We've all been given blessings and gifts in our lives. For many of us it's our children, family and friends, great jobs and hopefully good health.

Here's something you all need to remember—you are never too far gone, never too good and never above asking for or needing help.

Hello Challengers, this is Dan. Please, use your Chippewa Valley Challenge Fitness & Nutrition Journals! There is a reason we want you log your steps, log your exercise and log your meal. It's to teach you the habits that will help you change your lifestyle and lose weight. If you don't know how many calories you're eating or how many calories you're burning each day, then don't complain if you're not losing any weight! People who have been successful at changing their lifestyle use a journal to keep track of planning and progress. We are trying to give you the tools (pedometer, journal, access to personal trainers, a private MyFitnessPal group and incentives) to lose weight and change your life. But tools are only helpful if you actually use them. So take 5 minutes and make sure your pedometers are programmed or if you're using a fitness tracker, make sure to go online and complete your profile. Then take a minute or two a couple of times a day to log your food and exercise. Start good, healthy habits today and take control of your life! The Challenge is here to help guide, inform and encourage you to get healthy, but we won't do the work for you. Losing weight is hard, but learning how to keep it off and stay healthy is even harder. Develop those healthy habits now and learn how to use them going forward. Thank you to everyone who has stepped up to the Challenge and made the choice to change their life one step at a time.

Tips, tricks and benefits of being healthy and in shape in your fifties

I recently attended a get together of former classmates. We’ve been getting together prior to the holidays for the last few years. A former classmate of mine and I were talking and wondering, “who are these old people?” Quite honestly I think we were both looking round at the crowd noticing just how many of our former classmates looked so much older they are. Most all of us graduated between 1980 and 1983, so we are all in our early 50s. What’s really disturbing is the frightening number of classmates (class of 1981) who have died since our graduation, many due to health related issues.

Why is this? 

We are almost three months in to 2014...so...how’s that New Year’s Resolution coming along?

For many of us who want to lose weight in the new year, this is the time we start falling off the wagon and lose interest in our goals we set back in December. It’s at this time most health clubs start seeing a decline in people coming to the gyms. This is why many clubs will run another sale in March.

So why do we give up so quickly on something we wanted so badly at one point in time? Why can’t we see past these first few months as being just the beginning of the healthier lifestyle we were trying to get live?

If not, what are you doing about it? 

Are you accomplishing your goals? 

Are you keeping up with your kids? Are you carrying around an extra 40, 50 or even 100 pounds of extra weight? 

Once again what are you going to do about it?

It's a new year; it's a new beginning to your life. Why not do something about it. Now the time to take control and start living a healthier lifestyle. Is it easy? Is it something that's going to come naturally? The answer to both is no!

The only thing constant in life is change.

This year has been a year of being extremely busy, working through consistent changes as well as experiencing many firsts.

How my life has changed by reaching for my goals

These last two years, and especially these last few months, have been filled with change and great potential all because I decided to change my lifestyle and the direction my life was heading. A little over two years ago I was overweight, out of shape and very unhealthy. My personal and professional life was in shambles and neither was heading in a direction which I was happy about. So I made a decision to lose weight, get in shape and change the way I was living my life. I also promised myself that I would give back even more to my community as well as commit to improving the lives of as many people as I possibly can.

The real changes in my life started shortly after I began writing this blog. I had already lost over 75 pounds when I first started "I AM AN OVER EATER!!,"and it was only a few weeks later that I created The Chippewa Valley Challenge. My life really started making strides in a new direction.