Here's the Secret

Having successfully lost, and now kept off for two months, 22 pounds since joining Weight Watchers, I find myself being asked how I did it very, very often. I am very proud of myself and very happy to help you become proud of yourself too! I have given it some thought, and these are my "tips." Having made it to the other side of weight loss, I can honestly say that the annoying cliche is dead-on: If you want to lose weight, all you have to do is eat less and exercise more. It really is that simple. So here is my secret. If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask.

I’m just going to list everything that comes to mind. I also know some things may not work for everyone, but, again, I’m just going to tell you what I did/do and what worked for me.

- In the beginning I actually made sure to eat all of my points. I found that eating a little more, especially eating breakfast, helped kick start my metabolism. I think I ate more the first month of WW than I had been before I joined. So skimping on points in the beginning may not be best.

- I found that WW does work if you just follow points and don’t exercise, but it works a lot faster when you do exercise. Additionally, I never gave myself extra points for exercising. I think I could have something like an extra 4 points a day because of how long and intense my work out is, but I never bothered giving myself those extra points.

- I also stopped giving myself extra nursing points as I cut down on feedings. When I was only nursing 3-4 times a day I only gave myself 5 extra points instead of 10, and when I cut down to 2 feedings a day I stopped giving myself extra nursing points at all.

- I never let myself fall back on the 35 extra points per week. Shabbos was never a day off. I never ate whatever I wanted and however much I wanted just because it was shabbos. There were many times I had to refuse dessert and/or seconds at someone else’s house.

- Forget the saying "everything is okay in moderation." This is BS. What is moderation? Having one bite of something or one piece? Eating something once a week or once a month? This gray area will bite you in your fat butt every time.

- When I plateaued, I found that cutting back my points by 2 a day and working out for an extra 15 min made a HUGE difference.

- It is soooo important to make sure you know portion sizes. It is very easy to mistake these. Until I forced myself to actually measure out a cup, tablespoon, etc., I had been putting 2 cups of milk in my cereal, but only counting it as one portion size. That’s a big deal!

- This is what I eat. I am a picky eater and I am a boring eater. I eat one of a few choices for each meal.

Breakfast:
1. cereal and milk
2. yogurt and fruit
3. oatmeal
4. low fat whole grain waffles or pancakes (when I was being very strict I would substitute sugar free jelly for syrup)
5. If I’m on the go, a slimfast meal shake (3 points) or meal bar (4 points)


Lunch:
1. pbj on WW bread with reduced fat pb and sugar free jelly
2. a Morningstar farms patty (chick patty, griller, or 4 buffalo wings) either on WW bread or plain; sometimes with mayo (2 g fat per serving kind); sometimes with smart beat fat free cheese slice
3. low carb whole wheat wrap (la tortilla factory has 0-1 point depending on size) with beans or Morningstar farms griller recipe crumbles and shredded cheese (the finer the cheese is shredded, the more it will seem like you are using even though it is the same 1 ounce portion)
4. mini pizzas on WW English muffins


Dinner:
1. salmon or other fish- marinade in a fat free dressing or other 0 point food grilled chicken breast cooked on Forman grill
2. sautéed mock crab
3. sautéed Morningstar farms chikn strips meal starters with pasta (look for ones that are whole grain, low carb, and high fiber- Ronzonni Smart Pasta and Dreamfields are two good ones)
4. Hearty soups with veggies, beans, lentils


Snacks:
1. fruit!!!!
2. Handful of nuts like almonds or walnuts- they really do fill you up, plus WW wants you to eat some “good” fat like nuts or olive oil
3. 94% fat free popcorn
4. Baked tortilla chips (Guiltless Gourmet is a good brand- I think you can have 15 chips for 3 points + salsa is 0 points)
5. WW cakes- these have saved my life. They are small cakes (about 3 bites) that come in several flavors- caramel and chocolate are very good! They have 1 point in each little cake and totally satisfy a sweet craving.
6. I am the kind f person who gets hungry a couple hours after dinner, but I’m out of points, so I drink a nice big cup of hot tea. Hot liquids calm the contractions of the stomach. Plus, it takes a long time to drink a big cup of hot tea, and by the time I’m finished, I’m over the craving for food, or it’s close to bedtime.


- Basic Substitutions: These may cost a little more money and not taste quite as good, but they help make a difference, especially in shabbos foods. Substituting 50% will taste better than 100% and is always better than nothing!
- only use olive oil
-when possible, use applesauce instead of oil
-use egg beaters instead of eggs
-use corn meal instead of bread crumbs (i.e., to bread chicken)
-switch to smart balance margarine (tastes great and has 1 point per tablespoon)
-use Splenda instead of sugar
-ask the butcher for extra extra lean ground beef (this is actually healthier than ground turkey)

That’s all I can think of for now! Hope you can find some of this helpful! Remember- something is always better than nothing, so do what you can. Setbacks are inevitable, but don't give up. Perseverance is the key. Good luck!