WW (Weight Watchers) Chat #231: Make Time For Things That Make You Happy

WW News July 2021:

KNOXVILLE GIRLS! IN PERSON Workshops are changing rapidly, currently you can attend any of these (keep checking Connect for W Knox, Thompson Lane and Franklin to stay up to date for middle and east TN). Please note: MASKS ARE STILL REQUIRED
- Central Baptist of Fountain City Church (Knoxville)
  - Mondays at 5:30pm with Gwen R
- Beaver Creek Cumberland Presbyterian Church (Powell)
  - Tuesdays at 9:30am with Gwen R

Beginning next Tues, July 20th Tuesdays at 6pm with Gwen R

- Community Studio at Beaver Dam Baptist Church (Halls) (please note: fees must be paid up front in 12 week series)
  - Mondays at 5pm with Kristye G
- WW Studio Kingston Pike (Knoxville)
  - Mondays at 12:15pm with Gwen R
  - Thursdays at 9:30am with Sandi P
  - Thursdays at 12:15pm with Sandi P
  - Saturdays at 8am with Sheryl M
  - Saturdays at 9:30am with Sheryl M
- Community Studio at Fairview Elementary (Heiskell) (please note: fees must be paid up front in 12 week series)
  - Thursdays at 5pm with Kristye G
- Maryville Church of Christ (Maryville)
  - Saturdays at 8am with Sandi P
- First Cumberland Presbyterian Church (Oak Ridge)
  - Tuesdays at 5:30pm with Kristye G
- American Legion Post 104 (Sevierville)
  - Mondays at 5:30pm with Sheryl M
  - Tuesdays at 9:30am with Sheryl M
- Community Studio at Pigeon Forge Community Center (Pigeon Forge) (please note: fees must be paid up front in 12 week series)
  - Tuesdays with Sheryl M
- Central United Methodist Church (Lenoir City)
  - Mondays at 5:30pm with Sandra P
Wellness Check-Ins (no workshop, just check in)
- Cedar Bluff Main Location (9208 Kingston Pike)
  - Thursdays 10am – 11:30am as of April 22
  - Saturdays 9am – 11am
- Powell( Beaver Creek Cumberland Church)
  - Tuesdays 8:30am – 9:30am
- Maryville (Maryville Church of Christ)
  - Saturdays 8am – 10am
To find a wellness check in: Go to WW → Connect → and find the Kingston Pike – W Knoxville, TN group for more info. You can also join me on Sunday afternoons at 2:30pm eastern in this same virtual workshop with hostess Gwen, my fave WW’er and the inspiration for the name of our group If You Have an Egg! East TN Lifetime Members who were in good standing when COVID started have had their membership extended again until the end of June 2021. You will need to attend a Wellness Workshop during the month of June to continue those privileges.
The month’s theme is “Finding Joy” and focuses on reminding us how some “feel-good fuel” can help with our weight loss and well journey!

Last week during Chat #230 “Feeling In Control Even When You’re Not”, we asked ourselves how many times have you been in a food situation and thought, “Great, I have no control over this. No one asked me. No one cares if I’m trying to lose weight (feel better, get my blood pressure under control, etc). So I guess I’ll just flip my wagon over, set it on fire, and wait to see what happens”?

Ok…so you can’t control THAT, what can you do?

Recognize: Deep breath, take two seconds, and identify what you can’t control
Refocus: Quickly look around and find a thing or two you CAN control
Redirect: Find a way you can influence one of those things and do it!

Your homework for last week’s chat was #ChannelYourSnowman. Think of a recent time you felt out of control and decide what you could have done to Recognize, Refocus, and Redirect the situation. If you write it down you are twice as likely to use it next time…and then type it, snap it, however you want to share it and then tag me for your next cool badge!

Let’s see how you did!

Mary Ann says the thing she cannot change or control is the fact that she lives alone. Rather than kick the dirt and say “everybody else gets to enjoy new recipes but me” she has learned to adjust them so she doesn’t have a lot of leftovers and get bored eating the same thing over and over. And with your WW Recipe Builder you can adjust the ingredients in any recipe to make it all about you!
Lynn received her first order from a mail order “ugly veggie” company but wow what a disappointment. They weren’t just irregular, some of them were so bad after being shipped through the Texas heat they were unusable. Rather than throw in the towel (or box in this case) she controlled what she could by cutting off the bruises, throwing the few things that were not salvageable, and made what she could with the rest. And she took “control” by cancelling the subscription!
Carol Lou controlled what she could while she was on vacation AND it was her birthday! She’s working on her “beach body” so she enjoyed a lovely grilled chicken salad that she made in her hotel room!

Bravo, you did it!

This Week’s Topic: Make Time For Things That Make You Happy!

I. LOVE. This. Week’s. Graphics.

Did you see them? Go look. Now!

You know how much I love stickers, notes, post its, notecards…it’s like they drew the graphics this week just for me!

Ok, so now that I’ve alerted everyone to my love affair with this week’s graphics showing little pieces of fake paper fake-taped to a fake calendar… raise your hand if you have a mental (or even written) list of activities you enjoy doing and are having trouble fitting in.

Sure, we all do! A prime example for me is my WW in person workshop. I have guarded Tuesday nights for over two decades…I didn’t allow anyone to plan anything for me, there was no expectation I would be home for dinner, even my employees knew not to ask for anything late on a Tuesday. But stupid COVID messed all that up ad took away my Tuesdays. So for the last 18 months Tuesday has been a free for all. It stopped being “my time” the day our workshop closed.

But now that our redefined workshop is re-opening in just over a week, what do I do to recapture that time? What do YOU do to make sure you have time for things that make you this happy?

Make a list: I prefer post it notes so I can move them around but make a list of a few activities that make you happy like volunteering at you local food pantry, getting your toenails done, taking a walk or reading a book, or attending your first in person workshop since the pandemic to name a few
Check your calendar: Take a look at your schedule and see where you could realistically fit this activity this week. If Tuesday is already booked I can’t put my meeting on there, if you’ve freed up Saturday morning maybe you can get those toes done
Match Em Up: Pair up the activities with the suitable time slot and go ahead and put it on your calendar. Literally. I will be marking Tuesdays at 5:30pm on my physical calendar and on my phone to make sure nothing gets in that spot

This Week’s Homework: #MakeHappyTime

Your homework for this week is #MakeHappyTime. Write down just one activity you want to fit in to make you happy this week. Then check your calendar, add it in PEN (not pencil) or add it digitally and share with family, coworkers or friends…and then type it, snap it, however you want to share it and then tag me for your next cool badge!

Don’t forget to do your homework #MakeHappyTime 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: 4 Hidden Sodium Traps

If you’ve been around for any length of time, you know that both of my parents struggled with health issues that were exacerbated by excess sodium. I’ve noticed in the last ten years that consuming too much sodium wasn’t great for me either. And because of that, I work hard to keep sodium out of my diet as much as possible.

The recommended maximum daily sodium intake for an average person is 2300 mg. If you’re on a reduced sodium diet you’ll be in the 1200-1400 mg range. A single teaspoon of salt has 2325 mg of sodium, meeting (and actually exceeding) your daily maximum sodium intake.

Sodium likes to hide in places where we’re unlikely to find it, but we’re going to call our those sodium traps so we can recognize them and cut down on them:

Sneaky Seasonings: Many popular seasonings and sauces are incredibly high in sodium – things like
- Soy sauce (290 mg of sodium per tsp)
- Trader Joe’s Everything but the Bagel seasoning (320 mg per tsp) – I like to replace this with Dak’s Spices Everything But Tha Salt zero sodium seasoning
Any Prepackaged Food: It doesn’t matter what it is – sandwich meat, frozen meals, etc – they’re all packed with sodium
Lurkers: These are the sneakiest! Sodium lurks in places you wouldn’t necessarily realize immediately. For example, if you choose a sports drink that advertises electrolytes it’s going to have hidden sodium. Protein shakes are another lurker – we love to use Premier Protein shakes in recipes here at If You Have An Egg but there’s about 10% of your daily recommended sodium intake in each bottle. Cereal is another offender – you’d never think to check there!
Test for Traps: When I first started trying to be more aware of my sodium intake, my mind went directly to things like popcorn and potato chips. But sodium hides in so many more places! To make sure you’re not over-consuming sodium, always check the labels and be aware of what you’re putting into your mouth.