Re: Re: finding the will / Kelli

[Guest guest]

Hi Kelli,

I wish I could find the magic words to help you. Finding that " will " seems

to be a matter of personal determination. But let me at least try to give

you my perspective in the hopes that something might encourage you. Also,

s’ post to you was EXCELLENT (great job, !). She gave you

a lot of practical how-tos, but I’ll try to give you some things to ponder,

that relate to changing your MIND-SET. I like to call them our “mind

tapes” – so many of which are bent on destroying our own selves and our

efforts.

I've now lost 99 pounds. Almost that 100 number! I was thinking just

yesterday about this journey and remembering back to when I began it. I was

TERRIFIED to even set a goal, as asked by WW. Maybe you can relate to that?

My negative self-thoughts ran along the lines of " I'll never get down to

that low of a weight anyway, so why bother setting a goal? " and...(starting

out at 278 pounds!) I thought, " If I can just get down to....say 210....

I'll be happy. " I guess I had a " This isn't going to work " attitude, but I

at least wanted to give it a try. I truly thought I was going to have to

give up all my favorite foods, as with other " diets, " and that at some point

I'd fail, when I added those foods back in.

Well, complying with WW's wishes, I set a personal goal of 175, which is 20

pounds above the weight recommended for my height. I truly never thought

I'd see that weight. BUT here I am today at 179. Can you believe that?

Almost 100 pounds in 15 months. I’m even considering making my goal LOWER

now!!! What an amazing change of mind has happened within me!!!

And here's what I want to share with you.... The program WORKS! It really

really works, if -- IF -- we work it the way it's meant to be worked. What

does that mean? Again, gave you some practical tips for working the

program. But in terms of how we THINK about the Weight Watchers program,

here’s what I hope will be helpful:

Following the WW program means changing how we think

>It means determining in your mind to take this one day – ONE MEAL – at a

time.

>It means STOPPING the “I can’t” kind of self-talk, and changing it to “I

CAN!! And I WILL!”

>It means NOT looking way down the road at a weight goal, but rather,

working toward each week’s weigh-in.

>It means learning to not fuss if we “only” lose 3/10 of a pound, or if we

maintain or even put on 3/10 of a pound. Rather, it means learning to be

satisfied with just plain sticking-with-it. It means learning that each new

day is like a clean slate a freshly erased blackboard, on which you can

chart a new day!

>It means trusting all the research and technology that has gone into

developing the WW program.

>It means planning your foods for the day – looking ahead toward the REST of

your day, and not thoughtlessly spending all your points too early in the

day!

>It means looking at your daily points allotment much the same as you’d look

at a daily allowance of money to spend ..when it’s gone, it’s gone.

>It means dividing up that allowance among however many meals you want to

allow yourself.

>It means finding foods that help you get through the hungry times.

>It means (for some of us) changing our thinking about how often we eat! I’

ve found that I need to eat six times a day: breakfast, snack, lunch,

snack, dinner, snack (yes, a before-bedtime snack!!). I’ve found a ton of

great low-point foods that keep my hunger satisfied. gave you a good

list . I and others can share more!

>It means using your flex points when you’re hungry!! It means allowing

what I have termed “controlled indulgence” – meaning we use up some (or even

all!!) of our flex points for a special meal at a restaurant on Friday,

maybe again on Sunday, and then we STICK to our points the rest of the week.

>It means writing down EVERY single bite, lick and taste during the day so

that you won’t “by accident” sabotage your own efforts.

>It means determining within your mind that it’s NOT difficult to count, to

measure, and to WRITE down your foods.

>It means TEACHING yourself that when you’ve eaten, you don’t have to be

FULL-full, but that being just satisfied is okay.

>It means teaching yourself (and believing your own words) that food is

fuel. That regardless of the tricks our minds and hearts try to play on us,

we don’t really NEED to overeat.

>It means learning that when we’re sad or depressed or having a rough time,

we CAN eat. We can turn to food for a modicum of comfort – but it means

teaching yourself to use POINTS-FRIENDLY foods to fill that emotional need

(e.g., turn to a Just2Points bar instead of 6 brownies!!).

>It means attending meetings for not only the accountability but also for

the pure self-indulgence of doing something THAT’S JUST FOR YOU! Your time.

Your therapy, if you will.

>It means determining to get in a bit of exercise each day – even if, when

we’re 100+ pounds overweight – even if that means 3 minutes on the treadmill

at only 1.5 mph!!! Or even if that means parking a mere 5 spaces farther

away from the store than we’d normally park. ANY movement is better than no

movement!!

>It means preparing for travel times – taking snacks with you; keeping

premeasured snacks in your car for those “emergencies”; looking up

restaurants on dwlz BEFORE you travel, and taking lists with you.

>It means allowing yourself to CARE for yourself. To focus on YOU for a

change (cause, if you’re like me, you’ve spent your whole life focusing on

other people and other things to the neglect of YOU!).

>It means never giving up. Never. If we eat a huge meal or even blow a

whole day and use up all our flex points, we do not have to go “off program”

for the rest of the week. We do NOT whine or find excuses rather, we

simply plan and count our foods at the next meal and just put a big red X

through that particular meal (or day) on our journal.

Okay, I’ve carried on quite enough. I don’t know if you can tell or not,

but I LOVE this program! I WORK this program, and it works for me! But

most of all, I love how my thinking has changed. I’m becoming a whole new

person! And I believe it can happen for you too ..

Hugs to you!

Bette

278/179/175 or lower!

[Guest guest]

Hi Bette;

I just had to write and tell you how much your good e-mail helped me today.Your

advise to Kelli is so good.

My week has been a little on the down side, and have been feeling a bit

depressed that I didn't lose at least a half pound this week, that I was

working for so hard. I am almost to another set of numbers, and can't wait to

get there. I just need to have more patience, and stay the course.

Today I had laser surgery on a secondary cataract on my left eye, that I did not

know about until I had my eye exam today. I knew there was a vision difference

in my left eye, but did not know it was a cataract. My eye is a little sore

tonight as you might expect after he had to do 80 hits to remove the cataract,

but all in all, it is going to be fine. I will see the Dr. in 2 weeks to be sure

everything is O.K. But he said it went very well, today.

I am so happy for you on the 99 pounds lost. Way to go, Bette! That is so very

awesome!! Your positive attitude, and genuine attention to details and working

the program, has made you a success. I think if you want to, you should make

your goal lower. I have no doubt that you will attain it in record time, too!

Yes the program does work, and your very good practical tips are now printed

out, and will be on my kitchen table for me to look out when I have a day or

week like this one, or just anytime when I need a little nudge in the right

direction. I am afraid I am heading into another plateau again, and your

positive words are going to be there to help me dig right through it. Thank you

Bette, so much. Pat from K.C.

RE: Re: finding the will / Kelli

Hi Kelli,

I wish I could find the magic words to help you. Finding that " will " seems

to be a matter of personal determination. But let me at least try to give

you my perspective in the hopes that something might encourage you. Also,

s' post to you was EXCELLENT (great job, !). She gave you

a lot of practical how-tos, but I'll try to give you some things to ponder,

that relate to changing your MIND-SET. I like to call them our " mind

tapes " - so many of which are bent on destroying our own selves and our

efforts.

I've now lost 99 pounds. Almost that 100 number! I was thinking just

yesterday about this journey and remembering back to when I began it. I was

TERRIFIED to even set a goal, as asked by WW. Maybe you can relate to that?

My negative self-thoughts ran along the lines of " I'll never get down to

that low of a weight anyway, so why bother setting a goal? " and...(starting

out at 278 pounds!) I thought, " If I can just get down to....say 210....

I'll be happy. " I guess I had a " This isn't going to work " attitude, but I

at least wanted to give it a try. I truly thought I was going to have to

give up all my favorite foods, as with other " diets, " and that at some point

I'd fail, when I added those foods back in.

Well, complying with WW's wishes, I set a personal goal of 175, which is 20

pounds above the weight recommended for my height. I truly never thought

I'd see that weight.. BUT. here I am today at 179. Can you believe that?

Almost 100 pounds in 15 months. I'm even considering making my goal LOWER

now!!! What an amazing change of mind has happened within me!!!

And here's what I want to share with you.... The program WORKS! It really

really works, if -- IF -- we work it the way it's meant to be worked. What

does that mean? Again, gave you some practical tips for working the

program. But in terms of how we THINK about the Weight Watchers program,

here's what I hope will be helpful:

Following the WW program means changing how we think...

>It means determining in your mind to take this one day - ONE MEAL - at a

time.

>It means STOPPING the " I can't " kind of self-talk, and changing it to " I

CAN!! And I WILL! "

>It means NOT looking way down the road at a weight goal, but rather,

working toward each week's weigh-in.

>It means learning to not fuss if we " only " lose 3/10 of a pound, or if we

maintain or even put on 3/10 of a pound. Rather, it means learning to be

satisfied with just plain sticking-with-it. It means learning that each new

day is like a clean slate.a freshly erased blackboard, on which you can

chart a new day!

>It means trusting all the research and technology that has gone into

developing the WW program.

>It means planning your foods for the day - looking ahead toward the REST of

your day, and not thoughtlessly spending all your points too early in the

day!

>It means looking at your daily points allotment much the same as you'd look

at a daily allowance of money to spend...when it's gone, it's gone.

>It means dividing up that allowance among however many meals you want to

allow yourself.

>It means finding foods that help you get through the hungry times.

>It means (for some of us) changing our thinking about how often we eat! I'

ve found that I need to eat six times a day: breakfast, snack, lunch,

snack, dinner, snack (yes, a before-bedtime snack!!). I've found a ton of

great low-point foods that keep my hunger satisfied. gave you a good

list.. I and others can share more!

>It means using your flex points when you're hungry!! It means allowing

what I have termed " controlled indulgence " - meaning we use up some (or even

all!!) of our flex points for a special meal at a restaurant on Friday,

maybe again on Sunday, and then we STICK to our points the rest of the week.

>It means writing down EVERY single bite, lick and taste during the day so

that you won't " by accident " sabotage your own efforts.

>It means determining within your mind that it's NOT difficult to count, to

measure, and to WRITE down your foods.

>It means TEACHING yourself that when you've eaten, you don't have to be

FULL-full, but that being just satisfied is okay.

>It means teaching yourself (and believing your own words) that food is

fuel. That regardless of the tricks our minds and hearts try to play on us,

we don't really NEED to overeat.

>It means learning that when we're sad or depressed or having a rough time,

we CAN eat. We can turn to food for a modicum of comfort - but it means

teaching yourself to use POINTS-FRIENDLY foods to fill that emotional need

(e.g., turn to a Just2Points bar instead of 6 brownies!!).

>It means attending meetings for not only the accountability but also for

the pure self-indulgence of doing something THAT'S JUST FOR YOU! Your time.

Your therapy, if you will.

>It means determining to get in a bit of exercise each day - even if, when

we're 100+ pounds overweight - even if that means 3 minutes on the treadmill

at only 1.5 mph!!! Or even if that means parking a mere 5 spaces farther

away from the store than we'd normally park. ANY movement is better than no

movement!!

>It means preparing for travel times - taking snacks with you; keeping

premeasured snacks in your car for those " emergencies " ; looking up

restaurants on dwlz BEFORE you travel, and taking lists with you.

>It means allowing yourself to CARE for yourself. To focus on YOU for a

change (cause, if you're like me, you've spent your whole life focusing on

other people and other things to the neglect of YOU!).

>It means never giving up. Never. If we eat a huge meal or even blow a

whole day and use up all our flex points, we do not have to go " off program "

for the rest of the week. We do NOT whine or find excuses..rather, we

simply plan and count our foods at the next meal and just put a big red X

through that particular meal (or day) on our journal.

Okay, I've carried on quite enough. I don't know if you can tell or not,

but I LOVE this program! I WORK this program, and it works for me! But

most of all, I love how my thinking has changed. I'm becoming a whole new

person! And I believe it can happen for you too...

Hugs to you!

Bette

278/179/175 or lower!