Cruising with Weight Watchers Members

I promised I would blog about the Weight Watchers Caribbean cruise on the MSC Divina from November 11-18, but I had a very hard time getting consistent internet access in the middle of the ocean.  I was not alone.  Here are some highlights of the trip that I'd like to share with everyone who wonders about what thisfloating community experience was like. 

There were 850 Weight Watchers members from around the US and Canada who participated.  There were twelve WW leaders selected from 600 applicants who worked the programming on this trip.  There were five staff members from the NY corporate headquarters who directed and managed all of this for months behind the scenes and then on board.  This included Gary Foster, our Chief Scientific Officer.

Every day of the cruise was jam packed with activities, lectures, fitness, zumba dance parties, FOCUS workshops, FLOW classes, WW meetings, weigh ins and on-on-one coachings, specially prepared Weight Watchers meals in the dining room and buffet.  Members could participate in any and all of the WW programming plus attend anything that the ship offered to its 3,000 other guests who were aboard.  There was non-stop entertainment in the evenings from shows, live music, dancing, George Clooney movies, zumba under the stars, WW dance party farewell, etc.

There were three days that the ship docked for several hours in Antigua, St. Thomas and the Bahamas.  Members could then take part in an excursion like swimming with sting rays, sitting on a beach, touring the island with a guide, zip-lining or just souvenir shopping.  When that got tiring, people came back to the ship and relaxed by one of the many pools. 

As someone who has never cruised before, I didn't know what to expect.  For starters, I went prepared with my acupressure bracelets and medicine for sea sickness.  The first two days were choppy for me, so I was taking my medicine and balancing myself in the shower.  After that, it was smoother sailing--no more medicine needed.  Make no mistake, you definitely knew you were on a ship.  This ship has sixteen floors, and my "state room" was on the eighth floor.  I took the stairs 95% of the time.  The dining room was on five and six.  The buffet and pool were on fourteen.  The Focus workshops were on sixteen.  The Flow classes were on seven or sixteen.  Getting a lot of steps in was not a problem.  From stem to stern, it was a lot of walking and stepping. 

I  was working most of the time, leading my own Focus workshops, teaching chi flow, weighing and doing coachings or monitoring my fellow leaders' classes.  I did have time in between to attend activities too.  I sat in on a panel discussion where lots of "behind the scenes" questions were answered.  Why are fitness classes mostly held at 7-9AM?  Because the ship will only allow us to have private access to those rooms in the morning.  How is the food managed?  This was one of the most interesting topics.  The MSC Divina cruiseline is the only line that would agree to cooperate with WW and prepare our food according to our recipes.  The WW nutritionist was onboard as was one of our recipe developers.  The chefs had 100 WW recipes to work with, and they were each taste tested by the nutritionist and recipe developer before every single meal.  Quality control and portion control in full force!  One of the nicest things for me was to see the SmartPoints listed on every single food item.  Both the dining room and the buffet were full of delicious, portion controlled healthy options.  No one could possibly call this "diet food."  If you didn't know these were WW recipes, you would have assumed they were delicious offerings.  In fact, if there were leftovers from WW service, they offered them in the regular buffet to non-WW passengers.  No complaints.  There were also WW cocktails available.

Bringing Focus workshops and Flow classes to so many members was a real gift to me. This is why I was onboard. Seeing so many friendly people making connections and forming relationships was amazing.  Some people who had never cruised before ventured solo on this experience and quickly found like minded people from all over the US and Canada.  Talk about living beyond the scale!  Taking chances and risks and moving outside your comfort zone in such a supportive environment was quite an accomplishment for many members and leaders.

And what about the whole point of having an experience like this?  Building community and creating experiences for our members is what it is all about.  We are so familiar with our supportive meeting room staff and fellow members.  We know their stories and feel their pain and celebrate their milestones.  We also know from "Connect" there is a greater community of fellow WW members doing what we are, counting points, getting over little boo-boos, and living life fully one day at a time.  To be in person, up close, sharing even more experiences with our great community is really something special. Someone got to lifetime on the cruise.  Talk about a story to share when he got back home to his regular meeting.  To sit down in a lovely dining room and be able to easily order fabulous food and WW wine (Cense) and know the points without worrying or wondering was magical.  Talk about feeling supported and cared for.  If you didn't want to order from the WW menu, no problem--you could order from the regular menu.  If you didn't want to choose from the WW buffet, no problem--you could choose from any of the other options.  I chose the best of the best from several options myself.  As a vegetarian, I got treated to stewed tomatoes with my scrambled eggs, baked apples with no sugar, lemon ricotta WW pancakes, fruit galore at every meal....

We all need to refresh and renew our commitment to ourselves and to our goals.  This is what keeps the program exciting.  Making positive changes with foods, activities, friends, etc. is what makes the program liveable.  We are on a life-long journey of good health and happiness.  And so we keep going.

We are about to embark on yet another change...an enhancement to our SmartPoints plan which is built solely upon member feedback.  The science of weight loss hasn't changed since the two years we switched from PointsPlus to SmartPoints.  The leading cause of obesity is the overconsumption of sat fat and sugar.  Those are the foods we overeat so easily, and those are the foods we eat because of stress, emotions and sleeplessness.   Stay tuned in your meeting to find out about how the program can be more flexible for you.  December 3 is the kickoff.

I learn so much from my members.  As a leader who has worked with WW for almost fourteen years, I am amazed how much I can still learn.  I am humbled to be part of such a vast group of like-minded people from all walks of life pursuing their goals, reaching for more, creating a better life one day at a time.  If you are wondering whether a WW cruise is right for you-- there are options to consider.  We are sailing in May 2018, August 2018 and November 2018 from Miami to the Caribbean and Mexico.  My members in Minnesota are asking for a land-based "cruise" experience whereby we would meet at a resort for a four-five day WW experience to try new things and share in this greater community.  Stay tuned. 

Try Something New

With the cold, dark days, we are naturally looking for more comfort.  Warmer clothes, "comfort" foods and hot beverages fit the bill.  Since 80% of weight loss is actually created through food choices, it is incredibly important to consider which foods are on the menu and should be highlighted and which foods should be in the margins, so to speak.

Choosing high protein foods is a smart way to go when it comes to satisfying hunger and limiting calories and Smartpoints.  We all know about animal proteins, the ones we probably grew up on.  Meat! However, there are also vegetarian/vegan proteins we can consider too.  This other protein source is often cheaper than animal protein, shelf stable and easy to incorporate in hearty cold weather meals.

Let's consider beans and lentils for instance.  We can add beans to soup, salad, chili and stew.  We can even create a side dish out of these tasty legumes.  Beans contain vitamins, minerals and more protein than animal proteins per serving.  That's a deal in the weight loss world.

Of course these interesting facts and tips are not enough to convert anyone who doesn't want to give them a try.  In fact, we need to be risk takers as Weight Watchers members and try something new.  With food, with exercise, with attitude--we all benefit from making a change, which creates a "thrill" for the body and mind.  By giving something new a try, we broaden our horizons and open ourselves up to more possibilities.  We don't know that we don't like black bean soup if we haven't ever tried it.  We don't know that vegetarian proteins won't satisfy unless we prepare them with some care and give it a go.

This brings us to what really matters, i.e. what is in your heart.  What you really want from your life is what matters.  What motivates you to get up and out of the house on a cold morning is what matters.  What makes you want to go home and see your family at the end of the day is what matters.   What makes you plan ahead and say NO to failure and YES to the future is what matters.

This week, consider trying something new--a new recipe or a new preparation of something you already enjoy (baked peaches, anyone?).  This will get you out of a food rut, surprise your body and tempt your taste buds with something different and create the spark that comes from making a change. 

You deserve the best life you can live.  One day at a time, one meal at a time, one good effort at a time--you can create the life you were meant to live.  Start now.

Sleep is Underrated

Gone are the days of bragging about living on little sleep.  Instead, we now know that quality sleep, as in uninterrupted sleep, for six plus hours per night is essential to good health.  Important recovery takes place on a cellular level when we sleep.  The mind has a chance to unravel and stop processing in a cognitive way.  The dream state takes over.  The body also needs a break.  Stress and fatigue are stored in the body.  Time to reset.  

So, what gets in the way of a good night?  Or, might I rephrase--what are things that we allow to get in the way of a good night?  I am not referring to parents of new babies who live through those wakeful nights.  There isn't a choice there.  You just survive it the best you can and grab a nap whenever you can.  I am talking about the rest of us with stress, jobs, interests, commitments, responsibilities, worries, etc.  I am talking about those of us who remain stimulated by screens or plugged in to work until far too late in the evening, or those who watch Netflix instead of going to bed, or those who eat too late at night to digest properly and then can't sleep, or those who haven't managed stress throughout the day so that the tension starts screaming the minute the lights go out.  

Living a healthy life means that we look at all that contributes or detracts from that life.  This includes what is known as "sleep hygiene."  How well do you set yourself for quality sleep?  Establishing a routine, a curfew for screens, quiet activity with low lighting and reduced noise can be a big help.  Keeping the bedroom free of work and signs of work so that the bed chamber is a place to relax and restore, signals to the body that there is nothing to do here but sleep.  Piles of laundry, dry cleaning and bill pay will make much harder to let go.  Black out shades or curtains send the body the message that nothing is going on here, so close your eyes and go to sleep.  Keeping the temperature in the room on the cooler side with comfortable blankets and pillows makes being in bed restorative and inviting.  

Hormones do not work correctly when we do not sleep well.  Our bodies crave more sweets and don't get satisfied with healthy foods when we are sleep deprived to say nothing of poor attention span, irritability and bad temper.  Face it, we all need our rest.  Take a page from the plant and animal world, restore at night.

This week, with daylight saving time coming to end, rethink your sleep.  Take a look at what you can do to improve.  Consider what you can do to manage stress throughout the day so that it doesn't keep you from falling asleep or keep you awake long after you do get to sleep.  

We need energy to keep our day powered.  We get that from sunlight, from healthy foods, staying hydrated, exercising and good, quality sleep.  

Night night.

Emotional Eating--Transforming Negative Energy into Positive

We are all guilty of emotional eating.  Whether we get caught up in the stress of every-day life or we get carried away in the excitement of the moment.  With our steady stream of food opportunities, snacks, samples and workplace treats, this is a real problem.  So much of these "extras" are high fat and high sugar, which is where real weight gain comes from.  These foods are also easy to overeat.  Furthermore, these high calorie foods "make us feel better" for the moment so that makes us turn to them even more.

We know we aren't supposed to sit down with a jumbo bag of chips after a long day, but that is not enough to keep us from doing it.  So, what else can we do to become more aware of ourselves in the moment and make small changes to manage the emotions?  It depends on the situation.  If you are going to a happy occasion like a wedding, Octoberfest party or holiday gathering, you know you will be socializing with friends and family waiting to see you.  Focusing on the friends, the camaraderie and the fun while steering clear of the buffet could help.  What about the afternoon slump at work or a lull in activities at home on evenings and weekends?  Again, slowing down long enough to ask yourself what is really happening?  Are you bored, frustrated, in transition, procrastinating, lonely, stressed out?  Those are feelings that no amount of food can manage.  This is where we purposefully stay away from high calorie treats and think about an appropriate response to the problem.  If you are bored, you need an activity.  Eating doesn't count as an activity.  If you are lonely, you need more than Ben and Jerry to keep you company.  You need to reach out to friends and reconnect.  If you are stressed from work, you need to manage that stress by dumping it out through exercise or meditation or something much more fulfilling.

I have been studying chi gong in order to get my 200 hour certification.  Chi gong is a mind/body exercise where the breath links the mind with the body, as in yoga.  First the mind thinks something, and then the body does something.  In my training, Master Lee Holden talks about the power of transforming negative energy into positive energy.  We can use this to help with weight loss and weight maintenance.

What kind of energy are you living in?  What is swirling around you?  Are you in a good mood, feeling positive and clear?  Are you in a negative mood, feeling defeated or frustrated and distracted?  Are you in a place of nothing too good or too bad, but you can't quite put a finger on it?  Whatever quality of energy in you and around you speaks to you.  For example, when you are on top of the world, things are organized and going well, you smile more, pay compliments to others and speak in a positive way about things.  Your own energy is bursting, and you are using it for the good.  On the other hand, when you are depleted and not getting quality sleep and nursing a sick child, you are running on empty.  Your body says--slow down and take a nap.  Your mind says--you can't keep this up.  Your stress says--eat junky food.

Seeking a more balanced lifestyle where we are aware of how we are feeling, what we are doing, where we want to be going is a worthy pursuit.  Seeking helpful ways to transform negative energy into positive energy puts us in the driver's seat.  We then feel calmer and more in control.

Emotions are constantly shifting.  Whether we believe it or not, we are all emotional beings who feel things from the joy of a compliment to the negativity of criticism.   However, as people looking for more good living, more health, more vitality and more confidence, we need to slow down and rethink how we are going to manage our precious feelings and our unpleasant ones.  We need to consider how we can shift our mindset and then our behavior so that food doesn't seem like the answer to coping with stress or high emotions.  It's a lifelong pursuit because every day is different, posing its unique set of challenges.  However, the better we get at transforming negative energy into positive, the more weight loss we can create and maintain.  The more balanced living we can enjoy.

Get Back to Basics

When life becomes overwhelming, and it's hard to focus, that is precisely the time to return to the basics, to keep it simple and real.  When it comes to food, that means start with the food groups which are:  fruits, veggies, whole grains, lean protein and protein substitutes, dairy and dairy substitutes and healthy oils. The single ingredient foods from these groups are the most nutrient dense, filling, healthy and low in calories, sugar, saturated fat and sodium.  A balance of the food groups creates satisfied eating, improves the chance for weight loss, reduces cravings for sugar and aids digestion.

Food has long been valued for its medicinal properties.  For example, in traditional Chinese medicine, depending on the ailment and the organ, there is a corresponding food to consume to create healing and balance.  Fast forward thousands of years, to my own childhood when my grandmother called chicken noodle soup "Jewish penicillin."  We aren't Jewish, but the soothing comfort of hot soup that is simple and satisfying no matter what religion you are can do the trick.  This is another version of going back to basics, i.e. what is simple is what will often work best.

Over the years, the science of weight loss and nutrition has evolved.  So has our eating.  We know things now that we had no clue about before.  My grandfather was a diabetic.  In the 70's, he was given a baked potato instead of french fries because that was thought to be healthier for a diabetic.  The fact is that while the baked potato wasn't fried, it had just as many carbs as the french fries and was not really any "healthier" for a diabetic.

More recently, there has been a major misunderstanding about cholesterol.  We all have good cholesterol and "bad" cholesterol in our system.  Certain foods are known to add to the "bad" cholesterol--namely saturated fats.  We now know that the overconsumption of saturated fat (and sugar) is the leading cause of obesity in the world not cholesterol.

Moderation in all things--including moderation itself is the key.  The sweet spot in our eating comes from choosing mostly healthy foods most of the time with a dash of extras thrown in to keep us interested and satisfied.  By filling up on the basic food groups, our bodies get what they want and need--fuel.  By adding in a few treats now and then, our minds get what they want--something more exciting.  By finding a balance, we enjoy life more fully.  This is the "sweetest" spot of all.

Where Does Time Go

We all have the same twenty-four hours in a day.  Some days it feels like the day is just flying by--in a good way.  Other days, it feels like the day is barely moving--in a bad way.  When we are engaged in activities that please us, with people we enjoy, our impression is that time is moving too fast.  When we are unhappy or dealing with difficult jobs or waiting in the emergency room with someone very ill, our impression is that time is crawling.  

How we value our time is another aspect of how we perceive its passing.  For some, time IS money.  

Those people are not "wasting" their time on things that aren't financially profitable.  On the other hand, there is a book titled "Your Money or Your Time" meaning what do you value more?   Perception is reality.  We get to decide.

As adults, we have so many responsibilities from work, family activities, house projects, financial obligations, self care--it leaves little time for sleep, fun, hobbies or entertainment.  However, we all benefit from seeking and creating a more balanced distribution of our time.  That means that more often than not, we find time to balance our responsibilities with a burst of "ME TIME" with no guilt attached. Even a ten minute walk without the pressure of answering the phone can refine the day. Going to bed, although there is laundry to do, might also serve to add balance.  Eliminating time wasters like too much social media can also help reclaim valuable "ME TIME."

Creating balance allows us to de-stress.   In the technology age, we suffer from chronic stress that keeps cortisol flowing.  Cortisol makes us crave junky foods, store fat around the middle and experience more ailments, viruses, depression and anxiety.  We owe it to ourselves to look at our priorities and make sure that we place high value on "ME TIME."  In doing so, we bring the powerful and restorative good energy back to where it belongs.  We feel better.  We become more positive.  We didn't gain more time, but we did redistribute it more effectively.  That counts.

Self improvement takes focus, desire, effort and precious time.  Make time so that you can succeed at what you prioritize this week.  

We All Need Reasons

When we hear self improvement advice, it often sounds great, and in fact, we can't really argue with it. Drink more water.  Go to bed earlier at night.  Take the stairs.  Eat half at restaurants. Call your mother. The list goes on.  The problem comes from the fact that we can't do everything all the time.  That's not reasonable.  We only have so much energy to give.  There is only so much time.  We have to concentrate our efforts towards the things that matter most.

Therein lies the issue.  What matters most?  What deserves our attention now?  What will really please us?  It comes down to our own personal desires.  With weight loss and behavior change, we need to keep digging deep to find reasons to keep going.  We need to find worthwhile reasons that really matter to NOT have two glasses of wine when everyone else seems to be.  We need to find compelling reasons to get up early to exercise or to stay late to exercise or to skip lunch with coworkers to exercise. It comes down to how we want to live.  These reasons don't have to be the same every day or even moment to moment.  In fact, sometimes when we feel really defeated, the only reason we can find to keep going is that we refuse to give up. That's a great reason.

Refuse to give up on yourself.  Refuse to settle for less than what you really want just because it might be taking a while to get there.  Refuse to be distracted by everyone else's needs instead of considering your own.

Refuse to give up.  That's your reason.