The older I get, the more I realize what I thought of as black and white truths are no longer so clear! Continually, I give my Weight Watchers advice on maintenance: You have to continue eating JUST what you are eating now (to lose weight)- plus a few extra POINTS.
I've tried to stress that enjoying your "diet" foods, in order to make losing more enjoyable and sustainable, is key to long-term success. And- if you ENJOY those foods enough, you can keep eating them to maintain your weight, plus a few treats added in.
Just when I was sure I had the scoop on maintenance, I realized I was wrong.
Now I realize that many of us continually change what we eat. Take holiday menus. Even though I faithfully save my menus from year to year, I end up creating new dishes and sometimes don't make a single item from previous years. Tastes change, ideas change and we change.
So- will I be able to maintain my weight? YES- if you learn the principles that Weight Watchers teaches: 1. Count your POINTS and 2. Keep your portions reasonable or better yet, measure your food.
The National Weight Control Registry http://www.nwcr.ws/ gathers information on successful maintainers. They find that people often succeed with a "supportive weight loss group." (guess who?) And they find that people often succeed on maintenance with using some kind of a food diary to help keep them on track. Surprised?
What works, works! Use your "supportive group" to get you through your weight loss challenge. Use your tracking as your number one tool to keep you on track. Explore the NWCR's website for more ideas. You'll see that Weight Watchers promotes every single thing that the researchers have figured out.
You have to like the food you are eating to lose weight- otherwise you'll be a dropout. Take the time to explore new recipes on the WW website and from our cookbooks. Look forward to maintenance, but make sure to enjoy the journey of getting there.
No comments:
Post a Comment