CHANGE OF HABITS- CHANGE OF LIFESTYLE

Weight Watchers always emphasizes that you have to change your lifestyle. Just what the heck does that mean?

During a meeting last April, three delightful volunteers, Anne, Elaine and Kay, explained just what they were doing to lose and maintain their weight loss. The three of them have lost about 150 pounds over the past year.

Each of them have changed their grocery shopping habits- and of course, their cooking methods. Elaine makes sure to eat less on days after she has an "occasion." Kay has given up butter and full fat dairy for lighter versions and incorporated brand new meals in place of "meat and potatoes." Anne, who was in the midst of her maintenance phase, told us that when she goes out to eat, she's "choosy," and asks for things to suit her diet.

My favorite quote: "If you keep on doing what you always did, you'll keep on getting what you always got." These successful ladies did change their lifestyles. It is the ONLY WAY to keep it off. And they changed their lifestyle, ONE HABIT AT A TIME. You change how you shop. You change how you cook. You change what you order when you go out. You change your freezer content by buying tiny ice creams instead of larger containers. You stop even walking near the Cinnabon. YOU need to change the habits that work for you.

I often say that MAINTENANCE is doing what you did to lose weight PLUS a few POINTS. You have to keep eating those thoughtful, planned, tried and true meals that you ate when you were "dieting;" yet, you get to make your portions a little bigger or have an extra treat or two. But, you'll never want to go back to eating the whole bag of chips or the whole box of cookies. Those habits will have to be excised in order to stay at your goal.

Change one habit at a time- change your lifestyle. You can do it. You can really enjoy your new style.