Walking the road to weight loss: Little Steps

Hope
In the world of political activism and grassroots organizing we talk about setting goals for campaigns through small victories. For example in one of my most recent grassroots events we did voter registration drives. Our goal for the Campaign was to register 5000 new voters. When you see that number you think if we can do that its awesome. That number though is a little daunting though when you think of it as a whole. So instead of looking at the big number we train ourselves to look at that number is several more manageable smaller goals. In the case of voter registration we always celebrate our first person registered then the first 25 and so on. By setting smaller goals it breaks the big number up and helps us to feel like we're making more progress with a chance to congratulate ourselves on our hard work so far with out this Humungous number hanging over our head. With this practice in mind I can carry it over to something else in my life, weight loss!

In weight watchers we also set manageable goals with the practice of setting it small and celebrating. The first goal I have set for myself is the first 10 percent. In case you don't know how much weight that is for me its 28.3 pounds. Now in my head 28.3 pounds is a lot of weight so instead i'm celebrating more manageable goals and I keep telling myself a message.
PLUS
The goals are important in activism and organizing, but the message that we put out is just important. In the organizing world its usually a message that all people can repeat and come together around. In a relatable example, During the 2004 Democratic convention, as the keynote speaker, Barak Obama used the word hope as a message. In that message of hope he used the word "Hope" 42 times. Now that's a lot repetition, but after hearing it so many times the country was undeniably convinced that if we voted for the democratic candidate we would some how gain a new sense of hope. This year the buzz word or message is change. On every candidates promotional material from Ed Perlmutter to Barak Obama to even John McCain we see the word change. All candidates are spewing out the message that we need to change and that in whatever form that change takes it is all for the better.
CHANGE
Change is what is occuring as I lose weight but my message is a little different. My message is a phrase that I repeat and see every day. On the bottom of one of the programs we use at the credit union is a place for notes and a scratch pad. On that scratch pad reads this phrase You can do it lose one and shoot for two. In regards for weight that's my goal each week. After four weeks of reading that message I've done pretty much that. Although this week was a little less than one pound exactly I'm still excited about it. Margaret my weight watchers leader talked about 2 tenths of a pound and what a stumbling block that can be for some people. Well I was exactly two tenths of a pound from the one pound I was shooting for this week. Well I've decided to turn that stumbling block into a starting block. That two tenths is just that a success because it gives me hope that next week my weight loss will be just that much greater.
EQUALS
The Goals and messages we set are what keep us rolling every day. The umbrella that brings them together and keeps us going is the idea that both of these things are manageable. So if we can keep our messages and goals under that umbrella than there is only one outcome. That out come is success!
SUCCESS!

Weight loss thus far 9.6 lbs!

Walking the Road to Weight loss

July 12, 2008 and was the bottom of the whole. I weighed the most I've ever weighed in my entire life. A trip to the doctors because I had some kind of weird throat infection was the cause of my Holy Shit I've hit the bottom moment. When I stepped on the scale at the doctors office and the nurse kept moving the weight balance further and further to the right I about died right there.

Twelve days later I joined weight watchers with my sister. It should be made known that Mom, Dad, and Adrienne have been doing weight watchers for the last year or sometime around when dad almost died from septic shock from swallowing ocean water that my cousin Holly thinks was tainted with "Seal Feces". They've been doing really well on it. Adrienne looks great. She's only 7 lbs from her goal weight. She's been the biggest support for me so far.

To give up the dirty details. I'm 6'2 23 years old and for all intensive purposes I should weight about 175-195 to be healthy. However I don't fit the healthy bill. At the time of my first weigh-in I was sitting at a hefty 283 lbs. Wow big guy right? Well what you should know is that every time I tell people that they're a little surprised because I hide my weight well. Well not anymore I'm gonna lose it. I haven't set a big weight goal just 10 percent of my body weight but 28 pounds is a lot to lose. After I get down my 28.3 lbs to 254.7 lbs I'll start setting the big weight loss goal!

Before my grandfather died we went to visit him in Glendive, Montana. It was just before we left for the trip back to Colorado that he pulled me aside and told me something I'll never forget. He said you're to good to look like you do. You don't want to look like me when you get to my age. 81 at the time. He was right I needed to lose weight. He's my inspiration and when my mom found a picture of him at my age, with his shirt open and him basically looking like a male black and white pinup, I said I want to look like that. He's my inspiration. I can do this and I will lose the weight.

So, Today being August 15, I've lost 8.8 lbs so far the healthy way and I'm extremely excited to keep on trucking! Everyone's support is much appreciated and I don't know what I would do with out it. If anyone is thinking about losing weight, Weight watchers is the way to go. They support and the meetings are important because even though its kind of like Alcoholics anonymous for "traditionally built" people it will help you more than anything.