TheBanyanTree: Weight Watchers

[Margaret R. Kramer]

As the summer is disappearing, some my excess weight gain is, too.  I put on
weight because I couldn’t stay away from the crackers, chips, dips, and
sweets.  Even though I never stopped working out, the fat from eating too
many calories than I was taking in began to make its home on my legs, butt,
chest, arms, and face.  I found out the hard way once you have a weight
problem, you always have a weight problem.  You have to very vigilant to
make sure the weight doesn’t come back on.

I was on the verge of having to buy new and bigger clothes.  I worked so
hard to get my weight down so I could buy these wonderful clothes.  And I
hate it when heavy people wear clothes that are one or two sizes too small.
So if I got much bigger than I would have to revamp my wardrobe.

I joined Weight Watchers in August.  I initially lost 13 pounds very quickly
because my doctor prescribed this drug that’s like Meridia, an amphetamine
derivative.  I have very low blood pressure and he felt it would be safe to
prescribe it to me.  Its effects are short lasting, the pharmacist said it
would be effective for about two months.  It’s mildly addictive.  And it
speeds up a person’s heart rate.

I took it for two weeks.  Yes, I did begin to push food away from me instead
of shoving into my mouth.  I slept OK being on it.  I didn’t feel nervous or
edgy.  But when I worked out, my heart felt like it was beating out of my
chest.  I had to cut way back on my intensity.  I was worried that I would
die of a heart attack while on the treadmill.

I knew when I got this drug, I would have to find something else that would
help get my eating under control, because this drug wasn’t a long term
solution.  So I joined Weight Watchers.

Weight Watchers wasn’t what I expected.  I thought it would be “true
confessions” where people would talk about their battles with food
consumption.  Actually, it’s more like a short motivational speech each week
with some tips and some stories from our leader and people in the group.
The meeting lasts for just ½ hour and off we go.

I think what keeps me motivated is the little bit of money I have to pay
each week and the fact that someone weighs me.  Even though I weigh myself
once a week, it seems very motivating to have another person weigh me, too.
Weighing in is done in private at Weight Watchers, but it does seem public
in a way.  So I want to lose weight to “please” my leader.  It’s like
getting an “A” on a spelling test.

Weight Watchers now has two different plans.  One is an Adkins-like low carb
core foods plan where you don’t have to count points.  The other is the same
old flex points system, where you get a certain amount of points you can eat
each day based on your weight and you can eat whatever you want as long as
you stay within that point range.

I use the flex points plan.  It took me a while to realize that a lot of
stuff that I was eating was loaded with points.  But that’s the beauty of
the plan.  It trains you to eat better and choose lower point value foods.
For me, it didn’t happen overnight, but each week I got better at making
healthier food choices.

Now I’m comfortable with the plan and consciously make good choices whether
I’m eating at home or out at a restaurant.  I’ve learned portion control
again.  I had lost that ability since quitting smoking.  My mental
 “portions” were way bigger than they should have been.

I saw my doctor after two weeks on the drug and told him I was giving it up.
I like having my heart beat in its own natural way.  He gave me skeptical
look like, “I know you’re going to gain weight again,” but I knew this drug
wasn’t the answer.

I gained a little bit of weight after going off the drug.  I couldn’t push
food away anymore.  But I stuck with Weight Watchers, even though I was
frustrated with how slowly the weight was coming off.

But the weight is coming off.  My workouts are back to normal and in fact,
they’re even better than normal, because I’m not eating all this junky food.
I’ve noticed my intensity level has gone up a bit and I’m working out
harder.

I can now go into my closet and grab any outfit and not worry about how it’s
going to fit.  Are these pants too tight?  Does this shirt hug my big fat
waist too much?  Is this dress going to show off my big belly too well?  I’m
leaving these worries behind me.

There are many people in my Weight Watchers group who have met their goal
weight and they keep coming to meetings.  I can understand why, because once
my body embraces fat, it will always embrace it.  I’ll always have to be a
Weight Watcher in some kind of way.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net

http://www.polarispublications.com
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http://www.bpwmn.org
Business and Professional Women of Minnesota

The foliage has been losing its freshness through the month of August, and
here and there a yellow leaf shows itself like the first gray hair amidst
the locks of a beauty who has seen one season too many.  ~Oliver Wendell
Holmes