A recipe for SUCCESS.

Desire+Action+A Goal+Motivation+Meetings+Tracking+Activity= SUCCESS

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

Last night as Bob and I sat talking about who knows what. My mind was drifting to this morning e-mail. As a rule, and I am sure you all can tell, I don't plan these things, I tend to get dressed for the gym, get my first cup of coffee set down here and ''let 'er rip". However, last night the above words kept coming to my mind. Then when I woke this morning, I knew what they all meant.

When we walked into our first Weight Watchers meeting, we had the Desire, or we would not have been there. When we stayed to listen to the program being explained to us, that was where we acquired the Action, then we began to think about A Goal, does not matter that it may or may not have changed since the day we got the Desire & Action. Then we needed to be pushed alone, and that is where we needed the Motivation to be added, so we read success stories, we listened to others that had reached their goal, and that as a rule was happening at a weekly Meeting or in some cases through e-mails. Now we have the Desire, we have put in the Action, we set ourselves A Goal, we began to get Motivated with our Meetings, then we found out there is still something we need to do. How do we keep ourselves in chek? Tracking, yes, every B.L.T. (Bite, Lick or Taster) has to be counted. All is going well, things begin to slow a bit, then we find out we have to do something else still, something to shake things up just a bit. Now what could that be? ACTIVITY, if you don't use it, you will lose it, so we needed to get in that Activity.

Now we have the recipe. Desire+Action+A Goal+Motivation+Meetings+Tracking+Activity. Shake well on a daily basis and I truly believe the outcome will be the most wonderful, high rise of Success any of us could ever hope for. Makes for a much ''lighter'' version of oneself as well.

Wishing Everyone a Great Day,

Much Love to All,

Joan

Friend Are Family

Friends are the siblings God forgot to give us.

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

Bob survived the night the Sister Weight Watcher Friends Forever. As Jenny, Lisa (Love's wife) & Jana can agree, he (Bob) was fading fast. :) Bob wanted me to tell you all how much he enjoyed your being here, and now he will be able to put faces with the names when I am talking about you.

I am passing on the gym this morning due to sore feet and legs. At the end of yesterday I had a grand total of 12.5 miles in. Four of those were done on the elliptical yesterday morning, but the 8.5 was done going like a chicken with her head cut off getting ready for a very fun evening. I so enjoyed having everyone here, and we are going to do it again, but next time it will be pot luck. Everyone bring something they make with the recipe to share, and Randy has already volunteered to bring the yogurt/cool whip free treats.

I will print out the recipes and bring them Saturday, had planned on getting that done before everyone got here yesterday, but ran out of time. I know another excuse, ha. Now if anyone would like these recipes and won't be there this Saturday let me know, send me your snail mail address and I will mail them to you. Even if you didn't get to come, and you saw the menu for last night and are interested same deal.

I do think that "Friends are the siblings God forgot to give us". I've always called Lisa (Love's wife) my sister, and Jenny has been like a sister to me for years, then I have my TISSter in Oregon, and there is Sally who at times we are sister's and other times I have to become the Mom, even though Sally has a great Mom, I tend to take over that duty when she comes for a visit. ha Sally is a hard child to control, its take two of us. ha ha.

We may all come and go from Weight Watchers, but I do know one thing for sure, if that ever happens to me, I will never ever forget the wonderful friends I have made from my Saturday morning Weight Watchers meeting. So I look at my Weight loss journey as a double benefit....not only have I lost weight, and am on my 5th week of maintenance, but due to my being overweight, this is how I have met each and everyone of you and have come to love you with all my heart.

Wishing Everyone a wonderful day, and thank you all so much for sharing your evening with Bob and I.

Much Love,

Joan & Bob

Don't want to be a know it all.

The easier it is to do, the harder it is to change.

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

Hope everyone that needed to get back on track yesterday after the long weekend had success in doing so. Bob and I are so looking forward to having everyone over tonight that can be here. Bob said he would take a second nap today just so he could keep up with us. :>)

Did anyone watch Oprah yesterday? Now to be very honest I liked Oprah before she became so famous, but from time to time if I have tuned in to her program just to see what is going on. Yesterday was one of those days, and it turned out to be a re-run, but I had not seen it. It was about Oprah coming clean about her weight gain. The interesting thing, and I have seen this trait in others as well as in myself. But, when Oprah was 160 pounds, she showing off her uncovered belly, for me it has been showing off my butt, but, I keep it covered. :) Something she said did sound just like me, and I immediately looked over at Bob and said, ''I am surprised someone has not slapped the sap out of me." Oprah was saying how she, when she was 160 pounds, kept telling everyone, ''you can get up a half hour early to get your 30 minutes of exercise in, you can eat healthy without spending your whole day in the kitchen. Just things like that. Then Oprah put back on 40 pounds, her clothes didn't fit anymore, so she stopped telling people what they should be doing.

I do tell people that at times I have become worse than someone that used to be a 4 pack a day smoker. Oh you all have been around those kind, after they stopped smoking, they now look down on the people who are still smoking as if they have the plague. I have to admit, I have at times felt like one of those ''holier than thou" people.

I know what it feels like to be on top of the mountain of success, but I even have a much better knowledge of what it feels like being at the very bottom of that mountain of despair. I never want to become a person that when others see me, they want to run and hide due to , ''Joan will be preaching", but in the same token because I care, I want to help, and since I have over the years lost a small country in weight, I know it can be done. It is not that I know it all, far from that, but I do know the struggles, the times I've just wanted to throw my hands up and say ''well screw this, where is Russell, Ben & Jerry?"

I think where I am going here, is letting you all know that ''yes, I know I can be a pain in the rear when it comes to wanting anyone that has not gotten to their goal yet to get there", but I also know, I am just one bite away from being right back where I started from, and by knowing this it will always keep me scared enough, but mainly focused enough to work like the dickens to stay with in my goal.

So if I have offended anyone with anything I have ever written in my daily ''sister e-mails", I am sorry, but if it was something that made you stop and think, then no, I am not sorry. It is a long road, and just because you get to that magic number on the little metal box, guess what.....you are still not finished....you/me/we will never be cured. We have no pills to make this easier, we get no sympathy from others due to our relationship with food. It is a long road but with this group that I write to each morning, it is worth the trip.

Wishing everyone a great day, come with an appetite tonight.

Hugs to all,

Joan

Watch that first step....it can be a doozie.

Every step is an end, and every step is a fresh beginning.

Goethe

Good Morning My Sister W.W.F.F.,

I hope everyone is having a nice 4th of July weekend, and that the rain stopped long enough for you to be able to do or watch the fireworks. Bob and I always hear the fireworks going off from the apartments that surround us, but we never see them.

So how much celebration did we have? Was it so much that when the sun does come up we will want to pull those covers right back over our heads? Or did we practice self-control, portion control and just plain good common sense? It does and it doesn't really matter which route we took, due to as the quote states, ''EVERY STEP IS AN END, AND EVERY STEP IS A FRESH BEGINNING".

Today begins our new week on our Weight Watchers calendar, so if Friday and Saturday have left something to be desired in reference to your eating program, then let today be that fresh new beginning. We cannot get tomorrow back, and most of us would not want to have tomorrow back. So don't look back if you had a questionable Friday & Saturday, or even if all last week was questionable and you took advantage of our not meeting on Saturday, so some of us may have had a not so good week all last week as well. If this has happened, don't look back, its not going to get you anywhere. Look forward, look at today and just get through today, and I promise tomorrow and each day after that will become easier.

Wishing everyone a wonderful end of the weekend,

Hugs,

Joan

Habits

First we form habits, then they form us. Conquer your bad habits or they will conquer you.

Ron Gilbert

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY. Remember our troops today, those that are still fighting for us, and those that have already given their lives for us.

No meeting to get up and get to this morning, but here I set up before the birds have even began to chirp and several things are running through my minds as I allow the caffeine from my coffee run through my brain cells.

Habits, we all have them, some of them are really good habits and some are not so good habits we let go of for just a little while and then we are right back to them while all the time forgetting that we ever put a good habit in the bad habits place to begin with. We go alone telling ourselves, ''this will be the morning I get up, put those walking/running/whatever shoes on and I won't stop until I have walked 30 minutes." Well, we get up with good intentions, but then the telephone rings, well of course we cannot tell this person we were headed out for a walk...what on earth would they think...we cannot say, ''call me on my cell, if we have a cell phone, that probably wouldn't be right either". We don't want to be rude, so we chat on the telephone, we chat about the weather, we chat about all the Hollywood stars that have died in the past few weeks, we complain about our neighbors, (that one is mine by the way). Then we get off the phone, we take our walking/running/whatever shoes off and say, ''well I did have good intentions". Now we can go set our butts on the sofa now and open that box of truffles or get a five pound package of grapes cause grapes are a health food, its just the 5 pound part that is tricky, we lay on the couch or even set at the computer consuming our desired whatever, and at the end of the day, our whole day has been one without any activity and we say, ''I was going to go for a walk, BUT, I just ran out of time."

That is our habit. We start activity and our eating plan with vim and vigor, and after a very short time we fall right back into the trap of making excuses. Same way with our weight loss journey. I have heard and I had said this many times myself in the past, ''I don't think I will ever get to my goal." Think about this, what is the reason your not getting closer to your goal, you maybe exercising everyday, but are you still eating like a lumberjack? You may be having way too many treats, remember a serving of ice cream is 1/2 cup, are you really getting that 1/2 measuring cup out, and if you are, how hard are you packing that ice cream in there and how many times are you filling that cup? Maybe it is YOU telling yourself you are not worth the effort. Maybe your going to start tomorrow, or on Monday when the holiday weekend is over. Question, which Monday are we talking about? For me it was the Monday in the year 2009, I finally got started.

No one said this was going to be easy, and if they did guess what, they lied. There are no magic pills, to help us on this journey, all we have is each other holding us up when we are about to free fall into our pity pots. Yes, ladies if you are one that is constantly sabotaging yourself, then listen up, the time is here to PUT ON YOUR BIG GIRL PANTIES AND DEAL WITH IT!!!!!!!!!!!

I can almost guarantee that every single one of you that is reading this have something you think is standing in your way, but you know what, ''it is just ourselves, standing in our way." So move over, get out of your own way, things are going to happen, whether its work, home life, someone else's problems, things are going to happen, but just remember the only things you have complete control over is what and how much food and drink and what kind of food and drink you put in your mouth and how much exercise you get. There are going to be roadblocks, chose to either go around or over them, but don't just set there waiting for someone else to move those roadblocks. We get to chose, which choice will you make?

Wishing Everyone a Great 4th of July

Hugs,
Joan

Use your Smarts.

Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

Yes, later than normal today...I slept in. Taking today off from the gym due to I have several things to get done here today, and know I will be getting in plenty of activity. Have to say sleeping until 3:45 was not bad a all, ha ha.

Lisa T. & I went to the Thursday morning Weight Watchers meeting off Bardstown RD. It was a really good meeting, but not a lot of people there. I was up 1 pound, and I did feel as if I would be up, mainly due to I was weighing in 2 days earlier than normal for me. However, I am still 4 pounds under my goal weight and today ends the 4th week of my maintenance, tomorrow begins week 5. I am so close.

The leader yesterday when she looked at my card and wrote the weight down and realized I was on maintenance, she told me, ''you are doing really well with maintenance", so that made me feel good as well.

Of course our sweet Lisa always finds people she knows or they know her. Yesterday was no different, a young lady that sat in front of us, well she had gone to one of the schools that our Lisa had taught in.

This is no doubt going to be a weekend filled with maybe some travel, some friends and lots of food. So the quote for today I felt was very appropriate, not that I think for a minute if you over indulge that you are a failure, but don't we so many times when we eat more than we should or eat way too much of the wrong stuff, haven' t we many times thrown our hands up and said, ''what's the use?"

I don't think anyone becomes a failure at anything until they just completely stop trying. So just remember if the road is a bit bumpy this weekend, Monday is just around the corner. The kicker is to make sure you get back on track when Monday gets here. The other thing is to promise yourself, and if you have to do this in writing and sign it in front of a witness, promising yourself that you will be in control of what goes in your mouth. Whether it is food or drink, and ladies I don't mean water, ha. Then do that as well, it could be your contract.

As we all know there is always going to be something to throw us off track from time to time, the important thing is for us to be able to pull ourselves back up on that track and get rolling again. This is why I get up early every morning and send out my e-mail to all of you. Not only does it keep me motivated through out the week, but just maybe if someone is having a hard time staying upright on that track-just maybe something that is said will help them-it is a tough but if we stumble and fall we do know we have a group here that are ready, willing, and able to lift us back up and get us rolling again.

Helpful Habits:

Monitor yourself

Ask for help

Learn from experience

Prepare yourself

Take care of yourself

Manage your environment

Manage your feelings

Manage your thoughts.

Wishing everyone a wonderful day,

Hugs,

Joan

Are you still on the honeymoon??

Things are always at their best in the beginning.

Pascal

Good Morning Sister W.W.F.F.,

Just a reminder we will NOT be having Weight Watchers this Saturday, July 4th.

Hope everyone's week has been going well. Now I ask you, "just how true is the above quote?" I think that quote hits the nail right on the head with just about everything we do.

Remember when you first got married? Oh my gosh, everything was wonderful, the things your new husband did were just so cute and sweet. Well heck that sure did last long especially after he left the toilet seat up for the millionth time. Or he never put anything back where it should be. It is the same with our weight loss journey and exercising programs.

As we talked about on Saturday, when we first joined Weight Watchers, we were spending hours in the grocery store, reading labels, checking points, and those that had more points than we really needed got put right back on the shelves. We by-passed the candy, potato chip and ice cream isles. When we got home we would either get the little baggies out and dole out the right portions, knowing that the amount was only 1 or 2 points per serving, and that serving was 1/2 maybe 1 cup, and we actually used that measuring cup.

Oh and we would look in other peoples carts and if they had the chips, dips, pepperoni sticks, etc. we would shake our heads and go alone on our smug little way, thinking the whole time, ''those poor fools".

We got all holier than thou about our exercise, wondering ''what is wrong with people who don't get up and get some activity." We would see someone at a fast food drive thru and feel the urge to go drag them away. Yes, we were all quite happy and snobbish in the beginning.

Then it happened!!! We got tired, we began by stop reading the labels, we stopped coming home and doling out the correct portion size, we would now look in others carts and say, ''oh my, I need to have some of that too."

We began to sleep in. It was too early to go get in any activity, it was too hot, it was too cold, oh wait, I'll do it later.

Answer to all of this on what happened. WE GOT LAZY!!!! Sorry, that happens to all of us. Our thoughts turn to, "I need just a little break", and I can so believe that, but its been my experience that little breaks leads to more little breaks, until all of a sudden you are now not only fore going the label reading, the weighing and measuring, the activity, but we stop showing up for the meetings.

Not long ago I would have looked at the 4th of July as ''oh this is so great, I don't have to weigh in for two whole weeks, so I am going to do this, I am going to eat that, THEN, I'll get right back on track." Oh my how many times I have fooled myself with that line of thinking, only for that missed week to turn into something that went on for months.

Since January, I have been treating my weight loss journey as ''the beginning". I found out that its the only way this will work for me. I have to be focused at all times, and yes, that ''lazy Joan" is still out there, but the "I want to succeed Joan" has been able to keep slapping her back. It is hard, cause there are so many days that I just want to stay in bed, and not go to the gym. There are lots of days, I'd give my right arm for someone to take care of Bob. Then the reality sets in, if I sleep in, when I wake up, I'll be mad at myself for not doing what I know makes me feel better. If someone else was taking care of Bob, trust me, it would not be done correctly, ha . So I/we move on.

So how is your journey going for you. Do you need to begin at the beginning again? Do you need to get back to that ''honeymoon" stage? Remember, the choice is up to you, and how many more times are you going to say, ''I'll get back on track after this holiday?"

Have a wonderful day,

Hugs,

Joan