by Claire on July 19, 2010
In the continuing saga of my weight loss journey, I feel compelled to ‘fess up.
I have been basking in the glow of compliments and skinny clothing for about a year now while hovering about 9 pounds from goal. I love the compliments – they really help with encouragement and staying on my path. I’ve also been steadily and consistently going to my Weight Watchers meetings every week unless I’ve been sick or out of town or the location was closed for the holiday. I have been doing a lot of things right.
But I’ve also been doing some things wrong.
I’ve been slipping.
BLTs they call them. Bites, licks, and tastes. And portion distortion. And plain just not counting what should be counted.
And now it’s biting me back in the ass. The sum of the last two weeks has resulted in a 5 pound gain. That is HUGE in the world of weight loss – or in this case, gain.
At my meeting tonight, I talked to my leader. We tried to figure out what caused the weight gain this week as I tracked (mostly) and I did a lot more activity. I know what happened the week prior – that was no tracking and eating bad-for-weight-loss food in San Antonio. I also talked with my fellow members and we tried chalking it up to hormones changing post-age 50, too much sodium in my diet, you name it, we tried to blame it.
The bottom line is it all adds up to what you put in your mouth and putting too much of it in. I immediately came home and weighed out the watermelon I’ve been eating (per serving). What was being not counted – at all – added up to 2 points. Do that a few times and I’ve eaten up 1/3 of my weekly bonus points. Add in the second helping of coleslaw and the ice cream cake that was justified as a meal – and then coming home and eating a late night leftover meal anyway. It all adds up.
So keeping it honest and keeping it real here means I’ll do a better job of staying on program this next week. And I’ll remember that each week when I weigh in, it’s feedback, not failure.
Tagged as:
Health,
healthy eating,
tracking food,
weight gain,
Weight Loss,
Weight Watchers
by Claire on November 24, 2009
Is it actually possible to lose weight during Thanksgiving week? Why, yes, it is. It’s not easy, but it can be done.
Last year was my first Thanksgiving on the Weight Watchers program and I worked really hard to follow the suggestions that my leader provided so that I would not gain weight during the week. I was successful.
What did I do?
- I tracked all my points
- I used Weight Watchers serving spoons so I would know that I was dishing up 1/2 cup of whatever
- I changed our traditional candied yams recipe for a Weight Watcher’s one and my daughter – who has loved my candied yams for years – actually liked the new one better. Instead of heaps of brown sugar, I used orange juice and sugar-free maple syrup.
- I measured the gravy I put on my plate using the Weight Watchers 1/4 cup ladle
- I filled up with more veggies and salad than stuffing, and skipped the mashed potatoes
- I made sure to get in some activity during the week
By doing that, last year I lost half a pound during a week (or day) that is focused solely on food and typical over-eating.
What will I do this year?
This year I’m going to repeat all of the above but I’m challenging myself to try to lose a whole pound or more this week. I think I can do that if I ease back into my normal level of activity (up to 4 times a week running) and drink a lot of water.
Some other tips that came up in my weight watcher’s meeting yesterday:
- Chew gum and drink water while preparing food or putting away the leftovers
- Keep your hands busy washing dishes or cleaning up (or some other activity that occupies your hands) so you’re not tempted to dip into leftovers
- Go for a walk after eating
- Bring something to the meal that is for you that is on program – like a wild rice, whole grain stuffing instead of Stove Top, or a box of Weight Watchers 1 point ice cream bars to have instead of the 9 point slice of pumpkin pie
And I love the story my leader shares about her first Thanksgiving on Weight Watchers. She got up early and cooked everything before other people were awake, and everything she made followed a Weight Watcher’s recipe. No one knew the difference, and she stayed on program. Love her!
If you’re trying to lose weight this holiday season, what will you do to stay on track?
Tagged as:
family,
healthy eating,
holidays,
thanksgiving,
Weight Loss,
Weight Watchers
