Get Fit Challenge Winners!

From left to right: Jen, 1st Place. Betsy, 2nd Place. Tarah & Heather, 3rd Place. Bobbie, 4th Place. Sheena, 5th Place.

Our two-month Get Fit Challenge has come to a close and what a journey it has been! We had some incredibly dedicated competitors and everyone who came to our final Fitness Assessment class got faster, fitter, and lost inches. During the holidays! Wow!

First Place goes to Jen (WP), who earned a mind-boggling 85 points by attending class every single day (weekends included) from November 1 to December 31. She also lost over five inches by eating right in addition to all that exercise. Congratulations Jen!

Second Place goes to Betsy (KAP), another fierce mama who attended 34 classes over the past 2 months, lost inches, and even brought her husband along to class this past week. She came in with 63 points.

Third Place was a tie between Heather (SCH) and Tarah (KAP), who were just one point behind Betsy at 62 points. Heather attended every weekday class (42 total!) we held for the past two months.

Jen wins a $100 grand prize, Betsy has the month of January for free at Stroller Strides, and Tarah & Heather are both invited to pick out any tee or tank from the Stroller Strides retail store.

Honorable Mention goes to Bobbie (SCH) and Sheena (WP), who placed 4th and 5th, respectively.

We also recognized Betsy for winning the most MVP mentions (7 total), and to Jen for most inches lost and most classes attended.

Tarah earned 1 extra point for having the fastest time on the Step-up Challenge (3:45), beating Alyssa by just 3 seconds. Lisa R had the most full sit-ups (31), Alyssa had the most push-ups (41), and Sonya did the most squats in 1 minute (84).

Congratulations to everyone! No matter your "points," it was so thrilling to see that everyone who attended class regularly and came to the final class for their measurements lost inches and got faster and stronger. What a way to begin 2011!

How Did I Miss This for Christmas?

Christmas Eve at Kapolei

Merry Christmas -- let's work out! We had a great turnout at our Christmas Eve class. It was sort of psychedelic to do squat hops in the blazing sunshine to one of the craziest renditions of "Jingle Bells" you've ever heard!

The kids naturally had a great time making their gingerbread houses. Lisa brought two perfect tables for us to use and we had a delicious (tempting) assortment of candy. Reese's Pieces, anyone?

Anastasia was all about the frosting today.

This picture doesn't do it justice. Claire had a gingerbread Taj Majal!

Ah, Iliahi... you crack me up. She was using her oh-so-healthy carrot stick to methodically dip frosting while Mom worked on her gingerbread house:=)

Aleksey is already enjoying his house!

Combined Christmas Eve Class at Kapolei

Come join me for a fun, Christmas-themed combined class at Kapolei on Christmas Eve!

(CORP is no longer open on Fridays so please don't go there!)

Class runs from 8:45 to 10 AM and will be followed by a gingerbread house playgroup. We'll have the graham crackers and frosting. Just bring a candy to share for decoration.

And to all GFC participants -- my Christmas gift to you is double Attendance points for Friday:=)

See you soon!
Joni

Welcome Riyah!

A big congratulations to Carolyn!

Tarek and Carter are big brothers to Riyah Emmeline Adams.

She was born Monday December 13th at 8:51 pm, weighed 8 lbs 3.8 oz, and was 20 1/2" long.

Carolyn writes "We're all just loving her up!:)"

Don't you agree that she is simply gorgeous? So fresh and beautiful. A wonderful Christmas gift for Carolyn and her family.

Playgroup at SCH and KAP moved to Friday

Due to the rain, and an unexpected trip off-island for Nadine, we are going to move Playgroup to this Friday at our combined Kapolei class. This gives the ground a chance to dry, plus it will be fun to make gingerbread houses with the kids on Christmas Eve.

Schofield moms, we've asked all the Kapolei moms to bring a candy item to decorate the houses with. Beth and I will provide the graham crackers and frosting. If you have a small cardboard box (such as a small milk carton or whipped cream container), bring it since that will help keep your house upright, but it isn't required. M&Ms, gumdrops, licorice whips, jelly beans, and Hershey Kisses are all some fun decorating options. You only need to bring one!

OP moms, this is your chance to do 2 Playgroups in one week:=) If you can bring a candy item as well, that would be great.

Holiday Dinner

Back row, from left: Catherine, Amy, Patti, Joni, Deanna, Michaela, Stephanie, Margene, Bobbie, Maria, Tarah
Front row, from left: Liz, Heather, Alison, Michaela, Rachael, Nadine

We had a really lovely dinner out at at the Beachhouse Restaurant, located within the Moana Surfrider in Waikiki. Everyone looked so beautiful and it was quite a contrast to our normal workout gear, ponytail and sunglasses! Stephanie in particular made quite an impression with her 3 inch heels and glorious dress. What a way to go!

Thank you to Liz for organizing this event and coordinating with the restaurant. They had some pretty firm policies for a large group and it worked out beautifully. I loved how we could hear each other easily all night in our own private section of the restaurant (with a view of the beach besides!).

Mahalo to Rachael for sending along a picture!

Member Monday

Hi there, my name is Mary. I’m wife to my high school sweetheart Keaka and mother to Hannah (3), Jacquelyn (18 months), and sometime in the next 4-7 weeks our last little blessing.

I was born in Georgia and have had a home there and a home here in Hawaii since I was 1. My dad had a job with the military where he had training on the East Coast half a year and then was back here.

We were homeschooled and were able to go with him as a family. I consider both states home. My husband was born and raised here. We both grew up in Mililani and met when we were 17.

I attend Kapolei mostly, but have plans to try all the locations near our Ocean Pointe home. I like swimming, biking, and hiking. I hate running; however, my husband is an avid runner (just finished his fourth marathon) so I’m going to use him to get into running. My ultimate fitness goal after I have this baby is to compete in triathlons. I’ve always been “fit” but having three babies in four years can really tank your fitness level. I’m giving myself 2 years after the birth of this child to get back in shape and I’m super excited to have Stroller Strides as my partner in accomplishing this goal!!

Pics from Stand Up Paddleboard

Heading up the Anahulu River. This is right when we had all transitioned
from kneeling to standing.

Liz looks beautiful!

It's a lot more work to stay balanced than I thought it would be!

Go Monica!

Beth was a natural!

Right before we turned around, at the head of the river. The photos don't do it justice!
It was such a beautiful day.

Tahitian Dance Lesson for January's MNO!

I love Tahitian dancing! It's so much fun to watch and a fantastic workout. We can meet for a light dinner on the Leeward side and carpool over to the lesson in Manoa together.

A 1-hour lesson costs $30 and the studio is limited to 10 students. I hope you'll join us! A Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf is located beneath the studio, which is the perfect end to this Mom's Night Out:=)

Friday, January 28, 7 to 8 PM

Stand Up Paddleboarding

From left: Leann, Amber, Monica, Joni, Catherine, Beth, Liz,
and our instructor Jodie

We had such a great time learning how to stand up paddleboard this past Saturday. There was some question about the weather after the huge storm on Friday, but we couldn't have asked for better weather! (Don't you love living in Hawaii, where you can go paddleboarding three weeks before Christmas?)

Learning how to balance took a bit more work than I expected and I could feel all my muscles turning on to keep me balanced. Once we got the basics down, it was a wonderfully peaceful and beautiful morning on the river. Mahalo to Heidi and Jodie of Rainbow Watersports who made the whole experience so enjoyable. Highly recommended!

Member Monday

Hi, I'm Shevaun and I attend the Waterfront location which is convenient because that is also where I live.

I have one little girl named Elle who will be 3 in January.

We moved to Hawaii the middle of October. My husband is stationed on a sub at Pearl Harbor. So far we love it!

I stay pretty busy with Elle, but I also just started dancing again with a halau.

I grew up doing Polynesian dance and have missed it so much.

I joined Stroller Strides to get in shape. Mainly for the health aspect, but losing weight would be really nice too.

Stroller Strides has also given me such a great opportunity to meet other moms!

Stand Up Paddleboard this Saturday!

December "Mom's Day Out"
Saturday, December 11
9 to 11 AM
$69

Come join us for stand up paddleboard lessons on the Anahulu River in Haleiwa.

RSVP via Evite or just let me know by email. So far we have 8 moms going!

XTERRA 10K

Congratulations to Maria, Catherine, Bobbie and Liz who ran in the XTERRA 10K this past Sunday! (What's even more amazing to me is that they were all at class on Monday.)

Go Schofield mamas! Mahalo to Maria for sending along a picture.

Member Monday

Hi, my name is Nadia and I live in Ewa Beach with my husband and our son, Sebastian, who is 21 months old. I attend the Ocean Pointe location.

My husband is in the Air Force and we have been here for almost 10 months. In the past 6 years, I've moved 4 times and lived in 5 different houses, so I've become pretty good at paring down and uncluttering!

I enjoy photography, going to the beach, cooking, and eating!

I'm excited to get back into shape and being able to enjoy my beautiful surroundings while doing it! My goal is to be able to do the Great Aloha Run in February.

December Events

December "Mom's Day Out"
Saturday, December 11
9 to 11 AM
$69

Come join us for stand up paddleboard lessons on the Anahulu River in Haleiwa.







Holiday Dinner at the Beachhouse
Moana Surfrider Hotel
Tuesday, December 14
6:45 PM

The guest list closes on Friday, December 10 so RSVP via Evite if you'd like to attend!





Christmas Party and Cookie Exchange
Monday, December 20
Joni's House (Ko Olina)
11 to 2 PM

Bring cookies to share if you'd like to participate in our exchange. I'll also have sugar cookie dough for the kids to cut out and decorate!





Our combined class on Friday, December 31 will also be the final day of the Get Fit Challenge! Everyone is welcome for a great workout at CORP. Those participating in the GFC will be doing the push-up, sit-up, step-up, and squat assessments at the beginning of class (while you're still fresh -- and if you're not doing the GFC, rest assured you'll be working hard doing the assessments with everyone else). We'll award a few prizes at class and the official GFC winner will be announced that night.

If you are participating in the GFC and can't attend class on the 31st, you must get in touch with me to complete the assessment before the end of the month. Come January 1, the GFC will be officially finished!

Any of These Sound Familiar?

Some of them sure do for me. Awesome clip.