to the close of another segment and with that I wanted to offer some final thoughts on the underlining message behind this last series of blogs, which is “it doesn’t matter how you get yourself into the gym, it’s just important that you do.” I say getting yourself into the gym but what I am really talking about here is following through in general when it comes to fitness resolutions. It can be as simple as doing pushups and sit ups in front of the TV or running a mile or two around the block every day or making sure that you stick to a certain caloric value on a daily level. Whatever your fitness goals are it is important that you follow through with them, and in order to do so you have to create some sort of routine or regimen that keeps you on the right path to achieving these goals.  That is what I was trying to do with this set of blogs, offer up some helpful tips and tactics to make staying on whatever path you set for yourself a little less trifling.

Staying on these paths that we make for ourselves is much easier if we make our goals realistically obtainable. Creating goals like seeing a drastic change in your body figure or a major decrease in your weight or wanting to be in the top ten for a marathon are all perfectly fine goals, and yes it is true that anyone can achieve them. But what is unrealistic are some of the timelines that people put forth to reach these destinations. If you are a hundred pounds overweight and in really bad physical health, you are not going see results over night in trying to be in the top ten places of a marathon. But you will see significant improvement and over time if you keep on a realistic schedule you will arrive at that goal. I read stories all of the time about something like this happening, so it is absolutely reachable. But within all of these stories that I read, there are always depictions of the (in most cases) long road that it takes to get there. Which is why it is important to set bench marks for these physical aspirations because while it is in fact important to always keep the main goal in sight it is even more important to mark your progression in reaching it. Lots of time we burn out on our habitual fitness routines because we are not seeing the results we want and we are not receiving that notion of self gratification that we feel when we accomplish our goals.  In this day and age with convenience in technology, schooling, and infrastructure break down, as a society we want immediate results. We loved this “internet thing” when it was brand new even though it took 15 min to change the page we were on. But now we spit at our computer when it takes more than ten seconds load. Don’t get me wrong this progression in life is amazing and I wouldn’t trade it for the world, but it has enabled us as a society in many ways. And part of that enablement is how we handle situations when the going gets tough.

We all hit walls in every aspect of life, there is no avoiding them. But it is what we do when we hit those walls that makes or breaks us. I for one spent a lot of my life getting to these walls and trying to find a way around them instead of a way over them.  I would set goals with unrealistic timelines to achieve them and when I would hit one of these walls I would just create a new goal with a new path, instead. And I would keep doing this over and over again every time a wall popped up.  This just creates a labyrinth where we often find ourselves circling back to where we started and losing a lot of ground and time in the process.  Sometimes when we get to these walls it is in fact good to try and go around them, but in doing so it’s imperative that you remember to find your way back to that original path or you will slowly progress away from your true objective until it is completely out of reach for you.

With the right goals and timelines, it is much more accessible to stick to your routines to help you acquire what you truly want. And when you hit these so called walls try and climb them, use some of the techniques that I have shared with you or create your own to keep you on that mental and physical corridor that is needed for you to reach your overall goals. Once again, these are simply the opinions of a guy who has opinions about anything and everything, take it or leave it as you will.

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