My Own Way

I've been following WW for the past 8 months and have had great successes. But lately my weigh ins have been a little unpredictable and I haven't been losing as much as I would like by following the WW system. Case in point, my 4.2 loss after Thanksgiving was actually when I went off the plan over the holiday.

Today, after following the new WW plan this past week, I gained 0.6 pounds. Now, I know that's not a lot and I know that my weight could have fluctuated for any number of reasons. But, on the other hand, it's disheartening to diet and exercise for a week and actually gain weight. When I burst into tears in the reception area, my WW Leader suggested that the reason I gained was because I'm not getting enough dairy. Now, I'm no medical expert by any means--but COME ON. For one thing, I actually consumed more dairy this week than I typically to. But more importantly, dairy consumption shouldn't have much of an impact on weight loss. It never has had any impact for me in the past. After my WW Leader made that statement, I asked the logical question: Could the increased amount of fruit I was eating (it doubled) have impacted my weight loss? She said no.

I left the meeting feeling more frustrated than ever--feeling like I'd never get a handle on my weight loss. I got back to my desk at work and, on a whim, looked up the calories of the fruit I was consuming for "free." Well, I was roughly eating 300-400 calories every day in fruit and not counting it. I may not be a scientist, but yeah I think that might have had something to do with my 0.6 gain.

So, with the help of my very patient dad (who also happens to be a scientist) and LiveStrong.com, I have devised a new variation of the WW plan that I intend to follow. Here's the deal:

-LiveStrong.com (a health and fitness site) says I need 1350 calories a day in order to lose roughly 2 pounds of weight each week. SparkPeople confirms this.

-Now, I recognize that it would be too much of a challenge to shift my thinking to calories from points.

-However, the old WW system is roughly a calorie counting system, by which 50 calories = 1 point. Therefore, if I convert the calories to points, I should be eating 27 points a day (under the old system).

My new plan is to follow the old WW system and set my daily points target for 27, as opposed to 24 (as I would get if I switched back). In addition, since I feel that I need some wiggle room, I have decided to give myself 11 additional points a week(35-21). (I got 21 from multiplying the 3 additional points I'm eating per day by 7.) I'm also going to try to follow the GHGs and get in 5 servings of fruits/ vegetables, lean proteins, healthy oils, and dairy. So, to sum up, I'm basically going back to the old WW plan, but I'm going to give myself a little more to eat each day. And, when it comes to APs, I'm going to use them the same day that I earn them so that I never consume less than 1350 calories per day.

Needless to say, I am super relieved to return back to my old points. English muffins will go back to being 2 points, as will my skinny cow ice creams. More importantly, 27 points seems like a totally reasonable amount of points each day.

Now, I know a lot of people would advise me to give the new plan more of a chance. But honestly, I'm not thrilled that wine/ beer has doubled in points (while our DPs and WPs have not doubled) and I don't think it's a good idea that fruit is free (for me, since I tend to overdo it with "free" items).

It's actually empowering to know that I can change my plan so that it works with my lifestyle and my goals. For the time being, I will continue to attend my WW meetings, but I'm also feeling a bit unsure of whether it's a good idea to weigh myself once a week. I'd probably be happier if I weighed myself every other week.

As I've said in the past, this is a lifestyle change, not a diet, and it's important to do what's best for myself. This blog is called Katie's Way to Healthy for a reason.

And I want to give my way a shot.