WW meeting #2

I went to my WW meeting last night and had my first "official" weigh-in. It was good news (considering how tough I thought the week was going) - down 2.2 pounds!!!!! Yea, I'm below 200 again - 199.6 to be exact.
At the meeting we talked about portion control. Such a familiar topic. It was a huge struggle a year and half ago when I first started tracking food to eat the right portions. Things Chris and I did to make it easier - smaller plates! You will not believe how much it helps. Chris also bought me a scale, so I could weigh everything we ate. At the meeting they talked about cereal, which made me laugh because I remember how shocked I was when I first measured my cereal. A cereal bowl will actually hold 3 servings!! A serving size is usually around 200 calories, so I was eating 600 calories for breakfast and that was before my coffee creamer!! The nice thing about WW meetings is that they remind me of what I went through when I first started all those months ago. They made a good point that even if you've been tracking for awhile you should still measure because you'll find that you start to add more without realizing, so I measured my cereal this morning, and yep, I was off by almost a serving. I also measured my milk again, and yep, I was off there too.
We also talked about snacking (my biggest weakness). A really good idea that a member brought up was that she'll go into her cupboard and mark the boxes with the amount of points per serving - what a GREAT idea!! I'm going to do that too - especially since Chris is "doing" this with me (then he won't have to keep asking me how many points are in things).
I made a few WW recipes last week and we really liked them, but tonight I made the WORST one. It sounded so good, and boy did it ever smell good!! It was a soup - cheeseburger soup. The recipe said that it was 6 points a serving and that included an ounce of chips. Then I realized that an ounce of chips was included in the recipe so an actual serving was 3 chips - not 24! UGH. Who eats just 3 chips?! And with a "dipping" type soup? Chris was mad - he said we're trying to eat healthy not starve ourselves. So we each had a serving of chips - 4 points on top of the 6 point soup, and we had milk with our dinner which added another 2 points to the meal (just when you think you're getting control on this whole point thing...SIGH). The recipe as a whole was okay (Chris hated it). It tasted just like what I expect "diet" food to taste like (a lot like Progresso soups), so needless to say the recipe went into the trash, and we were both hungry, so we had veggies and hummus (all free foods). I'm pretty sure we'll be starving in another hour or so...bring on the 1 point popcorn!!
I think that is my biggest complaint with WW - figuring out points. When I was tracking calories it seemed so much easier. I'm thinking this is just part of the learning curve. I'm not ready to give up on it yet though. It will take awhile to adjust, but I'll figure it out, and as long as the scale keeps going down then I must be doing something right - RIGHT?!
Goals for the week:
Food goal - to not eat more then 5 extra points a day. (I know better then to say to eat only the allotted points in a day - couldn't even get close last week, so if I can get within 5 points, I'll be happy).
Exercise goal - to walk Vinson (my dog) at least 4 times.
Weight loss goal - 2 pounds

Thoughts on Week One (Angie)

This has been my first week on WW and it is no joke; and it's not that I was sitting around thinking it was going to be easy or maybe in some diluted way I was. I keep thinking I did this once before I can do it again - granted it wasn’t WW, but a similar enough concept. After the initial struggle of “what can I or can’t I eat,” I’m starting to understand the whole points system. It is definitely not going to be an overnight thing, but since I didn’t put the weight on overnight I know it won’t come off that way.

It’s a huge learning curve. I still feel hungry all the time which is really no different than when I was pregnant…I’m not quite sure why. I think it could be boredom in some ways. Of course having a 2 year old and a newborn is in no way boring, but there are times during the day when I’m just sitting there watching Katelynn play and Denver sleep and I think “I’m hungry,” so I go into the kitchen and start snacking. Of course I start with a piece of fruit (free food!), but that doesn’t always work, so I grab a handful of trail-mix, but that doesn’t work, so I make a pb and jelly sandwich, and down lots of water, and then an hour later wonder why I feel so full and sleepy. It’s a vicious cycle.

The struggle to eat only a certain amount of points a day is not fun either - which really shouldn't be a surprise, it was always a struggle to eat only 1500 calories a day. I go to my 2^nd weigh in tomorrow and I’m actually nervous. I feel like I’ve eaten less this week then I was before joining, so hopefully the scale goes down, but according to the e-tools I’ve got a long ways to go before I lose anything. I thought at the first meeting that I wouldn’t touch the bonus points you get every week – HA! I’ve already had them all and it’s taken all my activity points from me too! I should clarify this a little – I was breastfeeding (pumping) at the start of the week and have since stopped, so when I took away those extra points it put me in the negative (by 10 pts) for the week.

I’m glad that I’m not doing this on my own. I have a support network - my sister and husband - and I’ve been using them a lot this week! Whenever I get frustrated I’ll shoot an e-mail or text to Barb and she bounces right back. It’s nice to know that I’m not in this alone. My husband told his Dad last night that we are both doing WW. It would be a lot harder if Chris wasn’t so supportive. I actually managed to get a lunch in for only 5 points yesterday!! I made a WW egg salad recipe (of course I modified it some – what recipe don’t I modify?!), and Chris loved it! He had 2 servings (I’m pretty sure males get more points so I told him to eat it if he was still hungry…it was only 3 pts). For dinner I made homemade tostados – yummy; another good meal for only 8 pts. I’m getting the hang of this! Now if only I could control these snack cravings – perhaps a goal for next week? Although I’m thinking the snacking will take longer than a week or two to correct.

I’ve called my sister numerous times complaining about this week and she laughs and says welcome to my world. I just need to stay positive and remind myself that this is a lifestyle change. It is not going to happen overnight. It’s all the little changes I’m making now that will have me feeling healthy and active again in no time. It’s truly a battle with oneself, and it’s a battle I plan on winning!

Confusion Sets-In

Yesterday (Tuesday, Feb 15th) I went to my first Weight Watchers meeting. I wasn't sure what to expect...I had certain thoughts as to what I thought it would be like, but really I wasn't sure. The first person to greet me was the leader. I was instantly reminded me of a character on the tv show Wil and Grace - Karen Walker (Megan Mullally); which made me laugh. I was impressed with the amount of people there and with their openness. The discussion for the night was about "making over your kitchen." At first it seemed like no one really wanted to talk, but once she got a few people going then everyone joined in. They brought up a lot of good ideas and pointers which I found very helpful. I can see why people are successful on this program.
The people there were from all age groups. There were mothers and their teenage daughters, elderly couples, young married couples, single people, sisters, but mostly it was middle aged women. Everyone was very nice, so I went ahead and signed up. All the newcomers (there were about 10 of us) stayed after the 30 minute meeting to go over the plan. The leader briefly covered the guidelines, and then asked if we had any questions (um, yea, lots, but not sure where to start). I have to say that I was completely overwhelmed and a little put-off that I'd just spent $39.95 to be handed a bunch of books and sent on my way.
I got a chance to talk to my sister today and she said it was the same for her at first too. She believes they do that because WW is about making small changes that will last a lifetime. They don't want to send you home with meal plans and structured guides because you won't be able to follow it. OH! I see. Makes sense.
So today I logged onto the e-tools for WW and started tracking. Boy is my eating off track right now. The whole using points instead of calories thing is a bit confusing, but after entering a few items I'm starting to understand. A bonus is I get extra daily points because I'm breastfeeding - sweet! But, of course, I ate all of them and then some of my bonus ones today. After studying some of the pamphlets they gave me I'm starting to get an idea of how this works. It's a lot like what I was doing before only instead of saying I'll have three 400 meals and two 200 calorie snacks today, I say I'll have so many points for each. I like that you can eat as much fruit and a lot of vegetables and not have to count them!
When Chris got home from work today I took Vinson on a 30 minute walk (I gained 2 activity points for that!) then I went to the grocery store and bought $120 worth of fruits, vegetables, and WW approved foods/snacks. I found that my biggest fault today was eating out of "boredom." I wouldn't say that I'm "bored" with two kids, but I'm not sure what other term to use. I'm sitting around the house watching Denver sleep and playing with Katelynn and I have this urge to just eat. I'm hoping that a lot of the "snacks" I bought today will keep me from eating Nutella sandwiches! I even went as far as to have Chris help me cut up celery and carrots so that I can just reach in the fridge and grab them when I "feel" hungry.
So the good news is I think I'm going to like weight watchers, the not so good news my weight is 201.8 lbs. They set up goals for you and the first one is to lose 5%. For me that would be getting down to 191 lbs. The leader said an interesting thing yesterday and I keep thinking about it. She was talking about WW and how it's about the small things and you don't want to be losing more then 2 lbs per week (one of the members lost 8 lbs, but it was her first week on the program and she said that happens sometimes, but it worries her because she thinks they are making too big of changes). She said just think if you are losing 1 to 2 lbs per week where you'll be at St. Patrick's day and the 4th of July. I smiled. I might actually feel good about myself again by Stew's wedding in May! Definitely not swimsuit good, but still good. It gave me some hope and reinforced that yes, I can do this!
Reminder to self - I just had a baby 3 weeks ago, it will take time but I can do this and I will do this. Just imagine how great I'm going to look by my birthday!!! :)

Intro - Angie

2011 - 2013

Over the past four years I've lost over 50 pounds and have kept it off. I have always struggled with my weight – I was a size 12 and 150 pounds all through high school, in my mid-20’s when I was in the military I hit 175 and a size 16. After my first pregnancy I was pushing 200 pounds, but it wasn't until my daughter was 6 months old and I scheduled a check-up with my doctor when my weight truly became an issue. I found out that I had high cholesterol. My first weight related health issue, and I wanted it to be my last. The doctor referred me to the base nutritionist and that’s where you could say my fitness journey truly began.

The base nutritionist changed my life. She made me realize so many things and opened up my eyes to a whole new way of thinking. The thing she said that sticks out the most in my mind is, “how can you expect to lose weight if you don’t even know what you are consuming?” She suggested that I start tracking calories with an online tracking tool. During my first week of tracking I lost 5 pounds! I continued to lose 2 pounds a week while using this system. I currently use myfitnesspal, username: Gillenator.

Tracking calories is not easy, but Chris, my husband, is very supportive! He bought me a scale to measure my food, a bodybugg so that I could track exactly how many calories I burn in a day, and we started reading about portion sizes and food ingredients. I attribute a lot of my success to his support and love during a very challenging time. We never realized how much we were overeating until we started tracking.

Another tool that I used to help me succeed was Hungry Girl. Her cookbooks and food alternative articles really helped us find better options. We quickly learned that men and women require different amounts of calories and Chris's phrase, "Quit Hungry Girling me!" has become a running joke around here.

Chris and I after our 2nd race together: Colfax Marathon Relay.

Exercise and a personal trainer were the final tools that helped get me to 158 pounds and a size 12. Those were numbers I hadn't seen in almost 10 years! My husband also started running in 5k’s with me; we even did a team relay for a marathon. It was the first time I'd ran 4.5 miles without stopping (after photo above). I was elated about my progress…then I became pregnant with my second child, and that is when things turned around for me yet again.

It was a complicated pregnancy with many ups and downs. I was on bed rest at times and could not workout. During my first pregnancy I put on 30 pounds, but for this one it was closer to 50 pounds. I quickly realized that while I was successful with losing weight I had not learned enough to get me through any stressful times in my life.

To help me get back on track I decided to do a blog about my weight loss journey. I saw an article on Yahoo about several different women who attributed their success to the accountability an online blog provided them. 

I am both excited and nervous about starting the journey once again. The success I accomplished the first time allows me to know that I can do this, but I have this fear that I won’t be as successful or able to stick with it this time. I CAN DO THIS!