Reflections...

So, I joined Weight Watchers. Again. Mostly because I felt like I needed a program, but also because I was excited about their new system. My sister-in-law, her friend Miss Pat, and my sister are joining me in this quest to eat better and lose weight.

And the results so far have been less than stellar.

Basically I'm finding that I'm questioning and feeling resistant to this new points system. Yes, I know that our daily allowance was increased and our weekly points were increased as well. Both very good things! However, I am finding that my food choices use up my points SO QUICKLY! I've been over my points every single day...Thank God I've been exercising so make up for my overage.

So here is a list of things that are hovering in the back of my mind about this new program...
1. I am approaching Weight Watchers with a "Clean Eating" mentality, and it seems like a lot of the choices that I am making are high in points. I know that these foods are good for me, but somehow I'm not feeling any advantage (points wise)to choosing whole foods over processed.
2. I HATE that traditional Weight Watchers staples have gone up in points. It's messing with my belief system!
3. As my sister-in-law told me, on this new program, we are penalized for carbs. Should I be eating less carbs? Yep. However, the carbs that I am eating are whole grains, but they are still carrying a lot of points values. Again, no advantage to eating whole vs. refined.
4. This new program does not count calories-it looks at the nutrients that make up the foods (fat, carbs, protein, and fiber). I am interested in tracking calories along with these nutrients to see how many calories I am actually consuming.
5. I am finding that the harder I exercise to earn activity points, the hungrier I am! It's almost like I am sabotaging myself and my weight loss. And this is something that I most definitely DO NOT want to do!
6. Did I mention that I am eating WAY too many points every single day?
7. I need to eat more vegetables. I was talking about this with Mimi, and mentioned that I needed to eat more salads. She made a comment that she's not going to make salads..just eat more vegetables. So last Saturday when I went to the store, I bought everything I needed to have salad fixings at home. I prepped everything...and there they sit in the fridge. I packed a salad twice for work, and didn't have any interest in eating it. I do, however, love these new vegetable salsas that I've been making, so I thought, maybe Mimi's onto something here. It doesn't matter what form my vegetables take...as long as I am eating vegetables!
8. To piggyback on #7, I enjoy salads prepped at restaurants SO MUCH BETTER than salads prepped in my own kitchen.
9. I started out texting Laura and Mimi my daily points and activity points for the first week. I lost almost 4 pounds the first week! Then I stopped texting and only maintained the next week. I haven't texted them since that first week, and I really fear that my number will again be the same on the scale tomorrow morning. I'm thinking that maybe I Need to go to the support meetings, because having someone "see" how I am doing is very motivating for me.
10. I do feel better about my body. It's only been three weeks, but I feel really good! Some days my pants feel very loose! The scale numbers may not be moving, but I'm praying that if I stick with it, I will see the scale start to go down.
11. I eat entirely too many points every day. (I didn't want to forget to mention that.)
12. I do love to track my eating...except when I don't. Sometimes I find myself omitting things that I've eaten or manipulating the amount of the food that I've eaten. Yea, definitely not the thing to do when I'm trying to lose weight. Maybe I should note how many days I'm "cheating" on this program so I can stop this insanity. I mean, Who am I kidding? It's not like those calories don't count if I don't enter them! (Although, sadly, I think part of me believes that.)
13. I want to be thinner. I want to fit into my summer clothes from two years ago. I want to be healthy and fit. I want to exercise everyday. I want to eat more fruits and vegetables. I want to eat less processed food. I want to fix my poor eating habits. I want to be a good role model for my son.
14. I have about a dozen chocolate topped cookies sitting in my freezer since this program began three weeks ago. I've thought about them many times...I've even opened the freezer once to get them. But I haven't touched them. I can't bring myself to throw them away, but I haven't touched them yet. That makes me proud of myself. And I'm hoping that before I reach for them again, I'll work up the courage to throw them away. And I think I need to explore what's making me hang onto them in the first place!
15. I have not had a soda for 18 days. I only drink water, orange juice, and coffee.
I have felt tempted to drink soda two times, but I've reached for water both times. I can't say I can really tell a difference from cutting out soda, which is disappointing, but I know it's not healthy, so I'm just going to hang on for dear life and see where that takes me.
16. I still reach for sweets over veggies. Daily.
17. In the three weeks since I've started, I've walked/run so many miles on my treadmill. In the first week alone, I tracked over 26 miles! That's like running a marathon! That really struck me, so I've added a tracker to my blog to track my mileage on the treadmill to see how far it takes me!
18. I WILL NOT GIVE UP. I signed up for 3 months of Weight Watchers and I am determined to figure out the right combination of eating and exercise for myself.
19. I want to start swimming again, but Will is working so much overtime at work, that I'm not sure when I could fit it in.
20. I am finding that it takes so much mindful planning to be successful on a plan like this. If I don't plan my meals and track after I've eaten, then I find that I've underestimated how much I've consumed and suddenly my points for the day are gone! Last weekend, I spent a lot of time searching for recipes that are Weight Watchers friendly and I made a few really delicious meals! (Weight Watchers beef barbeque, shredded barbeque chicken, pot roast with veggies, roasted red potatoes...all very yummy. I haven't eaten any as leftovers...another habit that I need to work on.)

I've started reading Jillian Michael's Master Your Metabolism again. I'll leave you with one of the quotes that really spoke to me in the first chapter...

"We have to wake up and realize that every bite we take and every lifestyle choice we make matters. Not just for calories or fat or carbs, but because those bites or choices tell our bodies how to react. With bite after bite, sip after sip, breath after breath-when we pick the wrong foods or surround ourselves with toxic chemicals, each moment of consumption tells our hormones to do things that, consciously, we would never want them to do."

New Year's Resolutions

Shared from Heavenly Homemakers blog: This pretty much sums up my new year's resolutions...specifically the first three items. And hopefully by following the first three tips, I can meet another resolution that I have every year: Lose 20 pounds and keep it off. First and foremost, I need to follow tip #2 and cut out diet soda!! There is nothing about diet soda that is good for me! Why can't I get that through my thick skull!

In addition to these five, I really REALLY need to improve the nutrition that I provide for my son and myself. I am being negligent and my son is suffering because of it. No wonder he's sick all of the time...it's totally my fault!! And I'm feeling such deep regret about it. But I can improve and I will improve...for my son's sake!

I also bought my own copy of Master Your Metabolism by Jillian Michaels, a MUST-READ in my opinion. I'll reread that this year and try to adhere to advice more soundly.

So here's the blogger's post that I wanted to share...Enjoy!

Five Simple Ways to Live a Natural Lifestyle
By Laura · Jan,04 2011

What does it look like to live a “Natural Lifestyle”?

There are all kinds of different definitions for the word “natural”. Many foods are labeled “natural” in an attempt to appeal to the conscientious consumer. Corn growers pay for advertisements that say that High Fructose Corn Syrup is “natural”. Well, sure it is…in a loose sense of the word I suppose, but that doesn’t make it good for us. Shucks…arsenic is natural.

My own definition of living a ”Natural Lifestyle” I suppose would be “getting back to the basics”. Whether we’re talking about food, family choices, in general taking care of ourselves…doesn’t it just sound refreshing to “get back to the basics”?

Here are five simple ways I’d like to suggest to live a more Natural Lifestyle:

1. Eat Real Food

Yes, you’re so surprised I listed this one aren’t you? Real food is best. Food in it’s natural form. Food that isn’t processed. Food that tastes so stinkin’ good you don’t know what to do with yourself!!! It’s amazing what food without chemicals tastes like!

2. Drink Water

I already wrote about how you should drink more water and told you about some healthy alternatives to soda and other not-so-good-for-you beverages. But really…one of the simplest (and cheapest!) ways for you to adopt a more natural lifestyle is to stop filling your body with icky beverages and just drink water.

3. Exercise

Yeah, and this advice is coming from me…the girl who doesn’t really like to exercise. Guess what though?! My husband and I have made it a point to exercise together three days a week for the past few weeks and I’m actually starting to like it! I’ve heard people say that once you start exercising regularly, you begin to crave it. I never believed them. Until now.

It’s really not as hard as you think, but exercising is just like anything else you need to be doing…YOU ACTUALLY HAVE TO DO IT. I know, profound. The main idea is this: Do what you can to not be sedentary.

A side benefit of exercising: You’ll crave more water and more real foods. Yeah, somehow having a candy bar and soda after exercising feels a little silly. Water and fruit sounds much better.

4. Stay Home More

This may seem like a weird item for our Natural Lifestyle list…but it doesn’t get much simpler or more natural than this. Stay home more. You’ll save money, your vehicles will last longer…and joy of joys…you may not be so worn out all the time! I find that when I’m running from here to there and back again…I am completely exhausted AND behind on all the work I need to do at home. We don’t need THAT much outside “stuff”. When you’re home more…you’ll find you’ll be more rested and more relaxed…naturally.

5. Waste Less

The more natural your lifestyle, the less waste you’ll have. If you make your food from scratch, you’ll have a lot less packaging trash. If you serve smaller portions and make it a point to eat leftovers, you’ll throw away less food. If you don’t buy stuff you don’t need, you’ll waste a LOT less money. If you use cloth napkins and let your kids draw on used scratch paper, you’ll save a lot of trees. None of these things are hard. You just have to be a bit more intentional.

And then of course there are all kinds of other things I’d recommend as you work your way to a more Natural Lifestyle, like planting a garden, buying locally grown produce and other foods, getting good sleep and eating lots of chocolate.

Just kidding. Chocolate may be natural, but eating lots of it would be “The Simplest way to Gain Five Pounds”. That‘s another post for another day.