I've been watching our collective behavior since they announced that the SparkPeople.com site is going away in about a month, now.
1. We are all going through phases of grief.
2. Smaller groups are splintering off, based on their "landing zones". Those landing zones come in several flavors:
a. By tracking tool.
i. Some of the tracking tools have communication embedded. MyFitnessPal, for example. I had a friend go there several years ago, after having been an active Sparker, finding their list of foods robust. But she was disappointed by the communication feature, and ended up returning to Spark for that part of her needs!
ii. I personally have gone to cronometer, a Canadian developed system. It has a free version, which seems sufficient for my own needs for now. But there is always the possibility that curiosity and geekiness might drive me to experiment with the more detailed "paid for" version. For now, I'm happy. But that means I won't see any of my former Sparker friends who move exclusively to MFP.
iii. For US Residents, we can try out Spark America, or the individual version Spark360. I've been there, but it doesn't yet have a food tracker. It reminds me a lot of a combination of features from the old Spark: articles, steps through the start up, good advice content. And the exercise gives "points". It has no communication among the membership. I am told by the Spark support team that eventually they will add some of these features, some time after August 17th!
b. By communication site.
i. Some of the Maintenance group are over on Anja's Google Group. It's for everyone who is aspiring to maintain. No requirement for being at a specific goal weight NOW, or length of time, just if maintaining is your goal, this WAS a great group with maintenance specific tools and conversations, and if you are NEW to maintenance it was vital for many of us! Maintenance Google Group
ii. Various Facebook groups, some large and public, some smaller and private are out there. I'm not a fan of HUGE groups, one can get lost in them... but have managed to get invited to a smallish one that suits me well.
iii. BlogSpot (or Blogger, they are the same, Blogger is where you create your userid/profile, BlogSpot is the domain where your blogs are created by default) and various other Blog hosting sites. The major disadvantage of these is that there isn't much of a way to "advertise" our individual existence. Fortunately, Anja gave us a "start page" for the Maintenance group, and if you scroll down on this Google document, you'll find an interactive list of other Spark maintenance bloggers. Maintainer Group Start Page
I'm sure there are other slivers of Sparkers, but what I hope we have in common is taking with us what we learned over our years as Sparkers! And I hope that where ever we are, whether we call it that or not, we continue to "Spread the Spark" as Chris Downie encouraged us to do, encouraging one another, helping ordinary people (like us) realize that they CAN get healthy and reach their goals.
A very helpful summary!! I'm not tracking at the moment (weight steady); enjoying the google docs comments; still looking for a place to "write"!! WATERMEllen
ReplyDeleteAs long as you clue me in when you find one, m'dear Ellen... take your time finding someplace that feels right to YOU! And Henry, of course!
DeleteI know it is water under the bridge, but I don't understand why SP didn't go to a membership model. I'm sure plenty of people would have signed up. Such a dedicated membership.
ReplyDeleteThe coaching program that I'm doing discourages tracking, weighing, measuring, restricting. It's tough, but they swear that if you tune in to your body cues, you'll learn to eat appropriately and to stop when you are no longer hungry. I'm trying, but it's a tough after decades of counting.
I bought a premium Spark membership when it was "lifetime" some time back. But, like you said, water under the bridge. Plus Chris Downie always promised it would be free to users. There weren't enough paying members to make up for the gradual loss of ad revenue, according to the published reports.
DeleteI think you are looking at the holy grail of relationship with food... tuning in to the body's cues. Funny thing, but I'm starting to do a bit of that, just from "getting older"! If I do anything too far out of line, I feel the effects SOON!
- Barb (OKM) attempting to post as Anonymous (testing for a friend).
Nice summary of what's transpiring. I'm also trying out the free version of Cronometer. I didn't find their system as easy and intuitive as many have reported. I'm glad I hung in there. I really appreciate the level of detail available and know it will support my efforts with the clinical nutritionist.
ReplyDeleteNot sure about writing. Will I or won't I? And, if so, where?
Hope this posts ... ~ JEANKNEE
I thought of you at once when I saw how rich their tracking of nutrients was! And especially if you were working with a nutritionist who used the same platform, and seeking health answers rather than weight loss... it just "feels" like a power tool to me.
DeleteStill unsure but hopeful. There are between 20-25 million SP looking for a home. Surely there is a site ready and willing to gather us in. Trying to be patient and giving this decision time to evolve.
ReplyDeleteWe have two months left for whatever unfolding happens, to happen. Me? I wanted to try some things out, and I'm pretty happy, one week in, but relying heavily on old Spark to communicate the map of where I'm going, just in case it helps others.
DeleteStill, I'm not the only Pioneer, and we seem to be exploring in different forests! Nobody can be everywhere, it would just wear you out, and leave no energy left to actually work a program!
And each of us may find an affinity for something different. Wishing us all well, and throwing positive vibes out into the (Spark) universe!
I like your analogy of exploring different forests.
DeleteSo ... there's a difference between SparkAmerica and Spark360 ???
ReplyDeleteI'm looking for support, humor, sharing ... truth, friendship.
Where is that gonna be???
First off, Spark America and Spark360 are somewhat interchangeable terms. I think Spark America specifically refers to the points competition between/among cities. I've been thinking of Spark360 as being the "individual" version.
DeleteBut as for where we find support, humor, sharing, truth, friendship... eh, depends on what form you best get those from. I'm sorry but Spark360 doesn't seem to give it to me. Only the network of bloggers did, and it looks like we are "on our own" for that kind of support.
It won't be as easy to find NEW folks, or for them to find US... but at least for now, we can hang together in our splinter groups, and hopefully, like an introvert in high school, these will be enough for survival and thriving?