Part 1 of my Weight Watchers journey talked mostly about how I got in to the whole thing and the results. What it didn't include was the things I learned: tips, tricks, lessons and challenges. This post will include some important tips for those getting started.
As I mentioned in Part 1, when asked how much I wanted to lose, it just seemed so overwhelming. I was desperate and would have been happy with any loss. Under 200lbs would be nice, my wedding weight would be good, my high school weight would be even better, 50lbs would be awesome, 75lbs (the top of my "healthy" weight range)...that just seemed crazy, and honestly, REALLY overwhelming. I didn't know if I could do it. Would I even be able to stick with it that long...I mean I like food, especially foods with sugar. So I decided to not set an end goal but instead, I set little goals along the way.
Setting Small Goals/Celebrating Victories
The wonderful thing about Weight Watchers is that they help you celebrate small victories. If you just have the big picture in sight it might be pretty discouraging when you feel like you will never get there. Having a small goal helps you see how close you are and is motivation to keep going. My goals were often 10-15lb increments. I used the mobile app and you can adjust your goals. It was fun because I got to pick goal weights to work toward (like my wedding weight, or my high school weight). It's so exciting to reach a goal and see how much closer you are getting. I have a dry erase board that I mark my weight on each week. It's really awesome to see the progress you are making!
Just Keep Tracking!
I can't stress it enough, if you are doing weight watchers you have to track it. Even if it's a bad day or a bad week, track it all. It keeps you accountable to yourself. It is amazing how many calories I can mindlessly eat. Even things that are low calorie really add up. You might think it's only 2 points but if you skip tracking you are going to have a hard time staying on track. But beyond food, it's also important to track other things - weight and measurements. I weigh myself everyday. It's probably a little bit of an OCD thing and you don't have to weigh every day, but weigh at least once a week...even if it was a bad week. Like I said, I have a dry erase board and marked it up there once a week. I also take measurements but I only do that once a month. Take initial measurements and then do it as often as you like (I suggest the once a month thing, it helps you see the results better). There were many months I didn't lose weight but lost inches.
Have Accountability
If you go to meetings, there is built in accountability. If you are just doing the online version it can be a little tougher (The do have coaches to help, I have never tried this though). I had a friend that was a Weight Watchers pro. We still text once a week. I didn't want to tell her my weight early on so we did a simple "up 1 lb this week" or "down 1.5lbs!". It was easy and quick. And since she is still doing it she would text the same to me. The weeks I was up I wouldn't want to text but I knew she was expecting me to, or she would text me later :) It was nice to have someone there to encourage and support me, especially someone who had been there. My husband also started weight watchers shortly after, so that helped too, but honestly, I suggest someone a little more distanced.
Exercise
I didn't have any sort of exercise plan at the beginning. I just didn't have the time. I had a newborn and a 3 year old, plus I worked part time. It was hard. What I did do was try to be active when possible. We like family walks so when the weather was nice, we tried to take a walk. Some days they were shorter than others but we tried to be out. I also tracked things like cleaning the house and laundry. Believe it or not, it's exercise, and it got me more food :) I have recently started running. It's a little more planned and it gets me more points to use for food, which is probably my biggest motivation. It has also been nice to start it later because when I started I had kind of flat lined on the weight loss and it helped give it a kick back in gear.
Enjoy your points, guilt free!
I couldn't do a diet that I had to cut out all of something (sugar, bread, meat, etc.). I couldn't stick with that. I love things like ice cream and butterfingers and I saved points or exercised to have them. I found that I could still enjoy those things and learned moderation. But I also found that I had this strange feeling of judgement whenever I did enjoy those things. Early on I would put a "splurge" on my plate (chocolate, a cookie, etc.) at a public setting and honestly I felt like everyone in the room was starring at me thinking "is she really going to eat that?!" Guess what, they weren't! I was especially self conscience around my accountability partner, especially if she passed or only had a healthy plate. What would she think? Was she going to come tell me not to eat that? I had to let that go. She wasn't thinking that and I had planned for these things, so it was time to relax and ENJOY it!
Sometimes it's better to give in to the craving
I get cravings...a lot. People talk about pregnancy cravings, but I have had those my entire life regardless of whether I was pregnant. I remember one time in college I woke up and told my roommate I really wanted a biscuit. 10 minutes later I was out the door headed to McDonald's for a biscuit. A lot of times in diets they say "resist the craving". That's good advice sometimes, but it can also end up doing more damage. Here's how it played out for me. I found myself really wanting something chocolatey...maybe a brownie or a candy bar. I try to resist. It's not going away. I try and find something to distract me. Still there. I eat some pretzels. Still there. I eat some more pretzels. Still there. I grab something else to eat to try and satisfy it. Still there. Next thing you know I am eating the brownie and a candy bar...but I have also had several pretzels and other snacks too and have wasted far more points than if I had just eaten one of the things right off the bat. I found that halloween candy was perfect for just such cravings :) I could grab a fun size candy bar that filled the craving and only use 2 points. All that to say, sometimes beating around the bush can be a lot more costly than you think :)
I think that is enough for now, the final post will include: Eating out, Snacking, Recipes, Menus and Substitutions.
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