Happy Holidays!

It's crunch time, my fellow team members. Let's all stick to one plate of turkey, ham and stuffing. And only one piece of pumpkin pie. Ok, maybe two.

Then, when we have our final weigh-in on January 4th, we'll be able to hold our heads high. To quote Winston Churchill: "Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that ... for a thousand years, men will still say, 'This was their finest hour!'"

Pie, cookies and candy

It's crunch time. Although it'll be hard to resist all the temptations of the holiday table, let's do the best we can. Happy holidays to all.

Be afraid. Be very afraid!

Regarding the new chocolate mint donuts being sold by Dunkin Donuts: My advice is to stay away from them. Their delicious, but addictive. I'm sure the Bavarian creme donuts have far fewer calories and fat. Stick with those.

Promise to try harder

Donut Meister was a little disappointed in this week's weigh-in. He promises to try harder next week.

NOOOOOOO!!

2 weeks of vacation plus Thanksgiving dinner plus leftovers = weight gain. I do not want to step on the scale Monday.

Here we are, at the office the day before Thanksgiving, the official first day of the most challenging part of our effort. Not looking forward to Monday. Or to January 4th. I hear Fashionista is already sliding. I guess some people have to hit rock bottom first.... Be strong, Fashionista!

Speaking of Donuts...

I literally caught someone eating a honeybun running down the stairs in the parking garage yesterday morning. I won't name names, but it wasn't Diana, Debbi, Char, Sabina, Maria, Ken, or Duane.

Monday... another weigh-in day

The Donut Meister lived up to his name today, bringing in Dunkin' Donuts for Kathy's birthday. (Happy birthday, Kathy!) The Meister was able to resist the temptation until the afternoon munchies hit, around 2:00pm. We won't talk about the weekend -- does everybody know that Stop & Shop has mint- and chocolate-filled Oreos on sale right now??

Still, Donut Meister is smaller than he was last Monday. One has to recognize success, no matter how small.

Oh, by the way, there are a few leftover donuts in the 3rd-floor meeting room.

The Biggest Loser This Week...

The Biggest Loser this week is Ken! Woohoo! Go Ken! He has lost 4 pounds this week, so hopefully that will help us catch up with Chicago or simply kick their butts!!! Come on people! We can do it!

News from Chicago

From Chicago.....So this week, the team lost a total of 32.6 lbs.
Highest percentage lost is a tie between Muffin Lover who lost 7.2 lbs and Goodyear who lost 4.6 lbs - we could split the trophy in half!
Even though New Haven hasn’t reported their numbers, I saw on the blog that their biggest loser lost 7 lbs this week! (special congrats to Sabina)
Chicago, keep up good work, whatever you are doing, it’s working! I’m pretty sure we are winning! We should just have them send the money now!

Monday's another weigh-in day

The Donut Meister is sending positive thoughts to the team for a low-calorie weekend!

Soul food truck spotted in the neighborhood

The Donut Meister asks: Did anybody else see the new soul food truck that was parked in front of Univ Health Serv on Hillhouse Avenue today? Was there a low-calorie, high-fiber option on the menu?

Biggest Loser?

The other biggest loser this week is the Phillies.

The Biggest Loser this week in New Haven...

is Sabina with a whopping 7 pounds lost.

New Haven vs. Chicago

We're going to whip Chicago like the Yankees will whip the Phillies.

Chicago beat New Haven last week

Chicago lost .007275% and New Haven lost .005954%. We can't let this continue! What will happen to our reputation? Anyone who knows anything about Reality TV knows this means New Haven is not functioning like a team. We must have conivers in our midst, more concerned with personal victory than a team victory.

Halloween Candy

Tonight is Mischief Night, and tomorrow is Halloween.

I know we're all trying to be good -- some succeeding better than others -- but let's face it: there will be leftover Halloween candy. If it sits in the bowl in your front hall, you know you'll be tempted.

Here's a solution: bring it into the office, and The Donut Meister will make sure it stays on the 3rd floor. This should lay to rest those nasty rumors about a plot to undermine the dietary resolve of the 2nd-floor staff.

Dirty tricks...

...at Local 34 today. Less than 5 minutes ago, I was the victim of the weaseliest, most underhanded undermining action of our one week contest. I was done in by...Donut Meister! What just happened: I was working really hard at my computer trying to revise a document when he came up behind me, got my divided attention and slipped a paper bag into my left hand. Unbeknownst to me at the time, it was a Wendy's bag (he folded the top of the bag so I couldn't see the logo or Wendy's freckly face). While I continued working on my document with my left hand, with my right hand, I set the bag down in front of me, opened it, took out a round, plump object encased in a metallic wrapper, opened said wrapper, cut the round, plump object in half, ate the first half and then finished the second half. It was only then that I realized it was a Wendy's burger with mayo, ketchup and onion. By then it was too late. I had been completely undermined in today's effort to become the Biggest Loser, Union Style! Jessica saw the whole thing happen. I will have to think about appropriate action. Perhaps Jessica needs to rule on Donut Meister's behavior and assess penalty pounds to him. Beware, all. I'm on guard now. It won't happen so easily from now on.... You're all welcome to test me, but it won't be so easy.... (Try me with dark chocolate or cheese danish.)

Chicago's Stats are In...

Stay tuned for the results later this afternoon...

The CupcakeTruck

Hey, the Cupcake Truck is on campus today, in the medical area. Here's the link, so you can track their route: followthatcupcake.com

Be sure to bookmark it on your computer!

At Monday's weigh-in, I was steady at my original weight. This is miraculous, considering my sweet tooth. So far this week, I cheated only about 7 times, if you count breakfast, lunch and dinner. Oh, and those late-night excursions to the fridge. That's pretty good, really.

I applied for some additional life insurance last week, and the process included a medical exam. Thank goodness the nurse asked my weight and waist size rather than actually measuring them. She didn't even laugh or smirk when I lied to her. (I hope the insurance company doesn't see this!)

Strangely silent in blogland...

...after 1st weigh-in yesterday. Not a single new post appeared (except for Char and Fashionista commenting on last Friday's post by Donut Meister). How are we doing gang?

It's Friday afternoon, and all the office chatter about dirty martinis has gotten me eager for Happy Hour and the weekend. So much for all the sacrifices made earlier in the week. Monday's weigh-in should be interesting.

Do I get any credit if my dog loses a little weight?

Ice Cream vs. an Apple

I was good last night. For dessert, I eschewed ice cream and had an apple instead. I wasn't the only one suffering because the dog usually enjoys licking the bowl afterwards. The poor little guy looked so disappointed.

Local 1 Joins the Competition

Local 1 has recruited 9 people so far to compete us in The Biggest Loser Union Style.

I'm in...

...thanks to Fashionista and her buddy, Donut Meister! FYI, all, Kanten is a Japanese dessert made from agar agar, a gelatinous substance derived from seaweed. Recently, agar agar "has found extensive use as a solid substrate to contain culture medium for microbiological work." (Wikipedia) I am posting this unappetizing description only to help discourage snacking during the competition. So, whenever you get really hungry and feel weak and tempted and desperate, just think about me!

Fundraiser Candy

Ooooh, those scrumptious chocolate bars have reappeared at the reception desk.

If I recall correctly, the person who's selling them screamed loudly yesterday when the baked ziti showed up. If the Meister weren't such a nice guy, he might point out the blatant hypocrisy.

I'm going to demonstrate my indignance by purchasing a chocolate bar and self-righteously eating it.

Healthful carbs

In case anybody's interested, that was Weight Watchers ziti. No calaories, high fiber. Those of you who shunned it missed a golden opportunity to shed unwanted pounds. Tell you what, tomorrow I'll bring in low-cal pastries -- with cheese. Mwwwwwaaaaahhhhhhhh...

Pix

OK, so that is not my picture but the kid is related to me. I had some ziti and left over carrots from the Fashionista friend. She is always trying to make me eat the food she can't eat. Gotta love her.

There's ZITI and Parmesan cheese down here!!!!

Come and get it LOSERS!!

Are we still recruiting?

How come those chubby guys in Research and Communications aren't participating?

ATTENTION EVERYONE!!!

Local 1 has confirmed they are weighing in today also...

Ken is a last minute entry...

Weigh-In Day

It's Monday, October 19. According to Char's wildly-inaccurate bathroom scale, I weigh 186.0 pounds.

Rising from my death bed this morning, I decided to come to work. My cold is in full bloom, and I'm sucking on sugar-free cough drops. (Every little calorie counts!)

I started the day out on a good note, with my high-fiber, low sugar Kashi breakfast cereal. Actually, it tastes a lot like munching on a haystack. But the morning staff meeting was my downfall: a ate a whole cheese croissant from Au Bon Pain. I guess that means there was some "Pain" in my gain.

The Donut Meister

The 8th Challenger...

Debbi

...Maria is in

Shantel is next...

Local 1 Challenge !

I bet we here in New Haven can beat those wimpy Local 1 people!

...lining up...

Diana and Charlene

Third Competitor named

Sabina

...and the 2nd Competitor is...

Duane

First Entry...

The first competitor is "Tiny Dancer"...

You Think You Have What it Takes to be the Biggest Loser?

Thank you all for joining us on this 11 week challenge! I see you all were bold enough to join this competion. Again, this challenge will start on October 19th, 2009 and will end on January 4th, 2010. In order to win this challnege, participants want to lose the most amount of weight possible. They will win the money contributed to the winner's pot. The winner will be ranked by the person who loses the highest percentage of their weight that is taken on October 19th. There can only be one winner: Anyone ranked in second or third place only have bragging rights. Weigh ins will be held every Monday with Jessica and again only she will know how much you weigh. You may drop out at anytime, but you can't get you money back.

Good Luck!!!