Today I would like to educate you about a little trap in the world of dieting (even though I really don’t like the word diet). The funny thing is, it is a trap that I set for myself. The first time I stepped through the door of a Weight Watchers was more than 20 years ago. I have been on countless diets in my lifetime, and I have always found that W.W. works the best for me personally. There are no “quick fixes” there….or pills…or restrictions…or special foods you have to eat. It’s real people learning how to eat real food more sensibly. I always liked that about them. I sound like a spokesperson for em, don’t I? Can’t wait to start getting those W.W. checks in the mail. Lol. Anyway, the first time I signed up I was right around 20 I believe. I was already out living on my own. That meant lots of beer, lots of take out food, and nooooo supervision.



A very dangerous combination…I am telling you from experience. Well back then going out and getting ridiculously drunk and stupid was a necessity for me. So being good 7 days a week was pretty much impossible. I had signed up with my friend Kerry, who I am happy to say is still one of my closest friends all these years later. And since she enjoyed a good happy hour (or hours) as much as I did back then, we came up with a plan. To be reeeaaaally good six days a week, and then on one special day, we would eat and/or drink anything we wanted….totally anything goes…with no judgements allowed. We called it, (drumroll please)…cheat day. Now I know that all these years later “cheat days” are much more common. But back then I had never heard of one before. If you were on a diet you were on a diet…and if you went off of it you were riddled with guilt for such a betrayal. But not on cheat day.



Cheat day was guilt free…it was cheesy omlettes, crispy home fries and bagels with cream cheese at the Modern Age on Steinway right after leaving a Weight Watchers meeting. It was giant turkey and cheese heroes with lots of mayo from King Kullen for lunch (sometimes tacos from Arby’s too), and some form of take out food followed by a bottomless pit of a night at the bar for dinner. And there was nothing to worry about either. See there were only two rules for cheat day. One…it was always on the day that you got weighed. That way you had almost a full week to get back on track for your next weigh-in. And two….you HAD to get right back on the diet the next day. Genius right? By the way, I firmly believe that Kerry and I invented this plan. And even if we didn’t, I guarantee we made more out of our one cheat day than anyone else possibly could have. Lol.  I have to admit that it was a really good concept…in theory.



The idea was that we would always be good on our diets because we knew that at the end of the week we would get weighed and then it would be PARTY TIME! And it did work for awhile. The problem for me though, was that eventually I turned cheat day into two day. This was always most dangerous when I got weighed on Saturday, because who wants to be good on Sunday after going buck-wild-crazy all day and night on Saturday? Certainly not me! So after awhile, Cheat Day became cheat weekend, then it was a three day weekend. Until finally it felt like I was dieting for one day and eating bad the other six. Sadly, two decades later cheat day is a distant memory. A really fond memory…but a memory just the same for me.  I must say I did the whole debauchery thing pretty well. Had a LOT of fun for a long time. But it got more than a little out of hand in the end.



When you are at a party and someone takes your glasses right off your face….hangs them on the neck of the shirt you are WEARING…and two minutes later you nearly stop the party because you can’t find your glasses…it might be time to ease up on the throttle a little. And yes…that happened…to a friend of mine. Okay, fine….it was me! Ha ha ha. So these days there are no cheat days mapped out on the road of my own personal weight loss journey (and I haven’t had a drink in waaaay over a decade in case you are wondering). Most importantly, I don’t think of what I am doing as a “diet” at all. I am just trying to live healthier, be smarter and actually become wiser with age. Maybe even set a good example for others too. And if there is something I am really craving, I am not going to say I am always a saint…bit I do the best I can. I find there are less headaches and heartaches that way. And I haven’t “misplaced” my glasses in awhile either.



Until tomorrow…..



Little steps lead to big changes…



Starting Weight – 271 lbs
Current Weight – 265 lbs

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Total Weight Loss So Far – 6 pounds

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Goal Weight - 199 lbs