Sunday, January 17, 2021

Giving Weight Watchers another shot

Back in 2006, my employer hosted a Weight Watchers at Work group, so I joined - and lost a bunch of weight (I don't remember the exact amount through WW).  Once the group ended, I continued using Sparkpeople.com and lost even more weight - total between the two was over 80 pounds.  I started this blog (November 2007) when I was down that 80 pounds and had another 50 to go.  Fast forward to 2021, I've regained a lot of that weight, and yo-yo'd quite a bit in those 14 years.  Currently, I'm about 42 pounds down from my highest weight - which means I still have 80+ pounds to go.  Eegh.  Baby steps, I know...

I came across the Weight Watchers site again this week, having read about their latest updates for 2021 (including re-branding as WW... ooookay!).  I'm giving them a three month try again - and instead of using Sparkpeople.com (I felt they got spammy over the years), I've reactivated my old myfitnesspal.com account to track my diet as well.  I figure that using them both at the same time will help give me a more well-rounded analysis of my diet - and then I can decide if I want to keep paying for WW.

I've chosen the WW+ Purple plan as my plan, as it allows for the most zero point foods.  It's interesting to see how the WW program has evolved since 2006 - now there's more of an emphasis on counting sugar grams, not just fat.  As someone who gained a ton of weight while inhaling Snackwells cookies back in the '90s, I can assure you, it's not just about low-fat eating. ;)  I'll be curious to see how things go, and keeping track in two apps might be a bit of a pain, but it's good to see things side by side and hopefully figure out things for the long term.  Wish me luck! ;)

Friday, January 1, 2021

Hello, 2021.

Wow, a lot has happened since I started this blog back in 2007... and honestly, not a lot has happened personally since my last update almost two years ago.  Rather than looking backwards, I'll just write about where I am today.

The weight loss struggles continue, of course.  I am still in constant pain after the car accident over two years ago.  I've now started seeing a neurologist since we know there are damaged nerves involved.  Due to the coronavirus pandemic, my physical therapy stopped entirely in mid-March last year, and partially resumed a few months later (sadly, no more water therapy though, since indoor pools were never re-opened).  I've paused all physical therapy again as of last month due to the spike in cases around here and the lax precautions at the PT location.  I really need to find a new place, but it can wait another month or two until the case volume around here drops down again.  

As for my weight, I've actually lost about 20 pounds during the past year!  I credit it entirely to intermittent fasting.  I strive for a daily 16 hour fast - usually ~8pm-noon.  I've been doing this for just over a year, and started tracking it on Zero almost a year ago.  Looking back through their app right now, I missed the 16 hour mark 20 times last year - usually I still made it to 15 hours.  On my birthday though, I had breakfast. ;)  I've had a couple of 19 hour fasts, and my average is 17.

Honestly, not eating after kiddo goes to bed is a difference maker here.  I'm sure I used to eat several hundred calories after kiddo's bedtime every night.  It's really hard though - I am definitely an emotional eater and would loooooooooove to sit down with a sweet treat when the house is quiet. ;)  I've definitely adjusted to not eating breakfast, and most days I keep fasting for an hour or so after my Zero app tells me I've hit my 16 hour goal.

I do so very much miss my group exercise classes, and I hate that walking still hurts, but hopefully everything will get easier as the year moves along...

My goals for 2021 are to stay healthy, move more and eat healthfully.