When the opportunity to trial Weight Watchers for a month presented itself, Hills District Mum Michele jumped at the chance to test it out. If you’ve always been curious, here’s how she found the program.
A trial of Weight Watchers for a month – seemed like a no brainer and I figured it might work well in the lead up to the busy Christmas period, so I put my hand up immediately. This was it. This was the kick start I needed. I know all about healthy eating, I have the dusty cookbooks to prove it. I know how great exercise is for your health, I’ve read a million ‘how to’ articles on it. However I just never got around to doing anything about it.
Then came this opportunity and I took it. And then I crapped myself!
My first Weight Watchers meeting was on a Saturday morning. I woke up not knowing what to expect and feeling very nervous. Then I arrived and all my fears melted away. My mentor, Carolyn, greeted me like an old friend. She spent time with me explaining how the program worked, giving me information and telling me about her journey, which was comforting. She had been where I was now standing, about to hit the scales, and after her success had chosen to help women and men through their own weight loss journeys.
The Dreaded Moment had arrived….I stepped on the scales. It was the hardest thing I’ve done in a long time. I was the heaviest I have ever been. I felt fear and anxiety wash over me. But there was no pointing and no gasping from the women around me – I half expected some shaking of heads, I’ll be honest – instead there was support and understanding. We sat and listened to Carolyn for an hour. Each week we would learn something new about health and fitness, and we would get to take away a booklet on the subject so we could read and keep being motivated through the week. We shared our own personal struggles in the group as well as successes.
Some background information: The Weight Watchers program works on a points system. Each item of food has a ‘points’ value and your coach will tell you when you join how many points in a day you are allocated. On top of this there are also ‘extra’ points each week that can be used for a special occasion – for example, going out for a restaurant dinner (maybe a wine or champers). You can check online how much each item of food is worth points-wise or even better – there are recipes already to go with points tallied so you don’t have to even think about counting! I used these recipes throughout my journey and they were delicious and filling.
Back at home I found the Weight Watchers program was easy to follow. Once you sign up, you get access to their online program. Recipes, exercise routines and the best thing I found – 24hr online support from a real live person! If you had any questions or were at all struggling with what to do, you just log on and in a minute you are live chatting with one of the Weight Watchers support staff who can help coach you through your questions or just be there for support. It’s such a wonderful part of the program!
Over the four weeks I lost 2.4kgs, with 9cm from my waist and 5cms from my hips – I was thrilled! My progress had been steady and I was very happy with what I had achieved over the month and where I am now headed. I have learnt that I am in control of my loss by being in control of what foods I eat, portion sizes and my fitness each day. I don’t see a day where I eat something I know I shouldn’t as a failure. I take another look at my meal planner and go online, or speak with a consultant or my coach for some motivation to keep going and reach my goal.
So to those mums who have um-ed and ah-ed about giving it a go and with the new year just started, I would say now is the perfect time! Weight Watchers is a fantastic program for anyone. There are no gimmicks, no starving, no meal replacements and everyone is welcomed and supported. I am so grateful to have had this experience and can’t wait to reach my goal weight so I can celebrate with my mentor and group!
My Weight Watchers journey day by day…
Day 1 – Feeling pumped. Eating well and not starving. Cravings haven’t kicked in. Yet……
Day 3 – Still planning meals from the online recipes and a recipe book I purchased from the meeting. Having sweets cravings now, so I have found a Weight Watchers Coconut Bar in the supermarket that is only worth 2 points! SCORE!!! Ate 2 and still managed to keep within my day’s tally. Awesome.
Day 7 – Weigh in. Nervous. No need to be. Lost 1.5kg! This has been a killer week and I am so proud. Was not expecting this result.
Day 14 – Weigh in. After a great week of eating healthy I don’t feel like I have made much progress. And I didn’t. Weight gain of 0.5kg. Carolyn talked me through the feeling of disappointment and told me not to focus on the numbers. This happens. Especially in the second and third weeks. The idea is to stay consistent with the program and my body will loose the weight. Going to take up walking.
Day 21 – Weigh in. Loss of 0.9kg. Very happy as I have taken up walking and continued with my program consistently even though I was really sick this week. Feeling good about the loss and where I’m at with the program and the support.
Day 28 – Final weigh in – loss of 0.5kg bringing my total to 2.4kg. We originally measured my waist and hips and I lost 9cms and 5cms respectively from them! What a great result! Carolyn was as proud as if she had achieved this herself. I am so grateful for the women who helped give me advice and supported me through this, and I would highly recommend Weight Watchers to anyone looking to start their own weight loss journey.
Weight Watchers holds regular meetings in several suburbs throughout the Hills including Carlingford, West Pennant Hills, Cherrybrook, Baulkham Hills, Winston Hills, Castle Hill, Kellyville and Rouse Hill. To find a meeting near you, click here.
