heh - and today is the first time ever i almost cherish needing to lose 50+ pounds! LOL

yeah - i have insurance, but it's crappy.

we subsist on my husband's full-time job and my financial aid from college - for a family of four. LOL

i make my own hoops cause i can't really afford to spend $50+shipping for one.

we should be long-distance workout buddies. *grins* i could use the encouragement and motivation!

Hello again everyone. WOW what a response. First of all, I am very concerned that some people may not be able to participate for money reasons. Can we clarify what the challenge is? I want to enable everyone to participate!

It seems like getting the doctor's verification of weight lost is the challenge? What about going to a nearby free clinic?

I also welcome anyone else's ideas about how to verify weight loss. I was wracking my brain and this seemed the only verifiable way. But I'm open to ideas? Photos of a scale don't work because you can't see the number and the full person at the same time.. perhaps they could be holding something or scale tuned incorrectly.

As far as getting a hoop, yes, you do need a HoopGirl hoop to participate... perhaps a 10% off discount code for those purchasing specifically to enter the contest? Let me know your thoughts.

Smiles
Christabel

i guess i would be willing to moderate...i am not sure how much time that takes...it won't be a huge group, so it shouldn't be too bad...i am just about to get really busy with work and school...and hooping of course...haha

but yeah i would be willing to do it...unless Christabel would prefer someone from HoopGirl to do it...you know, in their spare time ...haha

Echo... as I have shared with you before I was going through a nasty seperation..so my memory is really unclear as to how much I hooped in the beginning. I hooped when I was angry, I hooped when I was stressed, I hooped when I got home from work, I hooped when I didnt feel I could go home. Easier to say... I hooped! With that said... I didnt usually go for long sessions at a time, rather multiple times through out the day, 10 minutes here 15 minutes there. What I can say is I was not hooping hours on end on a daily basises, especially not at first, but I was hooping 5 - 6 days a week... at shorter intervals.

Somewhere around November, I think my hooping changed. I wasnt hooping as much.. my practice got less as things calmed down for me in my space / world... however when I did hoop it was for much more extended periods. Weekend workshops in Ohio could prove to have 3 - 4 hours of hooping a night for several nights straight. So while I wasnt hooping every day.. I was hooping for extended periods of time.

Now.. I try to get in at least 3 - 5 hours of hooping a week. I still have a problem having it everyday .. but try to break that up into 3 days a week. A more regular schedule.

Im not saying by any means...that it should be done like that.. it is just my hooping history. I would say, listen to your body. I made mine very sore... from excessive hooping at first.... but there are time when one NEEDS too hoop wheather the want too or not.

---------> Eatting --->

Well I have always eatten well. I gained weight (first time in my life) when I was pregnate. Even then I ate well, just too much pasta, bread, and Starbucks orange/cranberry or pumpkin muffins!!!!

I eat about an 80 - 85% vegetarian diet. Fresh, bright veggies are my favorite. I use olive oil, real butter and very whole grain foods. Essentially, I almost never eat fried foods.. I dont do fast food, I eat lean protein when consuming flesh, otherwise I get protein from tofu, wheat meat, beans, eggs. I read my labels and try not to purchse anything with corn syrup... ( you wouldnt dream the things that they put that crap in!!!) and well I try to stay away from refined sugars. I use either brown sugar, honey or in my coffee... I do use Splenda. In fact that is my only artifical ... I do use. I stay away from all aspertain products, not that I am convinced splenda is much better, but it does taste better.

Other tricks I learned.... eat protein in the morning! you will stay fuller longer.. and you must learn to eat breakfast!!! Eat a hand full of nuts 30 minutes before lunch and dinner. Drink more water.. keep low sugar dark chocolate around for sweet attacks. This is best with the dark chocolate chips in a bag. you can grab some with nuts... and it satisifies the sweet need without consuming too much.

All of that said.. these have been life changes for me.. not a "diet" change for me. As I started to loose weight, I ate less. As I ate less processed things like bread and pasta, the less I craved them...etc. This was not an over night thing. It has been one small step at a time... but give yourself permission to have what you want.. just not all the time and base your decisions as choices for your life, not choices for a diet, or in this case, for a monetary reward. Im still in the process of learning to love myself and being comfortable in my own body. ... of course... truthfully I had that problem with I was 130 pounds..

So without a novel here.. Ladies..my best suggestion is Love thy self and honor thy self. When you make decisions that treat you like the goddesses you all are... then the rest will take care of itself.