I think I gained at least 5 lbs over the holiday season this year. Not because of anything special, but because I just disregarded everything that I knew I should do and just ate whatever I wanted. Add to that the extra 8 lbs or so I’m still lugging around in post baby weight (yes, buddy is 2 1/2 and I still have the weight) and I have about 13 lbs I really want to lose.
Who am I kidding? I’d be happy with 10! Actuallly, I don’t care what the number is as long as I can fit back into my size 8 stuff comfortably again.
In the past I’ve tried the Atkins Diet, Slim Fast, and Weight Watchers. I really like the Weight Watchers point system, and used their program to lose my weight from being pregnant with princess, and to start slimming down after Buddy (hey-I may have a good 10 lbs left, but I lost almost 30 already). I think that Weight Watchers is a realistic, healthy and sustainable program. I like that you get to eat real food and not prepackaged stuff (that has been chemically processed to death). What I don’t like is the cost of the Weight Watchers meetings.
So for a while I tried following the program on my own. With only myself to be accountable to I soon started slacking off. Then my dear MIL introduced me to TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly). TOPS is a national weight loss support group. They do not have their own weight loss program-you are supposed to follow whatever diet plan you and your doctor set up. It is simply the supportive meeting and weigh in portion. At each meeting after your private weigh in you have some sort of program about weight loss or healthy lifestyles. The leaders are people elected from within the group, and everyone can take turns at running a program.
The best thing is that TOPS membership only costs $24 a year (which includes their magazine subscription as well) and then a dollar a meeting plus “fines”. At my local chapter the most you could pay on fines in a week is $.25.
Of course the most frugal thing to do would be just to lose weight on your own and not pay anything. If like me you can’t do that, then TOPS is a very frugal alternative. Somehow just the act of going to the weekly meeting and stopping to think about my eating habits once a week seems to help keep me on track.
As for now, I have recommitted myself to increasing my physical activity and decreasing my eating. After all-swimsuit weather will get here eventually!
Very interesting. I liked Weight Watchers when I did them a few years ago, but it did get expensive. I’ll have to look into TOPS- my frugal do it myself stuff is not working.
Hi Jenn,
I just did an article about Nutrition (because March is National Nutrition Month) Check out this on-line calorie calculator… it tells you how many calories you should be consuming daily based on gender, height, weight and age. Then there is an exercise calculator. I just thought it was fun. (they have kissing as an exercise!! Dang it… I am missing out on vital exercise!)
http://www.caloriecontrol.org/calcalcs.html
I have heard of TOPS it sounds like fun! All in all if you are taking care of yourself, I think it is worth investing a little bit of money!
P.S. Thanks for stopping by my site 🙂
I am a member of TOPS and it furnished me with the support to lose my excess weight. It encourages healthy eating and discourages fad diets. What I liked best is that it gave me the incentive to start a walking program which I have kept up for almost 2 years now. I can’t say enough good things about TOPS.
I enjoy your blog so much but to now have been in the fringes.
What is the fine for?
Ren-at our meeting we have a jar that goes around at the begining of the meeting for a “roll call” (there are only about 10 folks in our group and probably average about 8 per meeting) When you get the jar, you have to introduce yourself and then answer the questions taped to the jar, which are “did you keep a calorie chart? Did you drink your water? Did you exercise at least 3X this week?” Each “no” is a 5 cent fine. After a holiday weekend there are double fines-so actually I should have said the most in fines would be $.30 instead of $.25.
The fines (plus the $1 a meeting) go into the chapters funds (and you get a report on the funds from the treasurer every week) and the chapter (at least at my chapter) votes on what to use it for. We meet at the library for free, but apparently previously they used a room somewhere else that cost $30 a month, so they had to pay for that out of the funds.
We just used our money a few months ago to buy a new scale, and we donated some money to the library since we meet there for free.