Jenn's Losing It

A simple, effective way to sidestep sabotage (well meaning or not). "Another slice won't hurt, you don't need to lose weight, but you've always looked like this-it's who you are."  Do any of these sound familiar?  If so, you've faced sabotage at some point along the way and it can undermine your weight loss journey. Something to keep in mind, is that most often, sabotage is not intentional.  Often it's the people that love you the most say or do things that could derail your weight loss and maintenance efforts.  These people don't even realize they're doing it.  They think they are helping you.  Many people associate food with love. The bottom line is not to assume that friends and family are trying to harm your weight loss journey.  Take the time to explain to them how you feel sabotaged and let them know how they can better support you and your goals.  after all, they won't be able to change their behaviors unless they know how th...

It's a savvy way to streamline prep, shop efficiently and stay on plan! Benjamin Franklin once said " If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail".  He couldn't ne more on point when it comes to success in weight loss!  As with most things in life, advance work pays off with mealtime.  Whether you pre-track your dinner in the afternoon, batch prep the week's lunches or decide on a full day's menu before you even eat breakfast, planning make it easier to do the following: Avoid spur of the moment eating.  When you know what and when your next meal is, you are less likely to be influenced by extreme hunger or external triggers (think donuts). Multiply your possibilities!  Planning your meals helps you explore different foods and bring in a range of flavors and nutritional benefits. Save money.  If you enter the supermarket with a solid list of ingredients for specific meals, you won't spend on food you don't need.   Get in the Healthy Eating Z...

Setbacks happen to all of us.  Here's how to get back on track. Whether you missed a Weight Watcher's meeting, unplanned eating, skipping your morning walk, or not keeping track, lapses like these are temporary when you identify, accept, and move past them. Thinking of a setback as a time when an old, unhelpful behavior change.  The good news?  A setback is also a sign of success.  The new behaviors that you've acquired have been established themselves that your old behaviors seem - just that - old and unhelpful. To bounce back from a setback, ask yourself what you can learn and what you can change to ward off the setback again.  Then, turn to your support systems - online, meeting room, friends or family.  Having a support system to lean on during times that you feel you've gone off track is an important tool to have.  They can help you find your way out of a dark time and remind you that the bad time you're having now, may not be nearly as ba...

Use Weight Watcher's guidelines to make them powerful and effective. I know I am guilty of setting unrealistic goals for myself ALL THE TIME.  I get my mind in place that I want to get fit, healthy and lets be real skinny - then I want those things to happen overnight with little to no effort by me.  Because let's face it - all of those things take a lot of work, dedication and time.  Lasting results don't happen overnight. Setting specific, attainable goals make it more likely for you to accomplish them and make the behaviors you want to adopt long-lasting.  Weight Watcher's Weekly on this subject give you some suggestions on setting SMART goals! So let's take a look at what goes into a powerful goal. It's specific.  Describing what you want, be exact on what you want to accomplish.  Saying you are going to do yoga this week is less likely to happen than saying - I'll go tot the 10am class on Monday and Wednesday after dropping the kids at school...

It's always with us, but there are ways to rethink, reframe, and respond to stress that are healthy - and helpful. Stress is natural and it's something that everyone experiences.  It's your body's automatic response to perceived pressure or threat.  Stress seems to know when to hit you and it can hit you all at once - like on the day of your big presentation or it can build up over time - exploding like a time bomb.  I know my tendency is to try and suppress the stress as long as possible and when it bubbles up BOOM...there's either a cry fest, scream fit or both.  I'm the worst at handling stress.  I may look like I have it together, but most days this is what's happening inside.  Bless my family for braving those storms!  I have yet to learn how to channel that stress into something positive or useful. The Weight Watchers Weekly on this subject reminds you that you can use stress to motivate you, like when you pull all the details together for ...

Moving more is the gist that keeps giving.  Stretching, walking, yoga, running - any sort of physical movement doesn't just help you shake the cobwebs from your brain and strengthen your body - but it can boost your self esteem, lighten your mood and even help you sleep better. The second "gift" that comes with moving more is it helps with weight loss too!  Changing your eating and moving more - you can shed up to 20% more than if you only changed your eating habits.  Keep moving for the long term and you're more likely to keep the weigh off too! So here's the secret - choose activity for its feel good benefits, rather than what you think you "should do".  When you choose an activity that you enjoy, you are more likely to continue doing it, succeed in your weight loss and maintain it.  In one study that the Weight Watchers weekly sites, they asked people to walk a mile for "fun.  those people said they felt less tired and in a better mood than...

How to get better, longer sleep-it can help you succeed! What is quality sleep?  You know it when you wake up:  It's the feeling your body has had enough time to be truly rested and replenished.  As with eating well and moving more, getting enough sleep contributes to a healthier lifestyle.  Research has shown that regularly getting enough sleep can improve your mood and your overall well being.  While sleep needs vary from person to person- logging seven to nine hours of shut-eye each night seems to be the sweet spot for most adults.  Not only is getting enough sleep good for you, not getting enough sleep has been linked to overeating and weight gain.  Personally I know this to be true, I crave all the sweets and carbs when I haven't gotten enough sleep.  It's the worst feeling, you are trying to make up for the sleep deprivation with the very things that make you crash!  They say that inadequate rest can make it harder to stick to a...

Discover the delicious variety of plant based proteins! Protein is a building block of your cells.  It helps repair tissues and strengthens your bones, it also promotes the health of muscles, cartilage, skin and blood too.  You may be familiar with animal proteins - meat, poultry, seafood, eggs and dairy, but you might not know as much about plant based proteins.  These vegetarian sources include legumes such as beans, soybeans, peas, and lentils, as well as grains and plants such as quinoa, spelt and whole wheat bread (yes really!).  Protein can also be your weight loss ally.  It can help you feel more satisfied than other nutrients such as carbohydrates or fats and foods high in protein tend to be lower in Smartpoints values (and now many of them are ZERO with Freestyle!)  Eating more plant based proteins let you mix things up at mealtime.  It could save you money too. In general plant based proteins are less expensive than animal sources....

Plan how you'll have a Happy Holiday! We discussed this topic in the meeting room just prior to Thanksgiving, however I feel it's just appropriate for Christmas dinners!  The Great plate!  It's all about the plan.  When you're at a bountiful feast during the holiday season you can choose what foods are worth it to you (or not) and enjoy the day to the fullest without losing sight of your goals.  The secret is to plan ahead.  Preparing for a holiday dinner may seem daunting and I would agree, but chances are you can predict 90% of what is going to be at the table, even if you are the guest and not the host.  Remember that when you're with family and friends you love, it doesn't matter what you're eating!  Thinking about the menus ahead of time cab help you anticipate challenges ( yummy gravy, buttery mashed potatoes), set priorities (cheese and crackers vs pumpkin pie) and ask for what you need.  You can also decide whether to stick to ...

Learn how to manage your feelings without food. When you eat in response to an emotion, that is emotional eating.  It's learned, not innate, response.  Think about it, have you ever felt the need for a big serving of pizza or your favorite comfort food?  I know I have.  I have so many triggers that send me right to food.  The biggest trigger for me is when I have an educational meeting for my son.  I have been attending these meetings for seven years and they never get easier. I'm learning how to cope better when it comes to emotional eating.  I started attending Overeaters Anonymous meetings and I am currently working my way through the Twelve Steps, but every day is a new challenge.  Emotional eating can lead to ups and downs with your weight.  Especially if you feel guilty afterward - which then leads to more eating!  But when you learn to do something else in response to this emotion, you're more likely to lose weight and main...

What really affects your cholesterol numbers? What is cholesterol?  We all have cholesterol in our bodies, a fat like substance that's part of our cells.  You might already know your LDL ('bad cholesterol) and HDL ('good" cholesterol numbers and that high LDL can leaf to heart disease but dietary cholesterol the kind found in foods like eggs, shrimp and other proteins doesn't actually affect our cholesterol levels.  Recent research has shown that there's no evidence to support that eating foods with cholesterol causes heart disease. So what does contribute to heart disease?  Dietary cholesterol isn't the enemy, but saturated fat is.  We now know that a diet high in saturated fat can contribute to high LDL cholesterol and heart disease.  To keep your own cholesterol levels in a healthy range, be mindful of sat fat amount in different foods, check the nutritional labels of packaged foods for that information. FACT: Animal sources account for most dietary...

How to find more time for what matters most to you. So what does time management really mean?  We all know the feeling- there's so much to do but so little time! That's where managing your schedule can help.  You can't build more hours into your day...although some days we wish that was possible!  But we can begin to use our time effectively, because when we do it feels like we have more of it!  As you look at your day and what takes up your time, you can pinpoint what's helping you reach your goals on and off the scale - not to mention what's getting in your way! How all this helps is that studies have shown that lack of time is a key barrier to eating healthy, moving more and losing weight.  Once you zero in on the things in your day that take up some of your precious time, you will be able to eliminate some and make room for the important things.  You know- like your family and yourself!  When we feel more control of our time and what we do with...

Look back on your summer to help you move forward with your plan. As we settle back into our fall routine, which for many of us means back to school routine its a great time to reflect on your progress over the past few months.  "What worked in terms of reaching your goals, for weight, healthy eating, activity and mindset?  And what didn't?  For example  if you never made it to that 5am spin class-ask what happened?  If the answer is that you actually hate getting up early and don't like indoor classes, you can use this information to adjust your activity goals." "Looking back on what you've learned can set the stage to recommit to or revise your plan.  Setting goals that are SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound) makes it more likely that you'll reach them."  For instance rather than saying I'll walk this week, your goal should be I'll walk on Monday, Wednesday and Friday for 3 miles beginning at 8am. Us...

The trick? Combine activity with a healthy eating plan. So as I'm sure you've already said to yourself- duh! Everyone knows that. But it really is tricky because we all know it, but we all struggle with it. If we didn't we wouldn't need to be attending Weight Watchers meetings or following a weight management program at home. Something to remember is that physical activity isn't just going to the gym or jogging around the block. Movement is technically "any body movement that increases your energy expenditure." Any time that you move you are physically active so that means carrying groceries (in one trip if you're like me), dancing with a friend, walking a 5K. Now if you change what and how you're eating and match that with an increase of activity- you should see a 20% greater weight loss than changing your diet alone! "How it helps is that aside from enhancing your wellbeing, boosting your mood, helping your heart health...

Boost your everyday joy - it can help you live healthier and lose weight.   Let's face it when we're happy everyday tasks seem easier, the day seems brighter, our loved ones seem awesome, all is right with the world, right? It gets better! Happiness not only affects how we feel but what we do, who knew right?! Studies have shown that Happy people make better choices overall. That means better food choices and getting out there to move more. You have more energy. You engage socially. You are more likely to perform more "good for you actions", like eating more nutritious food and getting more rest-because of more activity! "Happy is as Happy does". Although half of our tendency towards happiness is genetic, another 10% from our environment and the remaining 40% is determined by what we do. You can choose to do things that make you happy. Small things can make a big difference. Even taking a moment to take in that sunrise or sunset whi...

Knowing the truth about common beliefs can help you succeed. Weight loss myths, everyone's heard them, everyone's tried a few and some of us truly believe a few are true!  I know I've fell into some of the weight loss myths myself and the fallout is usually not pretty. They've been around since the beginning of people working to lose weight. These myths "masquerade as truths". "Some of them are passed through generations such as don't eat after 8pm while others linger on from outdated science (fat free craze of the 80's). And still others offer that magic bullet that promises to shed those pounds effortlessly". "Believing and following myths can hold you back. And it's not always easy to separate fact from fiction. But remember the golden rule - if it sounds too good to be true it probably is." Here are some of the most common "tall tales" of weight loss and the "simple truth" behind them....

Shift your thinking to overcome weight-related negativity. In the meeting room the first week of August we discussed Weight related stigmas and discrimination. "Have you ever faced Weight stigma?  If you suspect that your body size has negatively affected how someone views or thinks about you or you have been called a hurtful name because of your weight then the answer is yes." "Weight stigma can come from anyone- a loved one, a coworker, your doctor, even a passerby. What makes this form of stigma unlike others is that we might believe it's true, BLAMING ourselves for being stigmatized rather than the person who was unkind to us. Some people affected by stigma turn to food to cope, for others it chips away at their self esteem." I know for me that my doctor was the biggest offender of weight stigma. I have been battling with hypothyroidism for several years now. I often felt like my medication levels weren't correct and that was sta...

"You can't stop the waves but you can learn to surf" ~Jon Kabat-Zinn In the meeting room during the third week of July we discussed mindfulness. Mindfulness is defined as being aware of the here and now. That's it. Awareness. Without judgement, no good or bad labels. "In a way, it's taking yourself off autopilot, which can help you keep your goals top of mind. " "Being more mindful can boost your well-being, optimism and self esteem. It can help you more easily see the positive changes (off and on the scale) that you've made happen with your healthier food and activity choices."  Mindfulness is also useful to help you manage negative emotions such as stress, sadness, anxiety and so on without turning to food to cope. An exercise that is given in the Weight Watchers Weekly is "Just Breathe". 1. Sit comfortably with your eyes closed. Inhale deeply and slowly through your nostrils, hold for two seconds...

Socialize Smart with Weight Watcher's tips for estimating portions away from home! During the second week of July we discussed attending parties and the like in the meeting room. Because let's face it, it's that time of year. We're all heading to BBQ s more often than ever! For me mid July is the biggest. My boys have birthdays one month apart so we do one big family barbecue for them and they each get a cake. So lots of tasty food followed by my favorite cake!  In prior years I just ate until I could explode and chalked it up to a once a year experience. This year I was more mindful when it came to my eating. My original plan was to go easy on the food and save cake for the next day - as the party was Saturday afternoon and my weigh in day is Sunday morning. Instead I went for plan b. I ate in moderation and had some cake. The scale wasn't in my favor, but I'm also sure that it could have been much worse. On Sunday I ate my heart out and fin...

Asking for help from others helps you get what you need - and it can be easier than you think! In the beginning of July this was the meeting room topic.  How to assert yourself.  "Assertion is expressing yourself in an honest, straightforward way that helps you get what you need.  It shows you respect yourself and others"  Sounds like an easy thing to do, but many of us struggle with it.  Will we come off as aggressive, too assertive, will it make people shy away from us?  These are all of the thoughts that plague us during our journey.  It can be considered another form of putting others needs before our own.  If you are worrying how others may take your assertiveness, you may not be getting what YOU need!  Asseriveness is a skill, so it can be learned.  Once you've mastered being assertive in an effective way, you'll stop worrying about coming on too strong or just not making the request at all. "being able to respectfully but f...