T&F Survivor Slimdown

Wow!

2010-08-03T22:05:00.000-07:00

Only two months until race day! The Ulman Half Full Triathlon is October 3rd and I can't believe how fast time is flying!! Lots of good things to report today :-)

My weight loss is actually noticeable to other people now. My house mate has said things like "your necklace is longer" and "your toes are scrawny!", which is her way of telling me that she can see a difference. Coworkers are asking me if I've lost weight, so are friends that I don't see every day, and the weight on my driver license is higher than my actual weight for the first time since high school! This is good stuff! One thing I didn't think about related to losing weight is the cost. I can't wear any of the clothes I could wear when this all started last year. Even my shoes are getting too big because my feet aren't as chubby as they once were. This is getting expensive! But, it's so worth it to be able to have extra room in a movie theater seat or to be able to walk into a store that I am not used to being able to shop in and buy something off the rack :-)

With my brother at our grandmother's 93rd birthday in June.

Health is very good. I had a biopsy last month and it came back clear. Such a huge relief! My other doctor decided to do some blood tests to see how my blood sugar, cholesterol, etc are looking since I changed my diet. They were always within the normal range but they were also always very near the high end of normal. Now, they're right in the middle of normal and my doctors were all very pleased. My blood pressure has even gone down to 106/75.

Training is exhausting and totally invigorating! I love it and am super excited, and nervous, about the race. But, fitting training into my schedule is getting harder and harder. Luckily, I've found that I really enjoy working out. So, that's a big help. But, my gym is cutting back its hours and I'm not sure how I'll be able to get there when they're open. Even if it means changing gyms, I'll find a way :-) So, my swim workouts are now a little over a mile. I'm swimming farther than the triathlon requires but swimming in a pool and swimming in open water are very different. I'm trying to find a couple of friends to do a few open water swims with between now and the race in October. I hope that some of my nervousness will go away after I get a few good swims under my belt. Wish me luck!!

Hope you're all having a great summer!

Cindy

Great week!

2010-05-16T21:09:00.000-07:00

Wow! This has been a fantastic week! I had my best swim workout ever, talked to a young woman about her weight battle and discussed cervical cancer with a complete stranger. I'm amazed by how life works sometimes.

While I was shopping last week my favorite sales girl mentioned that she'd noticed I've lost weight and asked me what I've been doing. So, we chatted about body issues, what we've tried in the past to lose weight, and how we both want to learn how to eat to stay at a healthier weight. We've both tried things like Nutrisystem and Jenny Craig and we've both gained weight back when we stopped. Not because the programs aren't good but because the programs just give you food and tell you to eat it, they don't actually teach you how to cook for yourself later. She and I agreed that we'd check in on each other whenever we see each other. Should be fun to see her progress too :-)

Today I volunteered with Team in Training at the AMGEN bike race. I had a great time seeing old friends that I completed a marathon with a few years back, met a lady who is currently going through treatment for a blood cancer, and met a woman who had cervical cancer 12 years ago. I found this out because she said that she liked my bracelet. It's a bracelet my best friend gave me and it's designed to represent cervical cancer. When I told her why I had it she immediately told me her cervical cancer story and she told me that she'd always felt alone. I'm so glad that she and I crossed paths so that she knows she's not alone. I told her about Tamika & Friends and that she can always find information through them whenever she needs it. I hope she'll look up the site when she gets home!

Thursday night I had my best swim workout yet. I'm so excited!! Before Thursday I was getting really nervous about the triathlon. It's less than five months away and I've been having trouble getting my breathing right in the pool. I can spend an hour on the elliptical machine but I couldn't swim 10 laps. I'm not sure what changed but I was able to swim 36 laps without stopping any longer than it took to touch the wall and turn around. Woo-hoo!! That workout makes me believe that I'll be able to swim the distance during the triathlon. And, I'm even a little excited to see how everything goes when we get there on October 3rd.

Bye for now,

Cindy

Getting Healthier One Step at a Time

2010-04-30T22:01:00.000-07:00

I am definitely losing weight and getting healthier but of course I have a long road ahead of me and my weight will probably always be somewhat of a struggle for me. I wasn't always overweight and that is probably the most frustrating aspect of my weight for me now. I gained the majority of my weight in my 30s. I am about to turn 41 on May 18th. There have been times over the last ten years that I have beat myself up inside wondering how did I let myself gain all of the weight that I have. I have forgiven myself for the weight gain and now my focus is to lose what I can sensibly and safely while getting healthier.

I think many of us, especially women, are not always completely satisfied with the way we look. Some of us think we are too fat, too skinny, too short, too tall, wish we could change a certain body part, etc. A very wise person recently told me that to truly bring about change that you first have to accept who you are and what you have been given. I have always had a more endowed butt, even when I was slimmer. I use to want to change that...wished I had a smaller one. I have learned over the years to accept what I have been given and work with it instead of against it. I will probably never have a small behind, but with determination and dedication, I am hoping I can get more trim, fit, and healthier!!

So many people have been very support of the challenges that I have been facing in trying to lose weight and get more fit. They have said such things as "Don't give up" and "Keep up the good work". Others have been negative and at times down right insensitive. I know that I am over weight...I know that I need to lose weight...I don't need negative people telling me that I can't do it. Maybe I can't, but it is only me that truly can decide what I can or can't accomplish.

Being a cancer survivor, I feel like I have already won the race because I am still here on this earth. Everything else is the icing on the cake. Spending quality time with my two great kids, hanging with my friends and family, working on getting healthier and living life to its fullest is truly a gift. I have lost too many family members and friends to cancer in recent years. It is a disease that I have come to despise and hope that one day will be eradicated. My biggest reason for wanting to lose weight and get heathier is not to fit into a certain size of a dress, or look more glamorous. I want to LIVE and I know that there are no guarantees in life, but I also know that being healthier is helpful.

I would love moral support during this life altering journey and don't even mind the occasional "kick in the butt" to jump start my motivation if you think that I need it. I don't need hurtful comments though. We all have goals and things that we are working on and none of us are perfect. I have not walked in your shoes and you have not walked in mine.

I have posted a picture of the slimmer me for comparison...physically I have changed but in many ways I am still that younger, trimmer me. I am still full of life, energetic and enthusiastic. I still have a sense of humor and love to explore new places. I am still hard working and have strong ethics. I am still generous, kind, and compassionate. I am also still stubborn and determined. All of these things make me who I am...fat or slim!!!

Have a good weekend everyone and don't give up on your own goals and dreams!!!

Pam :)

Good News!

2010-04-23T14:25:00.000-07:00

Well, that's how the email from my doctor started out anyway. I've never gotten biopsy results back this quickly. It only took 2 days! The biopsy was clear. No cancer and absolutely nothing abnormal!! It's hard to put how excited I am into words right now but I can definitely tell you that I haven't stopped smiling yet.

I hope that you all have a fantastic weekend!!

~Cindy

Spring has sprung!!

2010-04-20T20:49:00.000-07:00

This is by far my favorite time of year, even if it does mean itchy eyes and a runny nose from all of the allergies. Working in San Francisco, I get to see the city come to life. People get outside for walks or jogs during their lunch breaks and I get motivated to be outside and to be moving.

This is a good thing for the survivor slim down because I’m very motivated to spend my evenings at the gym, in the swimming pool, or walking my dog. I spend very little time at home and have honestly had to force myself to stay home tonight to write this blog. But, there were things to share about my progress so it’s okay to skip one evening of activity :-)

The plateau I mentioned in my last post – it’s driving me crazy!! I can’t stand this anymore and can’t quite figure out how to fix the problem. I encountered this once before when I did Jenny Craig back in 1999. I lost a bunch of weight, was going to the gym, and then quit losing weight all together. My advisor’s response? She told me to stop cheating. I’ll admit, I have cheated this time. I went wine tasting with friends last weekend, did some emotional eating last week when my great aunt lost her battle with cancer, and when I had a bunch of stuff to deal with at work. But, this emotional eating was by no means a binge. I ate 2 candy bars in one day and had fast food once that week. Yes, that’s cheating. Most people I know can get away with that little bit of cheating and see no repercussions. Unfortunately for me, my metabolism can’t take it.

Today was biopsy day for me. I can’t believe how quickly the last 4 months have flown by… which honestly makes me nervous about how quickly the next 5 ½ will go between now and the triathlon! Biopsies are always hard. They bring back emotions that I want to forget and memories that I wish weren’t there. It’s not just the physical pain of having a biopsy that’s hard to get through. Now, there is the waiting. It could take anywhere from 3 days to 4 weeks to get the results back. The waiting stinks! However, I went into this biopsy with hope and a positive outlook and I truly feel that those things will have an impact on the results. Keeping my fingers crossed for negative results!!

Happy Spring everyone!! Don’t forget to enjoy the beauty that’s all around you. Life is too short not to stop and smell the roses once in a while (even if it means that you’ll need a tissue later!)

Bye for now…

Cindy

Plateaus, Positive Reinforcement, Cancerversaries, and Fertility… Oh my!!!

2010-03-02T19:08:00.000-08:00

This has been an eventful month! I hit my first weight loss plateau and haven’t lost any pounds in over a month. But, I’m trying not to let that get to me because I’m still seeing changes in my body, still seeing things get smaller, and still noticing more room in my clothes. Working out is definitely paying off! Not only can I walk up a flight (or 3) of stairs without losing my breath but I actually had a positive flying experience when I went to DC for Cervical Cancer Day on the Hill in January. If you’ve been paying attention to TMZ, or Twitter, lately you know that Kevin Smith (AKA Silent Bob) was removed from a Southwest Airlines Flight because of his weight. This is something that every overweight person I know fears. We also fear that we’ll need seatbelt extenders, that the tray won’t open all the way because our bellies are in the way, that our hips won’t fit between the armrests… and the one that I really hate is the fear that other passengers will give us dirty looks, all the way down the aisle, until we find our seats and the person who will be sitting next to us lets out a disgusted sigh and mutters things about fat people on planes under their breath. Yes I’ve experienced some of these things on airplanes and yes they suck. However, on the flights that I took to and from DC I didn’t experience any of these things. No one sneered at me as I walked through the plane or when I went to sit next to them and my hips fit between the arm rests (and the arm rests didn’t pop up at all!!). Even though the flights themselves were delayed and completely nightmareish it was a beautiful thing to actually be comfortable on an airplane. And, it was positive reinforcement to keep working out and to keep trying to get, and stay, more fit.

Today, March 2^nd, is the fifth anniversary of my cancer diagnosis. It’s something that many of us refer to as a “cancerversary”. This is a big one for me as a lot of people tend to feel that you’re just a little bit safer when you can hit that five year milestone without a recurrence. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll have many more, like decades worth, of these cancerversaries without recurrence of any kind of cancer. Today was also the day that I met with my fertility doctor to see if all of these biopsies have been worth it and to see if I can actually have children. The answer is yes. I can have children. It was kind of cool to look at the ultrasound and have him show me how many eggs I have in my ovaries. But then there are the negatives and the questions that come along with having had cervical cancer. Cervical cancer almost always takes a woman’s fertility from her whether it’s from a radical hysterectomy, radiation and chemo, or the removal of so much of her cervix that she can’t get pregnant without a doctor’s help or carry a child to term (or even close to term). Now I need to make more difficult decisions and decide how much risk I’m willing to take. This risk question and “you need to do something soon” seem to be common themes with all of the doctors in my life lately. I need to decide if I want to wait for Prince Charming to come sweep me off my feet, if that and getting pregnant can happen within the next three years, if I want to be a single mom and buy a “man in a can” (as my doc called it today) from a fertility clinic, if I want to freeze my eggs and hope that they’re viable when I want to use them, or if I want to give up hope of ever having my own child by having a hysterectomy now to reduce the risk of a cancer recurrence. This isn’t an easy decision to make. Today is a day that’s brought both smiles and tears – tears because of fear of the unknown and smiles because of the wonderful people in my life and the strength they give me every day.

Hope that you have lots of reasons to smile :-)
~Cindy

Striving for wellness in 2010!

2010-01-07T13:12:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year Everyone!!! I still can't believe that 2009 has ended and that it is already the 7th of January. Where did last year go?? Well, there are now only ten months to the big event and I must admit that I am getting a little nervous. I feel that I am on the right track with my goal of losing weight and getting fit, but that I definitely need to ramp it up if I am going to be able to complete my part of the big race. My biggest concern is letting down my team mates and of course letting down myself.

The path to better health and wellness is not an easy one and it does have its obstacles and challenges. I have discovered during this journey that I am stronger than I thought I was and that I have more will power than I knew. I have also discovered that losing weight is not about dieting but about making lifestyle changes. It is about eating at home more and eating out less. It is about really thinking about what I am going to eat each day and making good choices.

A challenge for me is balancing work, my children and life in general with the need to excercise more. I know that I need to incorporate more time for excercise, and I realize that means thinking more about me sometimes. I am a cargiver by nature and by profession. I tend to do things for others, but not always make time for myself. My goal for this year (not a New Year's resolution because I don't believe in those) is to take the necessary time I need to increase my physical activity.

I am looking forward to the next ten months to see how much I can accomplish with my weight loss and fitness goals. I hope that you will continue to follow the Slimdown Team's journey along the way. I welcome helpful suggestions and supportive insight.

Pam :)

Happy New Year!

2010-01-05T20:35:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!! Welcome 2010 :-)

It’s been a while since my last post. So sorry about that… and about the fact that this may end up being a long one. A lot has happened since my last post.

I’m a little disappointed with myself that I fell short of my weight loss goal for the end of the year. I’d aimed at 20 pounds by 12/31/2009 and lost 19. Not too far off but I was a little disappointed. I did fall into the rut of emotional eating, which I now can totally recognize when I’m doing it, in the middle of December. If I hadn’t, I probably would have reached my goal. But, now that I know when I’m doing it I can be proactive about stopping it and focusing on something else to work through hard times. And, it probably helps that I don’t keep any sort of snack food or junk food in the house anymore!

Last time I was here I wrote about my most recent biopsy, which I went into with a deep down horrible feeling. Well, my feeling was confirmed when my doctor informed me that the sample had been “sent to Stanford for further evaluation”. This is never a good thing when it comes to these biopsies. So, I went on an amazing trip with Tamika, Pam, and about 150 other people in mid December with a heavy heart (I’ll tell you about the trip later). On 12/17 I got one of those phone calls from my doctor that starts with “are you somewhere you can talk” which I know never leads to something that I want to hear. She informed me that the biopsy was abnormal and that she wants me to be as aggressive as I possibly can be at this point, suggesting a hysterectomy now or, at the very least, another cone biopsy with a D&C (dilate and curettage). Wow! Really??? I’m thinking – you didn’t say cancer, you just said abnormal. The pathology report said “Cannot definitively provide a benign diagnosis”. It didn’t say cancer!!! The Gyn Oncologist originally said that I had 10 years until I should have a hysterectomy, unless the cancer came back, and it hasn’t even been 5. I’m scared, angry, confused…spinning. I’ve been here before and I need to get out of this mindset so that I can think clearly. I need to talk to my Gyn Oncologist and my survivor sisters. They’ll know what to do! I contacted the ladies that night, spilling all of my fears and uncertainties into a Facebook message. These women are amazing! The amount of love and support that I’ve received from them, some of whom I’ve only met once or twice, is incredible. I’m lucky to have all of them in my life. They helped me see things through their experiences and the message string went back and forth for quite a while. And, after almost 2 weeks, I got to go visit with my Gyn Oncologist. I feel much better about things after talking through everything with him. I know that he’d prefer that I have a hysterectomy before invasive disease appears but, for now, I will get to keep my uterus. I’m starting work with a fertility clinic to find out if I can even have children, which is the sole reason for my not having a hysterectomy yet.

So, this amazing trip that Tamika, Pam, and I went on took us to a place that I’d never have the opportunity to go to on my own. US Oncology has a conference every year called Life Beyond Cancer. We had an opportunity of a lifetime to connect with other cancer survivors, stay at an amazing resort, get spa treatments, and learn new things about advocacy and different types of cancer and the experiences that they lead to. We all know so much about what we’ve gone through and so little about the journeys of others. It was an amazing experience! We even went to Anita’s Beat Cancer Boot Camp, which totally kicked our booties!! Seriously, my calves were so sore that I couldn’t actually straighten my legs for 4 days! I loved it! The healing ceremonies, the speakers, the food, and the activities were wonderful and, although there was very little down time during our visit, I went home revitalized and refreshed. I’ll stop now so that I leave something for Tamika and Pam to write about in their next posts.

I hope that each of you has a healthy, happy, prosperous, and love filled 2010 ahead!

Cindy

Ugh!!

2009-11-30T19:35:00.000-08:00

This has been a really busy week! Thanksgiving was last Thursday and, even with the holiday gatherings, I lost a pound last week. Woo-hoo! My plan of everything in moderation worked quite well… so did the extra gym time to work off any extra calories ;-)

Another thing happened on Thanksgiving that I hadn’t planned on – I “outed” myself as a cervical cancer survivor to my Granny and two cousins. This is something that Tamika and I have talked about on multiple occasions as I only told my immediate family and close friends about my diagnosis at first. I was too scared of what was happening and didn’t want to worry anyone else unnecessarily. So, I kept my diagnosis to myself and never told either of my grandmothers, aunts and uncles, or cousins. Both of my grandmothers are worriers and I knew that the news would raise too much concern for either of them. When I picked Granny up to take her to my parents’ house for Thanksgiving dinner I asked her if she’d ever wondered why I am so involved with cervical cancer organizations and she had. So, before we drove off I explained the whole thing to her. Having lost a sister and an aunt to ovarian cancer my diagnosis hit very close to her heart. She was glad that I didn’t tell her early on because she too knew that she’d have worried herself to death and she’s very glad to know that my doctor is on top of things, being very proactive in trying to prevent a recurrence. I have a lot more family members to tell in the next year and I anticipate that many of those conversations will be challenging. But, if I can tell people I’ve never met about my experiences I owe it to my family to tell them myself.

Today I had an appointment with my OB Gyn. I see her every four months and have seen her at least that often since my diagnosis. She’s very proactive with my treatment and I tell her every time I see her how thankful I am for that. I do not, however, thank her for the pain she inflicts on me during every visit. The biopsies that I have are called “Endocervical Curettage” (ECC for short). This means that she is removing tissue from my cervical canal. In my experience the numbing shots that they can give don’t numb the cervical canal so I’ve given up asking for them. Today was NOT a good biopsy day for my cervix. As soon as the doctor told her nurse that my cervix was moving away from her I knew what was coming… I’m not sure what it’s called but it’s like a speculum for your cervix and it really hurts when they use it. Imagine having a charlie horse that’s making every muscle in your abdomen tie themselves in knots. That’s what happens to me when they use this torture device (BLECH!). Thankfully, the procedure only takes about five minutes and then I get to lay on the table for another five minutes to make sure that I’m okay to get up. I passed out from the pain once, the first time I had an ECC after having a cervical conization procedure, and she’s pays very close attention to me now. I guess that having a patient pass out mid procedure is not a good thing ;-) Now I get to wait up to three weeks for my results, which is sheer torture. Every time I think about it I remember the phone call that started with “are you somewhere you can talk” and all of the emotions of that challenging time come flooding back to me. So, I focus on family, friends, work, and fun to try to keep my mind from going too far down that path. Fingers crossed for a good result!!

I hope that all of you had as many things to be thankful for as I have. Even with challenges and frustrations life is a beautiful thing :-)

~Cindy (AKA, Shaping up in Sacramento)

Turkey, and Stuffing and Pie...OH MY!!!!

2009-11-04T10:29:00.000-08:00

The Holiday Season is fast approaching and with it many delicious food temptations. Mine happens to be pumpkin pie...I love pumpkin pie!!! I know that I need to make the right choices this holiday season to keep on track with my weight loss and my goal of participating in the big race next fall.

I have been researching on-line healthy, less calorie options for holiday fare and was amazed at the ideas and suggestions out there. I am definitely going to try some of them out and also plan on increasing my work outs during the holiday season, so that I may have the occasional treat. Who knows maybe I will even find a tasty healthier version of pumpkin pie!!!

I am so glad that I am participating in this challenge though because I have already lost weight, my clothes are fitting better and I have more energy.

Thanks for all of the support and encouragement that people have been giving us and keep it going because it really does make a difference!!!

Have a great week!

Slimmin' in Seattle

Incentive!!

2009-10-23T13:10:00.000-07:00

Boy oh boy did I get some last weekend! Have you ever gone go kart racing? Not the Scandia miniature golf kind. I mean the cool karts that go really fast. The karts where you can skid around corners like you're one of the drivers in that Tokyo Drift movie. Well, as you can see from the picture, these things are fairly small and really low to the ground. Once I got my behind wedged into that narrow seat and drove the kart around the track for a while I worked up a sweat just trying to get out of it. I'm pretty sure that I was about as graceful as a turtle on its back and, for a while, I wondered if they'd need the jaws of life to pry me out. A very sweet friend offered to try to help me out of the kart but I declined for fear of pulling her in with me. I found my own escape route. In all honesty, it probably took about a minute to get out of the thing. But, it felt like an eternity.

All in all, a really great day with friends served two purposes - 1) making some great memories, and 2) incentive to work hard at this challenge, to remind me to focus on the goal of making positive life changes, and a reminder that just getting around in this world will be easier once I'm traveling in a smaller frame.

I hope that you all have a great weekend! I'm hoping to fill mine with some gym time, good friends, and sleep :-)

Bye for now,
Cindy

Hello from Cindy - AKA Shaping up in Sacramento

2009-10-12T20:06:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I'm Cindy, the California girl in the challenge. I'm super excited about the Survivor Slim down not only because it's a chance to start enforcing some positive, healthy lifestyle changes but also because I get to work really closely with two amazing ladies - Tamika and Pam.

Tamika, Pam, and I were all in Chicago over the weekend for the National Cervical Cancer Coalition's annual conference and, boy is it hard to stick to healthy eating at a conference! The hotel food is mostly bread, pasta, and fruit but I was happy to be able to find a salad now and then. Many of the ladies at the conference already knew about the slim down and most of them were really encouraging and were even talking about joining us for the triathlon next October. Unfortunately, one of them wasn't so encouraging (although I honestly think that she thought she was helping). The night of the cocktail reception that kicks off the conference I totally avoided the pasta table, only eating salad and one prawn for dinner, and having one glass of white wine to wash it down. Someone came up to me while I was eating my salad and asked "does all of this fit into your diet?". I'm not sure how any of you would feel about that but it felt extremely judgmental and unsupportive to me. I felt so good about controlling my portions and staying away from bad carbs and then someone who has never had to battle her weight asks that question. Luckily, Tamika and Pam were there to lift my spirits and we all enjoyed the rest of the evening - including our late night workout after the reception :-)

My uncle sent me a joke the other day that I thought was funny. Hope you do too...

I just had a call from a Charity asking me to donate some of my clothes to the starving people throughout the world.
I told them to go to hell!! Anybody who fits into my clothes isn't starving!!

Thanks for following us along our journey! I'll be back again soon.

~Cindy

My Date with IHOP!

2009-10-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

This morning I had a meeting scheduled for 9am at IHOP. Normally, I would be excited to get out of the conference room, but since starting this "slimdown" I wasn't exactly thrilled. I knew the temptation would be there for chicken fried steak smothered in gravy and I was going to be with a group of people who know how to chow down - LOL!

But, I did the smart thing and planned ahead. I figured with this movement to slim down America that surely IHOP would have a calorie friendly menu - and they did! ;-). It's called, "IHOP for Me" and it literally was just for me! If you log on to IHOP's website click on "IHOP for Me" under the menu tab. They have menu items under 600 calories that they call "smart everyday choices". I choose the spinach, mushroom & tomato omelette for me and was happy and pleasantly full without finishing it.

It's all about lifestyle changes. I want to be healthy and I feel like that simple food selection helped me get one step closer to my goal. I also have to admit that I was inspired by Mo'Nique after catching a glimpse of her new late night talk show and her own personal slim down. Mo' is a self proclaimed "Fat Girl" and she has helped many big girls embrace their curves and rolls. I love what she is doing and I don't think she's selling out to the big girls, I think she's getting ready for her future.

Tamika
"Minimizing in Maryland"

Hello from Pam AKA "Slimmin' in Seattle"

2009-10-05T14:32:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!!! I am Pam from Seattle, aka Slimmin' in Seattle. I want to keep all of you updated on how things are going so far. Well, so far so good! Breakfast has been the easiest meal thus far, as I am a big fan of oatmeal and have already been eating that for my morning meal for awhile. Steel cut oatmeal and old fashioned oats are not as bad as people think that they are. Spice them up with some cinnamon, or fresh fruit!! Yummy! My biggest challenge will be to stay away from ice cream and fancy coffee drinks...I live in Seattle home of Starbucks, what more can I say. Today though I switched my morning java from the calorie laden Carmel Macchiato to the more diet friendly Americano.

I am very excited about going through this life changing challenge with Tamika and Cindy. What great women and an inspiration to all of us! I know that there will be blood, sweat and tears along the way, but I truly believe that together that we can accomplish our goal of getting fit. We are cancer survivors and that has made us the women who we are today and will help propel us to new begininnings and better health.

Talk to all of you soon and please continue to follow us through this amazing journey.

Pam :)

The Conference that changed everything...

2009-10-03T07:08:00.000-07:00

My name is Tamika, but for the next year I will be known as "Minimizing in Maryland". A year ago I was in Los Angeles attending the National Cervical Cancer Coalition's annual conference where I was speaking. While there I met many amazing women. But, there were two who would make a lasting impression - Cindy (“Shaping up in Sacramento") and Pam (“Slimmin' in Seattle”).

Cindy I noticed right way: She was a "thick" girl with fabulous style - especially her shoes (you will hear more about the shoes later). I noticed Pam instantly, too - just like Cindy, she was "thick" and had incredible style. The agenda for the conference was very involved. But me being the "chatty girl" that I am and loving to hear people's stories, I found plenty of time to get to know these amazing women better. By the end of the conference a friendship began to bud - though I didn't know to what extent.

I ended up hanging out with Pam after the last day of the conference and to this day I don't think either of us will ever forget that night! ;-) That's a story for another post...

Cindy, on the other hand, had to head back to Sacramento so I had to wait to really get to know her. Fast forward: We all went back to our homes and kept in touch.

Over the months we all stayed in touch here and there, and then I came up with an idea - one hell of an idea! Each of us had beaten cancer on various levels but we had never beaten the battle of the bulge. So, I asked Cindy and Pam to train with me for a year to complete a triathlon. I know – crazy, right? But, what better way to motivate each other and do something amazing together and lose weight? And, can you believe it - they actually said yes!

So, on September 19, 2009, at my non-profit Tamika & Friends, Inc., annual walk in New York, we announced our plans for a "Survivor Slimdown" – and the support from the crowd was tremendous. Today - exactly one year from race day - we are on this amazing life-changing journey together, and I hope you will come along for the ride and encourage us along the way. Hey, I’ve already convinced two women to join me – maybe you’ll join us on race day, too!

Cyber hugs,
Minimizing in Maryland