Goal Setting

Setting Goals is hard, too big and you get discouraged, too small and it doesn’t feel like a victory. So I try to put a lot of time thinking about what my goals should be. WeightWatchers celebrates every 5 pounds, that’s great continual feed back but not a big enough goal for me (for some people it’s a great goal to focus on every 5 pounds, for me it’s too small and also small enough that if I don’t get it quickly I can get discouraged).

WeighWatchers has always focused on the 10% as a goal for people as there is a ton of research documenting the benefits of a 10% weight loss. This year they also started celebrating 5% as also very beneficial to your health and not as intimidating for some people. I happily celebrated both my 5 and 10 percent goals but then came time to start goal setting into uncharted territory. My next 10% was a logical choice but instead I chose 208 pounds, this is the lowest adult weight I can remember being. It was the lowest I got the last time I did WeightWatchers. I am circling in on this number but the last 4 weeks have not been stellar losing weeks for me and it feels like that goal is taunting me. I had originally wanted to hit it by July 4th. I feel confident I can hit it next week but it still sits there taunting me.

After that where do I go? My next 10% from the original number is at 199, wow kind of a significant number, I’ll be out of the 200s and will have lost 20% of my total weight. So even though its not a big loss from my 208 goal I think it’s a mile stone number and worthy of goal status.

Then my goals get really funny how they line up (yes, I’m probably thinking ahead too much but I like the big picture laid out for me and then smaller steps to get there, I’m a planner at heart.) The next 10% or 30% total will be 175 pounds, ironically 174 puts me at overweight, no longer obese, so which number do I choose? After that it gets easier and I will want smaller goals as the weight loss will slow down once I get closer to my goal. 151 is another 10% or 40% total. 145 puts me at a normal weight for my height and 135 is my current final goal weight. Each of these have meaning and each will hopefully motivate me to keep going.

I will still celebrate each 5 pounds, those are the little steps along the way that get me to my goal. It is said that every journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. To me each of those steps matter but without my eye on the ultimate goal it is too easy for me to be caught up in the minutia of the small steps. Ultimately for me goal setting is about the big and the small and celebrating it all.

Six Months

Six months ago today I started WeightWatcher's (for the second time). I went to the 9:30 Woodinville meeting and got a great vibe from the group, lots of chatting and high energy, which boded well. The meeting was good, the leader, Heather, was great. She had the right balance of knowledge, engagement, humour and interest in how pepole were doing. After the meeting I attended the getting started session and liked her even more, she presented the program in a very straight forward way.

Six months later I'm living 24 miles from that meeting but still going, afterall I learned the last time that I did WeightWatchers that meeting attendance is one of the keys to success for me and a boring meeting is hard to attend. Come winter I will look more closely at the local meetings but for now I'll continue to make the drive.

My first impression of a great group has proven to be true, people are supportive, open to sharing and a great cheering squad for everyone. Several people have gotten lifetime in the last 6 months, talk about motivation!

My trip to San Francisco, Vegas (to get married) and Anaheim in August will be the first time I miss weighing in. I have missed a couple meetings due to moving or travelling but I have always made the weigh-in. I guess it will be a true vacation and I do plan to allow myself to gain some weight as I'm not going to Vegas and skipping the great restraunts!

At any rate at the six month mark I did measurements again and I'll take a picture sometime today. I have lost a total of 31.25 inches!!! I'll get pictures up soon so stay tuned...