Weekly Weigh-In {3}

This week was mentally tough. I had many, many thoughts of simply skipping my weigh-in. I’ve been on plan for less than 2 weeks and I’m already contemplating these things.

The funny thing is, I was doing great with my eating and exercise. I was in control, I was counting, and I was kicking my soda habit in the face. Yet, a single whisper of skipping weigh-in and letting myself cheat until the new week started kept grabbing hold of my mind and hanging on. At first, thinking about it made me happy. I could eat what I wanted! I could gorge! Woo! And then? Then the guilt set in. The disappointment. The beating myself up. And I realized that staying on plan makes me happier in the long run than cheating.

Not a new concept. But in the past, I could usually shove the guilt part aside and focus on the happy part of my brain. Now, I couldn’t get the fact that this was not how I wanted my mind to think anymore. I didn’t want to focus on “being good until weigh-in day”. I wanted to focus on being healthy just because. I had to keep telling myself, over and over again: “This is not about weigh-in day. This is about a healthy lifestyle.”

And I did it. Even though I didn’t track from Sunday – Wednesday, I still remained on plan. I ate healthy, didn’t overindulge, and kept up my exercise routine. For me, it’s a big step in acknowledging this is my new life. It’s not my life for this week. It’s not my life until I get to my goal weight. It’s my life forever. Some people can’t look that far into the future. They have to just focus one day at a time. For me, I think it’s because I’ve been doing it for so long and making up so many excuses that I have to put my focus not just on the here and now, but also how I want to feel when I go on my cruise in May. By the end of 2012. Five years from now.

I don’t want to still be struggling with my weight five years from now.

I need to remain focused on the fact that this is not something I’m doing for a few months or for some destination. I am doing this for the rest of my life. It can be overwhelming to think in these terms, but I’ve discovered it is motivation for me to keep going.

Starting Weight (1/11/12): 157.0 lbs
Current Weight (1/25/12): 154.2 lbs
Weight Lost This Week: 1.0 lbs
Total Weight Lost: 2.8 lbs

Weekly Weigh-In {2}

I have had many “first weeks” when it comes to committing to a healthier lifestyle. I never feel too confident in my abilities because I can’t seem to let go of all the times I have been on plan for a while, but then I fall off when it all becomes too much. And I know until I can release my past attempts and focus on the here and now, this battle will not be won. It’s something I’m working on.

I had a good week, especially since the weekend was spent in playoff glory where unhealthy food and snacks abounded. But the sweet thing about Weight Watchers is that nothing is off-limits. I can eat whatever I want - as long as I account for it. I saved up my weekly points and used the majority of it on the weekend. And I kept everything within reason. I didn’t overindulge but I didn’t deprive myself. I’m actually quite proud of how in control I managed to stay this week.

My goal for January for “Twelve Changes” is to start drinking more water. Ultimately, I want to eliminate Coke from my diet (not completely, but to drastically reduce it). Some days, this is an incredibly hard change and I struggle so much with giving in to my craving to have a soda. Other days, it’s easy as pie. More and more, I see myself getting into the mindset where my life doesn’t revolve around when I’m going to get my next soda. I have slipped a few times and I’m still usually ordering a soda with my meal when I eat out (but I try to throw it away when my meal is over, if I get something to go). But the truth is? I’m getting better. It’s going to be a long process and I’m making changes to my lifestyle that are going to last for longer than simply January. I can’t say I’m following the plan I set for myself to a tee, but I’m learning and I’m trying my best.  Sure, I could do better but that’s what the next two weeks are about. Taking what I learned in the first half of the month and apply it to the second. I plan on exceeding my expectations, thankyouverymuch.

Starting Weight (1/11/12): 157.0 lbs
Current Weight (1/18/12): 155.2 lbs
Weight Lost This Week: 1.8 lbs
Total Weight Lost: 1.8 lbs

Weekly Weigh-In {1}

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I have debated a lot about whether or not I want to bring back my weekly weigh-in posts. On the one hand, they are good for me to process what's been happening with my weight loss, get advice and support, and to have a place to document this journey. On the other, it puts a lot of pressure on me to lose good amounts of weight every week. I want to "impress" you guys with my incredible weight loss, which is a very slippery slope.

But I finally decided I'm going to blog about it. Because it's more helpful than not and I saw my weight journey start to fall apart once I stopped blogging regularly my weekly weigh-ins. So they are back. (Yay?)

I know we all have our own ways of losing weight and no way is really better than the other. Whether you count calories, points, or just try to clean up your eating, we have to follow the plan that works best for our bodies and minds. For me, that is Weight Watchers. WW is a plan that works -- when you do it right. When you follow the plan and don't cheat yourself. WW offers more than just a simple weight loss plan, it offers support, community, and a place to measure your growth. I have been to a lot of different WW meetings and leaders and right now, my current Leader is one of my favorites. I think it's so key to have someone with you who's been through the journey and knows what it takes to lose weight and keep it off.

Weight Watchers works for me. I'm not limited in anything I can eat. And while I can get caught up in the "this week is shot. I'll just skip weigh-in and get back on track next week" mentality, I know it's up to ME to make this plan work. It's up to me to take those 8 Healthy Guidelines and make them a part of my everyday lifestyle. A healthy lifestyle is something I want for the rest of my life. There is no timeline on it, no end date. It's something I have to do for the rest of my life and I know I have what it takes to put in the hard work needed to get me to my ultimate goal.

Starting Weight: 157.0 lbs

My Name is Stephany & I’ve Been Living in the Dark Ages

Happy Independence Day! Honestly, with the Fourth falling on a Monday and having to go to work the next day, I don’t have many plans. But that’s kinda OK with me.

The last time I was successful with Weight Watchers was in summer 2007. Since then, I’ve been on and off the program, never fully embracing it for the long-term. I’ve always done good for a few weeks but then would fall off track easily.

As I mentioned last week, exercise is not a problem for me. Even when I fell off track with Weight Watchers, I still managed to keep exercising at least a few times a week. Of course, I’ve never exercised as much as I am now and it’s showing in my hunger levels. My eating habits haven’t changed but I’m realizing that I need to start to look at food more as fuel to get me through my workouts rather than delightful little surprises for my mouth.

I haven’t been tracking right for the past few weeks. Mostly keeping count in my head (which never turns out accurate) or on a piece of paper the next day. Problem is, I tend to conveniently forget certain foods I ate, miscalculate the amount, etc. It’s a slippery slope when your tracking falls short. One of the biggest cornerstones of Weight Watchers is tracking what you eat and being aware of portion sizes and points values. I’m not doing that.

So, finally, I bit the bullet. For the first time since summer 2007, I have an eTools account. Since it costs $40 a month and charges double that first month, I’ve always put it off, saying I didn’t have that kinda money. Well, paying $12 a week (which averages out to more than $40 a month) isn’t exactly smart. Plus, there are a myriad of benefits with having eTools. A place to track, a place for community, a place to look at your weight record, goals, and exercise. I’m so flipping excited that I finally have eTools and finally a place to get back on, um, track with my tracking. I think it’s going to do wonders for the way I eat and use my points.

I know my eating habits are the biggest hurdle I need to accomplish to live healthier. As in, eating more Power Foods, getting in my fruits and veggies servings, and drinking water. Drinking a lot more water. But I know what happens when you follow the Plan as it should be - weight loss happens. I know that I have a lot of work to do and a lot to change about my eating habits. But I’m willing to learn and willing to change my life. And that’s the biggest part of it all.

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 150.8 lbs
Net Difference: -8.4 lbs (-1.2 this week)

Two Sides to Every Weight Loss Story

I’m losing my weight the old-fashioned way: through healthy eating and exercise. I’m using Weight Watchers as a way to help me maintain motivation and have a support system to lose the weight and learn to live healthier. Weight Watchers is basically like counting calories, except you count Points Plus values. Every single item of food is assigned a Points Plus value depending on fat grams, carbs, protein, and fiber. Every single food being labeled means nothing is off limits. Weight Watchers doesn’t teach about deprivation but about portion control.

I’ve been on and off the program since the summer of 2007. So I know the program backwards and forwards. I know what works for me and what doesn’t. I know that the program works if you do it correctly. As one of my all-time favorite Leaders always says, “Let the Program work for you. Don’t work the Program.”

This week, I saw a gain on the scale. Truthfully, I knew it wasn’t going to be a stellar weight loss week for me because of one issue: eating.

My exercise was fantastic this week. Three days I exercised for over an hour (twice hitting the two-hour mark) and two days I hit the gym for an hour. And since I had previously been exercising for 30-45 minutes a few days a week, this is a lot of exercise for me.

But I love it! I love being in the gym, love the classes, love the atmosphere. It pushes me to keep going and pressing forward. I would love to spend two hours in the gym every day but it’s not always feasible. But those days I do? I feel amazing.

But the other side of the story is where I feel not-so-amazing. I grew very lax on tracking what I ate and eating the good stuff, giving myself leeway because of all the exercise I was doing. The week before, I decided not to count my exercise points towards my daily total and it worked out good - I lost 3 pounds. This week was a whole ‘nother ballgame.

If it’s one thing I know, it’s that weight loss requires healthy eating and exercise. I have the exercise part of the equation down pat. And now it’s time for me to get the healthy eating part down pat.

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 152 lbs
Net Difference: -7.2 lbs (+.8 this week)
Body Fat: 27.57% (+)

Consistency

I met with a personal trainer this past week (free with new gym membership), and we discussed my goals for weight loss and what things may be holding me back. It was an extensive discussion but there were a few points I made that stuck out for me.

• The biggest thing holding me back from losing the weight and keeping it off is myself.
• One of the reasons I’ve never been able to successfully maintain a healthy lifestyle is because I lack consistency.

The thing about trying to lose weight and trying to do it for so long is that you become your own worst enemy. You envision yourself skinny, envision yourself healthy but that’s all it really is - a vision. Even if you stick with the plan for a while, there’s always that tiny voice in the back of your head saying you’re going to fail. Something will happen and the weight will come right back on.

I need to be consistent. With eating healthy. With exercise. Because I know I feel better about myself when I feel in control of my body. I know nothing feels as good as an insanely good, heart-pumping workout where I leave everything on the floor. But still, I’m inconsistent. Even now, as I come off two great weeks of being in control of my eating and getting in tons of great workouts, I’m still wondering when it will all become too much. Not if, but when.

I also did a fitness test with the personal trainer, one such test being the chest press. At first, he had me do 15 reps at 30 lbs which I was able to do, but it was hard. He asked me if I thought I could do 45 lbs. I was honest and said I didn’t think I could. 30 lbs was very hard and I didn’t think I had it in me to do 15 more reps with 15 more pounds of weight on the machine. He told me to try, so I did. And I managed to do 15 reps at 45 lbs.

I am holding myself back from reaching my full potential.

That’s a hard statement to make because it puts all the blame on me. I can’t blame my circumstances, my parents, or even my body. It is me. It is my mind. It is telling myself I can’t do something when I know I can. In this journey, I have a lot of supporters but ultimately, I need to support myself. I need to be my biggest cheerleader and push myself to do things I didn’t know I could do. Instead, I’m placing limits on myself.

The thing is, I’ve shown myself I could do it. I’ve lost weight before and transformed my eating habits but I let life get in the way of keeping healthy habits. I let school and a crazy schedule and family issues take over and gave myself permission to eat poorly and treat my body the wrong way to keep myself happy. Yet I wasn’t happy. I was disappointed in myself and disgusted at my body.

And even though this healthy living journey can be so damn hard, I need to remember that it will ultimately make me happy. Junk food does not make me happy. Pushing past my limits does.

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 151.2 lbs
Net Difference: -8 lbs (-2.8 this week, but up 4.2 total from my lowest weight recorded.)
Body Fat: 27.17% (Now tracking body fat instead of BMI, since I can thanks to my gym! A better picture of health than BMI, in my opinion.)

It’s easy until it’s hard

I just ended my 12th week on Weight Watchers. While this isn’t my first time around, it is the longest I’ve stuck around since the summer of 2007. Usually, the program feels too hard and I know that I haven’t totally been ready to commit to this whole weight loss/getting healthy thing. I mentioned before how different this cycle feels. I feel better about how I’m eating and even better about those bad weeks. Because I know it’s not the end of the world if I have a bad week. I know it doesn’t mean I’ll forever be fat. It just means I had a bad week. That’s it! There’s no deeper meaning to connect with this, but the fact that I need to do better the following week.

Two weeks ago, my meeting leader said to us that this program is easy. It’s not hard to follow, nothing is restricted, and there isn’t a certain quota you have to meet every day. Sure, they have the “8 Healthy Guidelines” but it’s something that is more recommended than required. The Weight Watchers program is incredibly easy. Eat right, exercise, and indulge (thanks to those 49 extra weekly points).

Last week, I had an incredible week. I stayed within my points range. I got in 4 days of quality exercise, usually over an hour each time. And I went from drinking 44+ points of soda, to just 18 points. I cut my soda intake by more than half. I even had 14 extra weekly points remaining, when I usually have 0. (I use up those points, and use them up good!) Weighed in. Gained .2.

I almost cried on the scale.

I mean, I really tried hard. I ate better, drank so much more water, and really tried to cut down on my soda intake. It bummed me out, a lot. But I remained positive, telling myself that it would be OK. Next week, I would have a huge loss.

Um. Yeah. About this week. It wasn’t pretty. I’ve been waiting for the other shoe to drop. I’ve been waiting to feel like this program is too hard, takes too much out of me. This week, it happened. I was just over counting everything that I ate, being to diligent in tracking and exercise and decreasing the bad foods. I didn’t open my tracking journal once. The only thing right I did was on my soda. While I drank more of it than last week, I didn’t keep it in the house and would only have about one a day. A vast improvement from two weeks ago.

It wasn’t my best week. But it was just a week. A week where I didn’t follow the plan like I should, but not a week that totally defeated me. I’m ready to get back to it, tracking my little heart out, exercising consistently, and reducing the amount of soda and junk food I’m taking in. Sometimes, you just need a week off the program to realize how much you need the program.

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 151.2 lbs
Net Difference: -8 lbs (+.4 over a two-week period)
BMI: 27.7 (+.1 this week)

Drastic

This week, I decided I had to do something drastic. My water consumption is pitiful and I will admit to days when I don’t drink one ounce of water at all. And it’s because of soda. I love soda and I drink way too much of it. Since joining Weight Watchers, I’ve been doing better on drinking less but it’s still a huge issue. It means I’m wasting 4+ points a day on soda and not getting in the correct amount of water.

I have to drastically cut it out of my life, because what I’m doing isn’t working. And no, I’m not excited about this at all.

At first, I thought about giving myself a specific amount of water to drink, starting at 24oz. I would shoot for drinking 24oz of water a day and gradually bump the amount up until I was drinking 70-80 ounces a day. …And that barely ever happened. Even though I have two pretty nifty water bottles that measure out to 24oz, water is not my favorite thing to drink. And if I have the option to choose water or soda, I will choose soda 98% of the time. This way wasn’t working.

So then I started setting aside days of the week where I wouldn’t have any soda, calling them “No Coke Days.” Since starting back at Weight Watchers in January, I’ve only done this a few times and it’s only been for one day. It was going well and I was hoping to add more days without Coke, but then shingles happened and all healthy eating flew out the window for a week. I’ve been able to get back in the swing of things with my eating, but not with my soda intake.

Soda is my biggest problem when it comes to getting healthy. I do fine with exercise, sticking within my points range, and eating only when I’m hungry. But soda? Forget it. It’s an addiction. And since I only drink regular Coke, it means I have to count at least 4 points for each serving. My mom drinks Diet Coke, but I’ve tried to stay away from diet soda because I know it would only cause me to drink it even more. At least with regular soda, I have to account for it and it makes me stay somewhat in control. (Or at least that’s what I tell myself.)

But the time has come to gain control over this area. I want to stop wishing I could cut down on how much soda I drink and just do it. And I am. I am giving myself a limit of 3 sodas a week. As of right now, I’m not going to count Wednesday night into this equation, although I might as the weeks go by. I am no longer going to buy it, because it only causes me to reach for the syrupy stuff more than water. I can choose to have it three times and once I’ve had it those three times, that’s it. No more. I think cutting it out this way is better in the long run because I’m leaving room for cravings, but it’s also going to be a big cut in how much soda I drink on a weekly basis. For example, last week, I had around 11 servings of Coke (12oz/serving.) This doesn’t count what I had on Wednesday night, heh. Going from 11 to 3 is going to be a drastic shift.

My main reason for quitting the Coke is to have more energy. I know the amount of sugar I have in each Coke isn’t helping anything. It will also free up a lot of my points! 11 servings of Coke = 44 points. Sickening, really. And hopefully, this will lead to another great week of weight loss. :)

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 150.8 lbs
Net Difference: 8.4 lbs (-.8 lbs this week)
BMI: 27.6 (-.1 this week)

Sources: 1, 2, 3

Sometimes, I...

...buy a bag of Robin Eggs and finish the entire thing in a 24-hour time period. And try to feel guilty about it but can't, because they are just that good.

...forget to charge my iPod and a scheduled run turns into an unscheduled walk.

...stop tracking my food deliberately and feel completely out of control.

...realize how much tracking helps me stay accountable and, most of all, more in control of my body.

...experience anxiety on weeks when I'm not working as hard as I need to be at this weight loss thing, worrying I will never be able to control myself and always be labeled as fat.

...get annoyed by the perfectionists in my Weight Watchers meetings.

...think the best part of my week is after weigh-in, when I get to eat whatever I want and not worry about points values.

...experience major exercise guilt, either from not working out or not working out as hard as I wanted to.

...think about quitting soda cold turkey, but I know I would be miserable.

...get really jealous of others' weight loss successes.

...make a really good, healthy choice over a really bad, unhealthy choice and feel completely satisfied and proud of myself.

...forget how good an early morning workout feels. I wish I could do that every day.

...think I have a really bad week and will never see successful weight loss...and end up losing more weight than I thought I could.

Stats

Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs

Current Weight: 151.6 lbs

Net Difference: 7.6 lbs (-3.2 this week)

BMI: 27.7 (-.6 this week)

This Week

This week wasn't a good week. This week was full of ups and downs. Full of pain and burning. This week was one where I only opened my tracking journal once. This week was more about dealing with my physical pain than focusing on my eating habits. More about lounging around, napping and taking care of myself. Less about go, go, go and run, run, run. This week I learned that I need to slow down. I need to build up my immune system. I need to take care of myself. This week I gave myself permission not to track my food and focus instead on getting better.

It was a tough week. I didn't work out once because when my blisters grew, I knew the worst thing I could do would be to aggravate them by sweating and pulling on them. Plus, for most of the week, it was a struggle just to walk without them burning or stinging so that was never even an option. I'm not someone who pushes through the pain and exercises anyway. It's a struggle for me to get my butt to the gym on good days, so on bad days? Forget it. Not happening. I will say I miss exercising. I miss pumping those endorphins into my system and feeling amazed about what my body just did for me. And there were times I wondered how I would be able to survive if I had to wait weeks to exercise again. I never thought I had such a strong pull for exercising, but I guess I do!

As for my eating habits, the last thing I felt like doing was writing down every single thing I was eating. Sure, I was most definitely emotionally eating this week. But you know what? I don't really care. It was an odd week. It wasn't as if I had a test coming up and I was eating my emotions because of that. It wasn't because I had a little cold, or had some rough days at work. No. I had shingles. Shingles! I'm still a little weirded out by the fact I got this virus, but I gave myself permission for the week off. I tried making healthier decisions but, for the most part, I took a chill pill from it all. Sometimes, you just have to have weeks when you emotionally eat. It's not like I'm never going to do this again. I probably will. I'll probably do it in the next few months. And sometimes, you just have to give yourself a break. Take a look at what's causing you to emotionally eat and decide if it's worth it or not. Sometimes, it is. At least in my world.

That's not to say I'm not trying to kick this emotional eating habit. I totally am. And if this were a test, a rough day at work, or being delivered bad news - I wouldn't give myself a break. But illness? I give myself a break when I'm ill. (And also, why does my appetite always increase when I'm sick? If I'm going to get shingles, at least suppress my appetite! Geesh!) Since I started the program close to two months ago, this is only the second time I've had a week like this. For me, this means I'm doing pretty good. (This used to happen every 2-3 weeks.)

All in all, not my finest week. But I have owned it and I'm looking forward to next week. On Tuesday, I woke  up to discover my blisters looking tremendously better and feeling good. Yesterday was the first time since last Tuesday that I finally felt like myself again. The burning/stinging is minimal and nothing near what it was at the beginning of this. I've taken it super easy this past week and I think my body has calmed itself down. (Although I still think it was more of a low immune system and the stress I'm under just caused it all to come to a head.) I'm attempting to get into some light exercise today, so I'm looking for suggestions. I want something that's not going to pull too much on the sides of my body, where my blisters are. A walk on the treadmill? The elliptical? What would you guys suggest?

Stats 

Starting Weight:  159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 154.8 lbs
Net Difference: -4.4 lbs (+2.6 lbs this week)
BMI: 28.3 (+.3 this week)

Back On the Wagon

via 

Five weeks is usually my stopping point. It’s when I realize how tough weight loss is and how I don’t like the pressure weekly weigh-ins put on me. So I quit and try it on my own, only to end up gaining the weight (and then some) back. It follows having a week or two when I don’t track correctly which, consequently, causes me to gain weight. That’s what happened the past two weeks and oddly enough, it didn’t defeat me. I knew what I had done wrong and I knew what I needed to do to get back on track. I knew how I felt on those weeks when I had total control over my eating habits and wanted to capture that feeling again.

And I did. This week went so much better than the past two weeks, where I maintained my weight and then gained over a pound. I was a tracking fiend, making sure to write down every thing I ate, even those things I used to “conveniently” forget about. Tracking can be a pain and a hassle, but absolutely necessary for this journey. I can’t wait for the day when it becomes intuitive for me, but I’m content to take it slow and learn first.

Some great things that happened:

• I reinstated my No-Coke-Days again, after totally and absolutely failing to drink water during the week. I would really like to get off this addiction I have to soda and I used to have a lot of success with No-Coke-Days. I’m starting with one day a week and will gradually build my days up until it’s only a special occasion type of thing.
• I exercised 5 days! I actually ran 11.25 miles out of the week, as well as completing pretty kick-ass strength-training routine that I created.
• I had to turn down home-baked cupcakes on Valentine’s Day. My boss baked them and they were staring me in the face throughout my entire lunch on Monday. Honestly, though, it wasn’t too hard to turn them down. I didn’t really want one and knew I would feel so much better about myself if I resisted. And I did. Yay, me!

I still have a ways to go and a lot of things I need to take our of my diet. But it’s going good and it’s all coming together.

Stats
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 153.2 lbs
Net Difference: –6 lbs (-1.6 this week)
BMI: 28 (-1.1 total)

Not Quite a Setback

I had a feeling about this week. About halfway into the week, there was just this feeling that it was going to be one of Those Weeks. While I was staying within my Points and not even using as much of my Extra Points as I usually do, my body was rebelling.

I could pinpoint just what I did wrong. Not enough exercise (only 3 days). Not enough water (although I did drink my 24oz 3 out of the 7 days). And the biggie: eating bad points. While I stayed within my limits, I wasn’t eating the good stuff. The problem with staying within your limits with the bad stuff is that you tend to undereat during another meal to make up for it. So if I had a 20-point lunch, I could only have a 5- or 6-point dinner, unless I wanted to use up the vast majority of my extra points.

It’s never a good idea. But it wasn’t a big setback, just showed me I have to be careful of what I’m eating and whether or not it’s a Power Food that’s going to be good and filling for me. I tracked my food, but would conveniently “forget” certain things I ate.

This isn’t a big set-back for me that causes me to go crazy, cry, and doubt I’ll ever be skinny. I know what I did wrong and I know how to improve it. I want to really put my focus back on tracking and eating Power Foods, drinking more water (24oz a day, for now), and getting in exercise. I really want to strive to do some sort of physical activity every day of the week, even if it’s just a 20-minute walk. I get very lazy or busy with schoolwork that exercise can take a backseat to other things, but I’m going to work hard to do something every day.

Stats (Week 3)
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 153.6 lbs
Net Difference: –5.6 lbs (-0 this week)
BMI: 28.1 (-1 total)

This Time, it’s Different

I like to consider myself somewhat of a Weight Watcher expert. I’ve been doing the program, on and off, since May of 2007. I’ve tried out the Core Plan, the Flex Plan, the Momentum Plan, and now this new PointsPlus Plan. I love them all, but struggled with most with Flex and Momentum (which were the same program, basically). This new plan works so well for me, getting me to take in more fruits and veggies and make healthier choices. (Not just low-point choices.)

It feels different this time around. I started Weight Watchers when I saw how much success my mom was seeing on the program. And while my mom never pushed me to start attending, I guess I felt like this was her program and I was just tagging along. When she made good choices, I made good choices. When she made bad choices, I made bad choices. I’ve always looked at Weight Watchers as my mom’s thing.

It’s my thing now. It’s about me, my health, my weight loss. I have to stop riding on my mom’s coattails and start taking action over my life. I’m losing this weight for me, not because my mom already did. I am much more in control of my eating and my exercise. I’m not worried about how my mom is doing (although I care!), so much as how I am doing. I’m documenting everything I eat throughout the day and relying on my own self-motivation to keep me focused.

It feels different this time. Like it’s finally going to happen. This is the time I lose the weight for good, adopt healthy habits for good, and become a brand-new version of myself. It feels like it’s my time and I look forward to proving myself just how strong I can be every week. It’s not easy and I won’t say I’m even halfway there yet. But my baby steps are getting bigger and less wobbly.

Stats (Week 2)
Starting Weight: 159.2 lbs
Current Weight: 153.6 lbs
Net Difference: –5.6 lbs (-1.4 this week)
BMI: 28.1 (-1 total; –.2 this week)