My WW one year anniversary

My WW before pictures, June 2011.  I weighed 337 lbs

One year ago today I made what was probably the most important telephone call of my life. I called my Dad to take him up on a offer he had been making me for years. I asked him to pay for Weight Watchers.

I joined online and I went to my first meeting June 6th, 2011. I didn't like the idea of walking in to a room full of strangers. I didn't even like my leader at first. She was hugging and visiting with everyone and I though I had snuck by at at the same time I didn't think I deserved to get the attention because I was new. I am actually glad she ignored me. I was nervous enough.

Speaking as a success story March 2012

It's a year later and those strangers have become friends and my leader has become a mentor. The people I go to my meetings with are more than just fellow Weight Watchers, they really genuinely care about me. They're more like family. I actually know some of them well enough that I consider them to be friends. I've now come to expect a hug from my leader every meeting.

When I went to my second meeting I got my first hug. She basically hugs everyone if you come back after your first meeting. I look forward to that hug every time I go to a meeting. Sometimes, if I don't get my hug because I come in late or for whatever reason I will seek her out. I even sometimes ask for a second hug if I'm having problems on my plan. Those hugs mean so much to me. I just love my leader, she's awesome. Everyone at my meeting is awesome, right now to the receptionists!
 

Me on my first hike in 18 years May 2012

 In the year I've been on WW I have:

• Lost 65 lbs.  (115 lbs overall)
• Lost four clothing sizes, a 30 to a 22. (32-22 overall)
• I have done things I never could have done a year ago: spending the day walking in New York City, going on my first hike in 18 years, speaking as a success story at a WW open house, riding a roller coaster
  
• I have regained my flexibility and range of motion
• I can sit comfortably, wear clothes comfortably, walk comfortably.
 

The list goes on and on

Riding a Roller coaster again October 2011

I rejected WW for many many years and I didn't know what I was missing. I can't believe I just typed that but it's true. I've come a long way and I have a long way to go. I'm so proud of what I've done so far. However, I'm going to keep taking it five pounds at a time. I don't dwell on how many pounds I have left. I just am happy with losing weight and after a while it adds up.

I started this blog six months into my WW journey and I really appreciate you joining me on my journey. Thank you so much for reading, even if it your first time reading my blog, it means so much to me that you care about what I have to say. I started this blog because I wanted to inspire people. I also thought that this journey I'm on is too incredible to keep to myself.  It's been a year of milestones and incredible things I never thought I'd do again. I'm looking forward to another amazing year.

Just a note: On the train

So I'm on the train on the way to see my Mother for  her birthday (gotta love Amtrak WIFI). I just had to post something because I am so excited to be experiencing two milestones! There is room between myself and the lady I'm sitting with. I also have my tray table completely down!!!!

Wow. I'm really impressed.

Weight Watchers has a secret?

Last week when I went to my meeting my leader was out of town so we had a fill in leader. The topic that week was why we joined WW. I spoke up and said how I had started to lose weight on my own and I joined WW because I thought there was some kind of secret that WW had. She went on to say there is no secret and she pointed to her head and said "The secret is up here". Well, the old Model UN Delegate in me wanted to debate her.

It was of course not the time or place to debate her. I'm there to learn and not debate. As is it I pick my battles and I didn't think it was worth it to make an ass of myself in front of everyone and take up everyone's time. I guess that's why I have my blog. I can give my point of view about anything I want so here it goes...

WW does have a secret. Their secret is how the calculation of the points of foods work. It's no secret that WW has a plan that works, you see the advertisements everywhere! You pay to use the plan and they give preset points for foods. However, does the average person know how the points are calculated? Of course not!

I have the online tracker where I can get points precalculated for certain foods but how about the ones not in there? I have a points calculator. Actually, I have two of them, one traditional one and one on my phone and I don't even really know how the points are calculated and I pay to use the plan. If how the points are calculated wasn't a secret everyone would know about it and WW wouldn't make any money from it.

I would call how the points are calculated a trade secret. The points are also copyrighted so WW wants to keep them their own secret. How the points are calculated will probably always be a secret. Therefore, WW really does have a secret.

46er considerations and Mother's Day 2012

First, I just wanted to say Happy Mother's day to every single Mother, Stepmother, Grandmother, etc etc. Basically anyone who feels they have been a mother or anyone you consider a mother deserves to be celebrated today. This is my first Mother's Day on Weight Watchers and I've had no problem whatsoever surviving it because I'm sick and I haven't been eating much!

In other news, I've been doing research about becoming a 46er. There's a few problems.

1. Heavy duty overnight hiking backpacks do not come in plus sizes
2. A lot of hiking clothing does not come in plus sizes
3. My feet have shrunk since I've lost weight and I have more than 100 pounds left so I don't want to invest in a pair of hiking boots or shoes quite yet. 
4. I know I can wear jeans and sneakers but I think since I am going to try and hike the high peaks I'm gonna need more than that because it will be heavy duty hiking and overnight hikes. 
5. It is going to be expensive getting all this gear.

I've done some research and there are ways around the packs and I'm barely small enough for plus sized hiking clothes. Well, at least the pants I was looking at on a major hiking supply retail site. I'm also sure there are ways of getting inexpensive gear that is good quality. So I'm good there. I probably won't need those things until I get to the higher peaks, the 10 or more hour hikes, which I don't expect to do for a few years so I'm ok for now.

I want to try for my first high peak this fall. The shortest high peak on the 46er list, hiking distance wise, is 4.8 miles round trip and that is Cascade Mountain. That will be my first. I did want to do do the same mountains my paternal Grandmother did first and last and on the anniversaries but that is just not gonna happen. Gotta work my way up. I'm sure she'd understand. Although she was a bit of a bad ass when it came to hiking.

I will be doing Marcy Dam later this summer and that's seven miles round trip. Looking forward to testing myself! However, I will be doing smaller hikes before I go to Marcy Dam. Really looking forward to getting back to nature and my roots in the Adirondacks.

Now that I think about it I don't think I've been on a hike in the Adirondacks since my paternal Grandmother died in the early 90's. I look forward to honoring my Grandmother's memory on those hikes.

And a correction...

Last post I mentioned my Father is a 46er. Well, he's not. I thought for sure he was, but we'll have to do something about that. I'm pretty sure I will do a lot of hiking with him in the high peaks. After all it's his mother who is the 46er!

Happy Mother's Day!

Walking around in the woods shooting things

From the nature walk

So yesterday I went on my first hike since the early 90's. It was awesome. I of course brought my camera with me because it was a photo hike. I got some good pictures. The first hike really wasn't a hike, it was a nature walk at a nature center.  The second walk was the hike.

At the end of the hike

Keep in mind I used to hike when I was a kid. I've done a few Adirondack trails. I've done Avalanche Lake at least three times, the lake is not as beautiful as it once was but it's my favorite. I've done some others I don't remember. Someday I'd like to hike Mt Marcy which is the highest mountain in New York State. It will happen. Mt Marcy has special meaning to me because my Dad's family hiked it on the day we buried my paternal Grandmother in the early 90's. She was a 46er and loved hiking.That day I stayed behind at base camp because I was recovering from Pneumonia. I feel like I really missed out that day. Maybe I should get them all together when I go for my hike  on Marcy because the number one rule about hiking is not hiking alone and they mean the world to me! However, that's gonna be a while because Marcy is 7 miles one way. I did a three mile round trip yesterday after doing a nature walk. So, I need to work my way up.

From the nature walk

So yesterday I learned I can walk in the woods as well as in the city. Kinda knew that one. However, mud was a problem. The three other people I was hiking with were old hiking pros so they just walked through the mud and walked on stones and were just unstoppable. I was afraid of falling in the mud or falling on the rocks. So, needless to say I straggled behind and wimped out a few times. However, I did it. At the end there was a pretty steep hill that I had to stop a few times while I was going up it but otherwise I was pretty unstoppable myself in my own way.

From the hike

Overall I realized that I need more conditioning before I go mountain climbing. However, I will continue on working my way toward hiking mountains. In fact, many of my fellow WWers have gone from couch potatoes to marathoners. Well, I'm not a runner, never was and probably never will be. I think I'm going to continue a long tradition in my Dad's family, I'm going to become a 46er! If you don't know what that is go here.

As I said to my Facebook friends:."Becoming a 46er is a lofty goal, but so is running a marathon!" I'll of course report about it here! Don't know how long it will take, but stay tuned! It could take twenty years to become a 46er, or even longer. Too bad I'm not getting any younger! However, already talking about going on a hike when one of my paternal Aunts comes to visit from Arizona in August! Got lots of other offers too!

As always thanks for reading!