Hey Friends!

I hope this finds you well. This is a long post but I just thought I’d share…

Did you watch this week, The Biggest Loser make over week? Wow, the contestants look great. I did not realize Liz was not even 50 until her make over I though like 60, now she looks younger then 50! Keep going Liz! I did feel Danny and Rudy had a too ‘boyish’ look but they still looked amazing. Rudy… grow your beard back. I bawled when Danny’s Daughter said she can’t wait to get on her journey and she says I never had a skinny dad! Our obesity has an enormous effect on our kids. When Allen cried so did I. I think I cried more then any other episode. Amanda… 9 pounds! WOW!! Geez… I wish I had their opportunity! I have a hard time when the contestants pass my weight.

All my efforts have brought me no where when it comes to my weight issues. My best efforts have not been good enough. I have been seriously considering trying out for a new weight loss show. They would come to my house, not Jillian’s but another show that is now casting. I have been in contact with one of the recruiters, funny, he said I am on the thinner side, but send him my video any way. ME on the thinner side for a weight loss show… how pathetic am I? Do I really have to go that far? Are there not people out in this world willing to show compassion to help people like me with out breaking the bank? Have I sunk so low in my emotional obese self that I can not dig out of it? I really want to go to the Biggest Loser Resort to deal with my issues within myself with out distractions. I do not know how deep these pounds of pain go. I need to be removed from my environment and forced to deal with issues that I have buried so deep that I myself do not know what those issues are! But financially this is not possible right now. So…

I started writing out my application and thought I would share some of it with you.

Hi. My name is Camille Gibson. I am 41 years old,  5’9” and weigh about 275 lbs. I am married with three wonderful daughters; we reside in a suburb of Grand Rapids, Michigan.

I believe my obesity journey started as a baby to a single young mother. It was easier to shove a bottle in my mouth or set me in front of a TV with cookies then to deal being a young single mother. My mom did marry my dad and I have two sisters and a brother.

I was a fat baby, a fat child, a fat teen, I graduated fat, got married fat, had three daughters fat and am still fat. I even resorted to having my stomach stapled at the age of 20 when my highest weight of 347 became so desperate I did not want to live. As a last resort I had the surgery. I got to my lowest weight of 245 and with life and kids I have remained at the 265 to 275ish mark for over 20 years now.

Most my relatives are over weight to morbidly obese. My mother is over weight; her mother was over 400 pounds and her grandmother, I was told, was over 500 pounds. I want the obesity cycle to stop. I am about to send my almost 17 year old daughter off to college next year with my habits. She does not know to make eating healthy important or to make time for daily exercise. I have not taught her, I am her example. How do I teach her these things when I have never experienced them? I have never been thin I can not share that with my wonderful daughter who is entering young adult hood. I need help.

I am tired. All my life I gave my all to everyone who asked or seemed to need my help. I have given so much of me there is nothing left to give. I want for the first time in my life to be about me. In all that giving… I lost myself. I do not know who I am any more. I am 41 years old. It is not WHERE will I be in the next 25 years, its WILL I still be alive? I want that answer to be yes! Alive, healthy, sassy, hanging off my husband’s arm proudly; me happy and he proud to have such a beautiful wife by his side.

The application talks about how my weight affects family. My husband is 20 pounds over weight and has high cholesterol. We have a good relationship. Every year my husband’s office has a Christmas party and every year I say “Next year I will not be this fat” and every year I am this fat. My husband will not dance with me. I know it’s because I am 100 pounds more then him. I would not want to be embarrassed by me either. I want to dance with my husband. My daughter Sue almost 17 is 30 pounds over weight. Fun girl, VERY smart, I am proud of her. I don’t want to send her out in the world with my health lessons. We need help not just for me. Sarah is 10 she is my athletic girl, very smart, very out spoken, popular and a fun kid as well. I want to keep it that way. I don’t want her to lose herself in food like I did. I don’t know how to teacher her not to. Then Staci, 9, is my most compassionate girl, she is very smart and sees things that most of us would not see. She loves animals, people and the earth. She says, “Mommy you’re not fat, you’re just fluffy”. I don’t want her to lose that compassion for life. I don’t want someone to crush her by calling her fat. The only way to stop that is to keep her healthy and prevent her from becoming over weight in the first place. I do not know how to do that. I always think I do only to fail.

Seven years ago we bought our kids a trampoline. Every day the girls would beg, “come on mommy, come jump with us” they did that for about three years and the asking dwindled down to never asking. I would make all the excuses and promise all the tomorrows but the real reason was I was over the weight limit to jump on the trampoline. Now my kids have almost out grown jumping on the ‘tramp’ and I never got that opportunity to share that fun with them. When we go to amusement parks I sit and wait on the benches for my kids and husband to wait in line to ride the rides. I do not want to get up to the ride and find I do not fit in the seat. I would jump to my death if that happened so I choose not to even try.

Medically, obviously, I am over weight. I suffer from acid reflux and go through about a bottle of Tums a week. I have venous insufficiency mostly in my left leg which causes severe swelling in my legs and ankles. I need to lose weight to improve maybe even cure this condition so I do not end up in a wheel chair at the age of 50. I am not on any medication, blood pressure is ok and cholesterol is normal so basically I am fat.

OK friends, that’s what I have written so far. What do you think? Should I send it in?

I recently bought Jillian Michael’s Winning by Losing book. I think this is her best book. I will share some interesting things I have read in a future post. Maybe I will share some of my book I started a while back about looking in the mirror. It’s a pretty deep self image book but not finished because the last chapter I am saving for when I am at the weight I should be at.

Hey, I made a new drink recipe. Try it!

Raspberry Mocha Pick Me Up in the Afternoon Drink

10-12 oz cold coffee ( I use my left over hazelnut from the morning)
1 scoop raspberry biggest loser power
1/2 scoop vanilla bean biggest loser power
1/2 scoop chocolate biggest loser powder

A bunch of ice, mix well and enjoy!

Helps curb that afternoon wanna-snack-now craving!

90 cals
12 grams protein

Alright Friends, Take Care.

Camille

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Hey Friends!

I know you all are watching our favorite show that our favorite protein powders.…Oh yeah baby… The Biggest Loser show has begun and Designer Whey is the chosen protein meal! I love it and it’s good for us too!

Biggest Loser Proteins 10oz and 2GO

This season is so full of emotion, challenges and people over coming difficult past life experiences that have contributed to their weight. For me, I have never experienced being thin. I was a fat baby, a fat child, a fat teen, a fat adult, a fat mom and am a fat wife. Biggest Losers Season 8 sure has had a ton of information. So much information that I had to watch the shows two times to get the info down. I wanted to share some of my notes.

·        You can do it!
·        Realize how ill we are being obese
·        Let go of the past
·        Say you deserve to be happy
·        A lot of pounds are wounds that need healing
·        Must have plans… eating plan, exercise plan and recovery plan
·        A calorie is a unit of energy
·        Read the labels
·        Weigh your food on a scale
·        Keep a food journal…all food and all drink
·        Plan 3 meals and 2 snacks a day
·        Prepare meals ahead of time for the entire week
·        Use Ziploc bags for prepared meals and mark each meal
·        Proportion control every meal
·        3-4 ounces of meat
·        Cook your food by baking, poaching, steaming, grilling on non-stick grill or broil
·        When eating pasta eat ½ cup and fill in the rest with veggies
·        Snacks with protein are a must
·        No Soda
·        Weight loss foundation for any plan…calories in calories out
·        The way we manipulate our diet will determine the most calories out before we even start to exercise
·        To accelerate calories out…exercise
·        Circuit training for a variety
·        Protein refuels muscles, gives fullness feeling, and maintains blood sugar
·        After you workout you must get protein in to keep the body burning calories. Bob suggests 2 scoops of the Designer Whey Biggest Loser Protein Powder with 16 ounces of water
·        The contestants are just like you. They are doing it and you can do it too!
 
Well, friends keep watching… keep drinking (your designer whey that is)

I am on my Whey!
Camille

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Hey Friends,

I know you are as happy as I am that the kiddies are back in school! Oh the last few weeks I was ready for them to go back to school. The kids were sick of each other and I was on my last nerve. I love my kids with my whole heart but sometimes us moms just need a break.

Hey, next week is all of our favorite inspirational show! Yep, that is right September 15th is coming up soon. I am excited to watch and see my favorite Designer Whey drinks help people just like me, people who could afford to lose a few or 2 or 3 pounds…lol. Hope you watch The Biggest Loser along with me!

Guess what the weight loss fairy delivered to my house??? My protein water! I will rate according to my tastes. In 4th place is the Orange Mango… I thought too intense orange taste. Maybe like the taste of baby aspirin or very strong tang.  Which I am not so fond of. But for you, you may love it. Probably those of us over 40 can not handle such intense flavor. To me, it was OK but not my favorite flavor of the protein water. In 3rd place is the Cranapple…the only reason it’s not my favorite is I am not an apple juice person. I do enjoy cranberry so for me it was tolerable. In 2nd place is the Pomegranate flavored Protein Water…I very much enjoyed the light fruitful flavor. Camille’s #1 pick is the Blue Raspberry… to me it is perfect! Light, yet flavorful, not too sweet and is very refreshing. My only problem is my 16 year old daughter DRANK all of my Blue Raspberry and Pomegranate Protein Water! UGH! I went to take a bottle with me to work and ALL GONE! Luckily, I found some at our local grocery store.

I have to apologize to all my friends reading this blog. Anyone who reads this blog is my friend! I promise to blog more often, summer is hectic with kids home and watching my friends’ children as well, plus my cleaning jobs. By the time I sat down I was spent. But now that school is back in session and The Biggest Loser Show will be on, I can get back into routine. When you are trying to lose weight routine is essential. I share that with you so I can share things I am doing to get back in the flow of losing weight.

One thing I do now is to always keep a 2-quart pitcher filled with my favorite Biggest Loser Protein Powder both the Red Raspberry and the Blue Blueberry. They only have 40 calories, great flavor and fiber to take the edge off when you are looking for something sweet to have. I put 6 scoops in a 2-quart pitcher and keep in the fridge, ready when I need it. Sometimes, I mix the two flavors for a different twist. Enjoy a cup before dinner and you will eat less, try it! I also

The Biggest Loser Protein Powder Vanilla Bean

LOVE the Biggest Loser Vanilla Bean Flavored Powder. I like to make a creamy shake when the ice cream man is trying to stop by! The chocolate is a great treat, as well, and makes a great meal supplement.  I enjoy adding the vanilla bean to cold coffee; add ice and you have a great low calorie, delicious, ice coffee! Some of those ice coffees can have 400 calories or more! Compared to 50 calories with the Biggest Loser Powders there is no comparison and they are YUMMY! Don’t forget to put a case of bottled water in your car (please recycle or refill) along with a bunch of 2GO packets, they really take the edge off when you are temped to stop by a drive thru, when you know you should not eat fast food.

You can enjoy any of Designer Whey’s Protein Powders. Whether you are trying to lose weight, maintain a healthy weight or building muscle, it’s all good! It works too! I lost 30 pounds in a year. Not a huge change like the Biggest Loser Show but progress; and we need to accept any progress as good! Make your kids a healthy shake after school instead of cookies and milk! I know my kids act a lot better after a Designer Whey Protein shake instead of climbing the walls after cookies. Calmer kids equal calmer parents; and that my friend is a happier home. How about starting their day with a shake at breakfast! They will think you flipped making them a shake for breakfast! But studies show good protein in the morning gets their brain ready for thinking. Kids who have a good breakfast do better in school!

Alright Friends,

I think about you and hope you are healthier today then you were the day before. Drink you whey every day!

Your friend,

Camille

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Fix Your Goals

Not reaching your fitness goals? The problem may not be with what you’re doing — it may be with the goals themselves.

The fitness goals you set need to be SMART: Specific, Motivating, Achievable, Relevant and Trackable.

Specific: What exactly do you hope to achieve? Instead of making the mushy goal “I want to get healthy,” say “I want to lose five pounds, drop an inch from my waist, be able to run five miles, and eat five servings of fruits and veggies per day.

Motivating: You need to be excited about what you want to achieve! If the idea of walking regularly on the treadmill makes you want to snooze, even if it’s a goal for a lot of fitness buffs, maybe it’s not the right goal for you right now.

Achievable: Nothing is more discouraging than a goal that’s too difficult to achieve. No one can lose 20 pounds (healthfully) in a month or be ripped in a week. Give yourself a break!

Relevant: The goal needs to make sense for you. If you choose some pie-in-the-sky goal because it looks good on paper, chances are you’ll ditch it within a month.

Trackable: If you can’t measure or track your goal, how will you know when you’ve achieved it? We’re talking numbers here! Instead of setting a goal to get fit, resolve to lose a certain amount of weight by the end of the year.

More on the Motivating goals: The reason we don’t reach our goals may be that they’re not exciting enough to motivate us. If this is the case for you, heed my life coach, who recommends setting big, audacious goals. For example, instead of making a resolution to walk three times per week, how about vowing to train for a triathlon? Instead of losing five pounds, why not resolve to enter — and win — a fitness competition? And rather than making the vague goal to nosh on more veggies, why not promise (as I’ve been doing for the last month or so) to eat a big salad every day of the week.

A quick note: I’m taking a hiatus from the Designer Way blog due to other commitments. I hope to see you — and motivate you — again soon!

Stay healthy,

Linda

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This is the “Transformation” Episode. And boy was it. But before we saw what Fashion Guru Tim Gunn did with the contestants, there of course was a challenge. They were strapped to cable wires and had to go 700 feet to the other side. Winner gets a $25,000 kitchen make over.

The teams all worked hard to keep their balance as they walked across their thin wire to the other side of the canyon. Each one tried their best to not look down the steep canyon and instead focus on trying to complete the challenge. Tara struggled when she fell off the cable, but eventually found her way back on. Filipe took a strong lead in the challenge. He didn’t keep the lead long; once Tara got her focus back, she gained back the minute she lost and shocked everybody by winning the challenge. Why people were shocked that Tara won, is a mystery to me.

Then the transformations by Tim Gunn. What can you say…they all looked fantastic!!! It is always motivating to see how people can change with EXERCISE and a change of eating habits.            

Weigh In: Everyone is so surprised that Helen lost 7 pounds and had a percentage weight loss of 4.14% which puts her in first place for the first time. Then Laura gets on the scale and due to her hip fracture has not done much of anything this week. She gains 3 pounds. Below the line are Laura and Kristen. Laura goes home.

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We open up to Sione having a pity pat that Ron wanted him voted off verses Aubrey. This goes on and on for the first 15 minutes of the show. They then cut to everyone coming into the Gym and they see Ali Vincent the winner in Season 5. Why? Allison, the host had her baby.

Ali has a surprise for them. Just like in Season 5, former contestants come back to weigh in to see if they can get back on the show. 3 former contestants were brought back. They are Estelle, Nicole and David. The winner gets immunity from the weigh in as long as they don’t gain any weight and they can give a one pound penalty to whoever they want at weigh in. Everyone is just shocked at how much weight Nicole has lost. They get on the scale right then and there. Nicole wins. She has lost 87 pounds at home!!!  Bob, walks into the kitchen and wonders why everyone is so quiet. They say they have to show him something. Nicole walks out and Bob is stunned and overjoyed by Nicole and her weight loss. Tara is scared. Nicole coming back has the second highest % loss. Right after Tara.

 While everyone is working out, Mike begins to have chest pains and is taken to the hospital. After many tests etc…they find he has a bleeding ulcer from his gastric bypass a few years ago. All is fixable and he comes back to the ranch.

 The contestants then are taken to the pool where they meet Michelle the winner of Season 6. The challenge is all about balance. They stand on a platform over 40 lines of rope which are located 6 feet above the pool. Lines will be cut and the winner receives a pound advantage. Mike is the first to go in the water and at the end with 9 ropes left are Kristen and Sione. Kristen ends up in the water and Sione gets his one pound advantage.

At weigh in they begin with Nicole. Everyone is stunned when she gains 5 pounds!!! Tara of course can’t help but smile because is then still in front of the pack. Below the yellow line is Ron and Nicole. They send Nicole home. She cries but hangs in there. At the end of the show they show her trying on wedding gowns. The first time she went in her size was 24 and now she fits into a size 12! She is hoping to be a size 8 by the time her wedding comes. Go NICOLE!!! She is an inspiration to everyone that you can lose weight at home and not just on the Biggest Loser Campus.

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The show begins with the black team in shock that Kathy went home and not Aubrey. Many hugs to Kristin showing her support and saying they are sorry that her Mom went home. So, all the remaining contestants come in to the gym where Allison has the original team colors. The blue and black teams are no more. They each go back to the color they started with. A great moment was when Mike who has lost 118 pounds received a smaller shirt and we were all showed what size he started in. Two people could fit in his shirt. He was very happy to see how much he has lost. Then, they had to decide what trainer they wanted to train with AND they had to do it in front on Bob and Jillian.

 The challenge is in 2 parts. The first part is all of the contestants are put in front of blocks of cement that equal the amount of weight they have lost. They can distribute the weight to other members. Kathy and Tara are the main targets with Tara receiving 257 pounds and Kathy receiving 215 pounds. They all want to know how this plays in the second part of the challenge. Allison will not say. Next, they are at the race track and they are cars with each team color and weighing 2 tons each. In addition to the 2 tons, is the weight each contestant ended up with from the 1^st part of the challenge. NASCAR Driver Clint Bowyer drives up. The winner of the challenge receives immunity at weigh in and gets to go the NASCAR event on October 11^th.   They have to pull the car ½ mile. Mike and Felipe are out front, but Tara who has an extra 257 pounds pulls ahead, and wins the challenge!

 Weigh In…Tara and Kristen are just a few pounds away from losing 100 pounds as the first  women ever on the show. Tara gets up first. She has to lose 4 pounds to make her 100 pound loss. She only loses 3 pounds. She is very disappointed and then Kristen gets up on the scale. She loses 8 pounds and is congratulated being the first women ever on TBL  to lose 100 pounds. She gave such an eloquent speech. Everyone was in tears. In the end below the yellow line are Mike and Aubrey. The members send Aubrey home.

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Happy March, Friends…it’s suppose to warm up this weekend here in Michigan…Bring it on! I hope this finds you healthier then the day before. I have been thinking about patterns and realized that everything is based on a pattern. I, like a lot of Americans have lived an unhealthy pattern. If you pay attention to Bob, one of the “Biggest Loser” trainers he said to be healthy the pattern is “Fuel -> Move -> Rest. For me it was always Move -> Rest -> Fuel -> Rest some more. So I had it wrong.

Our church is having a diet and nutrition course for the next few weeks. I am learning a lot and thought I would share with you all what I have learned in just one session.

To stop cravings – eat every 3 hours small meals that include protein.

Exercise: How much and how long – You only need 30 minutes a day of cardio. Cardio is simply raising your heart rate higher then your sitting heart rate. Here is something interesting… you do not need to do 30 minutes in a row. I never seem to fit in 30 minutes a day then felt bad but if you do 3 – 10 minute work outs or even if you start out doing 5 minutes – 6 times a day that works! You can jog in place, jump rope, dance, rebound or anything that will get your heart rate above your sitting rate even… sex… LOL. OK, now run home and tell your husband its exercise time!

You need 1 hour each week strength training – it does not take very many pounds for strength. 2 – 5 pound weights is great! Carry a weight in your car and do bicep curls driving…ummm… one arm at a time! You can use soup cans or water bottles. I say use water bottles that you refill then after you are done doing reps, drink the water!

You need flexibility every day – stretching, bend touch your toes when you get out of bed, stand up from your computer. Practice flexibility anytime. Just get some stretching in wherever you can. That’s it to stay fit.

It’s best to exercise …ANYTIME! Morning does revs up your metabolism and helps keep it going all day.

The figure below is how to figure out how many calories you need to lose 1 pound a week just by your food intake. **Add exercise and you lose more!

1. Add 655 to this calculation 4.35 X Weight in Pounds
2. Add your answer to this calculation 4.7 X Height in inches
3. Subtract your answer to this calculation 4.7 X age
4. Subtract 500 calories

This equals the number of calories you need to take in each day to lose 1 pound a week. Not doing anything but this formula you could lose 52 pounds a year!

My weight is 278, Height 69 inches and I am 41
655 + 1209.3 (4.35 X 278) + 324.3 (4.7 X 69) – 192.7 (4.7 X 41) – 500 = 1495.9 calories a day. (1500 is close enough!)

To figure out how much water you need to drink a day it’s your weight divided by 2. My weigh is 278, I should be drinking 139 oz of water a day… whoa sure will be pee’n a lot! That’s over a gallon a day! That is hard to see doing but I think I will make it a goal to drink a gallon of water a day… Or lose weight so I don’t have to drink that much!

I hope this helps you with your weight loss journey. Start with figuring out your resting heart rate add a little more movement every day and before you know it you will have worked yourself up to 30 minutes of cardio a day. I will close for now…

Until next time… Camille from Michigan

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Man, I am so tired of the cold and snow here in Michigan. Today I was driving home after dropping my kids off at school and I see this white pick up come flying out of a side street and skidded across 4 lanes, slid facing me head on, came towards me head on then turned his wheel to avoid me and did a 360. His tail end came a few feet from me; he spun out and hit the curb on the other side. My angels were with me because folks had he not turned his wheel I would not be here. It’s just a reality of how quickly in a flash moment of life, your life can be taken…

Water… friends get enough water! I really love my 2GO packets. I have a glass that is 24 oz big and I add one packet of the Lite & Lean… filler ‘er up and toss in some ice and you have a great low calorie drink with some protein and fiber. My favorite flavors are the Raspberry Acai and the Mixed Blueberry 2GO. I drink this 3 times a day with my biggest meals and let me tell ya, it gets you going regularly. I get in my water and I eat less!

 I am still amazed at The Biggest Loser Show. The biggest kid is 400 pounds and he runs and jogs. He is determined to be the biggest loser ever. I hope he makes it. It is sure inspiring to see the changes one could make it you put your mind and heart to it. I know it’s not realistic to think I would lose 10, 20, 30 pounds in one week but as we can see it is possible.

I hope this finds you well and warm.

Camille form Michigan

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