Our Journeys Are Not The Same

Your journey is not like mine.

My journey is not like yours.

No two people share the same weight loss journey.

I love the bloggers and vlogger and influencers that I follow.  They are inspirational, they give good ideas, they understand your journey BUT, I know my journey won't be exactly the same.

And that's where people fail....

We all want the easy journey, so we follow someone that posts "What I Eat In a Day on "some number" points." or "What I Eat In a Day That Helped Me Lose "some number" pounds".  It would be nice to eat those exact same things and lose that same weight.  Guess what? That's not going to happen.

Why? Because we're all different.  We're different ages, body type, metabolism, genetics...it's not going to be the same.

I've nothing against someone who wants to try whatever their favorite "influencer" is doing.  You need to try and try to find out what's right for you; I do have an issue with those that immediately follow and then question after question on why it's not working for them.

Case in point.  A lot of members are hopping on the low carb bandwagon right now - which is fine, mostly due to an influencer being diagnosis as pre-diabetic.  This person purchased a monitor to find out what foods caused her blood sugar to spike.  Nice tool to have; BUT people started suggesting foods they were interested in.  That would be nice except what makes her blood sugar spike, may not make yours.  Asking and then saying "Thanks, I won't be eating that." Why???  Why would you not eat something that makes her blood sugar spike???  You will need your own monitor plus your own doctor to make those decisions.  Diabetes is a health condition that needs monitored by your doctor, not your influencer.  This influencer I've followed for a while, I love her vlog and think she's a wealth of information; but I know her intent is not to replace your doctor.  When dealing with a health issue - always check with your doctor first.

Let's Talk The App Changes

For the record:  My app has not updated yet, not even a litttle.

I wanted to say that because I can only discuss by what I'm seeing online in various groups.

There will different modes you can choose from, one being called "All In".

I watched an influencer talk about this particular mode.  She didn't like that she asked 2 questions in a virtual meeting and they chose to ignore them.  She also doesn't like that in this mode, you have no weeklies.  What is she suppose to do when her 23 pts are gone, she's way below in calories and still hungry????

I can answer that - you do what you do now; eat off that zero point food list.  That's kind of a no brainer.  She mentioned she'd get tired of chicken, yogurt and cottage cheese.  Ummmm...again, there's more on that list than that!  Every lean meat is on there!  Fruit, veggies.....  I was so very confused watching this.

She did though think that "whole" foods would be included in this.  "Whole" foods meaning the full versions of things like mayo, cheese, yogurt, etc...(not fat free or reduced fat programs).  They are not, and I must agree with her here - fat free and reduced fat products are just not healthy.  They are lower in points, but not healthy.

However, let's not knock the program without trying it; and guess what?  You have the choice not to do it at all!  This mode is only to be used in 4 week increments; it seems to me that it is a quick start if you choose to use it.

And again, you do not have to use it.  Just continue as is.  Don't knock the whole program just because one mode doesn't suit your needs. 

I saw someone else looking around for their weekly points, they were in all in mode.  Don't just choose a mode and then complain that you can't find something.  Read what that mode is and what it is for.  You do not have weekly points in all in mode; only your dailies.  

Don't have the new version of the app yet??  Neither do I.  WW is rolling it out a little at a time, be patient, it'll happen!

Don't Correct Me, It's Not Helpful

 There are a few things I'd like to discuss first though....

Don't correct me that it is a lifestyle not a diet.  I get it, but when I say diet you know what I'm talking about.  Diet is not a bad word.  The definition:

"the kinds of food that a person, animal or community habitually eats"

There you go...has nothing to do with restriction or eliminating foods.  That's what we as a society have chosen it to mean but it's not the true meaning.

Don't correct me that it is zero foods not free foods.  I rarely refer to them as free, however, many do and again, we know what they are talking about.

Actually, if anyone is struggling and the only advice you have is to correct the terminology of diet and free to lifestyle and zero....then you're not really much help!

These are only a few of the things that irritate me in the WW communities.  You know, the do gooders, the I know so much more than you, the holier than thou WWers.  The ones that are having success because they know the correct terminology to use.  😏

And please remember.....just because it isn't working for someone doesn't mean they are doing anything wrong...the program may just not be for them!

14 Years Ago Today.....

 14 Years Ago Today - I Made Lifetime Status With Weight Watchers.

I remember being so proud of all my charms that led up to that.

That was quite a while ago.  I only remember this date because it popped up on my FB memories.  That weight loss is long gone - it came back.

Weight loss is hard, maintaining is harder.  I've had many other keychains and charms through WW, but none were even close to the success I had back then.

Long Month

 It's been a long month.....

Yesterday we had to have our sweet Lucy put down.  Lucy had throat/thyroid cancer and was slowly declining but really declined the past week.  We had hoped she'd make it to Labor Day or at least the end of the year; but it was not to be.  The situation wasn't without some drama though; we got to the vet's, hopped out of the car, and the back hatch wouldn't open to get Lucy.....hubby had locked the keys in the car!!  We had to wait 40 minutes for a locksmith!!  Only my Lucy......

Lucy was such a good dog and loved everyone - she never met someone she didn't like.  It broke my heart to lose my baby girl.  We do still have Dexter and realized that it has been a long time since we've only had one dog.  We'll get another at some point, but right now we need to grieve.

Needless to say....I haven't done much in the weight loss department.  I did go back to Weight Watchers this past week and am finally getting myself back on track.  It's still hard; but I'm moving forward.

A Few Losses

 But the week didn't start good.  This week I had to say good-bye to my dear sweet Cooper.

Cooper was 13 years old and age wasn't well for him.  It was time to go but I stayed with him to the bitter end.  I loved this cat.

We've been looking to adopt another dog.  We found one and applied for it at our local shelter.  When days went by with no word; we stopped in and I explained that I had put in an application on Ginger but had not heard anything.  Without even asking my name they informed me that they were behind on applications and I wouldn't hear anything until the following week.  I asked to get Ginger out and the happily allowed it.  Hubby and I spent almost an hour with her, playing fetch, taking photos, bonding...  A few hours later she would be gone from the website - adopted, to someone else.  I wish they had told me there were other applications, that I would of understood; but allowing me to bond with a dog that you already had approved to someone else?  REALLY!!

So the week was about loss.

But I'm trying to not let it get me down.  There will be other dogs; Cooper is in a much better place.

And Finally An Update!

Yep....I've been gone for a while.  These times have been so crazy, haven't they?

I started back on track yesterday.  Doing well so far, but it is only day 2.  I decided I needed to get lunch under control.  One of the reasons I have such a hard time with lunch is that my co-workers mostly eat out which makes their lunches look so much better than mine, lol!  So I try to come up with ways to recreate take out meals so I don't miss out.

Today I declared sub day (the rest of the week most likely).  When subs are ordered I always favor ham & cheese (I just don't like deli turkey meat).  One of the things that makes a sub a sub is the roll!  So light bread or hamburger/hotdog roll will not do.  I either use the club rolls or I buy hoagie rolls/steak rolls.  Depending on brand and size...the club rolls run about 4 sp and the larger ones run 5-6 sp.  When I buy the larger I cut them in half giving me a 3 sp roll.  Yes, you heard that right...I cut it in half and yes that makes a rather small sandwich; yet it turns out to be just enough!  I add 3 oz of ham and a slice of swiss cheese.  Buy the thin slices, they're only 1 sp a slice and it's the real thing.  Obviously you can use reduced fat or fat free varieties as well.  I top with 1/2 a tablespoon of light mayo.

I planned on having cucumber slices on the side but forgot to buy them at the store, so I dug into the guinea pig stash of baby carrots and had them instead.  I added two dill pickle slices as well.  With a sandwich, I do need something snacky.  I bought a bag of Utz Reduced Fat Potato Chips - 20 chips is one serving for 4 sp; I only counted out for 1/2 a serving for 2 sp.  I then added an orange to finish up. 

I ended up with this:

And it was very good - 8 sp total!