Weighty Matters

About halfway through my weight loss journey, I began to be asked a question, which I am still occasionally asked..... the basic gist of it is: "So how have you changed?" And for years, my stock response has been that I haven't really changed; that the essential me is the same, only improved; that I'm simply better than I was before. I've come to discover in the last few weeks that this is not really true. The essential me has changed. The core me is different. All in a good way, of course, but there is a huge paradigm shift in me. How? Here's an example: ten years ago, if you had asked me to go on a ski weekend, I could not have immediately said yes. Or if I had, I would have been all, "GREAT! I will be happy to be the hostess back at the lodge while y'all are out on the slopes!" Because let's face it, they don't make ski clothes in certain sizes. Would I need heavy-duty skis to support my weight? And if I could do it, would I be needing...

Some days, we all need a little inspiration. If you need it, please use and succeed!! When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, When the road you're trudging seems all uphill, When the funds are low and the debts are high, And you want to smile, but you have to sigh, When care is pressing you down a bit- Rest if you must, but don't you quit . Life is strange with its twists and turns, As every one of us sometimes learns, And many a fellow turns about When he might have won had he stuck it out. Don't give up though the pace seems slow You may succeed with another blow. Often the goal is nearer than It seems to a faint and faltering man; Often the struggler has given up When he might have captured the victor's cup; And he learned too late when the night came down, How close he was to the golden crown. Success is failure turned inside out - The silver tint in the clouds of doubt, And you never can tell how close you are, It might be near when it seems afar; So stick to...

Winter definitely showed up this week! On Sunday, after I left a special Weight Watchers event, the sky was graying and it turned way colder. I fell asleep on Sunday night and woke up to 5 inches of snow on the ground. Okay, for South Carolina, that's HUGE. We got somewhere around 7-8" of the white stuff before it all wrapped up during the night on Monday. On Monday, my office was closed and I worked from home. No one else was able to go into work either... but they made it over to Domino's. And so I took a few of my weekly PointsPlus allowance and ate pizza with it. Hoo boy, it was delicious but a treat that I will enjoy occasionally. I got a little poofy (heh heh heh), but drank plenty of water the next couple of days to make up for it. I didn't get in any exercise like I had wanted -- even my plan to use DVD's was an epic "fail" because the DVD player doesn't work with the HDTV (at least until the correct cable can be obtained and hooked up). Jump...

Yesterday was one of the last days before my deadline for turning in my monthly weigh-in. Let me tell you, all this week, I was sweating it. Not only was I trying to get rid of the Christmas Creep and the New Year Nibbles, I had attended a "child shower" for a friend who is a newly adoptive mom to a toddler -- and let me tell you, we had a spread! I was awfully afraid it might just spread on to my backside. But I got back on the exercise track this week, drank more water, made sure I did everything within my control to stay on plan .... and it worked! I was within range!! This week I have really had the opportunity to examine just what it is about PointsPlus that I am enjoying so much. And honestly, I think it's the freedom and flexibility I feel that I didn't necessarily feel in previous programs. I wasn't one to regularly dip into my Weekly Points Allowance -- or at least not without feeling guilty about it. And now, I don't worry about it as much. I also li...