Winter weight loss tips from a winner

Photo courtesy of radialgroup.com

Is your New Year's resolution to lose some weight? If you want some motivation, check out Jan Haapala of St. Paul who was one of the five winners of the 2008 Weight Watchers Inspiring Stories of the Year contest. The 28-year-old attorney lost 122.8 lbs and had his story published in the January of Good Housekeeping and online at Weight Watchers.

When Haapala was 24-years old, he weighed 225 pounds. He went to the doctor's office for a routine physical and was told he would have to go on blood pressure medication -- that if his health remained in the state it was in, he would die. "It was really scary, " Haapala says.


Photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping.

Haapala joined Weight Watchers with his wife and the two supported one another. At 235 lbs, Haapala seemed to plateau. When he couldn't lose more weight, he began upping his exercise by training for a half marathon.


Photo courtesy of Good Housekeeping.

He not only completed a half-marathon, but then went on to complete a full 26.2 miler. Haapala says the key to his weight loss came when he stopped exercising for exercise's sake and did it more for fun and to improve his race times.

Here are some of Haapala's Minnesota winter weight loss tips:

1. Join a gym. Set a schedule for working out and stick to it until it becomes habit.
2. Sign up for races so you have something to work towards. Haapala recommends Team Ortho, which has a series of races around the Twin Cities.
3. Write things down -- your training schedule, for instance. Writing helps to make your goals permanent.
4. Plan ahead for meals. For instance, Haapala says if you know you are going to a happy hour, make sure to eat ahead of time so you don't end up at the bar hungry and consuming too much bar food.