Roni's Weigh » contest

2 Things: A Wink from the Scale Gods and The Winner of the Impossible

roni — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 11:11:46 +0000

I totally forgot to mention these two things in last nights post. I swear, sometimes I think I’m losing my blogging mojo. Anyway…..

Thing #1: A Wink from the Scale Gods

It was my first day back from vacation and I decided to hop on the scale and assess "the damages." Ugh. Why do we do this to ourselves? What’s the point? Of course it’s going to show a gain. I ate nothing but pizza, ice cream and french fries for an entire week. I was on VACATION. der.

Yesterday I started my old morning routine. Woke up. Peed. Stripped. Then faced the scale. I braced myself for unveiling. Guessing what glowing red number would shine back at me. Reminding myself that it IS only a number. That regardless of what is says I have no regrets. A healthy lifestyle is about balance NOT depravation.

I take the first step on the hunk of medal to turn it on, hop up and see….

Err…..

Bat….

Err….

Bat…

Cycling over and and over again.

I either broke the scale with enormous weight gain OR the batteries were dying.

I’m pretty sure it was the batteries. At least I hope so. ;)

I smile to myself.

I didn’t really want to know anyway. It doesn’t matter.

Thank you scale gods for reminding me that I am more then a number.

Thing #2: The Winner of the Impossible

Just before vacation my Have You Accomplished The Impossible? contest ended. I was planning on posting the winner while at the beach but it totally slipped my mind.

The winner was chosen randomly. I use random.org to pick a comment out of total number left. In my opinion it’s the only fair way to choose. I can’t evaluate everyones stories. They were all so wonderful! I’m considering a series were we showcase one a week. In the mean time here is Tara’s. She was randomly selected to win the $100. Congratulations on all fronts Tara! You are AWESOME!

I’ve gone from 328 lbs to 167 lbs over the last 19-ish months. I’ve run two 5K’s when I used to think the only way I’d run is if I was being chased. I regularily ride my bike all weekend long instead of taking my car everywhere and I’ve become obsessed with yoga.

More importantly, I have successfully taken my life back. I’m no longer miserable or unhappy because I realized that it’s a choice. You can choose to be happy or sad but you have to live with whatever choice you make and I realized that I’d rather be happy. The only thing holding me back was ME!

The thing that I”ve accomplished that I never thought I could was that I am actually proud of myself. I’m bursting with pride actually, something I never, ever said before.

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Winners Winners Chicken Dinners

roni — Tue, 04 May 2010 19:36:40 +0000

So sorry I’m late with these. I don’t know what happened last night. After I got home from work I was exhausted. I fought every urge to just order a pizza and pig out. Instead, I cooked the defrosted chicken legs I pulled out in the morning and made a home cooked meal. Including this new barley idea. Both husband and child devoured it not even knowing what it is was. I love it when that happens. :)

After dinner I hung out with little guy until bed time. Then I just crashed. Normally I cozy up with my laptop, watch boring old network TV and catch up on all my blogging for the day but I just didn’t have it me. Instead at 9:30 I put on my PJs and fell asleep on the couch.

I must have needed it because I slept like a rock until 7AM! I swear haven’t slept that long in years. You’d think I would have woken up refreshed but the opposite happened. I’m still exhausted!

Anyway, I’m here to announce the winners of the BOCA giveaway AND the Run to Home Base fundraiser.

BOCA Giveaway Winners

#172 Cheryl F. {The Lucky Ladybug}
#114 jamie
#41 Carly
# 51 Katie D.

The Run to Home Base Fundraiser

Leslie C.
Shannon S.
Grainger
Ashley W.
Wendy H.
Sara R.
Jenny P.
Ami S.
Della B.
Melisa T.

Thank you guys and to everyone who donated. We couldn’t have done it without you!
My friend and I will be traveling to Boston in 2 weeks for the race. I can’t wait! Hopefully it won’t rain so I can take more pictures. :)

I’m gonna *TRY* to record a podcast today. I have so many questions waiting in the wings it’s getting ridiculous!

Oh! and to the winners.. I boxed and taped everything up and then realized I forgot to put my thank you notes in. So sorry about that. I hope you know how much I appreciate the support.

Congrats Guys!

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A Super Seven Spice Giveaway!

roni — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 03:40:57 +0000

I am a HUGE spice fan. You should see my spice cabinet it has everything from allspice to… wait a minute… you can see it! Here’s a clip from my Day In the Life video series I did way back when. . .

(note: Click here for the recipe I was making in the video, Crockpot Sweet Potatoes)

Please ignore my shaky camera hand and babbling. :)

I’ve moved since that video but my spice cabinet looks exactly the same. Spices are great pantry items. For me it’s about fun and flavor. Food is simply more satisfying when it taste good. Think of a plain old chicken breast…

BORING!

With some simple spices you can make some really fun dishes, like. . .

These all start with plain old chicken but look how different each can be by simply adding flavor with spices. Ok, ok, so that last one is herbs but I lump them two together.

Oh! and did I mention spices (most of them anyway, as I’m sure there may be a exception out there) are 0 points. That’s ZERO points! :)

Anyway, this is a LONG introduction to the Super Seven Spice Giveaway. Here’s the deal, Maureen from McCormick contacted me and asked if I’d like to host a contest to give away 5 sets of the McCormick “Super Seven” spices in honor of their 30 Day Super Swap challenge.

Of course I said yes! I mean.. FREE spices! Have you seen how expensive they can be? Geesh! Plus, I really do think they are invaluable. So the more people I can give them away to, the better!

So leave a comment on how you use spices for a chance to win a McCormick gift pack containing Cinnamon, Ginger, Oregano, Red Pepper, Rosemary, Thyme, Curry and a calender with 30 Super Swaps giving you some great ideas to use in your kitchen!

The only catch… You must live in the US and have a street address (no P.O. boxes) <–Sorry guys. :(

Ok, so give it up. . . What will you do with the Super 7 if you win?

Full Discloser: McCormick also sent me a set of the super seven to try out. I was not compensated in any other way to write this post.

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2 Souper Duper Contests

roni — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 03:08:08 +0000

Well… maybe only one is Souper Duper and the other is just souper. ;~) Here’s the deal. . .

The Super Duper Contest

Progresso contacted me to ask if I’d be willing to spread the news about their “Souper You Debut” contest for the chance to win a full makeover in New York City.

Did you hear that?

A FULL MAKEOVER IN NEW YORK CITY!

Plus roundtrip airfare, a two-night stay in a NYC hotel, a $1,000 wardrobe shopping spree and personal consultation at a New York department store.

DUDE! I want to win! :)

To enter all you need to do is:

Go to www.Progresso.com/SouperYou to learn more and enter the contest
Submit your essay (200 characters or less) telling Progresso why you love Progresso Light or 100 Calorie Soups and why you would like a makeover
Submit a photo of yourself that visually reinforces the theme of your essay

Right after I publish this I’m totally off to enter it myself! And if any of you win I’m making you promise to take me along. ;~)

The Super Contest

The second contest, not quite as spectacular but still fun! Fellow bloggers can enter to win the progresso prize pack displayed above. It includes the Progresso mug (VERY cool), a digital jump rope and two cans of Progresso Soup.

To enter all you need to do is copy and paste the code below and put it in a post as your entry. It can be it’s own post or just tacked on to one you already plan to write. Then simply leave a comment here with a link to the post so I can check it out. I’ll pick a random winner next week.

I entered Roni's Souper Duper Contest! Check out Roni's Weight Loss Blog for more information.

This is what it looks like…

I entered Roni’s Souper Duper Contest!
Check out Roni’s Weight Loss Blog for more information.

For all the non-bloggers who want to enter, don’t fret! I have away around this need-to-have-a-blog-thing (although it sounds like a pitch.) Simply sign up for BlogToLose and use your free blog space there to enter! It’s really easy and you’ll have a space to enter for future contests, even if you decide not to blog anything else. Actually you can use it to enter other blogger’s contests as well. :~P Just a thought. Having some blog space comes in handy some times. :)

So there you have it, 2 Souper Duper Contests! :) Good Luck!

Full Disclosure: Progresso contacted me and asked if I’d be willing to spread the message about the contest. They sent me some soup samples and one of those fabulous Progresso soup bowls and jump rope.

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Updates Updates and oh Heck.. Why Not? More Updates..

roni — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 02:42:24 +0000

Not a very creative title but all these thoughts in my head are otherwise unrelated except for the pure fact that they are updates. :)

Update 1

I can’t believe I forgot! Along with the Weight Watchers 3 Month random drawing I have an issue of Weight Watchers Magazine autographed by Jenny McCarthy to give away.Now let me warn ya… it’s a little beat up. But Jenny signed right in the address box so it’s super easy to see.

If you’d like to be in the running for this giveaway let me know in the comments. I’ll pick a winner Monday when I announce the 3 month winners.

Update 2

Yesterday I officially started "the Challenge" I’m taking the site’s advice and using Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays to do my push ups, sit ups and squats. So far so good but I have to admit I’m a little sore! :)

Here’s my Week 1 Day 1 numbers….

100 Pushups: Week 1 Day 1
- 10, 12, 7, 7, max: 10
200 Squats: Week 1 (started on Week 3) Day 1
- 19, 24, 19, 19, max: 85 (I swear I get bored before anything)
200 Sit-Ups: Week 1 Day 1
- 15, 18, 10, max: 17

Update 3

I just need to vent for a minute so if you don’t want to hear it move on to Update 4.

Still here? ok, cover you’re ears…

I’M SICK OF EATING OUT! We are spending money we really shouldn’t be spending. I’m eating things I really shouldn’t be eating but it’s just so darn appealing after a long day of work when presented with a kitchen with barely any pantry items (I’ve been letting my stock run out) and less then half my pots, an electric stove (gas is just my preference) a dishwasher that doesn’t work and shallow sink with no where to dry dishes. Not to mention our table is never clean as we don’t have any place to.put.anything.

Ugh.

Ok, I feel better.

I’ll find my groove again. It’s going to be a busy three weeks as we move into the house. I need to take my own advice and make the best choices I can while planning as much as possible.

Update 4

FitBloggin’10 is open for registration! FitBloggin is a conference I’m organizing for those that blog or want to blog about fitness, wellness, good food and a healthy lifestyle. It’s a place to connect, learn, grow and network.

I’m (somehow — really I’m not sure how) organizing this while moving and working full time. Again, taking my own advice and doing what I can when I can. :)

Keep an eye on FitBloggin.com for updates and click here to see the tentative schedule.

Update 5

DUDE! I have a lot going on over at Divine Caroline…

First someone, I have NO idea who, nominated Roni’s Weigh for a Love This Site award. Very cool and I’m honored. I normally have to nominate my self for those kinds of things. ;)

I’m also still "coaching" on the You.Propelled site. My current article is called 5 Ways to Start Shifting Your Body Image Toward the Positive and I’ve also started a Chit Chat about inspirations. And don’t forget… just by entering a proclamation on the main page you are entered to win $5000!

I’m proud to be working with Propel® as a sponsor of the You.Propelled program.

Update 6

The house. Ahhh the house. It’s Pretty much done! I forgot to take a new pick since Monday. Thursday is closing. I’m scared, nervous, excited, overwhelmed, ecstatic and grateful I was able to sell my old house to make this happen. At this point I’m crossing my fingers that no crazy, insane snags happen in the final days. Sometimes I can’t stop my brain from imagining the worst case scenario. Bad I know.

*phew* enough updates for ya? :)

Right now I’m ready to relax with hubby and watch a little tv. The kid’s lunch is made, my running clothes are on and I’m ready for a few miles before work tomorrow. Only 40 days until the marathon *nail biting* YIKES!

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I’m a Lose-r for Good with a Giveaway!

roni — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 20:43:14 +0000

I am HORRIBLE at keeping secrets. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. So when Weight Watchers invited me to Los Angeles to the Lose for Good kick off event under the stipulation that I had to keep it secret until this week, I freaked. I mean seriously. How am I, the girl who gave her boyfriend (now the husband) his one year Anniversary gift a week early because she was so excited or the mom who wants to give her son each and every one of his Christmas presents as she buys them, suppose to keep wraps on an amazing trip to L.A. Where she was going to meet Jenny McCarthy, hang out with FaintStarLite AND have dinner with the CEO of Weight Watchers a secret?

Yeah… needless to say I slipped up a few times. :)

Thankfully now I have the green light to talk about anything from the trip. So let me let Jenny do what she does and fill you in on the campaign…

As for the actual trip. I had a BLAST. It was rough now that I have a job (red eye flight and straight into the office) but I had some RR time there and met the most amazing bloggers.

Arianne from To Think is to Create (who I finally got to meet, our paths have crossed a few times, she’s awesome!)
Melissa from Whooo’s That Girl? (who takes amazing photos!)
Nancy from Mommies With Style (totally sweet!)
Rebecca from Does this Blog Make us Look Fat? (hysterically funny!)
Ester, FaintStarLite herself. (Total geek girl.. I wish we were sisters. ;)

Here we all are with Ms. Jenny

A few other pictures from the event…

Here is Rebecca (@Laughitoff) and I

Ester and I with Arianne sneaking in (did not notice until just now.:)

And Dave, the CEO of Weight Watchers who might just be the tallest man alive. Note: I’m 5′ 9”

My favorite part of the whole trip was watching the kids plant in the garden and learn about fresh foods. Something I’m super passionate about. You know, the whole GreenLiteBites thing and all. :)

For more information about the charitable organizations that were involved with the event check out…

On to this giveaway! In honor of this event, I’ve been granted 3 – three-month trial memberships for Weight Watchers (either online or in-person meetings)
to give to my readers. I don’t know how else to do it except a good o’ fashion random drawing. So if you’d like in, simply comment below and let me know. I’ll pick 3 random winners next week (Monday September 6 <– HOLY CRAP it’s September)

I "gotsta" run.. I took the day off work today for my walkthru and I have lots to do. We are closing Thursday on this new house! Yikes!!

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Weekend Update and Book Giveaway

roni — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 03:50:00 +0000

We are in full fledge packing mode. I’ve called all the utilities. The apartment is secured. The POD is scheduled. And the closing has been set. July 1 can’t come fast enough. I’m at the "I just want this to happen" moment. At this point only bad things could happen. I never really think of myself as a pessimist until I’m in a situation I can’t control. Classic Type A issues I’m trying to remedy. :)

All this packing has me unearthing tons of STUFF. The husband and I are committed to reducing our.. ummm… overhead. Especially considering we are needing to store almost everything for 3 months. We already dropped our first round to Goodwill but I held these few items back thinking some of you may be interested.

I have 2 different diet/cook book giveaways.

The first is a Weight Watchers package that includes…

Weight Watchers Momentum Cookbook 2009 (200 Easy Recipes to Get-and Keep-You Going)
Weight Watchers Take-Out Tonight! : 150+ Restaurant Favorites to Make at Home–All 8 POINTS or Less
New 2009 Weight Watchers Electronic Tracker & Points Calculator
(never opened)
Weight Watchers Time Saving Meal Ideas pamphlet

The second is a Low Carb package that includes…

Atkins Best Recipes: Lose Weight with More Than 175 Low Carb Dishes
Dr. Atkins Quick & Easy New Diet Cookbook
Dr. Atkins New Diet Revolution $5.99
A Low Carb Supermarket Cookbook Mag

I realize the dichotomy of these two giveaways and even though I’m not a 100% Low Carb proponent, I learned a lot reading, cooking and trying a low carb diet. Plus the Atkins Best Recipes has some great ideas in it! :)

If you’d like to throw you name in the hat for either one of these giveaways just leave a comment and let me know which one. Before you ask… Yes you can register for both… and yes I will ship anywhere. :) I’ll pick a winner next weekend.

So let’s see.. what else is going on?

I had a little fun in the kitchen yesterday going back to basics and creatively using what I had on hand. The results? Quinoa Stuffed Zucchini. It was fun! I plan to stock up on some healthy groceries tomorrow so we aren’t so tempted to eat out as much this this coming week.
My back is feeling MUCH better. I did get a 4 mile run in on Friday but I skipped the gym this morning. Just too much going on plus I knew I’d be lifting boxes all day. :) I’ve been keeping my training calender updated even though I feel like I’m slacking at this point.
So I guess it’s official.. The Toddler is now The Little Guy. Although I find myself alternating between the The Boy and The Kid as well based on my mood, the context and his behavior. I think this will take some time to get used to. :)
Finally, here’s my food journal for the day. I’ve stayed true to my commitment to the food journal. In a weird way it’s helping me stay sane during an insane time.

Food	Units
bran flakes with frozen blueberries and 1% milk
leftover japanese from last night’s dinner
handful of dry cinnamon cereal
chick fil a grilled southwest salad, 2 nuggets, couple of fried, split a sundae w/ the kid and had a sip of the husbands shake geesh!
handful of chocolate chips… literally only a handful and then i walked a way.
popcorn
Total:	N/A

Table provided by Roni’s Food Tweet, Eat, Post Generator.

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Living Greener and Healthier – A $100 Giveaway!

roni — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 12:50:45 +0000

Have I ever told you guys how I think blogging has made me a better person? Besides reaching my weight loss goals blogging has influenced me in so many good ways. Maybe it’s the nature of public journaling and opening myself up to advice. Maybe it’s purely the fact that I recognize my progression because I have a way to peer back into my own life and literally read thoughts from my past. Regardless of why, here are some observations about my own progress towards a healthier, greener life…

Eating More Whole and Less Processed Foods: Slowly but surely I have eliminated all TV dinner style meals from my diet. It wasn’t an overnight change but I’ve learn to cook more meals and use leftovers in reusable containers for future lunches. That’s got to be better for me (lower sodium, cheaper) and the environment (less waste from individual packaged meals.)
Stopped Using Paper Plate: I’ve written about this before in What I learned from Paper Plates and Broken Microwaves post. I was really dependent on paper plates. I used them for everything from breakfast to mini cutting boards for my fresh fruit desserts. Then when someone made a constructive comment about my usage it got me thinking. A few weeks later I eased my usage and haven’t bought a package of plates since!
I Eat More Locally Grown Food: Since overhauling my diet and introducing tons of fresh fruits and vegetables I can’t WAIT for farm stand season. I love buying locally grown fruits and veggies while supporting local farms. I’ve made it a habit to hit the farm stand before my weekly grocery trip throughout the spring and summer months.
I Garden: My Mom makes fun of me for this every spring. When I was in High School I’d laugh at her and her gardening obsession. Like a typical teenager I thought it was "stupid." Fast forward 15 years and I’m counting the days until I can plant my seedlings, I eat my home grown food and share my gardening adventures online.
I Take Sunday Runs instead of Sunday Drives: This one may sound crazy but the husband an I used to take Sunday drives. Not being Marylander natives we would drive around exploring the area, checking out houses and just enjoying the weather. Now I do that same thing on foot! My 9 miler was a great example. I did drive to my destination but overall I spent way less time burning gas and way more time burning calories!

I have a long way to go and a lot more changes to make but I’m proud of these few accomplishments. Where is this all coming from? Well, Divine Caroline posted this great article on composting (something the husband and I have actually talked about but never really made any attempt to do) and SunChips asked (another benefit of blogging, people and companies send me ideas) if I’d help spread the word about it’s new packaging that is made of 33% renewable materials. By 2010, they plan on having every SunChips bag made 100% compostable.

Have you seen SunChips recent campaign on living greener? SunChips is interested in spreading the word about their new bags and they are donating $100 for a green giveaway on my site! Money for you, tips for me! How can we go wrong?!? :) Simply leave me your best living green tip. What other small changes can I make to live a greener healthier life? Out of the suggestions I will pick (well random.org will pick) one lucky winner for the $100 prize on Friday!

So lay it out me! What’s your best Green Tip?

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Sensible Portions Snack Pack Giveaway!

roni — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 18:16:44 +0000

I’m so excited about this giveaway! The Sensible Portion folks have been very generous since I posted about finding their Multi Grain Mini Crisps at my Local BJ’s. Since then they sent me a bunch of products to try and honestly, I loved each one.

Now they are donating 5 prize packs to 5 of my readers. I’m a little jealous as the prize pack is a backpack filled with their products valued at $40! I didn’t get a backpack. :( Which is probably a good thing as I am a bag whore and have too many already. ;~P

Anyway, the contest is open to anyone is North America. To enter, click here to fill out their form and enter "Roni’s Contest" in the comments section like so.

That’s it!

Next Monday I’ll pick 5 random winners using the trusty old Random.org website. :)

Good luck!

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Food Scale Giveaway!

roni — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:54:52 +0000

If you guys watch any of my cooking videos on GreenLiteBites you may know I can’t survive in the kitchen without my food scale. I don’t only measure to help with portions but it helps out when making recipes and calculating nutritional information. It just became a habit like so many other things. :)

A while back William from EatSmart was nice enough to donate 2 of his EatSmart Nutrition Scales (actually it was almost exactly a year ago!) Well William has some new products and again, would like to donate 2 for my readers! YAY!

Click on the images below to check out the 2 new scales, the original Nutrition Scale (it has a DB of nutrition information) and his sharp digital bathroom scale that’s actually out of stock. :(

Now time for the contest! We will be giving away two EatSmart Precision Touch – Professional Glass Top Digital Kitchen Scales! (Top left image)

There are 2 ways to enter….

Each blogger who copies and pastes the code below in a blog post before next Monday (Feb 2) gets assigned a number and entry to the contest. Be sure to post the link to your blog in the comments to guarantee your entry and get your assigned number.(Yes BlogToLose blogs count – remember my tip from the last contest? :)

Check out the scale giveaway on Roni’s Weight Loss Blog! I can win an Affordable Food Scale from Eat Smart and so can you! Click here for contest details!

It will look like this…

Check out the scale giveaway on Roni’s Weight Loss Blog! I can win an Affordable Food Scale from Eat Smart and so can you! Click here for contest details!
The other winner will randomly be selected from my email subscription list. This way all non-bloggers will still have a chance! If you don’t receive my blog feed via email fill out the subscription form on the top (right) of this page. (my daily posts will be delivered to your inbox!) If you already receive the email you are already entered!

As for restrictions, unfortunately the scales can only be shipped to a US address. Sorry guys! I’m looking out for ya and trying to figure out more international giveaways!

NOTE: If you do not see your link right away… don’t fret. You probably got marked as SPAM. I’ll get ya. If you don’t see your comment in 24 hours let me know.

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