16-Week Commitment Challenge: COMPLETE

Hard to believe the 16 weeks is finally over! In some ways, it took forever, and in others it flew by. Strange to look back and see that 16 weeks ago was AUGUST; I thought it was at least the fall when I started it. But no!

Instead of doing a weekly recap, I thought I would look at my success at each goal overall. Looking at the big picture has helped me think about what I want to focus on next, what I've managed to build into a habit and what still needs work.

1. Attend WW meetings every week without skipping any.
This was the primary goal I wanted to accomplish, and I succeeded 100%. Attending weekly meetings is now a regular habit, one I will continue through 2010 at least. I prefer the Thursday leader but I like the convenience of a Saturday meeting better, so if I don't make one I definitely do the other.

For those of you new to the blog, I actually am a former WW Leader. It's a program I love and wholeheartedly believe in. It's not for everyone, but the weekly meeting format is where I thrive. I needed to get back into it, to get over my embarrassment of paying while being Lifetime, of continuing to gain and still attend meetings. It's not just when you are successful that you need to go to a meeting; it's every week. That finally sunk in during these 16 weeks.

2. Exercise 4 days a week minimum.
My success here was much more sporadic. I tried mixing it up, doing running and Wii yoga and stretching, working the Couch-to-5K plan and running a 5K, picking specific days for exercise, etc, but I still could not quite get to a regular routine. I will continue to concentrate on getting this into a habit, because I know regular exercise is so good for my health and for continued weight loss.

3. Count my points in my Tracker.
This took some time to get going, but I have been regularly journaling all my foods in my Tracker for the last 7 weeks. I don't count points but I do write (most) of it down now. Weekends are my weakest still; the Tracker stays tucked away in my purse with the rest of my work papers, unfortunately. I will keep plugging away at this too.

4. Cut back on the alcohol to 1-2 drinks a week.
This was pretty easy, for the most part. We do end up drinking more during the holiday so I will stay more aware of it, but right now my biggest empty-calorie indulgence is cookies.


Overall, I think I did pretty well sticking to my goals. The problem, though, was despite all that focus, I did not lose any weight. In fact, I ended up gaining 11 pounds over the last 16 weeks.

Oops.

So my next challenge will address that. This one will range from today through to my birthday, March 13. Ironically, that is 13 weeks away. Yay, my lucky number! And even more ironically, I want to lose at least 13 pounds by then; that will put me at 166, which is a good middle point to decide what my final goal number will be.

I'm calling it the 13-in-13 Challenge. All the regular things will still be in place: I will be following the WW plan, attending weekly meetings, and exercising. But it's not enough to randomly pick a goal weight to aim for; I need smaller goals to achieve every week that will help me get to the larger goal. These are the ones I am doing for the next 13 weeks:

1. LOSE WEIGHT.
It seems so obvious a goal, but since it didn't happen the last challenge I am going to spell it out here. I will record my loss every week (or my gain, SIGH) instead of glancing once ay my book after weigh-in and not thinking about it again until the next weigh-in.

2. Eat one vegetable-based meal a day.
This means salads, veggie soups, my beloved spaghetti squash and tomato sauce, etc. If I have salad for lunch, then I can have a meat-based meal for dinner (steeak, meatloaf, etc). If I have a sandwich or hot entree at lunch, then dinner will be a salad or soup or spaghetti squash.
I have learned from journaling that the days I do best at staying on-track are days I do one veggie-based meal. So now I am going to do so consciously.

3. Do at least 2 different types of exercise each week.
Instead of focusing on the quantity of exercise, I am going to focus on the type. I have my punchcard for lap sessions at the park district pool, I have at least 2 types of Wii exercises I can alternate, and I will be ordering new running shoes this week so I can pick that back up. Maybe by keeping it changed up I will do it more often, and get into that habit I want so much to have.

4. Limit my sweets/dessert/treats to 3-4 per week.
I have to stop having a cookie a day, but cold turkey will only result in disaster. So I'll try moderation. I hear it's all the rage. :)

So there you have it. Ready, set, get to goal!