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My Weekly FitBit Results & Weigh-In – #MillionSteps Challenge

Eek! The time has come to share some weight loss results… I told you guys about a week and a half ago, that I was starting a new weight loss challenge. Part of it is a personal goal – To finally, after two years, lose the rest of the weight I gained when I was pregnant. {I gained over 70 pounds – woah.} I still need to lose about 30, and am giving myself a goal of 6 months to do so. Which is really tough when I like to bake all the time, lol. The other half of my challenge involves my amazing bloggy buddies – the other Best Buy Blogging Ambassadors! We set up a challenge for the month of January, to see if the 9 of us could reach a combined total of one MILLION steps, in just one month. {Learn more: #MillionSteps Challenge.} So far, we’re at a combined total of 719,473 steps – holy fitness, Batman!

How the FitBit works [Read more…]

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The Best Gadgets & Apps for Weight Loss – #MillionSteps Challenge

I’ve lost many things over the past year. My patience. My sanity {I’m a work at home mom, with a 2 year old home with me. Eek!} My temper. But one thing that I have NOT lost, is the rest of this baby weight. {Can I still call it baby weight, if she’s now a toddler?} If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you might remember my Nutrisystem diet challenge in early 2012 – I lost over 20 pounds, in just 3 months. I was super excited about that. But over the past few months, with the gloriousness of holiday food, I’ve gained 10 pounds. So, I’ve committed myself to losing it again – My goal is to lose 30 pounds by my birthday in May. We have a pool, and this year I don’t want to hide under a tee shirt all summer! Keep reading to learn about the tools, resources, and motivation I’m using to stay on track….

Fitbit weight loss tools - pedometer, and wifi scale [Read more…]

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New Year’s Resolution #Giveaway – Win a FitBit Zip!!

New year, new you! – You’ve heard this a million times before, right? Well, this year I’m really committing to making some big health changes, and finally getting my pre-baby booty back again. When I followed the Nutrisystem diet  for 3 months at the beginning of 2012, I lost a little over 20 pounds. One thing that kept me accountable was posting a weekly weigh-in photo on this site – It really helps you skip that second cookie when you know you’ll be showing the scale photo in a few days! I’m going to be starting those soon {stay tuned} – and to kick things off, I’ve got a rockin’ giveaway for you. Check it out…

FitBit Zip Giveaway

Welcome to the New Year’s Resolution FitBit Zip giveaway!

This awesome event is hosted by Freckleberry Finds and Slap Dash Mom, and a great group of other fab bloggers to bring you a giveaway that’ll get you moving!

I’ve been using the FitBit for a few months now, and loooooove it. And I’m participating in the #MillionSteps challenge during January with my Best Buy Blogging Ambassador team -We’re going to see if the 9 of us can reach a million steps during the month, tracked on our FitBits. {Follow along on Twitter to see our progress.} This is totally separate from the giveaway, but if you love the FitBit, I’d love for you to follow along with and join in too!

One lucky winner will take home a Fitbit – Zip Wireless Activity Tracker– AND a bonus prize: a Beach Body DVD set consisting of Hip Hop Abs and Brazil Butt Lift. You’ll be ripped in no time!

Giveaway event ends at 11:59 PM ET on January 22. Open to the US. Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

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4 Tips to Avoid Crazy Holiday Weight Gain

When you think of the holiday season, you think of beautiful twinkling lights carefully hung on a beautifully decorated tree. Wrapping up the perfect gift to surprise someone special. And – if you’re anything like me – you definitely think of holiday dinners and cookies and treats too! And while festive foods are always going to be a part of celebrating the season, you don’t have to let all of that holiday excess lead to a bigger you in the New Year. Follow these tips to help keep your weight under control, without feeling like you’re missing out on all of the fun…

How to keep off the holiday pounds [Read more…]

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New Year, New You – Yoga Prize Pack #Giveaway!

Welcome to our New Year, New You, Yoga Prize Pack Giveaway!!… I’ve partnered with some awesome bloggy buddies to put together this sweet package filled with everything you need to get a jump start on those goals for 2013! One Winner will receive:

Set of Yoga Paws, a premium Yoga Mat, and Yoga DVD to take you through the moves

[Read more…]

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The Easiest Diet Ever for Crazy-Busy Moms #diettogo

“Don’t dig your grave with your own knife and fork.” – English Proverb… Being a mom is a tough job, am I right? You try to write down your daily to-do list, but get so tired by page 76 that you just give up. {That’s only slightly exaggerated.} So, taking care of ourselves so often gets pushed aside, while we instead care for everyone else in our lives. And speaking of pushing – I’m sure I’m not the only one who still needs to lose that “baby weight” – but now has a toddler. Planning, shopping for, and preparing healthy balanced meals for a specific type of diet plan can be waaaaay more work than most of us have time for. Which is why I was really interested to try out this diet delivery service, and see if it was really as good as it looked. Well, I’m in love, and think you ladies will love it too…

diet to go dinner

Mushroom Chicken with Wild Rice Pilaf & Italian Veggie Blend

[Read more…]

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The Non-Stalker Way to Track Your Every Movement

So…. I’m not exactly the type of girl you’d ever call “active.” I never played a sport, I’ve never been on a team, I’ve never gone to a gym. Ever. But – I was lucky enough to be one of those girls who never really struggled with her weight. I was never super skinny, but I was healthy and slim through high school. Even as I moved into my twenties and went up a pant size, it wasn’t ever a big deal. Then I got pregnant. Wow. Who even knew it was possible to pack an extra 75 pounds on my frame??? Suddenly, my weight had become a bit of an issue. And by a bit, I mean I bit my lip every time someone asked, “Ohmygosh, you look ready to pop any minute now!!” when I was only 7 months along. Oh, the joys of motherhood….

some ecards - I didn't make it to the gym today

I haven’t made it to the gym in 32 years. At least I’m consistent….

OK – forgive the pic quality on this one. It was a super small pic on some ecards, and didn’t want to play nice when I made it a little bigger to put it in this post. But – it’s the perfect picture to explain my life, and relationship to fitness. I remember when I was invited to bring my nephew to the Nike World HQ for the Young Athletes Innovation Summit earlier this year… They sent us an email a couple weeks before we’d fly out for this event, with suggestions on what we should wear. It mentioned not to wear competing brands – and to dress in sneakers, hoodies or tees, and comfy bottoms. I thought, “Oh. No. Do NOT tell me that I’m going to have to do activities. I don’t DO activities.” I was concerned… So I handled it by wearing jeans and wedges. No one can make me run in a strappy wedge sandal, right? Right. Luckily, there was lots of walking, but no sporty-type “fun” stuff that would lead to an embarrassing show of my lack of coordination. Whew. Now that you know all this about me, you’ll understand why I am pretty crazy-excited about a new little gadget {oh, how I love gadgets!} that is going to help guide me to a more active lifestyle, totally painlessly. It’s called the Fitbit – watch this quick video to get a feel for it…

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 How cool is this Fitbit, right?

Saying that this little gadget is like a pedometer is like saying that watching a local singer perform at your fave coffee shop is like seeing Beyonce perform in Times Square – not even in the same ballpark! Yes, the Fitbit tracks your steps, but that’s where the similarity stops. It has so many super helpful tools that go along with it, that can help everyone from the totally non-sporty types like me push themselves to a healthier level, as well as help super-athletes track their training. How do I love the Fitbit? Well, let me count the ways….

  1. It’s simple: It’s crazy how easy it is to get started with the Fitbit. You open the box, place the Fitbit on the base, then plug it into your computer. Click through a couple of steps to set it all up – and BAM! You’re ready to rock. Seriously, it’s that easy.
  2. It’s easy to conceal: Unlike the big, bulky, ugly pedometers you’re used to seeing – the Fitbit is sleek and easy to hide. I clip mine over my front bra clasp – and honestly don’t notice it at all. {Although my toddler saw me put it on a couple of days ago, and is now constantly digging down my shirt, looking for it. Good times…} You can also clip it to your waistband, or pocket.
  3. It’s magic: Ok, not really. But it feels like magic. Everyday the Fitbit is tracking your steps, your stairs, your sleep, and more. But -there’s no need to have to plug it in regularly and download all that helpful into – it wirelessly uploads your data automatically to the Fitbit site, whenever you are nearby. Then you can monitor your progress, and use all of the sweet – and totally free – tools on their site. PERFECT for busy moms like me.
  4. It’s a multi-tasker: This baby is a hard worker – It’ll show you how many steps you took during a day, so you can work on increasing those steps. Each day around lunch I check my progress – if the number is low, I know I need to add in an extra walk around the neighborhood with Abby. It’s seriously helping me push myself to be more active each day – without going to the gym, or doing crazy workouts. Love this.

It tracks, analyzes, and stores data on your every movement, day and night – but in a totally non-creepy, not stalkerish way. More like a super cool and protective older brother, who’s just always watching out for you, and encourages you to do your best. You can even download an app for your phone, so that you’ve got help any time you need it – It can do things like let you know how many calories you should be eating that day, based on your activity level. I am so excited at the progress I’m making already, with increasing my steps each day. I had lost about 20 pounds earlier this year using the Nutrisystem diet. But now that I’m on my own, my weight has held really steady. I love that this gadget is totally pushing me to lose the rest that I need to take off too, by walking more, taking more stairs, and more. I can’t recommend it enough!

Fitbit: weight loss gadget

The Fitbit is available at Best Buy – save big on one today!

When you think of Best Buy, you usually think of things like geeky guys checking out the newest video games, and buying new ram or bytes or something like that to make their super computers even faster. {Or at least, that used to be my image of Best Buy…} But did you know that they have SO much more than just computers and games? They’ve got a great line of kitchen gadgets and gear {I’ll be showing you some awesome stuff from that department soon!} – as well as hair tools, mens shaving gear, and super sweet workout helpers like the Fitbit. And they have some of the most helpful staff you’ll find anywhere, so they will totally help you with tips on using any new gadgets you pick up too. Much better service than you’re gonna get by shopping at Walmart, or the guessing game you have to do when shopping online at Amazon. Love that. And if you’re thinking of picking up a Fitbit yourself – don’t wait! There’s a great coupon deal right now – Save 20% off any Regular Price Health & Fitness product. Rockin’.

WOLF Blogging Board Member and Brand Ambassador

As part of the new Best Buy Blogging Board – I’ll be a brand ambassador for them over this next year. Which means you’ll get to hear about all kinds of super helpful gadgets, gear, services, and more – that are available from Best Buy. I’m incredibly excited to be partnering with such an amazing company – and can’t wait to share more cool stuff with you ladies. Stay tuned!

See more real women using the FitBit on my Best Buy Pinterest board!

{Disclaimer: The reviewer has received compensation for this post in the form of the reviewed product or a gift card. All opinions are 100% the reviewer’s and have not been influenced in any way.}

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