Back to the WW

Last Wednesday, I went to my first WW since I've left Israel. I don't know what I was expecting, but this program is drastically different from the program I've come to know and love in Israel. For some reason, in the States I get 10 more points per day than in Israel, plus an extra 35-points a week should I feel the need for a Chipotle burrito (which, btw, I haven't eaten yet--thank goodness Crazy Bowls and Wraps has a 12-point and much healthier alternative to the burrito bowl that I really enjoy!) I never had access to any of these points in Israel, though they seem to be calculated the same way. Now I'm wondering what I should do: Do I stick with the Israeli program, which has been working beautifully, or switch to the American program since I'm living in America again? A part of me wonders if maybe the Israeli program was somehow unsafe, as if I was starving myself w/o enough points everyday, though I always ate plenty and never felt unsatisfied.

I think I am just going to keep going, since I don't count my points everyday like I should anyways. I use the points like a guideline, using them to base my food decisions. For example, if I know I want to eat pizza later, I stick to fruits and veggies and other low point foods during the day as to be able to eat my pizza without sides of guilt or anxiety. As a whole, the program gives me incentive to eat more fruits, veggies, protein, skim milk products, and whole grains, making me a healthier and much more balanced person. And it allows for some treats everyday, so I don't feel too bad about eating a small dessert or 1 piece of STL style pizza or something like that. It's a real lifestyle as opposed to a diet.

As I was walking in the water yesterday, I thought about weighing myself on the scale in the locker room when I was finished. But then I thought about my mom, who would weigh herself every time we went to the J for swim lessons. I remembered how she would criticize herself whenever the numbers went up and feel bad for the rest of the day. I decided right then and there that from this point onward I refuse to be a 'dieter.' I will weigh-in once a week at my meetings and keep up my same good attitude throughout the process, lose, gain or stay the same. The changes I am making in my life are nothing more than lifestyle changes, allowing me to be a healthy person, a happy person, a person who is in control of her life, well-being, and destiny.

BTW, did I mention that I went down 1.6 lbs at my first meeting? That was including finals, moving, 2 airplanes, re-acclimating to the US and it's delicious surroundings, and many tasty reunions with friends and family. Not too shabby, I must say :)

75.5 lbs and counting!