I'm on a diet

I wrote this post back on April 13th, but am just now posting it...

I guess I’m overdue on a progress report. I’m still running daily; trying to get in shape for the fall running season. And I’m still struggling to run 3 miles. I can run 2 miles consistently, but my mileage can’t seem to creep beyond that before my shins and knees start hurting.

Slurpee has been running with me at most EWH3 hashes and suggested I diet while I train. She started her diet a couple of weeks ago, and to date, both she and Toothfairy have lost approximately 3-5 pounds each. Now don’t think that I gorge on tubs and tubs of Ben & Jerry interspersed with Butterfingers. I don’t. Although I like sweet food, I’m more tempted by salty pleasures. In all seriousness, though, I generally eat healthy. I overindulge by cooking comfort foods: pot roast, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, pasta with meatballs….you get the picture.

So, I asked around – who’s currently dieting and how are they doing it? Tuppy, Hand 2 Hand, and Earshot all lost weight on Weight Watchers. Slurpee and Toothfairy are counting calories and depending on each other to keep it going. Well, I’m not likely to be consistent counting calories online in a food journal, but attending motivational meetings sounds good. I’ll do anything that has a social aspect to it. Hand 2 Hand gave me a basic primer on the works and at $40 a month, it didn’t sound like a bad idea. I have to be able to run 10 miles by mid-July!

So, I get up early on Sunday, make breakfast for myself and @ss Spelunker and head off to my first Weight Watchers meeting.

Week 1 - Day 1: Meeting

Weight: 220.2

10% Goal: 198

Ultimate Goal: 160

Yipers! 220! Where do I hide it? This 10% goal thing, apparently, is a Weight Watchers (WW from here on out) motivational approach to make it sound like losing 60 pounds isn’t that far away. I prefer just to be honest about the fact that I’m fat now. Another curious item: WW measures weight in 1/10 of a pound. Is that really necessary? What’s the big deal if you lose 3/10ths of a pound in one week? Again that motivational approach of theirs. Hmmmm.

Just as I figured, the room is mostly filled with 45 – 60 year women (and a couple of men) who are in serious need of weight loss (probably on doctors’ orders). There are actually a few people under 45, and those that are, are in generally the same shape as me – tipping the overweight scale, in need of weight loss, but lacking the boob-to-belly rolls of fat that seem to be prevalent in this room.

The topic of today’s discussion? Exercise. Funny. The reason I’m here is because I want to be able to exercise more – 24.2 miles more to be exact. WW encourages walking – heavily. And that is no ding on walking. Walking is extremely healthy exercises and is an exercise that anyone of any capability is typically capable of performing. However, burning calories/fat/pounds/what have you while walking is difficult unless you power-walk or briskly walk for over an hour. Round-robin of the room shows that is the favored exercise of choice, followed closely by swimming. Hmmmm.

Following the meeting, there is a first-timer introduction to the meal plans – flex and core. Core allows you to as much as you want as long as it is on WW’s healthy food list. These foods typically consist of non-processed, whole foods, which require cooking to make them appetizing for the most part. Again, no knock on healthy food – I like fruits and veggies, but how many people want to make marinara sauce from scratch? Besides, beer is NOT on that list. Flex plan it is, then. This is the stereotypical WW plan where you get to count points (not calories!). The different thing about this diet is that you are required to eat your daily points – not save them. There are 35 weekly points that can be budgeted if you need/want them.

My daily allowable points - 28