What did I learn from Weight Watchers?

As I sit here and reflect on my Weight Watchers (WW) experience it is dawning on me that I learned two really valuable lessons.

The first is that you really can't try to lose weight when you don't buy into the program you are using.  I have some really specific food issues (no gluten, no grains, limited dairy) and that program didn't really conform to my needs.  Not a big surprise but I have to stop trying to fit myself into a mold that just doesn't fit me.  Nothing against WW but it just isn't for me.

Secondly, you need to listen to your body.  Not listening to it is what got me here in the first place.  Just because your "program" says that you have extra calories or points to use it doesn't mean you should eat -especially if you really are not hungry.  My preferred way of eating is nutrient and calorie dense.   Therefore I don't need a lot of food to be satisfied and no longer hungry.  I have been in that bad habit of eating too much so it is time to break the habit and scale back my portions.

I really feel like I have had an "ah-ha" moment. Yesterday I ate exactly what I wanted.  I didn't stress about food or how much to eat.  I had small portions of everything and felt very contented.  I can count calories/points or whatever else you have, but till I really listen to my hunger levels weight loss is going to be an impossible task.

This reminds me of something that I read yesterday.  Mark Sisson wrote it in regards to experiencing a weight loss plateau on his "Primal Blue Print" program:

"Side Note: The Primal Eating Plan is meant to be intuitive and easy. One of the great things about Primal eating is that you don’t have to count calories and track every bite of food you consume. This is why we only recommend the food diary as a temporary method to uncover any dietary indiscretions. Once you've honed in on and refined your behaviors we say ditch the journal and get on with eating Primal in a natural way that requires little to no effort"

It seems to me like I figured out why I have been struggling lately.  My portions were out of control.  Since I have really been working on not eating emotionally, I am now starting to see that my portion sizes have been out of control as well.  I actually feel happy to let go of all of that food.  Imagine that?!