Oh yeah. I Went.

So this morning I went to my first Weight Watcher's meeting ...

... and it was AWESOME.

Okay, so maybe not awesome in the traditional sense, but it definitely confirmed that I made the right decision to join. First off, I would say that 80% of the attendees were over the age of 55. I was the youngest, for sure. 

After I registered they weighed me (which turned out to be a higher number than my scale at home) and gave me all my materials and told me to take a seat as the meeting would be starting shortly.

I was able to grab a seat by a woman who looked to be in her 50's,  with short brown hair  and she was reading over her booklets. Since we were basically sitting shoulder to shoulder, I ask her how long she has been attending and she tells me that this is her first time. I told her that it was my first meeting as well, and that seemed to bond us into a special sisterhood of 'newbies' and now Sandy is my new WWBFF (Weight Watcher's Best Friend Forever). She told me how her daughter (who she didn't think needed to lose weight) has lost 16 pounds in 5 weeks. So she decided to join. FABULOUS. 

We sat through the 30 minute meeting where they talk about not falling into a rut with our eating and they highlighted a 'power food'. This week's power food was broccoli. So people volunteered their favorite ways to eat broccoli and everyone was happy and supportive and encouraging. They gave out stickers to those who had reached their 5% goal (losing 5% of their body weight) and their 10% goal. And there were even a couple of people who had lost 10 lbs or 20 lbs. And if I'm being honest, I want a sticker. (and you can bet I'll let you all know when I get one)

After the 'regular' meeting they held orientation for those of us newcomers. Here is where they explained how the system worked, what our 'tools' were and all that good stuff. One of the things my leader talked about was how important it was to incorporate the 'bad foods' that we love into our lifestyle. She told us how she loved Mexican food and when she was  in the process of losing all of her weight (she lost over 80lbs) that she completely eliminated it from her diet. But the day she hit her goal weight, the first thing she did was go to a Mexican restaurant. She talked about how since she didn't allow herself to work it into her normal everyday life, when she ate it, she ate it the same way she did back when she was heavy. She gorged. She didn't know how to eat it in balance. 

So that's what's kinda cool about this system. And it's a huge reason why I think this could work for me.

I will say, there is a part of me that has a hard time believing that I can lose weight off of how many points I'm allowed to have, but I guess this is where I need to trust the system. Basically you've given a daily allotment of points (which is a really decent amount) and then you're allowed 49 'extra' points. You can use those points to splurge on a meal out - or if you know you have some event coming up that's going to have cake (or whatever). Or if you want, you can break those points down per day, raising your daily intake. You can do whatever you want with them - even not use them at all.

Today has gone really good for me so far. It still feels a bit awkward figuring out the best use of my points, and finding foods that I want to eat, but there are SOOOO many options. Online they have recipes and I actually picked up one of their cookbooks. So it'll be interesting to see what's in there. 

Also, I got the 'monthly pass' which allows me to go to meetings and have access to information online as well. It's $39 per month and they just bill your credit card. You can cancel at any time. I called the toll free number yesterday, because I wanted to ask some questions to people at my direct branch, but apparently it doesn't work that way. The person I spoke to answered some of my questions and tried to get me to sign up over the phone. I didn't want to. I didn't want to be pressured. So instead she said she'd email me a special offer not available online. If I signed up for the monthly pass, I got my first month for half off - and no sign up fees! So the first month was $19. 

She also said that I could share it with any of my friends...

So if any of you are thinking about joining Weight Watchers, email me at iwannabeakpopstar@yahoo.com and I'll email you the offer so you can get half off too! Remember, it's just for the first month, the regular billing will apply after that. 

I'm super happy that I joined. I'm not even kidding. I think this is going to be a great option for me, and I feel really motivated right now. Knowing that fruits & vegetables are 'zero points' makes me feel like I can get through my hunger periods... I have a good option to snack on, without giving up my points. AWESOME.

So there you have it. That was my first meeting. And Sandy and I decided to make Friday's at 9:30a our time - so we'll probably sit next to each other again next week. Gotta love making new friends.