Calorie Counting {2011}

I know, I know.

I know what you’re thinking. Trust me, I do.

Hasn’t Monica touted Weight Watchers, Livestrong and many other things on here about weight loss and yet she’s still trying to lose weight?

Well, yes.

And on Wednesday, December 29th, I stepped on the scale and I looked at the number.

HOLY CRAP.

It’s the HIGHEST it’s ever been. EVER in my 25 years of existence. I wanted to die. That’s how bad that number made me feel. And I felt like such a cow. And a loser, though not a loser of weight. I felt bad because ever since the new Weight Watchers plan was unveiled (Points Plus) I’ve been gaining weight. Why? Because to me, ME, it is really complicated. I would do it sometimes, and then not, and then do it again. So I re-gained the couple of pounds I had lost and THEN some. <insert scream here>

I’m sure you can all relate in someway when you’ve tried to lose weight or firm up. If it’s not manageable or simple to you, you’re unlikely to stick with it.

And that was me with the new Weight Watchers. So many people I know are having tremendous success with the new program, and I am proud of their weight losses week after week. But what works for one, might not work for another. Therefore, on December 30th, 2010, I reverted back to the method that is to me the most simple and the easiest to follow. And it’s free.

Counting calories. For a few days I logged my calories/food and exercise on 3 different websites that all have iPhone apps as well. The 3 I used were Lose It, Livestrong and My Fitness Pal. After 1 meal, I quit using Lose It. Why? Well, simply put, I think their database stinks. I didn’t want to have to log all my food on there manually. Simple, remember? That left Livestrong and MFP. They both have every food you can imagine- they even had some of the generic foods and such found at the local grocery store. I think I’ve had to input 1 food item manually in the 10 days I’ve been doing this. I didn’t want to have to do double duty, so I am now only using 1 website/iPhone app exclusively- MFP.

I think the only real reason I chose MFP over Livestrong is the awesome community section they have going on over at MFP. The boards are full of success stories, helpful tips and support. The website and the iPhone app are easy to use and have so many fabulous features. From my understanding, the Droid version of MFP has barcode scanning. If the iPhone app ever has that feature I’ll be the crazy girl scanning random stuff at the supermarket.

Don’t judge.

I guess you all want me to get to the good part- I’ve been doing this for 10 whole days now, how much have I lost? I’m about to tell you.

8.2 pounds

And what else? Well, everyday of calorie counting, I’ve exercised for at least 40 minutes a day. I am 100% positive this is what has helped me lose weight. I think I would still lose weight without exercising, but I think it’s healthier and better if a person can find a way to incorporate exercise into their daily lifestyle. I used to make excuses about now having enough time to exercise. If that were the case, I also wouldn’t have time to spend countless hours on Twitter, watching TV and reading blogs. And that’s when I just stopped making excuses, put my DVR to good use and got to exercising. For the most part I’ve been doing Turbo Jam, Walk Away the Pounds and Just Dance 2. Yes, that last one is a Wii game, and if you have it, you know it’s a workout. Just do “Proud Mary” once and tell me you’re not sweating. I dare you.

I hope those of you who do Weight Watchers don’t hate me. I fully support you, and I am blessed that Weight Watchers did help me lose about 55 pounds from 2002-2003. Something that will be staying the same is my little weight loss virtual bank balance. I figured with all the holiday shopping I did, I just about wiped out my previous balance, so I am starting fresh. Guidelines are the same- $10 per pound loss, $10 per 60 minutes of exercise.

Monica’s Weight Loss Bank Balance: $80 from weight loss, $60 from exercise= $140.00 total

If you want to read more awesomeness about calorie counting, please, please, please read this post over at www.344pounds.com

Have you ever counted calories before? What do you think?

I’ll be back tomorrow with low calorie pizza & my top 10 tips for being successful at counting calories. And if you join MFP, feel free to friend me. My username is MonicaBenavidez