Just started WW and need support!

[jo-v]

oops forgot.... eat the pudding with the smallest spoon you can find!

[Peaceful]

Today I didn't use up all of my points, I ended up with 5 points left over. I was at 7 but figured I better look for something to try to use up the points. Now the WW lady told me that you should always use all of your points. I think I'm so nervous that I have a hard time eating very much even though I don't feel starved. How do you feel? Is it ok to have points left over?

 

My opinon is to eat those points. For one thing, why feel hungry and deprived...this does not have to feel like a "diet" if you plan and eat all you are allowed. Certainly this happens some days, but I choose to eat the things I am able to eat. The popcorn hint is a good one, as are those 100 calorie snack packs (which you can make up in sandwich bags from a large bag to save some money). Eating mindfully in small bites is also a good suggestion. Secondly, take a leap of faith that eating all those points is valid, based on the fact that you chose WW to help you lose weight.

 

crusinjerseygirl...I lost 40 pounds while working an office job without any significant extra exercise. It certainly is good for us, but not always doable.

[cruisinjerseygirl]

My opinon is to eat those points. For one thing, why feel hungry and deprived...this does not have to feel like a "diet" if you plan and eat all you are allowed. Certainly this happens some days, but I choose to eat the things I am able to eat. The popcorn hint is a good one, as are those 100 calorie snack packs (which you can make up in sandwich bags from a large bag to save some money). Eating mindfully in small bites is also a good suggestion. Secondly, take a leap of faith that eating all those points is valid, based on the fact that you chose WW to help you lose weight.

 

crusinjerseygirl...I lost 40 pounds while working an office job without any significant extra exercise. It certainly is good for us, but not always doable.

 

 

Thank you peaceful!!

 

And thank you all for the tips! I think I might start a thread to see what everyone eats...because although normally when I am not trying to lose I don't eat ice cream often, I have been eating the WW ice cream cups at the end of the night some are 2 and some are 3pts. They are so yummy!!! I happen to love the Turtle sundae and the mint choc chip. I realized that if I eat it slower and in smaller bites it's fulfilling to me, just as fulfilling as if I were to eat a larger portion of it. It's rough though. Last night I had a 10pt dinner so I wasn't my usual hungry at night and had low points all through out the day. I still had 4pts left at night and had a cup and went to bed 1pt shy of my points which to me I guess isn't so bad because most nights I have been going over between 1-4pts for the most part.

 

What I was trying to do before was eat all day long...a little breakfast, lunch then dinner...but the thing is I HATE eating in the morning and I didn't eat as early yesterday so I ended up not as hungry at night as I have been and felt good...had I done the usual a few points every few hours I would have been hungry again. I think I should just stick with what my body is telling me and not try to do the plan because although I have been losing very nicely I feel like I am starving myself...so I will eat just how I feel or when I feel I need to during the day.

[tooexcitedtogo]

I have yet to feel deprived or hungry. I thinkl my problem with eating enough points is that I love to snack on stuff like.. Cauliflower, broccoli, carrots, and most of all pea pods which are little to no points which actually makes it so I am not so hungry at meals. Shoot, I left my purse at work tonight so I can't do my points. Well,I'll do it in the morning. Does anyone know what point value Elk Jerky would have? I had my elk processed and can't find a point value. I have only had about 3 small peices since I started the program but I would like to know for future.

Thanks,

Lori

[KCcruisin07]

Hi,

I am on WW too. I like balsamic vinegar on salad too. Are you using olive oil with your balsamic vinaigrette? Somehow I missed the olive oil/flaxseed oil requirement in the beginning. It seemed strange to have to eat fat, but WW says the healthy kind helps.

[Peaceful]

Hi,

I am on WW too. I like balsamic vinegar on salad too. Are you using olive oil with your balsamic vinaigrette? Somehow I missed the olive oil/flaxseed oil requirement in the beginning. It seemed strange to have to eat fat, but WW says the healthy kind helps.

 

No, I do not use olive oil with the vinegar. I do get my 2 t fat in other ways. I am really lucky that my DH loves to cook and has been making us some new dishes from recipes he gets on a website devoted to WW point-friendly recipes. I also make sure to eat either black olives (10=1 pt), slivered almonds (1T=1 pt), or 1/4 cup avocado each day (2 pts; I buy nice ripe avocados, mashed them with a little lemon juice or lime juice, measure them into 1/4 c portions, and freeze in little baggies; only mashed avocado freezes well). These are good fats and have been shown to help reduce belly fat according to Prevention Magazine (and they taste good!) link below:

 

http://www.prevention.com/cda/categorypage.do?channel=weight.loss&category=flat.belly.diet&topic=flat.belly.diet.food

 

Too soon to tell if that is true for me, but is easy to incorporate into my daily foods.

 

Bonnie

[JPV072900]

Hello all, if you didn't see my new thread, my wife and I are trying to lose 10% by our cruise on 2/28/08.

 

After our first week, I've lost 2 pounds and my wife lost 1/2 pound.

 

We've done WW before and had some success, but of course, the weight always comes back on because we failed to at least maintain the weight we lost!!

 

We've also tried the Atkins diet and the South Beach diet. BOY, the weight just falls off in those first couple of weeks with those two diets, but be careful when you welcome those carbs back into your life!!! EASY TO LOSE--EASY TO GAIN!!

 

Anyway, I just wanted to share some things that I'm doing that may help you all!!

 

First, FIBER!!!! SO IMPORTANT!!! I've learned to give up all the fun cereals out there like Life Cereal and all the sugary cereals.

 

Now I eat FIBER ONE!! It doesn't taste great; it doesn't look great; and it's not cheap either!!!!! BUT, it has 14 grams of dietary fiber in one serving!!! And in WW land, it's weighs in at only ZERO points!!! I usually have 1-2 servings of this cereal for breakfast with either skim or 1% milk, and it's only a few points for the milk in the cereal. I need a lot of milk in it so I don't actually notice the lack of taste of the cereal. Also, it helps to eat this cereal while watching TV so you're not thinking about it!!

 

Usually I eat FIBER ONE or I have 1 or 2 packets of the Quaker Oatmeal Weight Control Cereal. I like to add a little Splenda to eat packet, and it has 6 grams of fiber in it!!!

 

Sometimes I'll eat an orange after breakfast, and that keeps me going all morning long!!

 

For lunch, I like to eat a sandwich, but not with bread. I use one of those high-fiber low-carb wraps. Sometimes I have the wrap with turkey and cheese or ham and cheese. Sometimes I'll have a Boca burger for lunch in one of those wraps. Those are high in fiber too!!

 

I try to have an orange after lunch as well, and then I'll have a Fiber One Chewy Bar. These bars are actually REALLY GOOD!! They're sweet and they have chocolate chips in them!! They have 9 grams of fiber, and they're 1.3 points in WW land!!!

 

That usually holds me over till dinner which is the toughest meal for me!! Whatever my wife cooks, I'll have for dinner. I just need to be so careful of my portions!! I'll try and have something sweet after dinner. Maybe sugar-free Jello pudding. Sometimes I'll have animal crackers with Cool-Whip (Fat free of course!) or maybe I'll have another Fiber One Chewy Bar!!! Also, I try to have another piece of fruit after dinner!!!

 

ALSO, I keep my Royal Caribbean water bottle with me from the afternoon on so that I drink my water every day!!! AND I go to the gym 5-6 times a week!!!

 

My wife and I started going to the gym back in October. We haven't lost any weight until we started our contest last week, but going to the gym CERTAINLY helped us keep from putting on weight over the holidays!!!

 

I heard that if you don't drink enough water, then your metabolism will slow down!! I think I heard that on the Biggest Loser!!

 

And, if you're hungry all the time, maybe you should try the South Beach diet!!! It basically cuts out all carbs except carbs from vegetables!!! It's a great diet because you can always find something to eat!!

 

And, someone just mentioned balsamic vinegar for salad dressing. My wife just made me a salad last week that was INCREDIBLE!!

 

We had a plate of mixed greens, then we put steak tips on the salad and blue cheese and grape tomatoes. THEN, she took a bottle of balsamic vinegar and 'reduced' it!! For those who don't know what 'reducing' is, it's simply cooking the vinegar on the stove for about 30 minutes. It boils, and it becomes almost like a syrup!!! It becomes really sweet and REALLY delicious!!! If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it!!!

 

Good luck with everyone, check my post next Friday to see our next weight results!!

[JPV072900]

Thank you peaceful!!

 

And thank you all for the tips! I think I might start a thread to see what everyone eats...because although normally when I am not trying to lose I don't eat ice cream often, I have been eating the WW ice cream cups at the end of the night some are 2 and some are 3pts. They are so yummy!!! I happen to love the Turtle sundae and the mint choc chip. I realized that if I eat it slower and in smaller bites it's fulfilling to me, just as fulfilling as if I were to eat a larger portion of it. It's rough though. Last night I had a 10pt dinner so I wasn't my usual hungry at night and had low points all through out the day. I still had 4pts left at night and had a cup and went to bed 1pt shy of my points which to me I guess isn't so bad because most nights I have been going over between 1-4pts for the most part.

 

What I was trying to do before was eat all day long...a little breakfast, lunch then dinner...but the thing is I HATE eating in the morning and I didn't eat as early yesterday so I ended up not as hungry at night as I have been and felt good...had I done the usual a few points every few hours I would have been hungry again. I think I should just stick with what my body is telling me and not try to do the plan because although I have been losing very nicely I feel like I am starving myself...so I will eat just how I feel or when I feel I need to during the day.

 

 

Hey everyone, how much of all those diet foods does everyone eat?? Does everyone eat a lot of those WW desserts and low-fat this and low-fat that?? Please, be careful of how much of those "diet" foods you consume! They may have a lot of sugar in them, or they may have a lot of fake sugars in them which don't help you lose much weight!!! I try to stay away from all those foods as much as I can.

 

For me, no more diet sodas and no more fat-free Pringles. I used to eat maybe 2-3 of those Fiber One bars at one sitting because they were only 1.3 points, but I wasn't losing any weight!!!!

 

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but water, exercise, fruits, vegetables, and controlled portions are the only successful way to lose weight. Come up with a plan that you can live with for the rest of your life, and you'll easily learn to maintain your weight lose!!!

 

I've always failed at diets and then quickly put the weight on, and then I lost 25 lbs back in July 2006. I was able to keep the weight off for over a year without gaining any weight back because I figured out that if I decided to pig out one day, then if I was careful for the next day or two then I maintained the weight loss!! I've put on 10 pounds over the last 5 months, but I'm losing it now, and I know I'll be careful going forward!!

 

VERY IMPORTANT!!!

[Peaceful]

You are very right about diet products and the use of points. Even 0 point items have points when eaten in quantity. Using a good points calculator is essential for me when in doubt. For example, those little 1 pt WW cakes are 3 pts if you eat two!

 

My feeling is that the scale tells the tale. If I do not lose in a week or two what I expect to lose (1-2 lb a week is rational for me), then I look back over my food journal (another critical tool for me) and make adjustments thusly. I do use the fat-free and sugar-free products as an adjunct to my daily food plan. I am careful to eat plenty of "real" food; the less processed food the better.

 

By the way, the reduction of the balsamic is a fabulous idea! I am going to try that!

[themnms]

I started WW the day after New Year's. Right now I'm eating so many carrots that I'm afraid I'm going to grow bunny ears and a fuzzy tail. :D

lmao I was lurking and almost fell off my chair!!

[peejay]

Count me in.........I will be on the Glory 03-1-08 and plan on looking great in a new bathing suit. I have been on WW since Sept and have lost a total of 33 lbs so far without a buddy. Imagine my surprise everytime I weight in. I have tried it all and love WW. I do the flex plan. I have so learned to eat my veggies. When WW says 5 fruits and veggies a day they mean it from what I can tell. Some of the ways I get them in is...... 1 egg w/1 egg white loaded with different veggies for breakfast. Or I will add fruit to 1 cup of high fiber cereal w/ 2% milk (rather use those points then got skim) On Sunday's I fix small baggies of assorted veggies and take them to work for my mid morning snack ~ no dressing 0 pts. Another snack I eat is 1 wedge of Laughing cow cheese 1pt w/ tlc multigrain crackers (15 for 2 pts) The fiber really helps. I very seldon use my extra 35 cause I am not a drinker. Oh yea, don't forget 94% ff free popcorn, the bomb!! 1pt! Also, V8 1pt! Sugar free jello with fruit. Just wanted to put some ideas out there for you all, the pumpkin fluff is great. There is a site called halfmysize dot com that has different fluff recipes and some other good stuff.

You can do it! By the way, incase you didn't know lean cuisine has WW pts right in the side of thier box, more variety!

[tooexcitedtogo]

Ok everyone.. I have a question.. I went to out of town today and ended up eating chinese food. The majority of what I ate was beef and broccoli (light on the beef and heavy on the broccoli), some shrimp, Some little squid that were not breaded just marinate in what tasted like vinegar and pepper flakes, and I had a lemonade. I think I did ok, ( I know I shouldn't have eaten there but....) but not sure what to deduct for points.. I was thinking like 15 to be safe.. What do you all think? HELP!!

[KCcruisin07]

Agree with JPV. From our experience vegetables (salads and soups) really make a difference. I think fiber helps to fill you if you are feeling hungry (especially with water). Fiber One cereal for breakfast helps...and exercise too.:)

[cruisinjerseygirl]

Here is my take on the foods that WW has to offer....if I don't eat them..like the dinners, yogurts, breads, I will just eat the regular fatty things that are around and go back to my old habits. I found that the WW dinners have loads of veggies in them which helps me out b/c I am not a veggie person at all. The yogurt that they offer is better than the other yogurts that are so high in fat. The breads that they offer for me work out...so I don't know I maintained my weight loss for a few years after I lost last time and went back to a regular menu cheating here and there. I find that the dinners and food lists that they offer help me bring certain foods back into my diet that I didn't normally eat. It's not rocket science you have to eat healthy but I think for someone like me who wouldn't normally eat healthy at all by sticking to it and seeing how I am losing helps me in the end when I decide I am ready to get off of all of their foods because it will help me change my habits. I have learned portion control since I started WW because I was eating like there was no tomorrow before and now I am watching myself more because I have a limit.

[Peaceful]

Ok everyone.. I have a question.. I went to out of town today and ended up eating chinese food. The majority of what I ate was beef and broccoli (light on the beef and heavy on the broccoli), some shrimp, Some little squid that were not breaded just marinate in what tasted like vinegar and pepper flakes, and I had a lemonade. I think I did ok, ( I know I shouldn't have eaten there but....) but not sure what to deduct for points.. I was thinking like 15 to be safe.. What do you all think? HELP!!

 

I didn't want you to think you were being ignored, but that's a tough one. You might try the site below for restaurant food points. Keep going, every day is a new one. Eating what we want and keeping the points calculated is the goal, and it seems you have done that. Nice job!

 

http://www.dwlz.com/WWinfoTOC.html

[Peaceful]

Here is my take on the foods that WW has to offer....if I don't eat them..like the dinners, yogurts, breads, I will just eat the regular fatty things that are around and go back to my old habits. I found that the WW dinners have loads of veggies in them which helps me out b/c I am not a veggie person at all. The yogurt that they offer is better than the other yogurts that are so high in fat. The breads that they offer for me work out...so I don't know I maintained my weight loss for a few years after I lost last time and went back to a regular menu cheating here and there. I find that the dinners and food lists that they offer help me bring certain foods back into my diet that I didn't normally eat. It's not rocket science you have to eat healthy but I think for someone like me who wouldn't normally eat healthy at all by sticking to it and seeing how I am losing helps me in the end when I decide I am ready to get off of all of their foods because it will help me change my habits. I have learned portion control since I started WW because I was eating like there was no tomorrow before and now I am watching myself more because I have a limit.

 

Since my husband started WW with me, he has figured he was eating somewhere in the vicinity of 5000 calories a day previously. He is a big guy and has 32 points right now (330 lb as of this morning), but realizes what a crazy amount of food he was eating. He has lost 15 lb in the last two weeks, (men!). Portion control is the entire answer. (Well, maintenance is the entire answer, but I have not figured that one out yet...sigh...). This time could be the one!

 

I lost 1.5 this week for a total of 7 lb in two weeks. For me that is awesome!

 

Our snack tonight was WW yogurt (1 pt) with 1/3 cup of All Bran (-1 pt). Yummy! This is a lot of fiber, be we do generally eat alot, so the effect is not as drastic as it could be for some.

[tooexcitedtogo]

Thanks for the reply. I go weigh in tomorrow so we'll see what happens. I did tell myself that I would not weigh at home though.. I don't want to get discouraged.. I wonder if I will get to the point where I feel comfortable in shorts for the cruise? I am 5' 9" and was 236, we'll see what happens.

[JPV072900]

Ok everyone.. I have a question.. I went to out of town today and ended up eating chinese food. The majority of what I ate was beef and broccoli (light on the beef and heavy on the broccoli), some shrimp, Some little squid that were not breaded just marinate in what tasted like vinegar and pepper flakes, and I had a lemonade. I think I did ok, ( I know I shouldn't have eaten there but....) but not sure what to deduct for points.. I was thinking like 15 to be safe.. What do you all think? HELP!!

 

Sounds like you ate a lot of good veggies and stuff. HOWEVER!! It's the sodium that's going to hurt!!! If my wife and I go out to a restaurant for dinner, no matter what we order, it takes a couple of days to lose the restaurant weight because of all the sodium they put in everything!! Especially a Chinese restaurant. Look up the sodium content of soy sauce and it may shock you!!!

 

I'm trying to be very careful about how much sodium I have! Soy sauce, hot sauce, I guess probably any sauce has way too much sodium!

[cruisinjerseygirl]

The sodium problem was my issue over the weekend I think because I went to a gathering and ate things that I wouldn't normally eat while following as well I went to my mother in laws. I weighed myself this morning and I am a pound heavier than I was on Friday. I figure that now I will get back on track because I have work today and it's easier for me to follow while at work and home and not going out to eat. I hope I have a good week as Thursday is my 3 week mark and would like to be down more than I was last Thursday. I did well the first 2 weeks up until friday and now so we shall see and I can't wait!

[Jeanie821]

Sounds like you ate a lot of good veggies and stuff. HOWEVER!! It's the sodium that's going to hurt!!! If my wife and I go out to a restaurant for dinner, no matter what we order, it takes a couple of days to lose the restaurant weight because of all the sodium they put in everything!! Especially a Chinese restaurant. Look up the sodium content of soy sauce and it may shock you!!!

 

I'm trying to be very careful about how much sodium I have! Soy sauce, hot sauce, I guess probably any sauce has way too much sodium!

 

I refer to soy sauce as "liquid salt".

 

Last night, after a very stressful weekend, I fell off the wagon. Back on this morning, but I'm feeling very sheepish.

[JPV072900]

I refer to soy sauce as "liquid salt".

 

Last night, after a very stressful weekend, I fell off the wagon. Back on this morning, but I'm feeling very sheepish.

 

 

Hey Jeanie821, what is Christian Singles??

[onceagain]

We'll be sailing Jan. 09 and I'd love to lose 50 pounds. I joined WW January 8 and have my first weigh in tomorrow night. I can't wait! I had a few tough meals, going out to eat, but I think I did o.k. I too get into that scale mentality (I've done this before!) and I find myself in a panic if it shows I've gained 1/2-1 pound - even if it's water weight. So...I decided not to step on the scale at all until I weigh in tomorrow, so we'll see. Actually, it's been so stress-free this week not stepping on that scale!! What ever happens, happens! I'm going to treat myself for a good week - regardless of what the scale says - so I'm going to buy the PB Bliss bars - can't wait. :)

[tooexcitedtogo]

Well everyone.. I weigh in tonight......... 4.2lbs. Yeah!!!!!!!!! Hey thats a start.. And now that I am exercising again... Well i'll do even better..

Lori:D

[pmoniz]

Weighed in and lost 7 lbs.!! I'm very excited, but I know not every week will be like this so I'm not psyching myself up! But I am happy with that.

 

My husband is doing great too. He lost 8 lbs. I just hope we can keep it up until our cruise in April.

 

Peejay - good for you!! I'm yet to get that popcorn!! I will find it! I just picked up some V8 yesterday and more sugar free jello! Love it!

 

I think this whole diet thing is what works for you best. Once you figure out what you can and shouldn't eat it gets a lot easier and having people like you all sharing what you do makes it a lot easier! Thanks all!

[Peaceful]

pmoniz--Weighed in and lost 7 lbs.!! I'm very excited, but I know not every week will be like this so I'm not psyching myself up! But I am happy with that.

 

tooexcitedtogo--Well everyone.. I weigh in tonight......... 4.2lbs. Yeah!!!!!!!!!

 

Weigh to go to both of you!

 

Bonnie