Information and Portion Size!

Good morning everyone!



Today, I've got lots of information for you. There were MANY questions last week regarding alcohol! There were also many concerns on how to make the program work for YOU!


Put on your thinking caps and do some reading to help you with your success this week.



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1.) For those of you who like to partake of the spirits now and then........here is a question and the answer.

"Why don’t the PointsPlus™ values I calculate for my wine match those in the Complete Food Companion? "

This is the information we have gotten about alcohol from Program Development at WW:

With regard to alcohol, manufacturers do not post grams of alcohol on their bottles and it’s grams of alcohol that determine the majority of calories in beverages containing alcohol (without added mixers). They do post info for carbs, fat, protein etc which can be confusing and it’s why many of you have been finding beer/wine that counts as 0. An easy rule of thumb for a standard 5 fl oz wine, 12 fl oz beer, or 1 ½ fl oz, is that they contain about 14g alcohol, and count as 4 – 5 PointsPlus values generally. Light beer has about 10g alcohol per 12 fl oz and works out to 3 PointsPlus values. You can enter alcohol information as above in the calculator as fat, as they are pretty close in terms of calories per gram. Just add it to the fat grams info on a label if any.

Sugar alcohol is a little more complicated as calories per gram varies with the type of sugar alcohol used in a product and it can only be entered as carbs in the calculator at 4 cals per gram. On a positive note, unlike alcohol, you may actually count more PointsPlus values than the product actually contains, if sugar alcohol that’s used contains only 1cal per gram. If you have sugar alcohol info for a product and want to know the true PointsPlus value, post it on Connections and we’ll provide the answer.

2.)

CORRECTIONS FOR DINING OUT COMPANION, COMPLETE FOOD COMPANION, and POINTSPLUS POCKET GUIDE

There are some misprints in these books. This list will provide you with corrected PP Values and some Power Foods foods that were not designated as Power Foods now have the Green Pyramid sign. Please click on the link below for a complete list which you can keep on your computer or print out for your reference. 2 BIG CORRECTIONS.....POPCORN AND WEIGHT WATCHER BREAD AND ROLLS!!!

http://www.weightwatchers.com/images/1033/dynamic/GCMSImages/ListCorrections.v8.pdf

3.) "I’m not losing weight on the new program. What could be causing it?"

Hundreds of thousands of people—men, women, tall people, short people, people with more weight to lose and people with less weight to lose, older people, and younger people-- have lost weight with the PointsPlus program. As always, if you rock the program, the program will rock you.

So what might be going wrong? Here are some troubleshooting suggestions:

1) Are you combining programs? The new program, including higher PointsPlus targets and zero-PointsPlus value fruits, only works with PointsPlus values. It means to see success; you need to recalculate the PointsPlus values for everything you eat. Your estimating skills will not be as sharp as they were with the POINTS system—don’t rely on them. Look it up.

2) Are you looking for bargains as we did with the old program? We’ve seen people radically alter their eating as they bargain hunt. Soon they find they are eating below their target and they are full, but they haven’t had a whole grain or dairy product in ages. The Good Health Guidelines are still critical. And whole grains are very important to a balanced diet.

3) Portion distortion is more apparent in PPV. See above. It is easier to monitor with eTools. You can also use your PointsPlus calculator, as well as your Pocket Guide and Food Companions.

4) Fruit. Zero PointsPlus values does not mean unlimited fruit. Eat to satisfaction. Be careful about grazing all day. And if you are eating a lot of fruit and not seeing weight loss results, cut back.

5) You are on a plateau. Check the usual suspects for plateaus. Ask in your Meeting for the Plateau sheet.

Is there a limit on how many servings of fruits and vegetables you should eat per day?

No. We’d like you to eat at least 5, to fulfill your Good Health Guideline requirement. We’d be happy if you had a few more, too, because they would probably “crowd out” other, less-great choices.

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Now, our meeting topic this week is PORTION SIZE!

How much is too much?

Is that all I get?

Why is it absolutely necessary to be exact?

It's so time consuming to have to weigh and measure eeevvverything! How can I cut back on the clock?

Think about these questions everyone. What are your priorities on this program? Perhaps you have hit a plateau and need to work through that. Do you think maybe your guesstimating has turned into a runaway train? Even if you're tracking, if you're not tracking CORRECT information, you won't see the results you want.

PointsPlus values are not meant to be suggestions. If you do the program the way it is designed, then you WILL get results!

I hope that your trips to the grocery store and your pantry renovations included some brainwork about your portions.

This week let's talk about challenges your having with portion control and celebrate successes you've had in tackling those old habits.

See you this week everyone!

-Karen, your Weight Watchers Leader

Happy Sunday!

It's time for this weeks' newsletter!

I was recently speaking to a friend and we were discussing Oprah and her weight loss journey. We were saying how hard it is to believe that she has personal trainers, personal chefs and a whole staff of people to help her on her weight loss journey. Yet, she still struggles. Why do you think that is?

Do you think Oprah does her own grocery shopping and designs her own menu? Is she in control of what is stocked in her kitchen? Do you think that all of her money has bought her the ability to make wise choices? Well, that is up for debate as I'm sure you'd all agree.

Now, let's talk about us, the do-it-yourself average American. Are we fully informed as to what walks into our own kitchens? Your answer should be a resounding YES!

We tend to have all sorts of items in there for our "surprise guests", for your own kids who will complain because they "need" their chips, for when the kids visit from college, for the grandchildren who "need" cookies and cakes, etc., etc...... What about what we need? Tell me what your needs are for your kitchen, then tell yourself.

We are a result of what is in our house. If there are dangerous treats there, will you eat them? And moreover, why would you set yourself up for that kind of conflict?

Before I see all of you this week, I hope you'll think about what NEEDS to happen in your own kitchen and then how to make it happen. Let's discuss the roadblocks that you approach while mulling this over. Let's also share your success!

My latest cooking expedition!
This is the Sausage and Bean pasta dish from the "Just Five" cookbook as well. The recipe makes 6 servings at 8 PP per serving.

Here is the recipe plus some slight seasoning additions that I made to it:


-1/2 lb (approx. 1/2 box) of whole wheat rotini or rigatoni
-3/4 lb (about 4) of sweet or spicy Italian sausage, sliced
-1 14 oz. can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
-14 oz. (1 can) of low sodium chicken broth
-3/4 lb. bunch of Kale, stems removed and chopped into thin strips
-1 tbsp. minced garlic
-salt and pepper to taste
-Mrs. Dash extra spicy seasoning to taste


-cook pasta according to package directions and set aside
-spray non-stick spray in a deep saute pan and brown the sausage with the garlic, salt and pepper and Mrs. Dash
-add chicken broth and kale and put on high heat. When the broth starts to boil, reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the Kale is tender. About 5 Minutes.
-Add beans and pasta and stir. Keep the pan on the heat for about 1 to 2 more minutes to reheat the pasta and beans. Adjust the seasoning to taste.
-Eat!

http://www.hungry-girl.com/newsletters/raw/1372

What are you REALLY hungry for?

Happy Sunday Everyone!

Some of you may be watching the Superbowl kickoff right now! Let me ask you, what snacks are YOU munching on right now, and are what are you REALLY hungry for? Are you hungry for fun and excitement, are you hungry for team spirit?

I want to ask everyone how their opposite week has gone? Have you tried anything new this week? I did! The picture I've posted is what I made last night from the new "Just 5" cookbook. Lamb with Couscous Salad. There was an excitement that came along with spicing things up that made me less hungry for things I didn't really want.

Always remember that you need to keep your mind active when it concerns food. Consistently having the same foods all the time leads to EMOTIONAL boredom. When we are unenthusiastic about the food choices we make, then we go looking for other items that aren't good choices, or perhaps too much of our usual choices.

Also consider what emotions drive you to make less than great choices. Can you identify them? When do they occur and why? Those times are crucial to our success! We will feel all of these emotions again in our lives. That much is guaranteed. Building the skills to work through those emotionally hungry times will carry you through the weight loss process and give you the ability to maintain your weight loss.

I want everyone to think about these questions and bring your ideas to the meeting so we can work on it TOGETHER.

Have a wonderful evening!

-Karen