Weight Watchers Chat #364: WW “Making The Shift” with Oprah Winfrey

My first blush is this is exactly what our fearless leader Gwen has been conveying from both WW and from her own heart for years. The deep dive into the actual message is what I hope you hear every week during our chats and in your own head!

1. 1. That WW is not one size fits all. 
   2. We are no longer microfocused on weight or the scale alone, health does matter
   3. Even if your “why” started as only losing weight, it has probably changed as you’ve gone along
   4. Food education is important and there is no room for the terms “forbidden” or “off limits” any more
   5. What you weigh does not determine your self worth

It’s no secret I’m not a huge Oprah fan (except that one time when she made avocado zero points for a few months LOL) but I believe she is one of the few people on this planet that could have pulled this off.

The entertainment industry has spent millions of dollars making sure we all believe a lie…that we are overweight because we are stupid.  Or lazy.  Or a moral failure. Or even because we are a bad person.  But no Oprah has spent years herself buying into the body shaming, we all have to be the same person mentality and her own personal weight has reflected that. She is the original influencer, I’ll be the first to give her some credit…like her or not, she pulled off a THREE HOUR media event that will forever change the way we view what we “weigh”

Several great quotes/statements were made/referenced during this event as well.

Sima in a public apology to body image advocate Katie Sturino and everyone who has ever felt let down, abandoned or even shamed by the WW program said “weight health is no longer about a number or a size”.  When asked why we still need WW by Oprah she answered that this is still the best resource for nutritional literacy, community and now supported by a medical team to provide real science whether it’s in what we eat or the addition of weight loss medications for those who need them.

Guest Jen Hatmaker creator of the “For The Love” podcast told the audience “it’s YOUR body and I trust you to be grown in it.  Not to feel like any foods are good or bad.  Weight is just ONE metric. We have to change our behavior and realize body size doesn’t equal health”. Then she asked “how do we make the sift so that discussions about weight don’t involve body shaming?”

Jamie Kern Lima, co-founder of IT Cosmetics said it best “we are waiting on our weight to tell us our worth.  What has waiting on your weight already cost you?  10 years from now how old will you be? Your kids? Your grandkids? What will waiting cost you in 10 years?  What’s one thing you’ll do TODAY to  stop waiting on your weight?”

Maya Angelou “when you know better, you do better” – I LOVE this quote! But there is one that is from Gwen that I love a little bit more.

Gwen Roddye “change what you do and what you weigh will take care of itself”