Sunday, February 13, 2011

THE ON-GOING, NEVER-ENDING BATTLE

wwlogo
I did it. 

Over the last 10 year years, I’ve talked and talked about losing weight and getting into shape again.  What can I say?  I’m a slow starter. 

To be fair, I’ve done more than talk.  I’ve made several attempts.  I joined a gym and went faithfully for two years.  I gave up the gym and continued to work out with my Wii.  I walked miles and miles and miles.  I’ve Zoned and South Beached.  I’ve tried so many diets that I can’t remember them all.  A few years ago, I joined Weight Watchers.  It works.  The truth is, they all work.  If you limit what you eat to less calories than your body needs to maintain itself, you will lose weight.  Simple, right?  Obviously it’s more complicated than that since we are a nation/world of overweight people. 

But for me, Weight Watchers just might be the best way to go.  And the reason why is this: Pride.  Vanity.  I can’t stand to lose face.   I lost 17 lbs on WW the time around.  The secret to my success was the weekly weigh-in.  I was terrified of walking into that Saturday morning meeting and having the woman behind the counter tell me that I gained weight.  (Even thought she says it very sweetly.)  That fear kept me on track all week long. 

The secret to my failure was this:  I’m cheap.  The meeting was $15 every week.  After losing the 17 lbs, I started to get cocky.  I thought, “I’ll just save the $15  and skip the meeting this week.  I can count points on my own and I’ll go back next week.  But the next week, I feared that I had gained a few pounds and so I skipped the meeting (saved the $15) again.  And so it went. 

My strategy for staying on track this time:  I signed up for the monthly pass.  The money gets deducted from my checking account monthly so I’m not tempted to skip meetings to save.  And I get to feel good about saving because the monthly rate breaks down to a little over $9/week.  It’s a win-win situation.  Or should I say it’s a win-lose situation?    Smile 

It’s a little late to be making resolutions but when you live in SMBland, late is par for the course.  And so…..here I am making a resolution:  I hope to be at my goal weight by summer.   That might be a little too lofty a goal so I’m giving myself until October but summer is still my dream.  Shorts, swimsuits, etc. 

I’ve lost 9lbs so far.  The sad thing is that I can’t even tell.  What the…..?  That just goes to show you how much I have to lose, I guess.  9 lbs?  phffft.  Drop in the bucket.  Grrrr.  But I will keep on and I will get there.  Because if I drop the ball this time, I expect you (are you still out there?) to never let me hear the end of it.
  
My recent birthday seems to present an additional challenge.   A decade ago, I learned that it’s harder to lose weight after forty.  At fifty…….it’s darn near impossible!   But I can see that flicker of hope.  There are plenty of women over the age of 50 out there who are in great shape.   And I’m not just talking about celebrities who can afford personal trainers, personal chefs and personal food police.  I’m talking real life people.  Go ahead, stand up and take a bow.  You know who you are and we hate you.  I kid, I kid. 

Does anyone out there care to join me in my quest for a better, smaller version of myself?   Who’s with me?   Come on……misery loves company. 

WOW for today:  Never give up. Never, ever, ever give up.  NEVER!   Everything is possible.  The impossible just takes longer. 

Hugs and Kisses,
SMB

14 comments:

Brian Miller said...

woohoo congrats ont he 9 pounds...stay at it...

Pseudo said...

Yea You! It's been too long since I came reading around. So happy to hear things are going well in SMBLand.

Woot Woot! 9 pounds is a biggie.

Arkansas Patti said...

I have a friend's mother who will turn 99 this year. She joined WW when she was 60, met her goal and became a lifetime member. She knew how easy it was to backslide so she never misses a meeting, even today. By the way when lifetime membership is reached, it is all free.
It is just one hour of her week and truthfully, she is in much better health than I am almost 30 years her junior.
WW does work, keep up the good work and how about posting your poundage each week. We can help hold your feet to the fire:)
I need to also lose weight but then we do not belong to an exclusive club.

Jules said...

A big Congrats on the 9 lbs. Glad to see you here again and it is never too late for resolutions :)
Jules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow

Deb said...

You go girl! It's nice to hear from you.

TONY LETTS said...

I can beat that. I lost 20 pounds.......when my wallet was stolen :)

Linda said...

"A decade ago, I learned that it’s harder to lose weight after forty. At fifty…….it’s darn near impossible!"...this is not encouraging to me. I will hit the 49+1 Day this year. ::sigh:: BUT I will be here in your cheering section! Go SMB Go!

Liz Mays said...

That's why I never did WW before. It costs money. But I've heard it works GREAT, and you're losing, so keep on keepin' on!

life in the mom lane said...

Losing 9 lbs is great!! Good for you!!!I agree with you- once you are past 50 it is really hard to lose.....hard, but not impossible! Hang in there- I am trying to lose as well!

cheatymoon said...

Nine pounds is great! I lost 20 on WW two and a half years ago (when I met you in blogland.) It's all back. So I need to start again. Not sure what I'll do, but Something is in order.
xoxox

Unknown said...

Hey, congrats on the loss SMB. And yes, it's much, much harder to lose a single gram after 40, 50, 60 etc. I was so used to losing 5 lbs in a week just by eating cottage cheese and pineapple, but no more, sayeth the Raven. Drats!

Kimberly said...

Ugh, why is being thin so much work?

Anonymous said...

I joined it also- I'm down 13lbs...need to be down about another 13 at least and these last two weeks have been hell 'cause I've stayed the same. Good luck!

Tresa said...

I wish we could walk together. We'd talk and talk and walk and walk... I'm in a better frame of mind (since my "Heavy" blog post) but I know I will always struggle and probably be plumpy for the rest of my life. My goal is to have energy to keep up with my soon-to-be granddaughter. Weight Watchers has worked in the past for me too. My mom was an original "Weight Watcher".