Fat2Fit
 
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Group Information
Date Created:
March 29, 2008
Category:
Health »
Weight Loss
Group Type:
Public
Owner:
carole AARP Member
Offline
carole
Moderators:
AARPTeri AARP Member
Offline
AARPTeri
Amy AARP Member
Offline
Amy
All Members

Fat2Fit

THE FAT 2 FIT COMMUNITY CONTINUES TO EXPAND THE GROUP EVEN AS WE SHRINK OUR BODIES. Get into the spirit of healthy living without skimping on the fun! We'll explore invigorating new activities, nutritious feel-good foods, and the latest health trends. Working together, we can help one another reach our personal goals!

Our philosophy is summarized by F.I.T.: F=Fun I=Individualized T=Together

We are keeping a running total of our weight loss. Report your weight loss by sending a message to Coach Carole Carson (click on photo on left side of page). (All AARP.org users should seek expert medical care and consult their own physicians for any specific health issues. Read our full medical disclaimer.)

  New Topic   Group Forum (429)

Is Junk Food as Addictive as Illegal Drugs?
By: carole on November 20, 2009 | Posts: 13 | Latest Post By: SeniorPower on November 22, 2009
Try-Athletes: What Did You Try Last Week?
By: carole on November 16, 2009 | Posts: 4 | Latest Post By: LadyPhoenix on November 17, 2009
This Week's Fitness Tip, Featured Member and Try-Athlon Contest
By: carole on November 15, 2009 | Posts: 2 | Latest Post By: carole on November 16, 2009
Really Getting Fit - Update and memo
By: SeniorPower on November 14, 2009 | Posts: 5 | Latest Post By: SeniorPower on November 15, 2009
Exercise Paying Off!
By: Christyswimmer49 on November 14, 2009 | Posts: 4 | Latest Post By: Christyswimmer49 on November 15, 2009
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Group Photos (28)

Picture 047.jpg
 
Barefootwt 002.jpg
 
Up against the wall
 
Richie, Belinda,Hunter, girls 076.jpg
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F2F Day 1
 
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Happy Easter
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Group Videos (0)

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Group Journals (73)

This Week's Fitness Tip, Featured Member and "Try-Athlon"

Fitness Tip: A Rule to Live By

Have you ever tried to go a whole day without expressing a single negative thought? The effort makes us aware of how many of our thoughts are on the dark side of life. To keep on the sunny side, try a simple rule: "Don't complain and don't explain." By that I mean, don't complain about difficulties and don't make excuses. Once you remove these options, you'll find yourself getting more done and more out of life.

Featured Member: A Poet in Residence, Jack Schmidt

When we feel strong and committed, it's easy to believe that we will follow through on our good intentions to get fit. Other times, we can feel our resolve slipping away. Our actions follow the lead of our feelings and perceptions; hence, it's important to keep a positive perspective.

Jack Schmidt, a member who's lost 81 pounds, wrote the poem below from his experience. Last week, I posted it in the topic area, and several members commented on how valuable they found it. Some even shared the poem at the office or with family and friends. For those of you who missed it, I've posted it in its entirety here. Be sure to read to the end.

I will always be fat
And I refuse to believe that
I can lose this weight
I do
I realize that isn't the way most people think but
"Eating to live instead of living to eat?"
That's just not working out, and I truly believe
Eating what I want will make me happier in the end
It's just a big fat lie, thinking
Being fit is the most important thing in my life
Now I understand that
Making myself happy with food
Is more important than
Making myself healthy with food
And this much is true:
People are succeeding at losing weight every day
But I know in my heart this will not be the case for me
This could wind up killing me
Doctors tell me
I will shorten my life and steal time away from my family
Right now it doesn't seem possible that
I can change my ways and be fit for the rest of my life
This is what I believe:
This journey is just too tough for me
I don't want to even consider the fact that
I can control the causes of my shortcomings and my failings
It's just a fact of life that
People like me are weak-willed and lazy
And it's ridiculous to believe that
I will lose weight and be healthy

Jack says: "That's how I used to think; then I chose to reverse it (read from the bottom up)."

To acknowledge Jack's contribution to our community, I am sending him an autographed copy of From Fat to Fit: Turn Yourself into a Weapon of Mass Reduction. Do we have any more poets? Want to you try your hand at writing reverse poetry?

Where Are the Holiday Try-Athletes?

Thanksgiving is next week. How much will you eat? Given our goal of fitness, it's tough to get through a day dedicated to overeating. And as soon as Thanksgiving is over, it's time for another six weeks of holiday treats. If you're like me, you'll find yourself in situations that encourage excess and challenge your efforts to eat carefully.

You can keep your focus on fitness, though, by joining the Fat 2 Fit Try-athlon. Instead of regrets, you can begin the new year feeling good about yourself.

You don't have to be an athlete. You only have to be willing to try three new "sports."

Sport One--Eating: Try a new food each week, try a new recipe, try a different eating pattern, etc.

Sport Two--Exercising: Try a new exercise activity each week, try a different routine, try to extend your routine, etc.

Sport Three--Contributing: Try a new way to support others' fitness efforts, try a new way to share your commitment, try to create a social event that doesn't focus on eating, etc.

Report the results of your weekly participation in the try-athlon topic area of the forum. By posting our results each week in one topic area, we can see what each other is doing and get ideas for additional ways to compete.

The Fat 2 Fit Holiday Try-athlon ends Monday, January 4. Each week, I have a surprise weekly prize for the member who is most creative in his or her try-achievements. This week's winner is Lady Phoenix, who will receive a Fat 2 Fit coffee mug. Congratulations, Lady Phoenix!

About Our Community

More new members joined us last week, so the Fat 2 Fit Online Community group has 3,963 members. Do you have a friend, neighbor or relative you could invite to join us? Just for the fun of it, I've set our goal at 4,000 want-to-be-fitter members.

A Few Reminders

Collect Your Messages: Next time you take a break, click on your Message Center to get your messages. Some of you have reported problems with notifications, so log on to make sure you don't miss any comments.

Next Week's Featured Member: Next week, I'll pick another member to lift up to our community. Who will it be? Maybe you?

Have a great week.

Coach Carole

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