Week 3 Day 1 - Momentum

10.5 pounds down.  I am realistic (and have watched Biggest Loser) enough to know that you will lose a big number at first when you first start limiting intake and that slow and steady wins the long race.  And this is a long race.  It took me a good long time to gain this weight so in order to make myself/body believe that this new plan is  permanent (and not just a passing fancy) I have to be consistent.

A very good friend was visiting yesterday and we were talking about my new Wii and exercise and the plan and he said "I hear the best exercises are the ones you do."  ...   Yes.  All the planning in the world doesn't actually DO anything.  (Much as I used to make budgets, I was really good at making budgets....I just wasn't good at following them.  But I found what worked for me and that is no longer an area to work on.)

So, I am finding that Saturdays (so far) are the hardest days for me to stay within my points goal.  Yesterday I went 5 over and woke up feeling the difference.  I was reading on the website (if you are a weightwatchers member I highly recommend the website, it's got a LOT of info.  I'm taking my time and reading stuff daily.) the point of the weekly extra points.  Basically you have a certain # of points daily to eat under and I'm doing fine (except on Saturdays) with this, and because the whole point of this is to be realistic and not feel like you're "on a diet" you are allowed an extra # of points for the week for "indulgences".  (you know the ones - it's 11:30pm and you ABSOULTELY MUST have something chocolate).   This extra # per week is the same # that you have for a day and while it's a good idea to spread the points out you can certainly use them all in one day.

I think that for me the best plan is going to be to try to NOT go over because I feel the difference.  Today I woke up feeling like I over-ate last night and so was not hungry when it was time for breakfast....so breakfast will have to wait....till later.  I bought a pack of Starbucks instant iced coffee yesterday and tried it this morning.  If you are a coffee lover I really recommend this stuff.  Just like Via this stuff is good.  It's 50 calories a packet and zero fat or fiber.  I did add a tiny bit of half and half (because I haven't bought the skim milk yet) so that'll add a little bit but still it's not much and it tastes like the iced, sweetened coffee you get at the store.

So, today I was reading the website and looking for ideas on filling foods and motivation and found these tips very helpful.  8 Habits of Successful subscribers: 
1. Ask for help.  This seems obvious but if you are like me (stubborn, embarrassed to not be in shape and determined to do it by myself) it's easy to not follow this habit of success.  Surrounding yourself with people that you can trust to be honest (I said my actual weight outloud to my roommate this last week and wanted to cry from embarrassment) and who will help you and give you good advice.  Part of this for me includes NOT having people around me that will use guilt or shame.  Those do not work on me.  They just make me mad and that does not help.
2. Learn from experience.  And this doesn't necessarily mean other people's experience I might note.  While I find it very motivating to hear the success stories of others it isn't their weight I'm losing.  It's mine.  And it'll be my previous successes and failures that I need to learn from.  (i.e. if I find myself at a Saturday I need to have lots of filling, low point foods to eat)
3. Manage your environment.  This makes perfect sense to me.  Surround yourself with foods that will help you succeed.  For me this includes the instant no sugar, low calorie drinks, snacks and my Medifast food packets that I can make by just adding water.  Setting myself up for success.
4. Manage your feelings.  I know that this is something that will be key to my own success.  Identifying emotions that lead to comfort eating and learning alternative ways to deal with those emotions. 
5. Manage your thoughts.  I have a theory about the tapes that we play in our heads - the tapes that say that we're not good enough, the negative tapes that we pull out when things are rough.  My theory is that we have control of these tapes and we can therefore change them to be positive tapes.  Over-ride the old stuff with new stuff that says "you are 100% capable of doing this" "failure is just a step back, not a return to the beginning".  (your tapes may vary from mine).  By making yourself your #1 fan you will always have a support system.
6. Monitor yourself.   This is where tracking your foods and identifying hunger and potential downfalls is helpful.  The hunger tracker on the ww site points out that you want to avoid the peaks and valleys that come with anger.  By maintaining a feeling of satisfaction I am certainly less likely to feel like I HAVE to have a big meal.  It just means (for me) that I'm eating lots of little meals.
7. Prepare yourself.  You can't get where you're going if you don't know where that is.  And having a plan for getting there and being realistic about it are the best ways to  make it successful.
8. Take care of yourself.  This may seem obvious but it's pretty easy to get caught up helping others and not focusing on the things you need to take care of yourself.  And unless you take care of yourself you won't really have anything left to give anyone around you.  (see the importance of surrounding yourself with good supports so that they understand and support your goals)

So, today I'm paying attention to my signals and I'm not eating unless I'm hungry.  Not going to let it get to where I'm ravenously hungry, but still waiting to eat until I hit that hunger stage.  And I will be using my Wii Fit and am going to try for 15 minutes. 

One day.  One pound.  One step at a time.
~N