Now let's see if I can keep this momentum going. I don't expect to keep losing weight like I have these first two weeks, since the healthy average for weight loss is 1-2 pounds per week (and not 3-4). Plus, I'm nearing my typical plateau.....the weight range that I have a hard time surpassing. But if I can just keep on sticking to the plan, then I can do it!
People have asked me what I've missed the most while being on Weight Watchers, and I've had to think about it because I didn't have an immediate answer. Since nothing is essentially eliminated......I can eat chocolate or a piece of pie or drink a beer or two, I just have to account for it in my daily points value.....it's not like I crave what I'm not allowed to have. But I do miss eating with abandon. I get really "snacky" in the afternoons, and I could eat everything under the sun if it didn't matter. But it does matter, and I am definitely working on losing weight and not gaining it. So I try to stick to the Power Foods List (foods with super low or zero points value) or eat just a portion of a serving of something more sinful to quench that sweet tooth.
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| Mmmmmmmmmmm.......ok, so maybe that would be a bad idea. |
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| Mmmmmmmmmmm.......also probably a bad idea. |
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| I really should stop......I'm getting hungry! |
I cooked a Weight Watchers recipe tonight for dinner - Mexican Casserole. It was pretty good! It was supposed to have canned jalapenos in it, but I forgot to buy some. I do think some jalapenos would have given it a kick it needed (or at least the added jalapeno flavor), but it was still good, especially topped with some fresh salsa. The hubs was NOT excited that I was using fat free sour cream in the recipe (which is what it called for), but I think it worked out alright. I don't think anyone could tell a difference given that the sour cream was cooked into the casserole, though I think the hubs would disagree simply out of spite of his hatred for "fat free". The best part? A BIG slice of casserole was only 9 points! So I ate my big chunk along with a side of cantaloupe and had a nice, filling dinner.
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| My Mexican casserole! Looks delish, doesn't it? |
I've been focusing on Weight Watchers recipes the past two weeks, so I've definitely been taking advantage of their meal ideas. I've also been taking advantage of the "restaurant" tab during my food searches, choosing what I'm going to eat before I even get to a restaurant. Which is so not how I would normally live my life, but it's how I'm living it now to lose weight. And in 2 1/2 months when I'm done with my Weight Watchers coaching and I'm down to my goal weight, I will have done Weight Watchers long enough that I'll probably automatically know how many points are in things......which could be a bad thing!
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| O'Charley's Southern Fried Chicken Salad.......129 points. A HUNDRED AND TWENTY-NINE POINTS. And that likely doesn't include any salad dressing. I'm allowed 26 points per day, with 49 extra bonus points per week (plus I earn more bonus points when I run/work out). So if I had this salad for a single meal, it would cost me almost 5 full days of points. Or 3 full days and ALL of my bonus points. There would be NO losing weight that week, all because of a single salad! |
I signed up for the 3-month Weight Watchers package, the one with the personal coach. Have I talked about my personal coach yet? I don't think so. Her name is Gina, and she's AWESOME. When you sign up for personal coaching with Weight Watchers, you get to pick your own coach based on short blurbs they post about themselves. I chose Gina because she seemed to be around my age, mentioned having young children, mentioned being a SAHM, and mentioned being a runner. And after the initial half-hour conversation with her, I also discovered that she loves wine and saves her bonus points for wine on the weekends.
INSTANT BFFs.
(I tried to pull up Gina's Weight Watchers profile pic to save and post right here to show her off, but it won't let me enlarge it beyond a tiny thumbnail. So here's a screenshot of her tiny face from my home page. I'm sure you can't tell a darn thing, but she's there.)
With coaching, you can change your coach at any time. Actually, every time you schedule a coaching session, it prompts you to pick a coach. Probably because it takes some people a while to mesh with a coach. But I plan to stick with Gina the entire 3 months. She's an awesome motivator and we can relate on several levels when it comes to life and weight loss.
After my 3-month package deal is up, Weight Watchers will automatically start charging me month-to-month unless I cancel. I do plan on cancelling - at least the personal coaching option - after 3 months, as long as I've reached my goal weight by then. I'll miss Gina, but if I've hit my goal weight and am in "maintaining" mode by then, I won't need to be paying $55/month for a personal coach to tell me what I already know unless I feel I just really need the motivation. I paid $139 for 3 months this time around, with the guarantee that I would earn 2/3 of that fee back if I lose 10 pounds in the first 2 months (and can prove it with tracking). With 7 lbs in the bag so far, I'm pretty sure I can lose another 3+ lbs in the next 6 weeks and keep it off.
At this point I have 14 lbs left to go to reach my ultimate goal. If I lost one pound a week from now until my goal weight, it would take me 3 1/2 more months. So 4 months total. And I would pay for coaching until I hit that goal weight, since those last few pounds will likely be the hardest. But if I can lose TWO pounds per week, it will only take me 7 more weeks! So let's meet in the middle and assume that it will take me 10-11 weeks to lose those 14 pounds. That seems SO LONG when I write it down, but in reality it's not that long at all. If it all works out, I'll be one hot mama by Delano's 3rd birthday!
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| Not AT ALL what I expected while looking for a "hot mama" image. WEIRD. |
Of course, I had hoped I would be down to my goal weight by the START of summer and not the END of summer, but it is what it is. I thought I could lose the weight on my own without any help, and I was wrong. I'm looking forward to my personal rewards for losing weight, though! Those include:
1. A hair cut and color
2. New bras (I've gotta get out of these old, ratty nursing bras, especially since I haven't nursed in months)
3. New underwear (my Hanes are comfy but I'd like something a bit cuter)
4. New clothes
The fourth reward is a given. But not only will I need new clothes, I'm hoping to buy some things that are a bit more stylish than what's in my closet now. The whole "college student" look (jeans, t-shirt and a ponytail) is my signature look and is easy to maintain (especially with a drawer full of race t-shirts), but not what I want to always be wearing if I can help it.
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| Well that's a whole new take on ruffle pants..... |
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| There we go....still casual and comfortable and mom doable, but a bit more stylish than jeans and a t-shirt. |
It will be so much more fun to write about new clothes and new hair and a happier self image and flip this blog around from being about weight loss to being about just life in general. I'm tired of moaning and groaning about weight loss, which is what I've done for MONTHS.
So let's all cross our fingers that Weight Watchers keeps on working!!
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