Weighty Matters

that I joined Weight Watchers. And to commemorate this milestone, I was given the "perseverance" charm -- a pair of hands in applause with "16" etched on there. I just need a gold chain to put it on. And I lost another 3 pounds even, for a total of 37.8 lbs. That's a pretty good weight loss, and gets me back on track for "Laboring for 40." However, let me give you a small caveat: I don't recommend the Migraine Method of weight loss (being just too damn sick to eat). I had a hellacious migraine Sunday evening that stretched on into Monday. I remember waking up starving somewhere around 10:45 Sunday night -- I had been asleep for about 3 hours then. I still had 15 points left over, but I satisfied my hunger with 2 pieces of dry white toast (which was all I really wanted anyway). Oh yeah, and a teensy Weight Watchers candy bar. How warped is that? So I ended up with a 10 point deficit for that day -- really 14 if you take the earned activity points i...

Weight Watchers does carry some foodstuffs at the meeting locations and their smoothie mixes are a good buy. It's a little pricey compared to Carnation Instant Breakfast (for example), but very versatile (recipes for other things are included). So with a little experimentation, here's a recipe that I had earlier today. It's a hearty 5 points, and worth every slurp! Mixed Berry Smoothie Serves 1; 5 points 1 cup fat-free (skim) milk 1 WW French Vanilla Smoothie packet 1 cup frozen unsweetened berry mix Put in blender and blend to desired consistency. I usually hit puree, aerate, then liquefy. You will have a milkshake-consistency smoothie that is delicious -- you get 2 servings of milk (yahoo!) and one fruit (maybe two?). YUMMY!!!

Another 1.4 pounds lost!!! HOORAY!!!!! It does make "Laboring for 40" a little more interesting to work toward. I need to lose 5.2 in 17 days. I can do it. It just means I work a little extra harder. It can be done! I can do it!

A lot of people -- both in the 3D world and online -- have asked me to share my secrets for the success I have had so far. So here they are, along with a few helpful tips: Bringing snacks to work helps a lot. Usually it's a piece of fresh fruit or a ziploc with baby carrots, a couple of bags of the 100 calorie pack stuff, maybe some hummus to go with the carrots (or Wheat Thins, if I pack those), maybe some yogurt, etc. Those 100-calorie packs are lifesavers. They're a little expensive, so you can use other stuff -- for example, Triscuits. You can have one serving (6 crackers), and it's more than 100 calories, but it's also really filling. I will put 6 in a bag along with some lowfat cheese, and WOO HOO! it's a party! By the way, those are the regular Triscuits -- with the reduced fat ones, you can have 7 for a serving. I'll stick with 6 and a little extra flavor! I have breakfast every day. If it's a home breakfast, my favorite is a bowl of Kashi GoLean c...

As I mentioned in the previous post, my "assignment" this week was to eat a favorite food that I'd not eaten since starting the program. I had mentioned lasagna in class, but then by the weekend, I had a craving for the Chinese spareribs. So Sunday, I sat down with the dining out guide and came up with a plan: a small serving (1/2 to 1 cup) of boneless spare rib pieces (around 6 points), a cup of rice (another 4) and some vegetables (2 points for a cup). Okay, that was manageable. I ate a little less that day for lunch and breakfast, and even skipped my midday snack. It worked out even better. I am a doofus, and accidentally picked the bone-in ribs -- and two of those were only 4 points. One cup of vegetables was a quarter of what they gave me -- so I upped that to 2 cups (for 4 points), and the rice. All told, the same 12 points. AND I had enough leftovers for lunch on Monday. MMMMM! They were just as good the second day! So armed with this information, I plan to enjoy s...

and loving it! Another 2.4 gone this week for a total of 33.4 pounds gone in 13 weeks. My God. That's an entire Thanksgiving feast for 20 people -- and I had been carting it around on me. There's plenty more where that came from. Last night, we discussed our favorite foods -- and what we've stopped eating. So this week, our "assignment" is to eat one of our favorite foods that we've sworn off, but find a way to work it into our points. I mentioned that I love Italian food -- anything loaded with cheese and meat sauce and pasta and.... I'd better shut up while I'm ahead. But I think I will eat some of my favorite Chinese dish this week: barbecued spareribs. Normally I get the boneless ones -- already chopped up off the bone. And I usually get steamed rice with it anyway. Fried rice is okay, but you get tired of it. They used to have brown rice (which I dearly love) but people in my hometown weren't too impressed by the offering. So it's how to w...

YES! I did it! I lost 3.0 pounds this week for a total of 31.0 -- and since it is similar to what I had weighed at the gym, I'm counting the "30 by the 31st" as a success. Next up: "Laboring for 40" -- 40 by Labor Day. I figure that's 4 weeks for 9 pounds, which is very manageable. I'd like to say it just gets easier and easier -- and sometimes it does. But there are times I'd run you over for a Godiva bar or (worse) a bunch of breadsticks. Believe me when I say there is an enormous amount of self-control involved here. But that's part of the whole process -- being in better control so that I don't get out of control again!

I did achieve "30 by the 31st"!!! I went to the Y this morning, and used their scale -- which showed a 3 pound loss. So that's 3 in 3 days. Nothing is official (at least not in my book) until Thursday, but right now, it's looking pretty good. And I'm counting it! Tonight, I was doing a little measuring, and am pleased to know that I'm losing inches. I should have done some measuring at the very beginning, but at least I can start now and re-measure another 12 weeks down the pike. These little things are good encouragement for the long haul.