Shrinkvivor: Final Weigh-In #8

I cannot believe we are at the end of our Shrinkingjeans Shrinkvivor challenge!  While I didn't make it to the finals, I have thoroughly enjoyed this challenge.  In fact, it has probably been my favorite of all of the Shrinkingjeans challenges I have participated in!  I loved the minutes and miles challenges (it helped that I was near the end of my 1/2 marathon training)!  Might be due to the fact that I am a Survivor junkie and anything that comes close to letting me play along is A-OK in my book!  By Friday, we are going to find out which of the amazing 7 finalists will win that sweet prize package.

For the past week, I have resided over on Exile Island, although I have to admit I really haven't checked in over there very much.  Instead, I've just been trying to find my footing and come up with some new running goals for the off season.  (I live in Michigan and it is getting too dark for me to run after work outside, so my weekly runs will need to be on a treadmill.  I'm hoping to suck-it-up and still do my weekend running outside.  I even bought a new pair of nice, warm running pants that will hopefully keep my legs from turning into frozen stumps.  Anyhoo....)  If you follow me on twitter, you know that since finishing my 1/2 marathon, I've been a bit scatterbrained in what my next running goal should be.  I did run my first-ever straight 5 miles without any walk breaks this past weekend!!! WOOT!!! So now I am thinking I will make it a goal to eliminate walk breaks completely.  I will be signing up for an 8k (about 5 mile) Turkey Trot race on Thanksgiving day and plan to keep my long run mileage around the 6 to 8 mile mark throughout the rest of this calendar year.  When everyone is running their virtual 5k with the sisterhood on January 8th (and while some of my dear friends are running 1/2 mary's and fulls at Disney), my plan is to run a 10k without walking.  I'd originally thought I would train for the 1/2 and run it "with" the Disney girls, but that just isn't realistic in my neck-of-the-woods.  I can't commit to running for 2.5 hrs on a treadmill or hoping we don't have a blizzard and running it outside.  Sorry Disney ladies :(

So, wish me luck.  Hopefully this plan will keep my weight right around where it is now.  I'm still not quite willing to say I've hit my goal weight, but I am very happy with where I've been hanging out weight wise.  Shall we get to the numbers?

Weight on June 23, 2009: 165.8

Challenge Starting Weight: 141.6

Last Week's Weight: 137.4

This Week's Weight: 137.6

Change This Week: up .2 (basically maintaining)

Change For Shrinkvivor Challenge: down 4.0

Total Pounds Gone: 28.2

My goal for the Shrinkvivor challenge was to get back down to 138 pounds and I made it!  Now, I would really love to see that scale hit 135.8 or less so I can earn my 30 pound button (and probably the "I lost it all" button), but I'm not going to stress if I don't get there.  I think a healthy weight range for me is somewhere in the 135 to 138 range.  (I've looked at a number of "ideal weight" calculators and they have me anywhere from 107-Yikes! to 141.  I don't ever want to see the 140s again even though my Weight Watchers goal weight from years ago was 141 and I maintained there for 6 years).  My BMI is now in the "normal range", although that scale has issues as well.  I think the important thing to do is to get to a weight that is somewhere in your "ideal range" based on medical data, but also at a weight that is something that can be maintained.  Could I starve myself and get to 107? I highly doubt it.  Could I get into the 120's? Probably, but I would have a very hard time maintaining that weight.  So for right now, the mid 130's are looking pretty good.

Oh yeah, one other REALLY COOL AWESOME PHENOMENAL LITTLE THING happened over the weekend.  I WON ONE OF THE SHRINKINGJEANS PASSES TO FITBLOGGIN!!!!! (Along with Kirsten, who won the grand prize, and Carmen!)  Yes, I wrote that in all caps because I am SO FREAKING EXCITED to meet the wonderful, supportive, amazing ladies behind The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans (plus all the other ladies I have "met" through the blogosphere and twitter).  Had I not discovered their site a little over a year ago, I'm sure I would still be a 165 pound (or heavier) unhappy unmotivated nonathletic woman sitting on my couch.  Instead, I'm back down to a healthy weight and I've completed 2 10k's and a 1/2 marathon with their love and support.  So a HUGE SHOUT OUT of THANKS to all the girls and guy over at Shrinkingjeans!  IRL hugs will come in May the week after I finish (God willing) my first ever 25k (15.5 mile) run!  I sure hope I survive to run that 5k with all of them!