Brand NEW Year - 2010 - PICK YOUR TEN!!!!!

Isn't it exciting? A brand new year for us: The year of 2010!
All beginnings are exciting, filled with promise.
I'd like you to consider making your weight loss goal a "10" this year.
10% of your body weight

OR
10 pounds

Why one of those?
If you lose 10% of your body weight, your health is likely to improve.

Read this article for the upshot. Then we'll discuss the ten pound option.

The Big 10 Percent

Article By: Sandra Gordon

Losing 10 percent of your body weight is not only the first big step toward your ultimate goal weight, but it can also reduce your risk for many diseases ' and increase your self-esteem.
Striving for your wedding-day weight or some other magic number on the scale can be daunting. It's much easier to reach for an incremental goal that promises sizable health benefits: Losing just 10 percent of your current body weight."So many projects in life are better managed by breaking them down into small chunks," says Karen Miller-Kovach, MS, RD, chief scientist at Weight Watchers International. "Weight loss is no different."
But the body you've always wanted isn't all you'll get out of accomplishing that one starter goal. Here's what else you'll gain by losing 10 percent:A Healthier HeartBy losing just 10 percent of your body weight, you can lower your cholesterol and reduce your blood pressure, says G. Ken Goodrick, PhD, psychologist and associate professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. High cholesterol and elevated blood pressure are two major risk factors for heart disease.Lower Risk of Type 2 DiabetesIf you're overweight, you're at increased risk for type 2 diabetes, which means your body can't make enough, or properly use, insulin, a hormone that helps convert food to usable energy. By losing just 10 percent of your body weight, you'll improve your body's ability to use the insulin it makes, possibly preventing the onset of the disease, Miller-Kovach says. If you already have type 2 diabetes, shedding that 10 percent may improve your symptoms and possibly prevent complications, she adds.More Pep"Just a 10 percent weight loss increases feelings of vigor and vitality," says Miller-Kovach. "You'll feel better and have more energy." A Mental EdgeLosing 10 percent can give you the self-confidence and motivation you need to keep going. "Success builds on success," says Miller-Kovach. But be sure you recognize it. The "10%" key chain your Weight Watchers leader gives you is part of that recognition. "Losing 10 percent is a milestone in the journey," says Miller-Kovach. "Once you get there, take the time to congratulate yourself on your efforts." Reality CheckAfter losing 10 percent, you gain a sense of what it will take to lose the rest and reach your final goal weight. "It gives you a context in terms of saying, 'Am I willing to put in that much more effort to lose even more weight?'" Miller-Kovach says. If the answer is no, that's okay. "Some people only lose 10 percent and that's it," says Goodrick. If that's you, pat yourself on the back. "Health-wise, a 10-percent weight loss is a great achievement," Goodrick says.

So, 10% of your body weight can be a goal....you don't have to lose every extra pound on your body to feel better. Make a doable goal for yourself this year- and feel better about yourself!
And if 10% is too much for now- just go for a simple TEN POUNDS. You will surely drop a size or two! And feel so much better.
My advice: Take a WHOLE TEN WEEKS! The first ten weeks in 2010, our Weight Watchers meetings are going to be a ten week boot camp! We will focus on a SPECIAL SKILL each week that we will share in the meeting room and then take home with our new Weight Watchers Weekly mini-magazine to help us practice that skill.
Think about it: learn ten skills, to keep off ten pounds for good....and that would be a just fine goal for the new year of TEN!