A Weight-loss Journey - July 20, 2001
Copyright 2001 by Rita Spillers
Hello, and welcome to another visit with me during my weight-loss journey!! April 10th marks the date that my journey began. If you are my ‘traveling pal’ on this “journey,” then I assume you, too, are trying to find the slimmer, healthier “you.” I hope you are having good success… It can certainly be a challenge at times for me, but I know it is paying off in the long run!
I must confess to you, I have had several recent weeks of having extra calorie temptations put before me, in particular one of my biggest summertime weaknesses…HOMEMADE PEACH ICE CREAM! We live in the Deep South (northern Louisiana) and in this part of the country “Ruston peaches” are a coveted fruit come June and July!! Ruston, LA, celebrates the “Peach Festival” in June, and it is a time when “homemade” peach cobblers and peach ice cream are rampant.
For someone like me, it’s one of my greatest weaknesses, and I fear that I have not been very ‘strong’ in avoiding eating it this time, and when I need to be trying my hardest to skip it completely!! When we attended the Peach Festival this year, they had run out of peach ice cream just before we arrived. What a favor that was for me, for I knew I could NOT have resisted. However, the next night at a church gathering, “guess what” the surprise dessert was? Yes, you guessed it….homemade peach ice cream! Yes, I gave in…
The following week my mother visited us and wanted to cook a special treat, so she made one of her delicious homemade peach cobblers. Again, I gave in to the temptation, although I had carefully and successfully been avoiding desserts up to this point. That was “two strikes against me” right there. Then the next week I was able to get a box of Ruston peaches, my first for the season. I enjoyed eating them fresh and that was good for my low-cal, low-fat efforts and me. However, the homemade peach ice cream my husband decided to make for us caused my good intentions to ‘fly right out the window.’ (He DID use no-fat and low-fat milk, but the SUGAR and milk were not “no-calorie”)
So I know you are sitting there scratching your head and saying, “What is WRONG with you, Rita? Have you forgotten your goal?” Well, no, I have not, and although I would “slip” and indulge in what I consider as the “deliciously unforbidden,” I still have managed to stay within the general agenda of my weight-loss efforts. Despite giving in to the “temptations,” I have somehow been able to still lose a LITTLE more weight, but not as much as I could and should have. To my delight and surprise, the scales read “195 pounds” yesterday morning. I honestly had expected them to have not dropped one bit, and would not have been surprised to see them GO UP a notch or two!! I have made a concerted effort to drink water, and I think that helps me more than anything else does at this point.
I don’t know about you, but my weight fluctuates within a day, as much as three pounds. It always has, and still does even now. The morning-time is my lowest weigh-in numbers, the heaviest being at night. I feel that it may be water retention causing the fluctuation.
Although I love starches such as potatoes and rice, I try to avoid them with most meals, preferring a ‘white’ meat/fish with servings of vegetables and/or salad (low-fat dressing or barely any dressing at all) and no bread or starches. (Which brings me to say…that’s another temptation I gave in to the other day…I was hungry for hot homemade biscuits and over-easy eggs and that’s what I ate that evening. One other day this week I gave in and ate two of the delicious yeast rolls at Logans. ANOTHER WEAKNESS.)
But even though I did cave in and turn to bread those two meals, I helped make up for it by consuming low-cal, low-fat foods for the other meals. I am not saying that it was “OK” for me to give in, but after that, I was able to give myself a new determination to try even harder to ‘get back on track’ and didn’t feel as tempted with foods after that. I have worked too hard to lose the weight-loss battle now!!! I’m not happy with myself that I’ve let the weight-loss slow down so much, but thankfully I did not gain…but I need to get back “on track” big-time!!! So now that I’ve said that, let me give you a report of what some of the recent comments have been from friends and family who had not seen me in several weeks or even a couple of months or more.
Almost two weeks ago I ran into my good friend Mary and her husband Bobby at the restaurant where I perform keyboard music. Mary and Bobby had just read the last article here and were talking to me about my “journey” and giving me their wonderful support. Mary said my progress and reading my story has been a source of encouragement to her, that she hopes to begin her own weight-loss journey.
I went to see my hairdresser for a trim this week, and she had not seen me for three weeks. This was her first time to say much of a comment about my weight-loss, but she brought up the fact that she was beginning to really see a difference and how she had first only noticed it only in my face and neck. She tells me how she has always heard that women “lose gradually from the face down,” and that she was starting to see it more in my “middle” region now.
I played a music gig in a stage-show band the following night, and while visiting with the audience before the show and at intermission, I saw friends I had not seen in months, some even a year or longer! To my happy delight, I was able to wear clothes that I had not worn in two or three years, and that gave me a big “lift” in itself. I must admit I am feeling much better about myself from that accomplishment alone! As I greeted the crowd, I got quite a few private comments from close friends who I know care about me and had not seen me in a while. Some of them were aware of my “journey.”
My friend Jimmye Sue called me over to compliment me and say how she could now see a bigggg difference, and it had only been about 4 weeks since she had last seen me. Another friend, Jo, told me she could see it in my shoulders and stomach most of all. (My stomach is and has always been my BIGGEST problem area, no pun intended!!!)
My brother Ken saw me yesterday for the first time in several months, and he was not aware of my weight-loss efforts. He called me “Skinny” to my face (meaning it as a compliment) and commented on how good he thought I was looking (weight-wise). He asked my mother privately, “How much weight has Rita lost?” So apparently it is noticeable!!
These were an example of some of the personal comments from people who have expressed their thoughts on my weight-loss. I have had some wonderful letters from some of you who have read my article and sent me your support, and many of you have told me this encourages you to have more determination and effort in your own personal weight-loss programs. Some of you have shared with me some of the struggles you have faced in your own attempts to lose weight and find a comfortable eating style that works best for you.
For me, I consider it a “journey” in the sense that it’s a new life-style of eating for me, one I plan to maintain and continue for always. Yes, I do slip up and give in now and then, but as long as I keep focused on my goals, I think I will be able to make a success of my attempts. I am more determined than ever to “keep on keeping on.”
If you care to write and share your thoughts or comments about this article or to express tips or suggestions that could help not only me but also help other readers trying to attain a slimmer, healthier body, please contact me.
We are also hoping for more low-fat, low-cal recipes to share with others, and will be starting a new site for low-fat cooking soon. Please feel free to send your recipes in! And I wish for you a great journey, til we meet again!
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The following weight-watcher’s recipe was submitted by my dear friend, Pat K, who has had her own experiences of weight-loss and is within site of her goal weight. The road has been very rocky for Pat at times, especially after the personal tragedy of losing a child and how she learned to find “comfort” in food.
DREAMSICLE PUDDING
From Pat Kellemeyer
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients:
1 box instant vanilla pudding, sugar-free (2 points)
1 can mandarin oranges, drained (1 pt)
1 container fat-free Cool Whip, 8 oz (6 points)
l box sugar free Orange Jello (1 point)
Dissolve Jello in 1 cup boiling water. Add 3 ice cubes to a cup and fill with cold water. Stir until dissolved and set aside for 5 minutes to cool. Drain oranges and set aside. With electric mixer stir in instant pudding (dry) to Jello, beating until pudding is well mixed. Let stand for 15 minutes then fold in the thawed cool whip and then the oranges.
SERVING SIZE: 1 cup
WW POINTS: 2.5