Archive for the ‘Support’ Category

Why Weight Watchers Meetings Work For Me

March 12th, 2012 savingmo

I so highly recommend going to Weight Watches meetings if you are looking to lose weight. I have done so much better when I know that each week someone that I really don't know on a personal basis is going to have me step on a scale and tell me what the efforts I made that week did.

Please note - I'm not saying the number at the scale defines you - there's a whole different post to go along with that one!

But seriously, I tried doing this on my own. I stopped going to meetings in August. I hit my lowest weight so far in August, and then when I stopped going to meetings - my weight loss chart started looking like this:

As you can see, it was not very good!

I just recently started back to meetings and I have a good feeling about this week.

I was struggling before going back and forth between a paper tracker and tracking on the Weight Watchers app. I liked paper because I felt like I could plan out my whole day and have extra room to write. But I was struggling with keeping it with me enough to make changes when I would need to. It just makes more sense for me to use my phone because it is literally always with me.

No More!

We'll see how the scale works out for me this week - update coming Wednesday night!

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Weight Loss Tip: Prep For Your Week Ahead Of Time

March 12th, 2012 savingmo

I've gotten real good at buying fresh produce in the last year. What drives me crazy is when I find a shriveled up piece of fruit in the back of the fridge that did not get used and is now past its prime!

I've started using a system that really helps me out - both on my budget by using the produce I buy, and with my waist line by eating the produce I buy.

Each week when I get home from the store (or shortly after) I will wash my produce and prep it for the week. By prepping, I take and pull all the grapes off the stems, I cut up my pineapple and canteloupe, and I wash anything else that just needs to be washed before using. I'll even peel and cut up my carrots into sticks if I bought a bag for snacking.

After washing and cutting, I'll put the prepped fruits and veggies in tupperware containers and put them on the top shelf of my fridge. That way, when I open it up, I can see what's ready to be eaten, PLUS, I know that there is always a ready zero point snack waiting for me!

What tips and tricks do you use to make sure your produce gets used up?

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Posted in Good Health Guidelines, Healthy Shopping, Support, Weight Loss Tips, WW Info Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , No Comments »

Weight Watchers Cookbook Giveaway

October 26th, 2011 savingmo

One of my passions that I have discovered since starting my weight loss journey is that I love to cook!  I'm a pretty basic girl and don't like to use a lot of fussy ingredients that no one has ever heard of (although I do like to try new things!).

When I signed up with Weight Watchers, one of the items in the new member kit was a cookbook.  Now, I have quite a few Weight Watchers books, but this one has all of the recipes converted into Points Plus values.

The meals are also easy peasy and is broken down by meal - so if you're only wanting ideas for breakfast or lunch, it's easy to find something!

I've decided what could be a better way to introduce someone to eating more healthy than to give them an awesome cookbook! I'm giving one of these away, and here's how you can get a chance to win:

  1. Head over and "like" Skinny Points on Facebook.  It's a little more intimate setting to get to know one another!  Leave me a comment and let me know!
  2. Go ahead and follow me on Twitter too. Leave me a comment and let me know!
  3. Leave me a comment and let me know what your favorite meal to eat is - and if you have any tips to "Skinny" it up!
  4. Get bonus entries for sharing Skinny Points with your friends on Facebook.  Just hit the "Share" button and leave me a comment that you've done so!

Entries will be accepted until 11/15/2011 at 11 pm EST.  Please leave a valid email so that if you win I can reach you.  The winner will be chosen at random based on entries received.

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Starting Over – Again

October 20th, 2011 savingmo

Last week I skipped my weigh in. This week I went to the meeting but was not planning on weighing in. Why???? Well, that is because in the last two weeks I have eaten nearly any and everything around me that moves! I seriously had good intentions the day after I skipped the first meeting, but that went out the window by Friday morning. It. Has. Been. Horrible.

So, last night I arrived at the meeting site and I wanted to get the little weekly book that they give you because it has great tips and recipes in it. I was honestly planning on just saying "I don't want to weigh in tonight - just give me my stuff!"....but for some crazy reason (we'll call it my conscience) I weighed in anyway.

Yeah.....so 2 weeks of not tracking and eating whatever I want (McDonald's, Taco Bell, Burger King, Ice Cream - ya know - the really good kind, donuts, strawberry milk....and several select others), I weighed in 6 pounds higher. SIX!! Now, I know that a lot of that is probably fluid retention, plus I was wearing heavy sweats and a sweat shirt, but still. That's just crazy and wicked unhealthy!

I was thinking while I was in the meeting about my Dad. He has high blood pressure and was hospitalized because of it a few weeks ago. I've been on him to watch his diet because he has a medical issue and his diet can affect how long he lives.

It hit me in the meeting. I too have a medical issue that my diet will affect. It's called being obese and if I don't get it under control it will eventually kill me.

Wow.

I think that is the first time I have ever made the connection between my weight and my death. It's completely true though. I came out of the meeting with a determination that I have not had in a very long time.

I'm proud to say that today I tracked everything and made a more conscious effort to stay on track. I am in serious need of grocery shopping to restock the fridge, but I made due with what I had today. I'm ready to tackle this head on this time!

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Posted in Daily Tracking, Success, Support, Weight Loss Tips Tags: , , , 1 Comment »

Weight Loss Philosophy

September 28th, 2011 savingmo

There are a lot of opinions out there on the best way to lose weight. You can go no carb, high carb, low carb, vegetarian, all meat, tofu, shake...and the list goes on. With so many options and opinions, how do you know what is best?

I think the answer to this is you need to do what works for you! If you are truly wanting to lose weight - not just for the sake of losing, but to also gain a healthy lifestyle - you really need to take a look at the diet you're thinking of choosing. I feel like if a diet completely eliminates a whole food group it is probably something that I would not want to continue for my entire life, thus leading to a nice weight loss - which will likely be followed with a nice weight gain!

I am a true believer in all things in moderation. This is one of the things that I LOVE about Weight Watchers. I don't have to worry about buying "special" foods that my family won't want to eat or blow my entire budget on one week of food (cheese and meat get very expensive if that's all you're buying!). Plus, I know that this "diet" is becoming a lifestyle, and it is something that I can see myself doing forever.

Weight loss doesn't have to be as complicated as it sometimes is made to be. Break it down into day by day.  Simply eat better, move more, and repeat the next day.   You're well on your way to a healthier lifestyle!

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Posted in Good Health Guidelines, Healthy Weight Loss, Success, Support, Weight Loss Tips, WW Info Tags: , , , No Comments »

Rewarding Yourself For Weight Loss

September 21st, 2011 savingmo

I am a huge believer that you should reward yourself along the way as you begin and continue to lose weight.  Not only will it help you to keep up your motivation, but if you strategically choose your rewards it could even continue to enhance your weight loss!

I like to focus on small goals and celebrate those once they are completed.  However, if you're like me, many time in the past you maybe celebrate using food.....a nice dinner out, a fancy treat at the store......you see where this is going.  It's all related to food.

I think finding non-food rewards is a fantastic way to celebrate your loss as well as retraining yourself to not always reward yourself with food.  Think of ideas that you haven't done in a long time, or maybe that you've not been able to do because of your weight.  Before I hit my 40 pound loss, I hadn't been shopping for clothes in years (real shopping).  Rewarding myself with a nice outfit was a nice pat on the back, plus it gave me clothes that fit (a huge help!) and also encouraged me to keep loosing so that I could buy more clothes!

What rewards have you given yourself for your weight loss?

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Why Choose Weight Watchers?

August 17th, 2011 savingmo

With so many diet programs and plans available in the world, why would anyone choose Weight Watchers over any other?  In my personal opinion, I choose to do Weight Watchers over other plans due to the fact that I don't feel limited while I am following the plan.

I'm a girl that loves me some Taco Bell. To be honest, I would probably eat fast food for every meal if I had the money and the metabolism of a hummingbird! Yes....I know it's disgusting, but it's true!

To me - if a diet becomes something that is constantly limiting me to what I can't have - it's not worth staying on. I like that Weight Watchers will allow me to be able to have that burrito (on occasion!) from Taco Bell. I like that I can have ice cream and regular soda if I want it. I can eat it and not have to beat myself up for days. Oh yeah - I can also still eat those things in moderation AND loose weight!!

Many people have criticized Weight Watchers saying that it isn't a valid plan because you don't know how many calories that you consume.  My take on this is why worry about having to calculate all of that when the science has already been completed for you! The system is developed based on the amount of calories that go into fat, fiber, proteins, and carbohydrates. For me it is so much easier to remember 30 points a day rather than 1500 calories and try to keep track of those numbers each day!

Weight watchers also gives a balance by focusing on good healthy guidelines:

  1. 5-7 fruits and vegetables per day
  2. Activity - 30 Minutes Per Day
  3. Limit Sodium and Alcohol Inatke
  4. Focus on Lean Proteins
  5. Focus on Whole Grains
  6. Liquids - 6-8 Cups - Doesn't have to be water!
  7. Healthy Oils - 2 Teaspoons of pourable, healthy oils
  8. Multi-Vitamin
  9. Dairy - 2 to 3 servings per day

What do you think of the Weight Watchers Points Plus System? Do you have any questions about the plan?

This post contains a link to an affiliate. See my Disclaimer Policy more information.

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Welcome To Skinny Points!

August 16th, 2011 savingmo

Hi! I'm Amber and I'm so happy to welcome you to Skinny Points!  This is my personal page that I wanted to create to share with you my weight loss journey.  I started Weight Watchers on January 1, 2011, and I'm doing well so far - down 50.1 pounds since January 1, 2011!

I have experience in blogging and when I'm not here you can find me at Savings Lifestyle sharing the best coupon deals!  Something I really want to focus on here is showing that you can truly lose weight by changing your lifestyle - not changing your entire life.  Plus I want to break the myth that you can't eat healthy while using coupons!

 

I've literally tried nearly every diet plan out there - Jenny Craig, Grapefruit Diet, Atkins, South Beach, Tofu Shake Diet (ugh!), Green Bean Diet, and probably even more that I can't even remember.  I've even tried Weight Watchers in the past as well, but I never stuck with it.

This time is different.  I've been doing this plan for almost 9 months now and it is completely liveable.  I don't feel shame if I eat a piece (or two....or three...) of chocolate cake.  I track it and move on!  I've come to the realization that this is a journey, not a sprint and that if I make mistakes along the way - it. is. okay.

I hope seeing my mistakes along the way give you encouragement!  And I hope it gives me a swift kick to get back into gear :-)  Being accountable to someone is imperative to staying on track, and I think being accountable to you will help me.

Some of the things I will be sharing here each week is daily food and activity logs, a weekly weigh in, measurement updates every two weeks, recipes, and restaurant points plus lists...plus whatever else may strike my fancy along the way.

I also want to encourage healthy community here, so you can always check out the live chat that is on the main page.  Also, if you've lost weight in the past or if you're currently losing weight please consider completing this form to let me know how you're doing.  I hope to feature a person each week on the blog that is rocking it!

You can always contact me via email at amber at skinnypoints.com or on Facebook or on Twitter.  It's not very active there right now but I'm sure it will be soon.  Thanks so much for stopping by and I am so looking forward to sharing my journey with you!

Disclaimer: This post contains a link to an affiliate. See my Disclaimer Policy for additional information.

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