Weigh in #43

Another milestone: 60 pounds gone!  60.1 to be exact!

My leader, Suzanne, asked for my thoughts or what had helped me along the way as she handed me a sticker. Normally I am not tongue tied but my thoughts weren't well organized today and I think I rambled a bit. Oh well, I'll blame it on spring fever.

I really should begin walking today. It is nice out and would be a good day to start, but I also need to clean the house. Maybe I will take deep cleaning of the rooms as I've done weight watchers...one bite at a time. Cleaning will be a form of exercise and I will feel better physically and emotionally when this is done. Maybe I'll even reward myself with a walk this afternoon when it should be even a bit warmer outside.

On the drive home from the meeting I thought about what I should have said. A big difference in my life since returning to WW is learning the difference between hunger and just wanting to eat. Wanting to eat can be from habit (M&Ms while online, cookies while watching TV), or because you're thinking about how good something tastes (mmmmm......coffee ice cream!) or boredom but I must admit, I am rarely bored but am sometimes restless when I can't pick what to do (read? knit? work a puzzle?) .

Besides the mindlessness of eating as I just described, all of those times I am sedentary. That M&M or cookie doesn't just hit the bottom of my stomach, it sits there on my bottom. Yikes!  I really doubt that I'll ever become a person who can't sit still and therefore burn more calories because I am always in motion. Many of the things I love to do require me to be seated and that isn't going to change. What I can do is aim for more activity than what currently passes for normal, and eliminate or improve what I eat when I am doing these things. For the most part, I have changed that already. I still do have a cookie or a few M&Ms occasionally but I really do think about what I am doing, and I count the points.

So, with more activity and not just sitting at the keyboard in mind, I am off to start deep cleaning the house. My weight loss success and how good I feel physically truly do quiet the call of sweets and other poor choices.

Onward and downward! 

Forty-second weigh in ....Yay!!

Being down another 1.1 pounds is good news, but not the reason for the Yay!!

Anyone who has struggled with weight probably has numbers that are significant to them that aren't necessarily noteworthy to someone else. The 1.1 pound loss put me below a significant number, one that I haven't seen in I don't know how long, but at least 20 years.

I still feel great about what I am doing and how I am doing it. When I get closer to my goal, I may even return here to edit this post and add the mystery number.

Onward and downward, with a big grin.

41 weeks

So close.....

Today's weigh in had me down .6 pounds. Another .6 or better yet, .7 pounds, would have put me under a number that I haven't seen in a very long time. Still, .6 down is better than up, so all is good.

To be honest, I could have done better this past week. An occasional cookie or piece of chocolate candy has gone from hand to mouth. My goal for this current week is to track more consistently and to really consider if that cookie or candy is worth it.

We are done with family birthdays for at least a few weeks, and the only challenge I am aware of this week will be Saturday when I have art classes an hour away from home. We usually have sandwiches from Jimmy John's for lunch. They are good, but higher in points that what I would make at home. Since we have a party to attend that evening, I may pack a lunch so I can "spend" more points later in the day.

March 2015

I've always wanted minions to handle all the work around here, but this isn't what I meant! Not the best selfie shot, but it is a record of my weight loss. 

Onward and downward, and in bright yellow!

40th weigh in, Fabulous!

Yesterday was my 40th weigh in. This past weekend was full of birthday celebrations. My grandson turned 5 on Friday, his daddy (my oldest son) turned 37 on Saturday. On Sunday, hubby and I went out to eat simply because the day got away from us.

If I planned to work for WW, I would either have to clean up my act or lie about things when I write here. But I don't plan to work for them (nothing against WW, I just don't time have time to be employed!) so I am going to be honest and admit that I haven't tracked points since Thursday. I've been aware of them mentally but we all know that can be a slippery slope.

The thing is, both birthdays were important to me and I knew I was going to celebrate them. I was not going to weigh and calculate the cupcake on Friday or the lemon bar on Saturday. Friday's dinner was from a local restaurant and Saturday's was deep dish pizza. Under normal circumstances, normal since WW anyway, I wouldn't have chosen those meals on consecutive days.

So why did I do ok this past weekend? I consciously chose lower point meals before dinner both days. On Friday I had ice cream but no cupcake. I can't say much about Saturday's choices, especially since I finished hubby's three bites of lemon bar after eating my own.

On Sunday I had an omelet with veggies and no cheese. It came with hash browns, and I had a few forkfuls but they weren't worth the points (whatever the points may have been) so I enjoyed the dry toast with a smear of mixed fruit jelly instead. Mixed fruit is my favorite although I'm not much of a jelly or jam fan.

So what is my point? My point is that I'm automatically moderating myself now. I don't have to spend much time thinking should I choose A or B, and don't panic when I don't know the point value in something. Was I perfect in my WW choices? No, but life isn't perfect. By the way, WW doesn't beat anyone up for not being perfect, it really is about educating yourself and making the best choices.

I'm of an age where I try not to beat myself up about anything. I spent decades not measuring up to who and what I thought I should be. I could compile a long list of what I am not, of what I have not done, BUT....I could come up with a longer list of good things that I am and have done. That isn't ego, that is a simple truth.

I will continue to celebrate birthdays without guilt, but they will be smaller portions and you know what? No one else notices that. I still get the taste. I still get the joy of being part of the happy times. As long as I don't laugh with food in my mouth, no one sees or judges what I am eating.

I was down another .8 pounds yesterday, a total of 57 pounds gone. Once upon a time, I would have thought "yes, but I could have been better if I ate X instead of Y and if I was exercising". Once upon a time is for storybooks. My life is real. I did eat Y and I haven't started exercising yet (although tag with a 5 year old surely counts for something!) and in 9 months, I've lost 57 pounds. Looking back on previous years of thinking I had to be perfect or follow WW exactly and without a slip, where did it get me? Nowhere.

Onward, downward and fabulous!

Nine months later....

No, I didn't have a baby and what I've delivered is heavier than an infant. Today's 39th weigh in was down another .9 pounds for a total of 56.2 since June 2nd of last year.

Part of today's discussion was the importance of weighing in after reaching lifetime status, and that leaders and staff often still struggle when emotional eating tempts them. If it were easy to get it off and never look back, there would be very few people who are overweight, right?

My husband and I recently heard that Weight Watchers has lost money and may be scaling back on personnel, locations, etc. Fitbit and diet plans promoted at gyms are likely to be part of the reason for this. I get that. People don't want to spend money in multiple places with the same goal. I would never tell anyone that WW is the only way to lose weight. Weight Watchers does encourage exercise and many members have gym memberships, use Fitbit or other monitors. I just hope people don't give up on WW because it has been around a long time and doesn't sound trendy.

If anyone is reading this who doesn't know me personally, I can only tell you what holds true for me:

Quick fixes in the form of drastic diets (eliminating entire food groups, extremely low calorie counts, and weight loss supplements) don't work in the long run. They may get you to goal, but if you don't change the habits that got you overweight in the first place, you aren't going to maintain the loss.

I am not a fan of prepared meals that some programs require or strongly suggest you eat. The funny thing about this is that I've become very lazy about cooking and this idea, in theory, should appeal to me. There are a few things I can't eat that seldom bother others, cucumbers and garlic are two that make me miserable. There are a few things I really don't care for, such as peppers and zucchini. Then there are prepared meals that don't contain any of these things but I don't like how they taste when prepared by the XYZ company and delivered to my door or frozen food department of the nearby grocery store.

Even if I did like these foods, is it realistic for most of us to think we will eat these foods for the next 15 years? Probably not, especially if you live and dine with other people. Prepared foods are a convenience and there is nothing wrong with that, but if you don't learn how to choose and cook for yourself, what will happen when the freezer is empty?

Most people know at least one person who underwent bariatric surgery but didn't maintain the loss because they didn't change their habits. I am a lifetime WW member and didn't maintain my loss. Old habits crept back into my daily life. I was too embarrassed to weigh in at 8 pounds over goal so I stubbornly stayed away and gained much, much more.

Don't we all know people who have joined gyms but rarely use them a few years later? I'm not knocking them at all, but the reality of people around me is that few people maintain the level of commitment that gym advisers recommend. Life gets in the way at times and just like not weighing in as a lifetime WW member, it becomes easier to sit in the chair than get to the gym or embarrassment of work out gear that has gotten too tight keeps us home while we fool ourselves into thinking next Monday will be easier to get back on track.

My point is that WW can work for anyone who wants it to work, mainly because there is flexibility in your choices. I don't plan to work for the company. I have nothing to gain by encouraging anyone. I am just sharing what I know to be true for me.

Fifty-six less pounds means I move better and am no longer on blood pressure medication. It also means I look better. I have always liked myself so I wasn't negative about my appearance in the dress on the left. My son's wedding was a glorious day and happiness trumped my dress size. Shopping is a lot more fun now, as is playing tag with my 5-year old grandson....even if he cheats. 

Onward and downward!