Have you ever felt like you were eating healthy, working out,and making good choices but weren’tnoticing anyweight loss?I have foundsix things that I have been doing that keep me from seeing the results I want while being a Weight Watcher member. You may be unintentionallyrunning into some of these same mistakes too. Before I get into the six things that might be sabotaging your weight loss on Weight Watchers I thought I would give a little update on how my journey has been going, since it has been a little while since my last update.
The last update I gave was around the Holidays and after a nice vacation with my husband where we ate many “not-so-weight-watcher-friendly” foods. At that point I had gained weight again and was pumping myself back up to getting on track again.
I wish I could tell you that I have consistently lost five pounds a week for months and that I managed to get to my goal weight much quicker than I had expected, but that has not been my speed.
In the past two months I have lostnine pounds. My journey feels more like a “two steps forward, one step back” cycle rather than a steep decline toward the finish line!I have decided to be transparent on here, so along with myhonest look intohow it has been going for me I am also providinga few things I have noticed myself doing that, inevitably, lead to set backs on my weight loss journey along the way.
Total so far, I have gone down 4 pant sizes and the Weight Watcher tracker shows that I have lost 32.4 pounds since May when I started at 276.8 pounds. That puts me atan average of .9 pounds per week which is slightly below the Weight Watcher average of1-2 pounds per week.
When I am feeling like it is taking me a long time to get to where I want to be, I have to remember where I have come from and how far along I have come.
A few things I am grateful forafter losing over 30 pounds:
1.It feels great to have pants that werereallytight get comfortably loose.
2. It is very rewarding to buy new clothes in smaller sizes, andto pullup the things from the basem*nt thatI stopped wearing for a couple of years (at least)because they didn’t fit anymore.
3. I was proud to tell my doctor Ilostweight since my last appointment.
4. It’s all the little things that are easier. It’s easier to bend down and tie my shoes, for instance. Something no skinny person would evereven think of.It’s amazing how much more difficult even small things can be when you are overweight. It can be embarrassing and annoying but mostly it just feels good when things get easier and you find yourself not having to even think twice about those little things.
In an effort to regain perspective after a bad weekI remind myself that I am about 1/3 of the way to my goal and now is not a good time to give up.
My weight hasleveled outin the past couple of weekseven though I felt like I was making a lot of good choices so I had to ask myself, “What I am doing wrong that is keeping me from losing weight?”
The conclusion I have come to is this:
IF you stick to the plan youWILL lose weight.
It’s not Weight Watcher’s fault if I choose toorder the giant chimichanga that is the size of my head, alongside a whole basket of chips and salsa. When I do eat the chimichanga and I go to my next WW meeting and see the number on the scale go up I am quickly reminded of that night at the Mexican restaurant. I know what I did that sabotaged my weight loss that week. Going to the meetings spurs me on to try harder the next week to make more conscious decisions. This is why my journey has been slow but it is also why I continue to stick with it. I know if I stop I will fall back into old patterns again and continue to gain weight. I tell myself, “Okay! I enjoyed the chimichanga. Now let’s get back to the reasons this matters to me and make it a better week this week”.
I have been asking myself what I need to do to be more successful in losing weight with WW (formerly Weight Watchers). As I thought it through I realized that there are some pitfalls I keep falling back into. I am currently trying to be more mindful of them so I can catch myself and make better choices. You may relate to some of these. Here are just a few:
1. Not weighing/measuring my food.
When I don’t measure my food it is easy to eat two cups instead of one without realizing it, and if I do that too many timesI could be eating double whatI amtracking. Ten points becomes twenty and Boom! Sabotaged.
Are you with me? Let’s try this:
Purchase bowls and spoons that are exact measurements. If you have a bowl that is exact one cup you can fill it up and know for sure you have a correct serving size. Need some tools that will help? Fit&Fresh has lots of great portion control containers here! {affilliate links}
2. Taking a stab in the dark when a particular food is not on the WW app.
Okay, this is a hard one for me! I choose to eat a big chimichanga at a local Mexican restaurant (which is my favorite, and why Ikeepreferring to it)anditis not on the WW app. If I don’t have a good frame of reference for how many points it is worth I might look up “chimichanga” on the app and just pick one. Of course not all chimichangas are created equal and I am just taking a stab at it, so there could be a difference of 10-20 points, but who really knows for sure.Then I go to the next meeting to find that I gained 1.5 pounds that week. Boom! Sabotaged.
Are you with me? Let’s try this: Have a clear plan ahead of time. Perhaps bring your own foods when you know you are about to step into a minefield. Eat veggies before eating out so you are not as likely to munch on endless chips and salsa when you get there. Count the chips (4 WW SP for 7 chips… crikey! Maybe just steer clear) and eat half of the chimichanga… or better yet, get the fajitas instead. And make sure you are picking the right thing on the app. I realized this past week that a chicken entrée at a restaurant that I thought was 4 WW SP was actually 15 WW SP! It’s because I didn’t understand the wording on the app. (Turned outthe 4 point onewas a lunch entrée that was supposed to be paired with another meat and the 15 point one was a bigger dinner portion) If you could use some smart fast food options low in WW SP you can go here.
3. Deciding to just notcare for a day (that turns into several days).
Perhaps I would get lazy or I would get tired of trying to eat healthy and let myself splurge a little. It felt good to eat that thick crust pizza (that I knew better than eating) and then the next day I eat the leftover pizza. And I love my pizza with pop… and my neighbor brought over chocolates… and since it’s my birthday… and I was so hungry and that was all that was available… and on and on it goes. Boom! Sabotaged.
Are you with me? Let’s try this:
Get back on track right away. Eating one or two pieces of pizza probably isn’t going to throw off your whole plan, but if it is a splurge you weren’t planning on consider balancing it out by eating fruits and veggies in place of your next meal or grilling some seasoned chicken, or enjoying a bowl of soup. For over 80 main entrees that are three WW FreeStyle Smart Points or less per serving you can go here.
4. Not exercising.
In the summer I would mow the yard and doextra physicalwork as well as going for nice long walks outside. In the winter Iam not as good about getting myself to the gym, and I am certainI would drop pounds much quicker if I consistently worked out a few times a week.
Are you with me? Let’s try this: It didn’t work out for me to go to the gym the other nightso instead I got up and started to do squats, knee lifts, walking in place, grapevines, and all kinds of fun stuff all over my living room. I didn’t know what I was doing but HEY! I was moving! 🙂 You could also work out to some workout videos on YouTube.
5. Not tracking my food.
I would check the points of a food and think, “Oh! This isn’t that much” and then I would eat something else that “wasn’t that much” because I was still hungry, and never really track them, but if I eat too many things that “aren’t that many points” you can see where that could go wrong. Two plus two, plus three, plus four…. it adds up. Boom. Sabotaged.
Are you with me? Let’s try this: This one may is probably obvious, but use the app. It is the easiest way to track. If you don’t have the app keep a journal handy where you can get to it quickly and track even the little stuff. Some weeks I am better about this than others. We have some free meal planning trackers and blank grocery lists that may help with planning and tracking what you are eating. For a list of snacks that “aren’t that many” points (wink wink) you can check out this list of over 60 quick snacks that are between 0-4 WW SP per serving.
6. Forgetting my whys.
I am much better about sticking to my plan when I have extra outside motivation… like when I wanted toweigh less atmy next doctor’s appointment, when I wanted to lose weight before a vacation, when I wanted to fit better into the new jeans I just bought that were a little too tight, when I think of the kind of example I want to be for my kids, etc., etc. When I am having a couple of bad weeks in a row I know it is time for me to get back to my list of “whys”.
Are you with me? Let’s try this: Write out your whys. Share them with someone, or comment on this post if you want to. Who knows!? You may inspire others by sharing your why’s. What made you start caring? What will happen if you do lose weight? How will your life be different? Take some time to daydream and then get up and do something about it. Weight Watchers suggests making a “Vision board” that will inspired you when you look at it. You may also find that using one of these free printable weight loss trackers will give you that extra bit of motivation you need.
Chances are good you will have your ups and downs as well. I don’t put the expectation of being perfect onto myself, so I suppose Ithat is why I do notput that expectation onyou either. While I admire people like my Type-A husband who can set a goal and not waiver to the left or right, I realize that is not practical for everyone. When you realize you are making choices that are sabotaging weight loss it is good to have the right tools to get back on track.
Here are a few additional resources
that may be helpful when trying to get back on track…
Meal planning.
Need help with meal planning? You can check out our free meal plans with smart points here.
Snacks.
Is snacking your key nemesis? Check out our list of over 60 snacks that are 4 WW SP or lower here.
Lunches.
Having trouble coming up with good lunch ideas that are quick and low in WW SP? Check out these ideas here.
Fast Food.
Is eating out throwing off your whole plan? Check out these low SP fast food options here.
Sweet treats.
Are sweets too hard to resist? Go here for some smart desserts that are low in WW SP.
Inspirational Success Stories.
If you could use some inspirational real life stories of normal people who have lost weight successfully and are keeping it off you can go here. Let these stories give you the jump start you need!
