Hello WW Philadelphia Member!
Over the last year of staying mostly at home, every nook and cranny of the house has been organized and you and your Amazon delivery person have really gotten to know each other. Things have changed, thank goodness, and moving on to getting out and being with friends, family, and co-workers is a BIG deal.
The way we evolve as WW Members is interesting too. If you have been a Member for a while you evolve in the ways of cutting or using POINTS. Some substitutes are fine, some are fine occasionally and some need to RIP forEVER.
There are some real foods you never want to give up and truly that is the way it should be. There should not be a list of banned items but instead, there are foods that are eaten in certain quantities, in certain situations, and sometimes even with certain people.
Here’s an example, I LOVE desserts. I’m sure you’re very surprised by this admission. The safest environment for me to indulge in a dessert is at a restaurant and shared with a naturally thin friend or two. I can even feign the “This is divine, but I’ve had enough” comment and put my fork down when my friend does, leaving the last couple of lonely bites and hoping the server picks up the plate quickly.
A super controversial subject among WW Members is the use of sweeteners, real and artificial. After using artificial sweeteners for years, I made a personal choice to not use them anymore and use small amounts of the real stuff occasionally. Probably the part I thought would be hardest, eventually became the easiest and that was dropping diet soda. When I take an occasional sip of a diet or real soda, I really don’t need or want it, I haven’t drunk a whole can or bottle for nearly a decade. I truly enjoy the water with all meals and do not miss soda at all. The darling husband on the other hand has a major Pepsi addiction and has never been more than 5 pounds over or under the correct weight for his height (grumbling dirty words to myself).
One thing I was never prepared to give up or change was mayonnaise. I have to say, I LOVE mayo and I mean real mayo. A long-time WW friend has always been the pusher of mixing Greek yogurt with mayo for a lower SP count, even before non-fat plain Greek yogurt was a zero SmartPOINT food on Blue and Purple. I always let it go in one ear and out the other. I didn’t want to hear her suggestions about messing with my mayo and then a few months ago, I tried it. I was shocked, it was really good, and I have even pushed the ratios a little more than her 50/50 recommendation. Yesterday I made a creamy salad dressing with ¾ cup of nonfat Greek yogurt, ¼ cup of mayo, a sprinkle of Hidden Valley dressing and seasoning mix, and nearly 2 tablespoons of Siracha hot sauce for a total of 13 SP (blue plan) but makes at least 4 servings depending upon how it is being used. It was so good, very creamy, and tasted so indulgent. I had a ¼ cup of it on my huge mixed vegetable salad with chicken and black beans. I have used the 50/50 ratio with tuna, and it is delicious, makes one tablespoon of mayo (3SP) stretch so much further. My friend was right, and I wish I had tried this sooner.
Another WW Staffer loves Fairlife Milk and while pricy compared to regular milk, the taste and viscosity of the non-fat Fairlife is superior to traditional non-fat milk. I admit it, I like it and especially when the milk is a main component of the meal, as when eating cereal. There are several studies in the library of the National Institute of Health during the last 10-15 years showing people who had cereal (no added sugar, read the label) with nonfat milk as an evening snack were more successful at controlling their total caloric intake for the day and lost more weight than the control group who didn’t eat cereal as an evening snack.
WW Workshops live and virtual are enormous bounties of information from experienced (that’s better than saying “OLD”) Members and super excited new Members. Even though the subject of a workshop isn’t and shouldn’t always be about food…the inspiration, tips, and tricks learned from others are priceless.
Be sure you get the good stuff at your workshop this week or maybe it’s your turn to share the good stuff. Something like weight loss, activity inspirations, how you lessen the stress in your life, or something delicious, simple, and low in SP.
Take care, be kind and do something good in the world around you,
Deb Wright
General Manager
