This post is part of a series on how I got where I am, which is a good place.
In my last retrospective Sunday, I discussed how I decided while I wanted to lose weight and get into better shape, I didn’t want to try weight loss surgery… yet. I wanted to see if I could reduce the food I ate without that.
I’m pretty surprised I tried Weight Watchers. I’m not a joiner, and heck, I know how to lose weight! Why, I’ve been doing it all my life! The whole weigh-in procedure seemed humiliating, and then a meeting with a bunch of fat people talking about not eating… what could be more boring? And how would I find the time?!? I am a full-time working mother whose twin boys were then 4, and I felt guilty for every second I spent away from them.
Here are some of the reasons why I decided to go:
- I had tried doing the online program alone a few years before. It worked for a little while, but
- My doctor recommended the program. All of you doctors out there who talk to your patients and feel like they never listen, at least one of us did listen. My doctor said he went on the program to lose weight himself, and that was a big endorsement, since if anyone knows everything there is to know about weighloss, it’s doctors, right?
- My husband kept saying he wanted to go. Why he kept telling me and didn’t go himself, I don’t know. But I knew it was something he wanted to do, and maybe if I did it he would come along, too.
- My husband said he’d watch the kids for the hour it took on a Saturday morning. You’d better believe I took him up on that offer!
- Weight Watchers did not have annoying, fat-hating ads. No humiliating before and afters. No celebrities.
- Weight Watchers was relatively low-obligation. No food you had to buy. That’s not to say it’s not low commitment; if anything, it is higher commitment than other programs precisely because you do have to think and plan for yourself.
- The program is based on science, not celebrity testimonials or diet flavors of the week.
- The program lets you make your own choices. If you want to do vegetarian Weight Watchers, or high-protein, go for it.
- Online tools and articles help you educate yourself and receive support. The online tracker makes it easier to track your food.
It was a big step for me, to go to that first meeting. I was making a public commitment, not just dieting in secret with the hope I’d surprise everyone (including myself) but not having to deal with failure if I didn’t do it.
I’d be interested in hearing about how others picked the system/diet/whatever they use!
Next Week: Tracking
