WW (Weight Watchers) Chat #261: How to Be Ok When It’s Not Ok

WW News February 2022:

According to Top Consumer Reviews, Weight Watchers ranks #2 in overall best plan in 2022 bested only by the new kid, Noom. If you want to check out the article there are many good points for both of the top two programs BUT the news is this….when they looked at the top 10 popular programs and put out a list of FAQ’s this response caught my eye:
Do I have to track everything I eat? “That depends on which diet you choose. Most experts say that tracking what you eat is the best way to make sure you know how much you’re eating; people tend to overeat by a lot and not realize it. But, if you don’t want to track your food, consider following one of the popular diets that uses ready-made meals: all the work is done for you!”
(information provided by Top Consumer Reviews. Visit https://www.topconsumerreviews.com/best-popular-diets/compare/noom-vs-weight-watchers.php for more information)

The month’s theme is “Embrace Now” and we will spend the entire month remembering that it’s good to plan ahead, smart to check your rear view mirror, but sometimes you just need to be in the here and now!

Last week during Chat #260: Unexpected Food Opportunities we realized that “opportunities” aren’t always bad or to be avoided necessarily. Gwen told us a story Tuesday of a trip her and her husband took that landed them at a once in a lifetime hotel stay. The hotel was pretty famous for its food, but the dessert…some kind of chocolate molten “something or the other” had to be ordered at the beginning of your meal because it took so long to prepare. Should you take this one Pass? Gwen’s husband will tell you years later they should have taken it.

So how do you know which ones to take and when to say pass?

Is it a deal breaker?

By deal breaker I mean is taking this opportunity going to blow the deal you made with yourself about your plan? Or set you off in a way that’s hard to come back? Or could you go ahead and preplan the rest of the meals for your day or week and fit these points in?

Is it as it should be?

That sounded very Harry Potter or Lord of The Rings when I said it out loud. But is it as it should be? Is it warm enough? Cold enough? Wet and soggy or hot and crispy? I can figure out how to work the rest of my week around some fresh, super hot and salty french fries. But I had to learn not to eat the soggy leftover fries that my dad had leftover or were in the bottom of a bag the next day.

Is it once in a lifetime or rinse repeat?

So the “opportunity” presents itself. Stop and count to five while you breathe and ask yourself three questions:

Is this something I could get again? Maybe a time when I’ve planned a little better and I could enjoy it with some dignity
Am I eating this because I want to or someone else wants me to?
Will I look back on this moment days, weeks, or even years later and regret passing it by?

Your homework for last week was #OpportunityKnocks. When you are faced with a food “opportunity” this week let us know if you answered that knocking door or closed it….and then type it, snap it, share it however you like, and then tag me for your next cool badge!

Let’s see how you did!

Lynn bought some chocolate covered almonds as a treat for valentines day and managed to avoid answering every time they knocked until she opened that door on Wednesday. Lynn proves she’s a seasoned WW’er though because she let that opportunity visit for a holiday but she didn’t let it move in to stay!
Deanna has had a challenging 34 days taking care of family while one recovers from a lengthy stay in the hospital. Because she’s a pro, one of those days included a 68 point meal which she tracked! She knew there was a meal of homemade “stay in control” tacos coming and that this was ONE meal! (BTW if you’ve never had a 68 point meal it’s because you just didn’t track it…#sorrynotsorry)
Me! John invited both girls to come over for a double trouble slumbie party last night before he went out of town today. Except after we got them he ended up having to leave almost immediately and go to Kentucky. Long story short, I had a 4 year old, a 4 month old, and a diabetic dog who pees a lot in a loft with no dog potty. This morning after an “interesting” 16 hours of bottles, diaper changes, bundling everyone up for the two block walk to the potty spot, and all four of us in one bed Alyssa peeled an Olaf string cheese and said “here Nonna, this is a present for you”. Aaaack! I hadn’t planned on eating cheese but then I took a tired breath and remembered last week’s chat…#1 I hadn’t eaten since the day before, #2 it was only 2 points and most importantly #3 this was a special moment with my granddaughter we may both forget, but it meant something special to her in that moment!

Bravo, you did it!

This Week’s Topic: How to Be Ok When It’s Not Ok

We have literally spent years talking about being ok, not beating ourselves up, learning how to be ok with setbacks and bad decisions, and even sometimes taken on the ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy’ mantra.

But this week WW asks us to take a step back and make sure that not worrying, and being happy isn’t opening a door for extended vacations to Excuse Town.

There is a definite difference between “I ate a sleeve of Girl Scout Cookies. I will track it, be happy I didn’t eat the other sleeve instead of beating myself up, and start again at my next meal” and “I ate a sleeve of Girl Scout Cookies. It’s not my fault. Someone else brought them to work and I didn’t want to hurt their feelings. I’m not beating myself up over it so I’ll go ahead and enjoy the rest of cookie season and start again in March”.

So how can you be ok, when it’s not ok?

Listen to your own voice

Say what you are thinking out loud to yourself or an accountabilibuddy. Do you hear yourself admitting that setbacks happen and you are moving on? Or is your voice full of excuses of why you should just ignore it and start over in a week. Or a month. Or whenever the next promo for rejoining comes out?

Set a time

Once you decide you are dusting off and moving on circle a time on your tracker or go ahead and pre-track your next meal so you have a rock solid deadline for when you get back on track

Enlist help

If you need to say it out loud in your in person workshop, do it! If chatting with like minded people in a friendly group like the IYHAE Closed Facebook Group will help you move on, go for it! And guess what? Phone lines still work…pick up yours and call a trusted friend who will help you remember you are worth getting right back on that path to success!

This Week’s Homework: #NoTrainToExcuseTown

Your homework for this week is #NoTrainToExcuseTown. Setbacks are bound to happen, tell us what it is, when you are getting back on the train away from excuse town, and who you enlisted for help if you needed it!….and then type it, snap it, share it however you like, and then tag me for your next cool badge!

Don’t forget to do your homework #NoTrainToExcuseTown and tag me when you share on social media!

Instagram tag @ifyouhaveanegg
Facebook Page tag @ifyouhaveanegg
Facebook Group tag @Kelly Green Milligan
WW Connect tag @ifyouhaveanegg

Extra Credit: Potato Bar

If you’ve been around for any length of time you’ll know that I’m not a meal prepper. I can’t bring myself to eat the same thing multiple days in a row. BUT I can use the same ingredients to make a variety of different meals to keep my eating interesting.

In the past few weeks I’ve made a taco bar, a nacho bar, quesadillas, and more with one single set of ingredients. This week I’m going to be on my own and only cooking for myself, so I’m going to make a potato bar for myself. If potatoes are one of your zero point foods, this is a perfect option for you!

As a bonus, I can cook all of my potatoes in the air fryer for quick and easy prep work!

What you’ll need:

Your favorite variety of potatoes (I’m using russet and sweet potatoes)
Bagged salad mix (or your own salad)
Bacon
Gardein meatless meatballs
Wholly Guacamole individual servings
Chopped tomatoes
Microgreens
Broccoli
Shredded cheese
Mushrooms
Marinara sauce
Dak’s Red Mountain Rub
Truvia baking blend
Sugar-free syrup

From these ingredients you can make so many combinations for a unique meal each day of the week that won’t leave you bored or looking for something off-plan to eat! Here’s how I’m combining my ingredients throughout the week:

Day 1: A loaded baked potato with side salad

Day 2: A plain potato topped with Gardein meatless meatballs, guacamole, tomatoes, microgreens, and a little cheese

Day 3: A broccoli and cheese topped baked potato with meatless meatballs

Day 4: An Italian-style baked potato topped with meatless meatballs, marinara*, mushrooms and another side salad! (*I put my marinara in ½ cup servings in a Souper Cube and froze so I can use them as I need them!)

Day 5: A sweet potato with meatless meatballs, sugar-free syrup, Truvia baking blend, and Dak’s Red Mountain Rub for a “candied meatball” topping that fingers crossed will taste as good as my Candied Bacon recipe!