Bea Amaya

St. Patrick’s Day Week 2 Results Here’s a wrap-up of how the second week of the St. Patrick’s Day Challenge went: Number of people reporting in Week 2: 82 Total weight lost by the group: 156.6 Average pounds lost per person for week: 1.9 Week 2 Border Crossings: 310s to 300s: Hevnbound 300s to 290s (TWODERLAND!): BrantS1976 270s to 260s: Kiap82, Fallenangel2904 250s to 240s: kyleebean 220s to 210s: HardWork13 200s to 190s (ONEDERLAND!): Deezjeanz, BeaAmaya, NewNana 190s to 180s: Jhealan, ladyleio, mamamareli 180s to 170s: onsummit 160s to 150s: tddonnell87 Luck of the Irish to you all in Week 3! As always, my apologies if I missed anyone!

BIG Congrats! I know the feeling (and only recently, of course). Welcome to the club! LOL!

My update: Sleeved on July 31, I started at 293 and am now at 197...94 lbs lost. My goal is 160. I started at size 22-24 and am now wearing size 14 jeans. I can go smaller (medium) in some tops, but I still have unusually large hips (saddlebags) to deal with. My losses have slowed down drastically, so it's not as exciting to weigh in every morning like it was in the beginning, but there are still a couple of things that have not changed for me: The sleeve has changed my life and lifestyle. My old path toward future weight-related medical problems has been derailed. Although the sleeve is not for everyone, I am quick to share my experience with those who ask. I have absolutely NO REGRETS. My next challenges involve the amount of skin I have collected. I have neither the money, the inclination (I'm almost 54 years old), nor the time to invest in plastics so I am trying to make the best of what I have and adjust my clothing style to minimize my bumps and bags. I visit this forum every day (although I'm pretty much of a "lurker") because I believe an integral part of our success involves interacting with others who understand what we are going through. My family and friends are so very supportive, but the community here, all of you, are the ones that totally UNDERSTAND it. Luck to all and congrats on the successes!!!

I've looked at it a couple of times over the past 2 days and it always opens for me. So, I can't really figure out how to help with this. Is anyone else having problems? I'd like to help but don't know what to try. So sorry!

Wow! I just looked at your profile and realized how much you and I have in common! I'm a few months older and a couple of inches taller, but the rest is so very similar...right down the line. Next week will be Onederland for you, I'm almost sure of it. Good luck!

I did it! I made it to ONEDERLAND! Been there all week, actually, so getting to report it today means NO GOING BACK! 198.0

Hmm...now that's an option I didn't even think of! I'll wait a bit for votes to come in, but I could easily see that we have a regular weigh-in day on a specific day of the week for every challenge with the FINAL weigh-in being on the day of the holiday, no matter what day it lands on. Hmm...that may be my favorite option yet. Thanks! P.S. Keep in mind that all of you have the option of weighing in on whatever day you choose. I sign in pretty much every day, just after I log my food in MyFitnessPal, so checking in here is part of my daily routine. If we choose FRIDAYS and you prefer MONDAYS, then by all means, report your weight every Monday. It's all fun, it's all about progress, and we have no strict rules. Still, I think we are down to selecting a consistent weigh-in day to begin with the next challenge. Thanks for all the feedback and conversation.

Just to make the challenges a little more fun, I try to watch for people that have crossed from one "decade" (10 lbs group) on the scale to another. For instance, I've got my fingers crossed that my Monday weigh-in will reflect my crossing from the 200s to the 190s, which carries a double-whammy as it also passes a "century" (100 lbs group) mark and puts me solidly in "Onederland". My first weigh-in had me at 206.4 and my second at 200.2. While that was a BIG deal for me (I average 1.5 lbs per week losses right now) it didn't cross any "borders" as they are both between 200 and 210. This coming Monday however? Well, watch out because I think I have a BIG border crossing to record as I move into the 190s. Highlighting people that have moved from one group and across the "border" into the next is just a way of making things a little more fun.

An Irishman was terribly overweight, so his doctor put him on a diet. The doctor said, "I want you to eat regularly for 2 days, then skip a day, and repeat this procedure for 2 weeks. The next time I see you, you should have lost 5 lbs." When the Irishman returned, the doctor was shocked to see that he had lost 60 lbs! "Why, that's amazing!", the doctor said, "did you follow my instructions?" The Irishman nodded... "I'll tell you though, I t'aut I were going to drop dead by dat 3rd day." "From the hunger, you mean?", asked the doctor. "No, from the skippin."

St. Patrick’s Day Week 1 Results Here’s a wrap-up of how the first week of the St. Patrick’s Day Challenge went: Number of people reporting in Week 1: 86 Total weight lost by the group: 169.8 Average pounds lost per person for week: 2.0 Week 1 Border Crossings: 320s to 310s: Hevnbound 310s to 300s: Sleeveless n Seattle 260s to 250s: BlondeBanshee 240s to 230s: Danni-doinit4me, WeighDownSouth (him) 230s to 220s: susan6161, Chelenka 220s to 210s: andreamy7 210s to 200s: Cathysleever, VSG AJH 200s to 190s (ONEDERLAND!): snochick2005 190s to 180s: ladyd728, Evolving 180s to 170s: iris26, ribearty 150s to 140s: skinnygirl2b 140s to 130s: npark36 Luck of the Irish to you all in Week 2! As always, my apologies if I missed anyone!

Some of us here have been involved in quite a few challenges over the past few months, but we are also thrilled to have a new batch of Challengers join us for this one. I need to pose a question to the group, both veterans and newbies, before we move on to the next (Easter) challenge. I have always adjusted to challenge weigh-ins to END on the actual holiday. This means that for our next challenge, weigh-ins will be on Sunday. For longer challenges, it seems an okay move as we quickly get into the groove of things and adjust to a different weigh-in day. However, sometimes it [obviously] just gets a bit difficult to remember what day we are supposed to log in. So, I'm posting a set of polling questions to the group here. 1. Would you like the Challenges to continue to end ON the holiday itself, making weigh-ins for them often occur on different days of the week (Easter, SUN, April 20; Memorial Day, MON, May 26; Independence Day, FRI, July 4; etc.)? OR 2. Would you like to pick a "standardized" weigh-in DAY for the next few challenges ? Also, if you select a STANDARDIZED weigh-in day, what day would you prefer? Thanks so much! P.S. I'm not quite sure how to vote on this one myself (LOL!), but I'll try to post my own answer soon.

Happy Re-Birthday, Chelenka! And needing to reset your goal to something that's more of a stretch? PRICELESS!

LOVE the tutu, Wags! You look AWESOME! Congrats on a HUGE (pun intended) accomplishment!

Not too late. It's a rather short challenge so there are only 3 check-ins left, but you are certainly welcome to join us. Please post your start weight and your March 17 goal weight, then report in on Mondays. That's it. Welcome!

200.2 this morning. TOTALLY happy with that! Onederland soon!!!

Not too late at all. I've added you now, but need your goal weight. (So sorry if you already posted this and I just missed it!!!)

Bea's having a GOOD DAY today! For the first time in 28 years my BMI says I'm "overweight" instead of "obese"! I hit 200.0 today and could not be MORE THRILLED! I showed increases or the same weight every single day all the way up to the beginning of month 7. Now my weight fluctuates in both directions, although with a steady, but slow, decline every week. So although I know tomorrow may but slightly up again, after another week or so I can fully expect to NEVER see numbers starting with "2" again. There is something so very exciting in that! I may log today's weight as my weekly weight, not because I am interested in "cheating" (it will all come out right in the end anyway) but simply because I've hit a point that is game-changing in my life and want to log it, share it, hold on to it. Sorry for going on and on about this, but if anyone could understand what I'm feeling, it's all of you. So, I just had to share here.

It's all right..."official" check in for this challenge is on Monday. :-)

Valentine's Challenge Final Results Here's a wrap-up of how the Valentine's Challenge ended up (with some amazing team results!): Number of people reporting, by week: 106, 105, 102, 97, 86, 77Yes, there does seem to be a tendency to fall off the further we go Still, 77/106 means 73% of the original group stuck it out to the end...not bad! Total weight lost by the group: 1,104.9 lbs!!! Count and percent of those who made goal: 30/77 or 40% Start-to-finish border crossings: Bigbeaz crossed a MAJOR border from the 300s to the 290s NewNana and Evolving crossed into ONEDERLAND from the 200s to the 190s livvsmum, mickally, and Seela crossed TWO borders and into ONEDERLAND, from the 200s to the 180s Bearman99 crossed THREE borders, from the 300s to the 270s! 4MEL21 crossed THREE borders, from the 270s to the 240s Stacy_wls crossed THREE borders, from the 250s to the 220s dreamscometrue crossed THREE borders, from the 250s to the 220s Sleeveless n Seattle crossed TWO borders, from the 330s to the 310s Lynnc121 cross TWO borders, from the 300s to the 280s Nurse_B crossed TWO borders, from the 260s to the 240s Hunter and magtart crossed TWO borders, from the 250s to the 230s Ree and Sherry73 crossed TWO borders, from the 240s to the 220s Comfy_Blue, tami j, Jhealan, and Mkak crossed TWO borders, from the 210s to the 190s planetheather and EarthyGoalie crossed TWO borders, from the 180s to the 160s Lorie77 crossed TWO borders, from the 170s to the 150s Oceana crossed TWO borders, from the 150s to the 130s Fallenangel2904 crossed from the 280s to the 270s Hannah55 crossed from the 270s to the 260s Ms. Keel and kyleebean crossed from the 260s to the 250s Jdub and back2barb78 crossed from the 250s to the 240s Eyedbrown crossed from the 240s to the 230s BeeLee37 and HardWork13 crossed from the 230s to the 220s mytime2shine, Mama Spike, crosabi, Cathysleever, VSG AJH, gourmetone, and nomytx crossed from the 220s to the 210s kltklass, snochochick2005, GatorGirl72, BeaAmaya, Beach Lover, and LisaDM crossed from the 210s to the 200s onsummit, Bombs, Yoga-lady, and longtimecoming7 crossed from the 190s to the 180s JanetPRN, krtrebie, jcoklahoma, and cms213 crossed from the 180s to the 170s marywithoutsound, tddonnell67, and Busymomof3 crossed from the 170s to the 160s Wags, crowsnestmama, Anouli, Sweet_Mia, and spritedcowgirl63 crossed from the 160s to the 150s Chellemetime crossed from the 150s to the 140s Whew! Looks to me like the Valentine's Challenge was a BIG SUCCESS!

Certainly! Just post your stats here and I'll fill them out on the spreadsheet. Welcome to the challenge!

You're in. Welcome to the Challenge. Good luck!

Miss Mac, no worries at all about not "getting this". This is actually a good excuse to explain things to the challenge newcomers. All that is required on your part is to report in every Monday (or whatever day you pick...we're not really particular about that). Part of the fun is watching the changes in a visual way, especially as you can look at other challengers and see how they are doing. The "cloud" is just a web space that's available to others (like a web page is) to view. I have put an Excel spreadsheet of our progress in a "cloud" location that belongs to me. There won't be much to see until week 2 of the challenge when the comparisons start. Other data points, like how many people are in the challenge, how much is being lost each week, the per person average of losses each week, etc. are all a part of the fun. You'll know that I've updated your data to the spreadsheet when you see that I have "Liked" your update post. I think that covers most of the points, but other veteran challengers are welcome to chime in as well. For me, it just seems that when I approach losing as a kind of "team sport", it makes it more fun. The big losses give us an opportunity to shout about it, the little losses give us support from friends who understand, and the ever unpopular "gains" let us know we are only human and our bodies are not always under our full control. What better way to experience all of these phases and the emotions that go with them than with a group of individuals who TOTALLY know how we feel! Welcome to the challenge!

If you want to report in on Friday's, that's definitely fine with us. I never go by (look at) the days anyway...as soon as someone reports in, I just post the weight to the nearest weigh-in day. Whatever works for you is good for us too. Good luck!

https://skydrive.live.com/view.aspx?resid=C39B86143819E4E1!1004&ithint=file%2C.xlsx&app=Excel&wdo=2&authkey=!AN-F3qei-t4olnM (Hope this works for you.)

Bea, I'm not sure you ever "liked" my post from Friday. (I'm on my phone and can't see all of the likes.) From what I can tell, I don't think my stats have been added. If they have, sorry that I've once again added more work. Thanks again so much! Looks like I missed yours...thanks for the reminder! Hopefully, it is showing up now. (Congrats on making goal!)