One week in

Okay - so I had a really good weigh-in (6 pounds!) but in all honesty, I did not expect to weigh in last week so I had my FULL lunch, ALL my beverages and ALL my snacks.  I significantly pared down my intake for last night's weigh-in.

OMG there I go again - not giving myself credit....  Yes all of the above is true, but I also made 100's of food decisions throughout the week based on healthy eating choices and a weigh-in looming down the road.  I don't expect losses to be as significant as this first one - I will be happy with 1/2 pound a week, if that (which has always been my MO).  What helped me through the week was watching the videos at this website: "Man Meets Scale" on which he has You Tube videos (it is one presentation starting with the top one, but he broke it into two videos because of the length) about a remarkable woman named Jennie.  I absolutely BEG of you to set aside 20 minutes and watch these videos.  They were absolutely the aha moment for me when I decided that I was not going to bolt this time around.

Because of these YouTube videos I also spent some time watching other "vlogs" (the name for video blogs, I guess) of people who have been successful on Weight Watchers. Two that I watched, vlogged from their first meeting to the end - and three had lost 100+ pounds.  Only one was recently posted though - I would love to know how others are doing and if the success was long lived.

Anyway - I am very happy with my decision to return to Weight Watchers.  Watching the various videos it is apparent that I am not the only one who "bolts" on a regular basis, but really, watching the videos of Jennie (same link as above) sealed the deal.  When I put down the start date on my new meeting member booklet it was 12/12/12!  Isn't that rather auspicious?

My saving-grace lunch all this past week was my (6 PP+) chicken salad, which I have either as a whole serving with salad greens, or broken into two sandwiches if I am on the run.  I wanted to share the recipe with you.  On Sunday I made four servings  in the food processor, although I have also made single servings in my little chopster (1-serving portions are in parentheses).  I think I am going to stick with the "bulk" preparation because I make it once and it's good for four servings.

16 oz white meat chicken (can be white meat turkey) (4 oz)
1/2 cup cranberry/orange relish (recipe below) (2 TBS)
1/2 cup Miracle Whip Lite (you can use lite mayo if you prefer) (2 TBS)
Mix in food processor, stir in 1/4 cup chopped walnuts (1 TBS)

Cranberry/Orange relish:
1 12 oz bag of fresh cranberries
1 LARGE navel orange, skin still on
1 inch of thick piece of ginger
1/2 to 1  cup Splenda (you can make it with sugar but you will have to add points)
Mix in food processor.
This actually is one of my family's favorite side dishes, and I will be sad when cranberry season comes to a close - this year I am going to freeze one bag of cranberries to see if they hold up for this recipe, and if they do I will freeze more next year.

So far I'm not tired of this, so I see LOTS of chicken salad in my future - and I have found that when I divide it into two sandwiches (made on light bread) that one sandwich is so filling that's all I need for lunch, and then I have the second sandwich on the way home, which keeps me from gnawing my arm off before I hit the kitchen for dinner.

Miriam