singlegirl's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How I Do It Several people have asked me how I�m losing weight. How do I stay motivated and how do I lose so fast? The easy answer is that I follow Weight Watchers (WW) and I joined a gym. Truly the adage, �Eat less, move more� is 100% correct (for me anyway � everyone is different). On WW, every food product has a points value (determined by fiber, fat and calories) and you are allowed a certain number of points per day (determined by age, weight and lifestyle). Beyond that, each person is given an extra 35 points per week to be used in any manner (spread out or all at once) and you can �earn� points by exercising (at my higher weight, I earned 10 points per workout), but you have to use your workout points that day. You do not have to use the extra points � sometimes I do and sometimes I don�t. The older you are and the less you weigh, the fewer amount of points you are allowed per day. Personally, I�ve lost 6 points over the past 6 months. To be honest, I haven�t really noticed. I had a very hard time eating all my points everyday. Some food items are 0 points � most servings of veggies are, but most everything else has a point value (most fruit is 1 point). You can eat whatever you want on WW � your goal is to eat your allotted points. I, however, am trying to eat healthy as well. Lots and lots of fruits and veggies, calcium, whole grains, lean protein and a gallon of water a day. Now, keep in mind WW has nutritional guidelines as well that also recommends healthy eating, but most people have enough points where they can also eat a few �unhealthy� things each day too. Usually my big treat for the day is a 100 calorie snack pack. It�s not bad for you, but it�s not good for you either. I am trying to eat things that have actual nutritional value. Instead of a low fat ice cream sandwich, I�ll have a chunk of dark natural chocolate (antioxidants). I try to make smarter choices so not only am I losing weight, but I�m getting healthier. I have a friend who is also doing WW and she chooses convenience foods that are low in points, but not as nutritionally sound. She will eat 2 slices of low fat white bread for 1 point, where I would chose 2 slices of whole grain bread for 3 points. I would rather spend the extra points and eat something that is beneficial to my body. Another huge change has been my water consumption. It has changed everything. I cannot stress how much drinking a gallon of water has made my life better. My skin looks better, I feel healthier and stronger and I�m never as hungry. It was hard to get used to at first. But now I crave it. Sometimes I drink more than a gallon. An example menu for my day is: Breakfast: Lunch: Dinner: Dessert: All of that equals about 22 points. I get more points than that, so I would have added low fat cheese to my salad and a glass of skim milk to my dessert (and I still would have been under my daily points allotment!). It�s healthy and it�s 5 -6 servings of fruit and vegetables. I still eat carbs, but I try to eat healthy ones (whole wheat pasta, brown rice, cereal). I also eat potatoes. I think that because potatoes are natural and came out of the earth, surely they�re healthier than some fake, low fat product. I don�t eat a lot of potatoes, but I still enjoy them. I also cheat every single week. Every week. Sometimes more than once. I only cheat on the weekends and I enjoy every, single bite. I don�t feel guilty. That�s been a HUGE change for me. Let the guilt go. If I want pizza, I will have pizza. I will have a deep dish, meat lover pizza. I will eat a lot of it. If I want Taco Bell, I will order my grilled burrito and have something else as well. I love food and I�m not going to give up certain foods for good (or actually for more than a few weeks!). My change is that I really, really enjoy one meal. The rest of the day I eat healthy and the next day I eat healthy. I don�t have the �well, I already messed up today, so I might as well just start again tomorrow� attitude. You have to lose that line of thinking. If I �cheat� one meal a week, I still am eating healthy 95% of the time. That�s good enough for me. And don�t forget, you earn points by working out and by having the extra 35 points per week. If I worked out and saved up all my extra 35 points for that day, I would have 75 points for that day (including my daily points)! That�s A LOT of food. That�s 37.5 beers to give you an example. So, even though I have my �cheat� meal, I�m usually not going over my points. You just can�t cheat all the time. One meal is how I do it. And I go all out. And then I wake up and have my cereal, pineapple and soy milk. And I don�t feel guilty. I look ahead. As far as working out goes, it�s not an option for me. There are days where I would rather not go to work, but I have to. I put working out before almost everything else. To me, that�s like putting myself first. I work out between 4 � 5 times per week. I do 30 minutes of cardio (usually running, the Arc machine, or the elliptical) and I lift weights for about a half hour (I alternate between arms and legs). I lift heavy weights and I lift slowly. I lift until my muscles shake and feel like liquid. I do abdominal work every day, but I do that when I get home. I take another half hour, pop on my TV (I watch Passions that I taped that day) and do abs and pushups. If I had to chose what helped me the most � eating healthier or working out, I would probably say working out. The changes in my body are amazing. Plus I�m stronger and more fit than anyone I know. Yes, I�m heavier than all my friends, but pit me against them in a challenge and I would kick their asses. Just because you�re thin does not mean you�re healthy or in shape. I love, love, love seeing the skinny girl�s faces at the gym when they realize they cannot even begin to keep up with me. I work out HARD. I don�t go to the gym and read a magazine while I�m idly peddling a bike � I get drenched in sweat and I burn between 500 � 600 calories per half hour (keep in mind the more you weigh, the more you burn). If you�re going to show up, you might as well work hard. I also know that this is something that I can do for life. I love drinking water, I love fruits and vegetable and more than anything, I love how I feel. 6 months ago, I hated all the above. But by making myself the most important thing and putting myself first, I�ve also learned to appreciate me more. I want to be healthy and strong for me. Later in life, I�ll want to be healthy and strong for my children � while I�m pregnant and then later when I�m chasing after them. My body is an amazing thing- why would I want to hurt it? And that�s how I�ve lost weight and kept it off � yes, diet and exercise, but I also have a new mentality. And now I�m off to finish more water. 2:17 p.m. - May 10, 2007 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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