SparkPeople.com

I was really having a good time on The Biggest Loser Club site.  The community there is fantastic!  Boot Camps, Challenges constantly starting, archives of articles, exercise video demonstrations and the food database and ability to make changes was pretty good.

However, for a pay site - it really is lacking.  Given that we create web promotional sites for a living and I know how much it costs to implement/update tools, it was clear that the site hasn't had an updated much since its launch several years ago.  It was discouraging at times to try to explain to newbies how to get to their
group messages (there isn't a "subscribe" function) and I am sure there are a lot of people who never find a community group and end of falling off the site as soon as they hit a hard week because without community support.. just sit on the couch with the cookies and enjoy them.  You need supportive people around you.  Couple this frustration with the fact that we are PAYING a subscription for their service that has perpetual glitches, archaic infastructure and a web antique user interface.. I had enough.

I was going to switch to JillianMichaels.com.  I have a girl crush on her and want her to be my bff. =)  I thought what better way than to be part of her community, inspire and motivate and help others as I was on the Biggest Loser Club site.  Well Jillian's user interface and food database was a downgrade from Biggest Loser Club.  I mean, if i can't stand putting my food in every day - how am I going to stand to log in and do the rest of it?  Again.. a subscription based site whose user interface is so crammed with text you aren't sure where to go next.  I admit, I was really disappointed as I wanted to be part of her site as I like her approach and her efforts with The Biggest Loser.

Time to revisit SparkPeople.com.  

I had originally logged into SparkPeople.com before I went to BLC - however I didn't readily see the community effort or understand its layout - and I come from the general school of thought that free = sub par from a paying subscription.  How untrue in this case! =)

SparkPeople.com's food database is top notch.  Their recipe database is insanely robust.  The search tools are as extensive as I could imagine any search to be.  Their tracking tools are more robust and easier to navigate than either BLC or JillianMichaels.com.  SparkPeople's community is still a little confusing to me, but I can see that all of the components are definitely there to get answers as well as provide support to others.

A FREE SITE.  Did you hear me?  A FREE site.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SparkPeople

Chris the founder is amazing.  After building an auction site, he sold it to eBay and used his profits to start this site sinking more than $5 million of his own money into the project.  Plus, he didn't stop there - he e has started other sites to help pregnant women at Babyfit.com, and teens at SparkTeens.com!  Plus there is SparkAmerica.com where you can team with other people to get achievements, badges and put your community high up on the leader board.  Thanks Chris! =)

I KNOW (from everything I have read, seen, watched) that in order to be successful at keeping this weight off I will have to find a place to call home on the web to track my nutrition, fitness and progress for the rest of my life.  Yeah.. really.  The rest of my life. =)  So for now.. SparkPeople.com fits the bill in terms of tools and definitely with cost. =)