As God as my witness...

I'll never be FAT (or hungry) again!

Today I want to share my weight loss experiences with you. I have lost over 60 pounds twice. The following is an essay my Weight Watcher's leader urged me to write when I hit my goal last February. I won second place! I'd like to lose a few more pounds though. And let me say I did not exercise this whole time. I think that's what it'll take to tone up and get to my personal (not WW) goal.

After 18 years of being overweight and having an obsession with food, I AM CURED! I started putting on weight my junior year of high school in 1989. I had always had bad eating habits, but cheerleading kept the pounds away. The exercise stopped and the pounds came on quickly. By 1995 I weighed 206 pounds at 5’4”. I spent many years depressed and became reclusive. I didn’t want anyone to see how fat I had gotten. I tried Weight Watchers a few times but when I would have a gain I’d get embarrassed and quit.

Finally after yo-yo dieting and trying every fad diet out there I lost 64 pounds and weighed in at 142 the summer of 2004. A few short months later my husband and I found out I was expecting! Ah!! Bring on the food! I’m pregnant, I can eat whatever I want…. And I did! pizza, powdered sugar doughnuts, Nutter Butter cookies, Cheezits and 100 Grand Bars were my staples. I piled on the helpings, especially at potlucks. Oh and cheesecake, I forgot to mention the cheesecake!!

Nine months later my delivery weight was 216+ pounds. I couldn’t wait to lose the weight again, as I had had just a small taste of how it felt! Plus I collect vintage clothing from 1800-1960 and it’s hard to find large sizes! I started right away with fad diet “A”. It just wasn’t working. Luckily a friend told me about the new CORE program from Weight Watchers. I decided to try it because Weight Watchers had always seemed like the most practical and realistic plan. This time I joined with no holds barred. I was going to make goal!

Core is absolutely wonderful! I can eat any time I am hungry, and as much as I need to feel satisfied. Plus I still get points to use for treats. Learning to listen to my body has made all the difference. I no longer gorge myself. I love the Core list and have tried many new recipes. Stomping out sugar and refined foods has done wonders for the way I feel. As long as my kitchen is Core friendly, sticking to plan is a breeze! I don’t feel I’m dieting at all. I love going to meetings and my leader is so fun and supportive. Journaling is key as well as shrugging off a gain.

After averaging about a pound a week I hit my goal plus achieved Lifetime status … and it didn’t take me 10 years to do it! I feel cured and so free from my food addiction. Core has also brought family time back to the table. No more running through the drive-thru in a hurry. We make meals from scratch and sit down at the table to eat. We can still go out for pizza or dessert and I don’t feel guilty. I’ve been maintaining my weight of 138 pounds, I’m dressing vintage and life is good!

To view a slideshow of my yo-yoing over the years, click here. Or use this link to see the photos and descriptions individually. You will also see a list of some of what I normally eat now.

I was a huge Atkins fan for quite some time. But it really only works if you do it correctly as written. And it's just not practical for life. I've got to have some different textured foods! I always said if they could mix Atkins with Weight Watcher's points, that would be the perfect diet. And basically, that's what CORE is. Core doesn't eliminate any food groups. There are certain foods that are not core, but you get so many points a week to eat those. It could be anything you want! If you are struggling with weight issues, I cannot reccomend Weight Watcher's CORE enough. Your pounds will be *Gone With the Wind*.....

And now for some Gone With the Wind trivia~ Did you know that Vivien Leigh refused to do the "wretching" noises in this scene? It's the gagging of Olivia de Havilland (Melanie) you hear!