Day 2: The Honeymoon Lives On

Here it is, Day 2 of the Hunger Games...I mean, sticking to the Weight Watchers Plan.  I don't expect to fight to the death over a Twinkie, but is only the 2nd day, so let's not get ahead of ourselves.

The day isn't over yet, but I'm feeling confident enough in how I'm doing today, to go ahead and post this.  I'm still following the plan.  I've tracked everything I've eaten today, I've stayed within my WW Points, and I even exercised for another hour today.  I'm sure you'll agree that I'm somewhat of a beast today.  Go ahead, you can say it.  Dorian, you're a beast.  Ahh, there it is.  Thanks.

So, here's a quick run down of today's food consumption, for your voyeuristic enjoyment:
Breakfast:  Cinnamon-Raisin English muffin, lightly toasted and slathered with a wedge of Cinnamon Cream Cheese spread from Laughing Cow, then toped with a halved banana.  WW Points: 4

Snack:  Weight Watchers String Cheese.  WW Points: 1

Snack #2, because snack #1 left me ravenously hungry about 17 minutes later:  Apple slices with Peanut Butter.  WW Points 2.

Lunch:  Whole Wheat Spaghetti noodles, 2 cups; Prego spaghetti Sauce with ground turkey; Garlic Toast made from hot dog buns (Is my family the only one that turns hotdog and hamburger buns into garlic toast with a little bit of olive oil and garlic salt?), Salad with croutons, other crunchy crap, and light salad dressing.  WW Points 27.  (I spent a lot of points on today's lunch.  We don't usually have big lunches, but I had the points, so no biggie.)

Dinner:  Healthy Pop Popcorn, 2 servings.  WW Points 6.  (I know what you're thinking - Popcorn for dinner? - but I'm actually not that hungry after the huge lunch I ate today, so no judging.)

I get 42 WW Points per day, so I still have 2 more to go.  Not to mention, the 49 extra weekly points that I can spend, as well.  I think I may have a chocolate ice cream bar (or a Weight Watchers variety of ice cream....I think it's made from recycled leather, perhaps?  I joke.  It tastes...good...ish.) later on, so I'll dip into those.

Feeling very proud of my accomplishments so far.  Go, me!

I'm not sure how to steer the conversation into a natural segue here, so I'm going to do this....

TOPIC NUMBER NEXT COMING UP!

Each month Weight Watchers does a little spotlight on a healthy habit.  They focus the meetings on the habit for 4 weeks, and then move on to another habit.  I can't tell you what last month's healthy habit was, because, well, let's face it...I wasn't really paying attention to what I was doing with Weight Watchers, now was I.  This month's healthy habit started yesterday, and since I was paying attention (I even took notes!  How's that for paying attention!) I can relay to you that all of the Weight Watchers world is focusing all at once on this:  Slow Down.  When I saw that at first, I wasn't quite sure what to think, but I quickly realized that it had to do with slowing down while you eat.

This teacher can consume an apple
in 12 seconds flat.  You should see
what she can do to a Hot Pocket.

Now, there are all sorts of reasons that you might eat fast:  It tastes good.  You're just a fast eater.  You want to get through firsts, so you can eat seconds.  Sure, I've been there and done that, too.  But you're not truly considered a fast eater until you've lived through the life of a teacher, eating your tongue-scalding-hot-on-the-outside-still-frozen-in-the-middle-microwave-meal in the remaining 12 minutes of your 20 minute lunch break (because you do know that you can NEVER arrive to the lunch room early unless you want to a tongue lashing from somebody whose schedule is thrown off by you being 1.52 minutes early), plus the fact that you had to walk your students through the line because several of them wanted to have a milk-fight and you knew it would be best to cut them off at the pass, and then of course, there's the never ending litany of kids chorusing, "Can I go back to the room to get my coat?" and you feel the need to escort them back to the cafeteria because they have that glint in their eye that tells you they just might be a runner today and decide to take off for the hills while you're not watching.

So, if you've lived through that scenario for a year or two, you're likely set in a terrible cycle that will be very hard to break.

I'm very blessed this year to have longer than a 20 minute lunch, and I still find that I am shoveling the food in my mouth, as fast as I can.  This week, I've decided to be conscious of my super sonic food shoveling, and try to do something about it.

One member at my Weight Watchers meeting yesterday suggested slowing down by putting your fork down after every bite, and taking a sip of water after swallowing each bite.  Once I sit down to eat, that fork doesn't leave my hand until I'm tossing it in the sink, so this will be quite the challenge.

So far, it's going pretty well, as long as I'm eating with other people.  When I eat alone, I forget.  Plus, I feel like a dork.  But, all dorkiness aside, I know it's a good idea to do it, so I'm going to go ahead and continue to make that something I focus on this week.

I did notice that I felt fuller, faster when I did this.  Usually I scarf down a meal so fast, I don't feel full until I've eaten everything on my plate, and then some.  For the past two days, I was full by the time I'd eaten the food I'd portioned out when I took time to set down my fork.  I also ended up drinking a lot more water than I would have otherwise.

After I get this mastered a little better, I think the next step is to stop eating when I'm no longer hungry. I almost used the word "satisfied" there, but the problem with my little brain, well, one of the problems, anyway, is that I don't feel satisfied until I'm so full, I'm nearly uncomfortable.  But, the last two days, since I'm taking so much time to eat, I've found that moment when I know I could be done.  I sigh.  I'm no longer hungry, and any more eating that I do, is purely for the pleasure of eating and no longer has anything to do with sating my hunger.  So, I know I could quit, and should quit...

But, alas...I'm not quite there yet.