Jerzday Weigh and Tips

Is anyone else sad that Thursday is no longer Jerzday? No? Just me?

Well, today was weigh day. I worked my tail off this past week. Here is my workout recap (remember my "week" goes from Thursday to Wednesday):

Thursday (12/27): N/A
Friday (12/28): N/A
Saturday (12/29): yoga-75 minutes
Sunday (12/30): Zumba-60 minutes
Monday (12/31): Zumba- 45 minutes, walking- 20 minutes
Tuesday (1/1): Zumba Toning-30 minutes

I stayed within my point budget this week as well. I have decided that I am only going to use extra points if I have accumulated activity points. If you don't know how Weight Watchers goes, you get a daily point allowance (mine is 28) and then you get a weekly point allowance (49) to use on indulgences. Aside from that, you gain activity points for your exercise. In previous weeks, I would use most of my weekly point allowance. However, now I am only going to indulge in extra points out of the activity points I have earned. This week, I earned 23 activity points! I try to only use a few hear and there instead of splurging on all of them at once. I feel like this helps with my self control struggle.

Oh right, on to the weight loss:

- 1.4 pounds!

Holla!

I am 24.6 pounds away from my goal weight

I have received several questions via email lately regarding Weight Watchers. I am going to answer a few of them on here. If you have any other questions that I don't address please feel free to email me or comment!

Why do you use Weight Watchers instead of just counting calories?

When I first began losing weight I used Loseit and MyFitnessPal to just count my calories. This worked for my first 30 or so pounds. However, after that I stayed in a plateau for almost a YEAR! I was counting calories and exercising but the scale just would not budge. One of my coworkers recommended that I try Weight Watchers. I was very skeptical at first. I thought it would be very difficult and that it wouldn't make any difference. I was very wrong! The great thing about WW is that it tracks your protein, fat, fiber, and carbohydrate intake instead of just considering calories. For instance, you could have a carb-loaded food that was relatively low calorie but it would have an enormous points value because of the carb level. I realized my biggest problem was that I was consuming waaaay too many carbs and not near enough fiber and protein. I have lost weight every single week that I have stuck to the WW plan. Now, WW may not be for everyone. I have a friend who says it did not work at all for her. I think the main point is that you just have to find the program that is right for you.

How do you estimate portion sizes?

My biggest advice for this is to buy a food scale. You can get them pretty cheap at WalMart or Target. My scale was $10 from WalMart. A food scale can help you whether you are tracking points or calories. Americans (especially in the South) have a very distorted view of portions. I had no clue that I was eating more than one serving of foods such as chips, cheese, and meat until I began weighing my food. Once you get in the habit of weighing it is much easier for you to estimate your portion sizes. Another good rule that I go by is 1 cup for main dishes and 1/2 cup for side dishes.

Isn't it difficult to track points?

Not at all. If you are used to counting calories then transitioning over to the points system will be a breeze. The main thing to remember is that the program only works as well as the work YOU put into it! The Weight Watchers website has a large database of food (though I will admit it needs some expanding) and WW also has a scan app you can use.

How do you configure points when going to a restaurant?

This can be tricky. I have found one website that I love that has a ton of restaurant points values already configured for you:

http://www.exercise4weightloss.com/ 

This website also has a ton of other helpful tools whether or not you are using WW.

Isn't Weight Watchers Expensive?

It's really not that bad. However, since calorie counting apps are free it does seem expensive to transition to WW. I only use the e-tools (online version). My fee was something like $60.00 for the first three months and then $19.00 each month after. I have it set up to just automatically withdraw from my checking account. If you choose to do the in-person meeting version it is quite a bit more expensive (something like $50.00 per month). However, a lot of people really like this option because it keeps them more accountable (having to weigh-in at each meeting).

Stay fueled and aflame!

I plan on posting some recipes this week and improving on my "foods" tab!