Excited to introduce my first guest blogger! She is someone I have always admired for many reasons and recently she just gave me another one – reaching her weight loss goals and continuing to live a healthy life! Meet my aunt/godmother/friend/inspiration…
My Weight Loss Journey
I have been dieting ever since I can remember. At the age of 10 my mother put me on what I now refer to as, “The Root Beer Barrel Diet.” She thought I was overweight because I was always asking for something to eat. So, in her infinite wisdom, she decided that anytime I asked for food she’d give me a root beer barrel candy and it would satisfy my hunger. Needless to say, it didn’t work, and to this day it stings a little when I see that candy. There were so many better ways to respond to me and it would have been a great opportunity to teach me about eating a healthy, balanced diet. Alas, that did not happen. Parents of past generations just didn’t seem to focus on diet and exercise. If she had even the slightest comprehension of the WeightWatchers (WW) philosophy regarding healthy attitudes and behaviors, I would not have spent the next 40 years of my life struggling through fad diets and failing each time.
In preparation for my niece’s (who just happens to be your blog writer) bachelorette party in Las Vegas, I tried once again to loss the weight. I failed to lose even a pound. A week before the trip, a co-worker came to my desk and told me about WW online. He left my desk and never pursued it further. I, on the other hand, went online immediately and started reading about WW. My bestie had been on WW about a year earlier and lost 15 pounds so I called her up. Her advice was: “Just do it. Don’t do it online. Go to the meetings. Don’t tell anyone you’re doing it, and you can do this!”
That was July 2011. I lost 3 pounds the week of the bachelorette party in Vegas. By Megan’s wedding that September I was still overweight but I was really feeling positive about the program and my steady weight loss.
The July it will be three years that I stepped into that WW meeting room and since then I can honestly say I have never been prouder of myself and the lifestyle I created thanks to WW. I was successful because of the WW PointsPlus Program and my commitment to it. The famous Irish poet Oscar Wilde said, “Do you really think it is a weakness that yields temptation? I tell you that there are terrible temptations which require strength and courage to yield.” WW gave me the tools, the strength and the courage to lose 43 pounds in 9 months. Today, I’m down 55 pounds and I’ve been a lifetime member for 2 years.
The meetings grounded me and inspired me to keep going and to stop what my leader, Rick, refers to as, “stinkin’ thinkin’.” I now view healthy eating as a permanent lifestyle versus a temporary fix to meet an unrealistic goal. When someone asks me how I lost the weight, I start by saying, “WeightWatchers.” When they ask for more details, I gently but passionately tell them that they should only join if they want to develop healthier eating habits and experience a personal transformation that will change their life forever.
I celebrate my success by staying on plan. I attend meetings every Saturday morning and I actually have women there that have become an important part of my week. The journey I started the day I walked into my first meeting will continue for the rest of my healthy eating life. Inspiration can be found in the rarest of places. What will it take to inspire you to change your bad habits, create good ones, reach your destination and learn how to successfully continue your healthy journey?
Before
After
The Lyons Den 