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| Left: January 20, 2014 (149.4 lbs), Right: February 20, 2014 (140.4 lbs) |
As one of my New Year's Resolutions (along with every other person in the world), I vowed to be healthier. Of course, along with being healthy, I'm also trying to lose some weight. However, I don't just want to lose X amount of pounds and then revert to my old lifestyle - I'm trying to find the right balance of foods to be stronger, fitter, and healthier overall, which I intend to continue with after I've lost the weight I want to lose!
This is where Weight Watchers comes in. A few years ago, I lost a significant amount of weight (between 30-35 pounds) on my own without any diet plan or specific regime - I simply did what worked. However, I quickly reverted back to old habits after I had lost all that weight and within two years I had gained about 15 pounds back. This brings me back to the present - because I hadn't learned exactly what I should be eating and how much, I didn't know how to continue with it. I decided to join Weight Watchers about a month ago because I just wanted to try it out, to see what all the fuss was about; since then, I think I've started to learn how to manage my diet while still being able to eat foods that I love.
Within one month, I lost 9 pounds, and I couldn't be happier! My overall goal is to lose a total of 29 lbs, so I'm nearly a third of the way there. As you can see from the pictures above, even a month of hard work can start to pay off. I'm not quite there, but it's a work in progress, and I'm working my way to the finish line.
I started out Weight Watchers on a semi-healthy diet, I generally don't eat too many unhealthy sweets, but I was simply eating too large of portions, which is one thing I've learned how to control. Since starting the program, I've also gotten back into exercise, which I took a break from for about 18 months. This was due to spending 12 months in Germany, where I couldn't afford a gym membership, and then the last 6 or so months in the US were due to my hectic schedule and pure laziness. However, I've stepped it up this year and am now going to the gym on average between 4-6 times per week.
That being said, I don't solely rely on the gym to get me to my health goals - diet is extremely important. I usually eat three meals a day, with a fairly large snack in the afternoon, as well. They say that diet is 80% of getting you to your weight goals and exercise is the other 20%. Simply put, if you're going to the gym and working your ass off, but you're heading to McDonald's afterwards, you're not going to see results. This is how Weight Watchers keeps me on track.
I'm allotted 26 points of food per day, and then an additional 7 indulgence points on top of that. Activity points are also added throughout the week, in case you over-indulge. However, I try to stick to the main 26 points a day, but I will occasionally dip into my indulgence points. I mostly use Weight Watchers as a way to track my food for the day, as well as a motivational tool. The way I see it, if I'm paying for it with my hard-earned cash, I'm damn well going to get my money's worth!
I would recommend Weight Watchers to beginners who are trying to find a place and a way to start a healthier lifestyle. However, if you're well on your way, or if you are able to track your calories/fat/carbs on your own (notebook style), you may not need to bother with Weight Watchers. However, I've personally found it very useful and helpful to keep me on track, and I think it's helping me to achieve an overall lifestyle, which I can continue to maintain!
Weight Watchers has different plans for different costs, I'm currently using the monthly plan, which is $18.95 a month. There is also generally a sign up fee, but I was able to sign up without that due to a special deal that was going on (it might still be going on). There is also a three-month plan, and you can join meetings, if that's what will motivate you most (but I believe those are more expensive). However, I've found the monthly online plan to work very well for me.
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NOTE: This is not a sponsored post, I simply wanted to put my experience with Weight Watchers out there for those who might be interested in the program.
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