Success!

My work during vacation paid off: I lost 1.2 pounds. Who goes on vacation and loses weight? I do! I was very pleased. I'm back on track after that icky 3-pound gain I had right before I left. This is how it has been since I started: bobbing up and down but always on an overall downward trajectory. That's why I don't get as bent out of shape about gaining one week as I used to. I know that my progress has been slow but steadily down and the next week is always a fresh start. So here I am, coming off a 1.2-pound loss, and I have the momentum and motivation to carry that losing trend into next week. Yeah, so, I'm not quite back to where I was three weeks ago...but I'll be back there soon enough!

This morning I calculated the Points value for my glass of V-8 juice: only 1 Point! That is good news. I will start having V-8 in the mornings instead of orange juice which is 2 Points for an 8-ounce glass. My daily Points total dropped yet again when I broke into the 170s and now every Point counts. I have less leeway to waste Points on extraneous food. I know I have my 35 weekly Flex Points I can dig into, but I like trying to stay within the confines of my daily Points allowance.

Having less Points to consume means I really have to be vigilant about everything I eat. So is it worth using up one Point on two tiny half-and-half containers for my morning coffee at work? So far...yes. I have to have my coffee! If only it was better coffee, I would drink it black (zero Points) but I just can't do that yet. Maybe I can train myself to do so. Likewise, discovering that I can have a glass of V-8 for one Point versus a glass of OJ for two Points, thereby conserving one Point during my breakfast (a Point that I can then use for my Mini Moos) is important.

Points here, Points there...it sounds awfully tedious, doesn't it, especially considering that I have to write down and keep track of everything. And yes, it does get tedious, which is why my Points-tracking vigilance waxes and wanes. I usually start off a new week post-Tuesday weigh-in all bright and chipper about tracking Points in excruciating detail and as the week wears on I lose my enthusiasm and get sloppy or just quit doing it completely.

However, as tedious as tracking Points is...when I do it for every meal every day, I LOSE MORE WEIGHT. IT WORKS. That's why I am still doing it after almost a year. IT WORKS.

I'm entering the homestretch here. I have 23 more pounds to lose to reach Goal (155 lbs). I REALLY want to get there before the end of the year. What a Christmas present that would be! Thus, I have to renew my commitment to tracking Points, to being accountable for what I eat. I got off to a very good start this morning. KEEP IT UP!