I had the same problem as you mate and I was told to eat a full fat yoghurt or full fat milk on my cereal of a morning. I worked it out in the end. Your points will drop as you go and you will wonder how you ever had points to spare lol. The problem is though when your points do go down you will end up not loosing because in realty you will be still eating the same points. If you are having problems with it though talk to your leader mate, you are paying fortune for the advice so don’t be afraid to ask for it. I hope I helped a little bit, have a wonderful week.

Thanks for posting in my diary! It looks like we are starting out within just days of each other. You can do it! Looking forward to your good report on Monday!!!

I THOUGHT I'd replied to this already, but it isn't showing up, so I'm doing it again.

Excellent idea, RoseRed. I'm not used to having support, so I never thought of asking at WW. I will Monday, though--in the meeting, not just to the leader (she doesn't seem especially informed about nutrition; she was "not sure" if BUTTER counted as a serving of milk!) But several of the group members seem to know their stuff, so I'll try that.

TwinMom, yes, we started about the same time, and we have very close to the same weight to lose. The only difference is age, and we all know THAT doesn't matter

Thanks, both of you, for the encouragement. I NEED, NEED, NEED it!

I got up early this morning because my hip and knee were hurting, so I decided to take the dog for a little walk. We only did about a mile, but this is the first time I've walked in a long time, so I'm happy with it.

Then my hubby invited me to go to the job site with him, so I grabbed a slice of whole grain bread with a tablespoon of reduced fat peanut butter on it and went to work. We walked all over Home Depot, loaded 50-pound bags of cement (once onto the cart and once into the truck) and hauled plywood, 2 X 6s, all kinds of stuff. It was a real work out.

Good thing, too, because when we got back to the site, the place was over-run with kids from a church group who were "helping" the home owner bebuild (I'm in the Katrina zone, and there's lots of rebuilding to do). So we called it a day and will try again tomorrow to get our work done.

I'm going to my daughter's this evening to cook for several of our family and friends, but I'll be back tomorrow, if not sooner. All of you are so sweet; you make me feel at home here

Well done, you have been doing great. I am amazed that even though youer hip and knee were hurting you still managed to go for a walk! Keep up the good work!!!

Thanks, FavouriteCrayon, but my body is weird: if my knee, hip and/or ankle hurts, it means one of two things. Either I'm dehydrated (and I've been drinking a gallow of water a day, so I KNOW that isn't it!) or I'm just not moving enough. So the pain was actually a signal to start moving, and I did

Now, about yesterday:

Breakfast: ww bread and peanut butter
Lunch: turkey and ham club--NO chips (I put them on a plate and had hubby move them to the other side of the table; didn't even eat ONE--YAY ME!)
Supper: This was the bbq, remember? It got pushed back later b/c my grandson had an awards ceremony; then the company locked their keys in their car on the way over and never made it, so I was stressed and exhausted. But I didn't do too terribly:
1 bbq chicken breast cooked without skin
1 small baked potato topped with frozen veggies in low fat cheese sauce
2 grilled zucchini
2 (yes, I know) sugar free, low fat Eskimo pies for dessert
and a small handfull of peanuts in the middle of the night while I was stressing over my dog who was out running the streets :P

Yes, it's not perfect, but look at what I DIDN'T eat:
I did NOT eat the chips that came (unexpectedly) with the sandwich
I did NOT eat ANY of the garlic bread at supper
I did NOT put butter, sour cream or cheese on my potato
I did NOT eat ANY of the macadamia nuts (my favorite) that are ALL OVER my daughter's house
I did NOT eat EVEN ONE of my all-time favorite, imported-from-Hawaii-so-I-will-NEVER-have-them-again chocolate dipped macadamia shortbread cookies (I deserve a medal for THAT one)
I did NOT eat any of the 1000 different kinds of really good junk food my (ridiculously skinny) daughter and my grandson keep around their house.

AND, even better, after the morning walk, I just kept ON walking: I did over 13,000 steps--or just over 6 miles for the day. So even though I ate about 1500 calories for the day, I don't THINK I did any damage, but I am a bit more nervous about the weigh in Monday.

I'm back on track today, (although I'm not walking--I HURT!). I ate a pear for breakfast (love fresh fruit) and will be having left over chicken and zucchini soon for lunch. Have not decided about supper yet, but I have my grandson, so it will need to be kid-friendly.

I have to say, too, that I'm surprized by how much I missed this place while I was gone yesterday afternoon. You guys are without a doubt the best thing that's ever happened to my weight loss efforts. Thanks!

Well done you have been great. I find when you haven't eaten perfectly its better to look at what you have done well than what you haven't. Like we can be expected to eat perfectly all the time anyway . Keep up the great work and have a good day!!!

I've just gotta say... WOO HOOO!!!! Way to go avoiding all those temptations!

Omg I so understand were your coming from, when there is so much around that you could have but DON’T have it just makes you so proud of what you have achieved doesn’t it. Your leader sounds like a bit of an idiot but your right, the people that have been there for a while are invaluable sources of information. It looks like your doing wonderful.

YAY! 6 miles of walking....good for you! Your will power is inspiring and I will remember it each time I see my kids eating ice cream! Thanks for your posts!

Thanks for the support, everyone

I'm home after a wild day of garage saling--one of my favorite activities. I THOUGHT I was doing really well today (ok, so I thought I was doing REASONABLY well today), but it turns out I'm well over my calories for the day. Hopefully I shopped enough to work it all off :P

According to Fitday, though, I've averaged just under 1200 calories a day for the week, so maybe I haven't done too much damage.

I started letting up a little bit two or three days ago--eating a taste of my hubby's fudge, TWO sugar-free Eskimo pies, a few cashew nuts, etc. About the same time, I stopped eating breakfast (just "too busy") and my grandson came for a visit (hence the junk food around). I had two 1600-calorie days, and I can't afford to do that very often.

So tomorrow I'm getting back on track--breakfast, even if it is bread and peanut butter, and no snacking, at least not on junk food.

I'm worried about next week, too. I'm going home for just over a week (I'm spending the summer on the coast and only going home occasionally). Not only is Sunday Father's Day, but Saturday is my birthday, the 21st is my grandson's birthday AND a very dear friend is coming to spend a week with us, so the house will stay full of people who want to see him, and in our family, people mean food (and volleyball).

Andy has requested some of the dishes I used to cook, and there's a trip to a steak house planned. There will probably be more food-related festivities; Andy and I used to cook together professionally, so food is naturally going to be a big part of the reunion.

Basically, I'm scared that I'm going to undo all the new habits I've been working on. Does anyone have any tips and tricks that might help me survive the up-coming crisis?

I know how you feel it was my sister's birthday and my eating was just bad on Saturday. I guess my advice would be everything in moderation. If you can't resist the food just eat a small amount. Try to choose a healthy option at the steakhouse (easier said than done i know) and if it is a large portion don't eat all of it. Good Luck!!

The best advice I can give you hun is portion control. Have the foods you used to eat but have a salad with it or have a smaller portion then have a piece of fruit to fill you up. When you cook use meat that is well trimmed or lean, use cooking spray instead of oil, low fat creams and milk instead of full fat same with dressings. Show your friends how to cook the way you are learning. Have a wonderful week and enjoy your friends, don’t panic everything will be fine if you just stick to the basic guide lines.

UGH I know how HARD it can be! But remember that you have been eating less already..so you will get full faster so you will not consume the calories you once did...but most importantly before it's time to eat...take 5 minutes and read some posts to get your mind on track again...know that we are all here in your cheering section and maybe that will at least make you think about what you will put on your plate. Also, whenever you hear that little inner voice, you know the one that always sabatoges you?, shut it out and replace it with something like "I make good food choices and I don't need this junk!" Drink lots of water and eat salads and get some exercise every morning before you even have a chance to talk yourself out of it (at least that is what works for me)! I know you can do this...we all do.....so keep up the good work...read and write in your diary and you'll do fine!

Thanks for the ideas and kind words. I've been so excited about THIS weight-loss effort because I've felt sure I was going to do it this time, but now I'm just plain scared. Tomorrow is weigh in for Weight Watchers, and if I haven't lost, I'm not sure what it will do to me. I KNOW the scale is not the only measure, and I KNOW just eating healthy is important, but I so want to have something to show for my hard work.

I just wish I could wave a majic wand and make it be 4:30 tomorrow afternoon. I'm stressing out, and I EAT when I stress. So far today I've been fine, but I'm still worried.

I'm going to find something to do to take my mind off this. I'll be back later

You are going to do fine. That number will be down - and even if it is not, it is just because the scale has not caught up with you yet. You can handle it. You can! You can handle it because you know inside that you are making healthy changes and you are not in this for a week, you are in it for a lifetime. So, no matter what happens at your weigh in, you just remember that this is but a step in your journey, and there is SO much more great stuff to come! Okie dokie?